-We are in the midst of another beautiful day in Halifax. At the moment the sun is shining and the temperature is well above zero. Hopefully I will get to experience some of this weather first hand not simply as mediated through my bedroom window.
-I am now down to 2/5 for this year's Roll Up the Rim to win. Though my last rim wasn't successful I don't feel so bad about the loss as I normally would. In this case, before rolling up the rim I sold 50% of the outcome to Rebecca for 50 cents. The final negative outcome, at least as far as I was concerned, was somewhat tempered by the fact that I had reduced my risk made 30 cents on top of the crudely calculated expected value of the rim. I may have to start collecting my rims and then selling some of the action to make up for the fact that I will otherwise likely get nothing from the experience.
-Last night all three of us attended a talk by Jorge Cham of Piled Higher and Deeper/Ph.D. Comics organized by DAGS. I was pleased to see that quite a number of math grad students made the trip, as did a number of political science students.
Afterwards most of us (meaning math and political science) made our way to the Grawood, the campus bar, for a few drinks, some food, socializing, and trivia. While the food, drinks, and socializing were great, the trivia was a bit of a dud. I am not sure exactly what it is, but they really don't know how to write good trivia questions at the Grawood. Not surprisingly, not having good questions makes the whole thing rather unpleasant.
-We have two Ultimate games tomorrow. We have this unusually large number because of our scheduling problem last week.
-My PB is still 9 chin-ups. It seems that I haven't made much progress in the past day or so.
Showing posts with label trivia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trivia. Show all posts
Friday, March 12, 2010
Friday, September 25, 2009
A Few Quick Notes 360
-We seem to be switching between periods of rain and periods when it is overcast, and about to rain. I guess such a situation is better than having a thunderstorm, which might still be in the works for later this afternoon or this evening.
-We had a beef stir-fry for dinner last night. As I am trying to cut back on red meat I didn't include all 2.5 pounds of meat that were available to me, instead I went with only about 1.25 pounds, which was still likely more than enough.
-On Tuesday I went in for my second round of lithotripsy. As far as I can tell things went well, though I seem not to have passed as many fragments as after the first time. The nice this is that I felt much less discomfort after the procedure that I did after the first round. Actually, discomfort level is so low it is almost hard to believe that I was actually even blasted.
-Last night Neil, Rebecca and I went to the weekly trivia night at the Grawood (though Neil and Rebecca left early). In retrospect this decision was a bit of a mistake. Not only were there other things I should have been doing, I was far to tired to really enjoy the experience or contribute in any meaningful way.
-My sense of things is that the comedian Louis CK is performing in Halifax at the Rebecca Cohn auditorium tonight. While I wouldn't mind seeing him perform at some point, I don't think that tonight will be the night (mainly because I don't have tickets, nor do I expect to have tickets). Furthermore, while being interviewed on Q this morning he seemed to suggest that he wasn't as big a fan of auditorium shows as of club shows, so this might not be a particularly good venue in which to see him anyway. Maybe when he comes back to town to play the local Yuk Yuk's I will get a chance to see him.
-On Wednesday we had another Ultimate game. Neil didn't attend because he was claiming his neck was hurting (given that he has kept his story consistent for a number of days now maybe I should consider accepting that his neck actually does hurt). Unfortunately, Neil wasn't the only male that couldn't attend so we were down to 5 males, which means that we had only one substitute. This wasn't so bad until we ended up playing a single point that took almost 30 minutes, really tiring the 7 of us on the field.
During this monster point I dove for the disc and made a relatively impressive (or so I have been told) catch. Of course soon after making the catch I made a relatively poorly thought out throw that resulted in a turnover. The most consequential aspect of the catch, that I didn't figure out until a little later, was that while diving I managed to give myself quite a turf/carpet burn on my right arm. I guess this means that I might have to be a little more careful about this things in future games.
-A number of the tomatoes are now, seemingly quite quickly, working their way towards ripe. I have been quite impressed at how quickly they have been turning red. I would guess that close to 8 or 9 have now started to make such a transition, though I still have to work about protecting them from frost between now and the time they will fully ripen, which may be another few weeks.
-I feel that there were a few more things that I wanted to comment upon, but it seems that that is not going to happen today, I just don't have the energy at the moment. Maybe if I get my act together I will make another post later this evening/afternoon.
-We had a beef stir-fry for dinner last night. As I am trying to cut back on red meat I didn't include all 2.5 pounds of meat that were available to me, instead I went with only about 1.25 pounds, which was still likely more than enough.
-On Tuesday I went in for my second round of lithotripsy. As far as I can tell things went well, though I seem not to have passed as many fragments as after the first time. The nice this is that I felt much less discomfort after the procedure that I did after the first round. Actually, discomfort level is so low it is almost hard to believe that I was actually even blasted.
-Last night Neil, Rebecca and I went to the weekly trivia night at the Grawood (though Neil and Rebecca left early). In retrospect this decision was a bit of a mistake. Not only were there other things I should have been doing, I was far to tired to really enjoy the experience or contribute in any meaningful way.
-My sense of things is that the comedian Louis CK is performing in Halifax at the Rebecca Cohn auditorium tonight. While I wouldn't mind seeing him perform at some point, I don't think that tonight will be the night (mainly because I don't have tickets, nor do I expect to have tickets). Furthermore, while being interviewed on Q this morning he seemed to suggest that he wasn't as big a fan of auditorium shows as of club shows, so this might not be a particularly good venue in which to see him anyway. Maybe when he comes back to town to play the local Yuk Yuk's I will get a chance to see him.
-On Wednesday we had another Ultimate game. Neil didn't attend because he was claiming his neck was hurting (given that he has kept his story consistent for a number of days now maybe I should consider accepting that his neck actually does hurt). Unfortunately, Neil wasn't the only male that couldn't attend so we were down to 5 males, which means that we had only one substitute. This wasn't so bad until we ended up playing a single point that took almost 30 minutes, really tiring the 7 of us on the field.
During this monster point I dove for the disc and made a relatively impressive (or so I have been told) catch. Of course soon after making the catch I made a relatively poorly thought out throw that resulted in a turnover. The most consequential aspect of the catch, that I didn't figure out until a little later, was that while diving I managed to give myself quite a turf/carpet burn on my right arm. I guess this means that I might have to be a little more careful about this things in future games.
-A number of the tomatoes are now, seemingly quite quickly, working their way towards ripe. I have been quite impressed at how quickly they have been turning red. I would guess that close to 8 or 9 have now started to make such a transition, though I still have to work about protecting them from frost between now and the time they will fully ripen, which may be another few weeks.
-I feel that there were a few more things that I wanted to comment upon, but it seems that that is not going to happen today, I just don't have the energy at the moment. Maybe if I get my act together I will make another post later this evening/afternoon.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 213
-Though we started the day with heavy rain we have now settled into a
pattern of overcast skies and moderate temperatures. While I have
heard that things are to clear up I am not going to hold out too much
hope.
pattern of overcast skies and moderate temperatures. While I have
heard that things are to clear up I am not going to hold out too much
hope.
-This evening I have an Ultimate game, the first in our play-off run.
I will be playing Mike and Andrew's team, a team that we did not face
during the regular season.
My understanding is that win or lose we will have at least a game or
two on Saturday, though I don't know where the Saturday games are to
take place.
-Last night Gina and I attended Rose and Thistle trivia. Though we
only had a two person team we managed to do relatively well (2.5
points out of first). As usual the place was packed. It seemed that
every available seat was taken, some people were even forced to stand.
-I might have to bake some bread on Friday. On the other hand, I
could just decide to make due with what I have as I will be heading
out of town on Tuesday.
-My move is approaching quickly. I still haven't quite figured out
what I am going to pack. Maybe I will have to try to dedicate some
time to this matter tonight (though what are the chances that this is
actually going to happen?).
-On Saturday night I spent a few hours at Eastern Edge's annual 24
Hour Art Marathon. As I was entering the facility and waiting to pay
the admission cost I was noticed by one of the participants. He was
quite taken with the suspenders that I was wearing. He couldn't stop
feeling them, though he was kind enough to ask if his touching my
suspenders bothered me. He went on to inquire about whether I would
be performing any music as he seemed to think that anyone with such a
set of suspenders should be making music (clearly musical
qualifications are based on clothing choices).
While I didn't perform any music I did elicit a number of comments
because of the suspenders. It seems that as the only person at such
an event in a suit and suspenders I kind of stood out. Presumably
there are even photos of me in my suspenders floating about the
internet, though I don't know in which direction they might be
floating.
Suspender comments aside, I had a good time walking around talking to
people and checking out the variety of projects that were being
undertaken or that had previously been completed. In one case I went
so far as to place a silent auction bid on one of the items (I know,
crazy me).
Anyway, not that I will be in town next year (at least I don't think I
will be in town next August), I would consider attending the event
again. Maybe next time I would try to show up early enough to
actually partake in some of the organized events and activities rather
than just wandering around the building aimlessly for a few hours
Thursday, August 14, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 211
-When I awoke this morning I was shocked to find that the skies were
clear and the sun was shining. Apparently I missed the early morning
showers, which is just fine with me. Unfortunately, this great
weather is not expected to last, torrential downpours are predicted
for tomorrow (though Saturday is supposed to be nice).
clear and the sun was shining. Apparently I missed the early morning
showers, which is just fine with me. Unfortunately, this great
weather is not expected to last, torrential downpours are predicted
for tomorrow (though Saturday is supposed to be nice).
-We played a very fun game of Ultimate last night. After a slow start
we managed to pull ahead and take a commanding lead. It was quite a
nice way to finish off the regular season.
Though we managed to win our last two games we are still solidly in
the middle of the pack in our tier. As I am not sure how final
rankings are to be determined I don't really know in which position
we will finish, though I am not sure that it really matters too much
as there are a few teams with similar records. I guess in the coming
days this will all be worked out.
-It seems that there is a most for Bitters trivia tonight. If I
manage to attend, as is my plan, I will have a two trivia night week.
This is something that hasn't happened for me since last summer.
-I am out of lunch food at my house-sitting house. I will need to
acquire some of this before I try to prepare my lunch for tomorrow.
-On Saturday I have a wedding to attend. Since I first received the
invitation in April I have been really looking forward to the event.
Hopefully all will go well.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 210
-Though we started the day with overcast skies and high humidity,
things seemed to have turned around. Instead of the mid-day
thundershowers that were predicted we seem to have the clearing skies
that were called for later in the day.
things seemed to have turned around. Instead of the mid-day
thundershowers that were predicted we seem to have the clearing skies
that were called for later in the day.
I just hope that this holds until about 8:30 this evening.
-I have my second Ultimate game of the week this evening. Tonight we
will be playing at the slightly sloped Brother Egan field. As it
happens, this is our last game of regular season play. At some point
in the coming days we will have to figure out our play-off position
and schedule.
-Last night, for the first time this summer, a few of us went to the
Rose and Thistle for their weekly trivia night. While we didn't win I
think we put in a respectable showing, and I know that I had a very
good time.
As much as a fan of Bitters' trivia, I am becoming more convinced that
the Rose and Thistle format is better. Having only questions allows
for a more relaxed pace. Additionally, the starting hour can be later
and the finishing hour earlier. Also, by counting down from 30 until
a winner is found is a very effective way of creating suspense among
the participants.
-According to the 1982 Report on the Births Marriages and Deaths in
the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador the rate of illegitimate
births (per 1000 births) rose from 113.0 to 196.1 between 1973 and
1982. It seems that this is the last year that these statistics were
included in this particular report.
-Last night Mike made a comment about wanting to sign up to a personal
newsletter, if I actually had one. I was then able to remind him that
I do have a blog, and the blog is set-up in such a way that it will
send subscribers daily email updates. While I think he found the
comment amusing and informative, I am not sure if he was persuaded to
sign up for the daily email (even though it is a great way to keep up
with all the goings on at Montifax).
Thursday, July 24, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 202
-After a brief interlude comprised of rain and fog we seem to be back to more palatable weather. Actually, what is particularly nice about the weather presently is that it is sunny without being oppressively hot or humid. Unfortunately, this is not forecast to carry over to the weekend.
-While walking the house-sitting dog today I was again shocked. Somehow the dog managed to defecate three times during a half-hour walk. Fortunately I had enough bags to clean up each time, though at the end I was really started to run low.
-On a related note, it seems that the world food shortage is affecting the availability of dog food as well. The type of dog food that the dog normally consumes is out of stock and may not be available for another three months. I am really not sure how long the 5 pound bag of food that I purchased yesterday will last, or what I will do if it runs out before I have finished with my house-sitting duties.
-For the first time in at least a year I will be hosting trivia at Bitters. While I have been meaning to do this for some period of time only when I found a potential co-host and didn't have a Ultimate game on a Thursday was I able to actually make plans to do it. Hopefully our questions will be well received.
-It seems that the replacement nut and bolt that I purchased for my bike may not actually be doing as good a job as I had hoped they would. My seat seems to wiggle up and down while I ride. Each time I ride I hope that my seat doesn't fall off at some point during my trip.
Though I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, I am pretty sure that I will need to buy a new seat and seat post.
-Last night I attended my friend Darryl's bachelor party. While we didn't have any strippers and the drinking was kept to a responsible level we did manage to keep the discussions in the gutter. For the few hours that I was there I able to laugh at and recount stories on a range of blue topics.
The only downside of the party, at least from my perspective, was that I wasn't able to have any beer because I had to drive home.
-While walking the house-sitting dog today I was again shocked. Somehow the dog managed to defecate three times during a half-hour walk. Fortunately I had enough bags to clean up each time, though at the end I was really started to run low.
-On a related note, it seems that the world food shortage is affecting the availability of dog food as well. The type of dog food that the dog normally consumes is out of stock and may not be available for another three months. I am really not sure how long the 5 pound bag of food that I purchased yesterday will last, or what I will do if it runs out before I have finished with my house-sitting duties.
-For the first time in at least a year I will be hosting trivia at Bitters. While I have been meaning to do this for some period of time only when I found a potential co-host and didn't have a Ultimate game on a Thursday was I able to actually make plans to do it. Hopefully our questions will be well received.
-It seems that the replacement nut and bolt that I purchased for my bike may not actually be doing as good a job as I had hoped they would. My seat seems to wiggle up and down while I ride. Each time I ride I hope that my seat doesn't fall off at some point during my trip.
Though I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, I am pretty sure that I will need to buy a new seat and seat post.
-Last night I attended my friend Darryl's bachelor party. While we didn't have any strippers and the drinking was kept to a responsible level we did manage to keep the discussions in the gutter. For the few hours that I was there I able to laugh at and recount stories on a range of blue topics.
The only downside of the party, at least from my perspective, was that I wasn't able to have any beer because I had to drive home.
Friday, July 04, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 194
-Today has been another nice day. The skies are clear and the temperature is above 5.
-Something I didn't mention in the last post is that our team received our jerseys just before our ultimate game yesterday. While one might think that this should be good, I am not really so sure.
Unlike in past years when I had solid colour jerseys, this year my team has camouflage jerseys. Not only are our jerseys the only multi-colour jerseys, they are also the only ones that are tank-tops (which doesn't happen to my favourite shirt style). Even more frustrating is that the cut is a little strange, possibly just the regular t-shirt cut, but without the arms, instead of a specially designed tank-top design.
My impression of the jerseys so far is that they look and feel as though we are running around with garbage bags instead of shirts. Hopefully as I become more familiar with the item it will become more comfortable, and that I be so self-conscious about wearing a camouflage tank-top.
-A few years ago I started to use the comment function available in some OPACs whenever I see cataloging decisions I don't agree with. While I occasionally remember to go back and check and see that some of my suggestions are taken I always wonder who it is that gets the pleasure of going through these comments, and how many such comments come up in the run of a day.
-It looks as though I will be having steak and potatoes for dinner tonight. I am pretty sure that I could handle such a meal several times a week.
-Today I started working on some trivia questions. The plan is that I will try to host trivia at Bitters on a night I don't also have ultimate, which seem to be few and far between. Hopefully my rounds will come together in the next few days
-Something I didn't mention in the last post is that our team received our jerseys just before our ultimate game yesterday. While one might think that this should be good, I am not really so sure.
Unlike in past years when I had solid colour jerseys, this year my team has camouflage jerseys. Not only are our jerseys the only multi-colour jerseys, they are also the only ones that are tank-tops (which doesn't happen to my favourite shirt style). Even more frustrating is that the cut is a little strange, possibly just the regular t-shirt cut, but without the arms, instead of a specially designed tank-top design.
My impression of the jerseys so far is that they look and feel as though we are running around with garbage bags instead of shirts. Hopefully as I become more familiar with the item it will become more comfortable, and that I be so self-conscious about wearing a camouflage tank-top.
-A few years ago I started to use the comment function available in some OPACs whenever I see cataloging decisions I don't agree with. While I occasionally remember to go back and check and see that some of my suggestions are taken I always wonder who it is that gets the pleasure of going through these comments, and how many such comments come up in the run of a day.
-It looks as though I will be having steak and potatoes for dinner tonight. I am pretty sure that I could handle such a meal several times a week.
-Today I started working on some trivia questions. The plan is that I will try to host trivia at Bitters on a night I don't also have ultimate, which seem to be few and far between. Hopefully my rounds will come together in the next few days
Thursday, July 03, 2008
A Few Quick Notes 193
-Aside from a few rain drops, today has been a rather nice day. Possibly even more important than the quality of the weather today is that fine weather has been predicted for the next few days (a prediction that I hope comes true).
-Today when searching by ISBN in Amicus I had 5 records returned for a single ISBN. While it is likely that this is not the record in this category, it is a much larger number than I would have expected. One would hope that only a single record would be returned for most ISBNs.
-It is possible that I have secured a house-sitting gig for the latter part of July. If this works out it would tie in nicely with my early August house-sitting obligation.
-I really dislike serials that under-go name changes. Not only have such changes caused me to have nightmares but they are also a bit of a pain to catalogue and I can't imagine that many people are able to follow the changes.
-We had a frisbee game. We all seemed to play much better this time around. In the end we managed to hang on to the lead long enough to secure the win.
-A few of us went to Bitters for trivia. Unfortunately, we didn't do all that well, but better than at least two teams. We were particularly hammered by a comic book category on which we scored zero.
-This year I have seen a number of very large ants. I don't recall seeing such creatures in past year. I wonder if Newfoundland has a new invasive species.
-Today when searching by ISBN in Amicus I had 5 records returned for a single ISBN. While it is likely that this is not the record in this category, it is a much larger number than I would have expected. One would hope that only a single record would be returned for most ISBNs.
-It is possible that I have secured a house-sitting gig for the latter part of July. If this works out it would tie in nicely with my early August house-sitting obligation.
-I really dislike serials that under-go name changes. Not only have such changes caused me to have nightmares but they are also a bit of a pain to catalogue and I can't imagine that many people are able to follow the changes.
-We had a frisbee game. We all seemed to play much better this time around. In the end we managed to hang on to the lead long enough to secure the win.
-A few of us went to Bitters for trivia. Unfortunately, we didn't do all that well, but better than at least two teams. We were particularly hammered by a comic book category on which we scored zero.
-This year I have seen a number of very large ants. I don't recall seeing such creatures in past year. I wonder if Newfoundland has a new invasive species.
Saturday, August 18, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 111
-Another rainy St. John’s day today. What is surprising is how much time it has actually been raining this month. Maybe we will break a record.
-In 1998 or 1999, while I was still in high school, my mother and I made a small batch of dogberry wine. If I recall correctly we ended up with about 4 bottles, one of which was given to a friend for Christmas, two of which were consumed at the time, and the remaining bottle of which was left to age. For some reason that I still can’t quite figure out it became imperative that the bottle be opened a few days ago, or we were going to toss it. As someone who develops attachments to such things I was opposed to opening the bottle and preferred that we keep it in the basement forever. Anyway, the bottle was opened and after an initial sniff test it was determined to be acceptable to serve. Amazingly it seems that aging the wine made a huge difference. What had been an almost undrinkable product 8 or 9 years ago was palatable, though not in the realm of ‘good.’ Most noticeable was the very distinct and crisp bitter dogberry taste. In a few days this batch will be but a memory and it will be time to start on the next batch.
-Earlier this week, while skimming through the Globe and Mail online edition, I came across an article about $15 cups of coffee. After several descriptions of the supposedly abundant flavour of this coffee those of a less experienced coffee drinker were also included. While this woman acknowledged that the coffee was flavourful, it seemed odd to her that for the same price she could have had something she valued more, which in her case was lip-gloss. Aside from being baffled at a $15 cup of coffee, I was amazed that someone could manage to pay $15 for lip-gloss and not feel extremely ripped off. In full-blown student mode, not only could I buy lip-gloss, but also I could likely feed myself for 2 or 3 days on that kind of money. I guess some people value on different things.
-Recently, while looking at an undated report on portable classrooms I came across discussions regarding these structures at schools that I had attended. I was particularly taken aback by the photos of sub-par portable classrooms at I.J. These photos were disturbing not only because of the poor quality, but also because I had no recollection of these facilities (I can't even imagine where they might have been). Based on the evidence in the photos it is likely a good thing that they were gone by the time that I arrived, they seemed to be falling apart.
-While we have been doing relatively well at Rose and Thistle trivia the past number of weeks we haven’t been able to convert any of our success into a coveted $50 bar tab. Three weeks ago we had the infamous transcription error, two weeks ago we were out by a point, and last week we managed to foul up the tie-breaker question.
At Bitters this week we weren’t even close. Not only did we manage to do spectacularly poorly on the Tour de France round, we also managed to mess up several additional categories. Though we finished second last, we were only about 8 points away from the leader.
-In 1998 or 1999, while I was still in high school, my mother and I made a small batch of dogberry wine. If I recall correctly we ended up with about 4 bottles, one of which was given to a friend for Christmas, two of which were consumed at the time, and the remaining bottle of which was left to age. For some reason that I still can’t quite figure out it became imperative that the bottle be opened a few days ago, or we were going to toss it. As someone who develops attachments to such things I was opposed to opening the bottle and preferred that we keep it in the basement forever. Anyway, the bottle was opened and after an initial sniff test it was determined to be acceptable to serve. Amazingly it seems that aging the wine made a huge difference. What had been an almost undrinkable product 8 or 9 years ago was palatable, though not in the realm of ‘good.’ Most noticeable was the very distinct and crisp bitter dogberry taste. In a few days this batch will be but a memory and it will be time to start on the next batch.
-Earlier this week, while skimming through the Globe and Mail online edition, I came across an article about $15 cups of coffee. After several descriptions of the supposedly abundant flavour of this coffee those of a less experienced coffee drinker were also included. While this woman acknowledged that the coffee was flavourful, it seemed odd to her that for the same price she could have had something she valued more, which in her case was lip-gloss. Aside from being baffled at a $15 cup of coffee, I was amazed that someone could manage to pay $15 for lip-gloss and not feel extremely ripped off. In full-blown student mode, not only could I buy lip-gloss, but also I could likely feed myself for 2 or 3 days on that kind of money. I guess some people value on different things.
-Recently, while looking at an undated report on portable classrooms I came across discussions regarding these structures at schools that I had attended. I was particularly taken aback by the photos of sub-par portable classrooms at I.J. These photos were disturbing not only because of the poor quality, but also because I had no recollection of these facilities (I can't even imagine where they might have been). Based on the evidence in the photos it is likely a good thing that they were gone by the time that I arrived, they seemed to be falling apart.
-While we have been doing relatively well at Rose and Thistle trivia the past number of weeks we haven’t been able to convert any of our success into a coveted $50 bar tab. Three weeks ago we had the infamous transcription error, two weeks ago we were out by a point, and last week we managed to foul up the tie-breaker question.
At Bitters this week we weren’t even close. Not only did we manage to do spectacularly poorly on the Tour de France round, we also managed to mess up several additional categories. Though we finished second last, we were only about 8 points away from the leader.
Saturday, August 04, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 110
-Today is another nice summer day in St. John’s. While not hot, the temperature is by no means cold, though I can imagine that some might say that it is cool. Actually, while on my early morning bagel run with my sister, she claimed it was cool enough to need a jacket. Not surprisingly, at least from my perspective, she soon found that it was actually warm enough and removed the jacket.
-As some of you might have been able to deduce from comments written above, Georgetown Bakery has re-opened after their summer hiatus. Not surprisingly, it was pretty busy, many people obviously wanted their fix after going two and a half week without Georgetown products.
-On the subject of stores, several weeks ago I learned that the NLC store on Water Street will be closing in the near future, though I don’t know an exact date. Prior to learning that it was closing I learned, by reading NLC’s annual report, that, comparatively, it did not make that much money. For the year reported, the small store in Churchill Square and the Water Street stores had similar revenues.
This closure may cause some of you to worry that your access to high-end wines will be disappearing, but this is not the case. It seems that controversial new store, built on what was once a field, even now has a better selection of high-end wines than the Water Street store.
-On Tuesday, as is my practice, I went to the Rose and Thistle for their weekly trivia night. As the evening was to get underway promptly at 9:00 PM I arrived a little earlier than usual so that I would be sure to have a good table. Not surprisingly there wasn’t a big rush and upon my entry I became one of only two patrons in the bar. This wasn’t so bad as I had a free copy of the Town Cryer (sp?) with which I was able to distract myself.
With plenty of time to spare Peter showed up and we patiently waited for things to get underway. As we should have expected, this didn’t really happen at the pace that we had been lead to believe it would last week. As usual things got underway ten or fifteen minutes after 9:00 PM.
As the first fifteen questions were being asked there was a definite sense among the participants that they were on the easy side of things. Even if this is the case, my experience is that the second half is typically more difficult than the first half.
Anyway, as we proceeded to the second half we were feeling pretty good about the early round, and pretty good about the questions in the second round, though were definitely a few that we did not get. Unfortunately, the host did not open up a question about the boroughs of New York that would have allowed me to earn us an extra point. Anyway, thing were still ok. Fortunately this week, unlike last week, there were no instances of last minute changes or disagreements that lead to the correct answer being exchanged for the wrong answer. Shortly after the final question we handed the host a copy of our answer sheet (so that he can confirm the score we have given ourselves).
As the correcting started out positive feeling continued, it seemed that we had a few that several other teams had missed, though we also missed a few. By the time the grading had stopped we appeared to have 24 out of a possible 30.5. As the host counted down from 30.5 our hopes of winning grew, particularly as he a steadily approached out number without anyone else announcing a higher score. Suddenly he reached 24 and we alerted him of our having attained that score.
It seemed that another team also was trying to indicate that they too had a similar score. Actually, as it turned out, they were thought that they had 24.5. After the host checked their answers it became clear that they actually had only 24. The host then went on to check our score. Within a few minutes he came over to our table and indicated that he only was able to count 23 on our sheet. We then started to go through the questions one by one, that was until we reached the question about what “SWAT” stood for. It seemed that on the answer sheet that we had given him we had actually written “special tactics and tactics” instead of “special weapons and tactics” as we had written on our copy of the answer sheet. The biggest burn was that we had actually written the correct answer on the back of the sheet that we had handed him. I guess we will just have to be more careful next time.
-Several months ago, May 1 to be exact, I placed an ILL request at the A.C. Hunter library. Since the placing of the request over three months ago I have heard nothing from the library. By this point I would think that they might say that they will not be able to procure the book or give me some kind of time frame, or even just let me know that they haven’t forgotten about the book. I guess I should go back and let them know if they don’t have it shortly then it will be to late, I will have left the province. I just didn’t imagine that it would take more than 3 months (particularly when there is a free version of WorldCat with which they could have located a copy book in about 1 minute).
-Last night I played a game called ‘kubb.’ Apparently this game’s history can be traced back to the Vikings a thousand years ago. The basic premise of the game is that teams are trying to knock down the opposing team’s blocks before their own are knocked down. As one might guess, with a thousand years under its belt many variations have been developed, each of which adds a particular element to the game. If you are curious, it was pretty fun as well as simple. It should also be noted that this is definitely an outdoor game (though as a child I definitely would have been tempted to play a modified version in the living room).
-After reading a biographical timeline outlining the major events in Benazir Bhutto’s life in today’s Globe and Mail I examined their short list of sources. Along side such sources as the Encyclopaedia Britannica and H.W. Wilson were Wikipedia and Famousmuslims.com. While I don’t know exactly how these sources were used, I certainly hope that any information from any of these less than completely credible sources was confirmed in more credible sources. I really would not have expected the Globe, or any self-respecting newspaper, to turn to Wikipedia on such a subject, particularly when certain parties might be interested in presenting her in a certain light. While I don’t know that this is happening, I would still think it too risky to use Wikipedia because of the ease with which such tampering could occur.
-As some of you might have been able to deduce from comments written above, Georgetown Bakery has re-opened after their summer hiatus. Not surprisingly, it was pretty busy, many people obviously wanted their fix after going two and a half week without Georgetown products.
-On the subject of stores, several weeks ago I learned that the NLC store on Water Street will be closing in the near future, though I don’t know an exact date. Prior to learning that it was closing I learned, by reading NLC’s annual report, that, comparatively, it did not make that much money. For the year reported, the small store in Churchill Square and the Water Street stores had similar revenues.
This closure may cause some of you to worry that your access to high-end wines will be disappearing, but this is not the case. It seems that controversial new store, built on what was once a field, even now has a better selection of high-end wines than the Water Street store.
-On Tuesday, as is my practice, I went to the Rose and Thistle for their weekly trivia night. As the evening was to get underway promptly at 9:00 PM I arrived a little earlier than usual so that I would be sure to have a good table. Not surprisingly there wasn’t a big rush and upon my entry I became one of only two patrons in the bar. This wasn’t so bad as I had a free copy of the Town Cryer (sp?) with which I was able to distract myself.
With plenty of time to spare Peter showed up and we patiently waited for things to get underway. As we should have expected, this didn’t really happen at the pace that we had been lead to believe it would last week. As usual things got underway ten or fifteen minutes after 9:00 PM.
As the first fifteen questions were being asked there was a definite sense among the participants that they were on the easy side of things. Even if this is the case, my experience is that the second half is typically more difficult than the first half.
Anyway, as we proceeded to the second half we were feeling pretty good about the early round, and pretty good about the questions in the second round, though were definitely a few that we did not get. Unfortunately, the host did not open up a question about the boroughs of New York that would have allowed me to earn us an extra point. Anyway, thing were still ok. Fortunately this week, unlike last week, there were no instances of last minute changes or disagreements that lead to the correct answer being exchanged for the wrong answer. Shortly after the final question we handed the host a copy of our answer sheet (so that he can confirm the score we have given ourselves).
As the correcting started out positive feeling continued, it seemed that we had a few that several other teams had missed, though we also missed a few. By the time the grading had stopped we appeared to have 24 out of a possible 30.5. As the host counted down from 30.5 our hopes of winning grew, particularly as he a steadily approached out number without anyone else announcing a higher score. Suddenly he reached 24 and we alerted him of our having attained that score.
It seemed that another team also was trying to indicate that they too had a similar score. Actually, as it turned out, they were thought that they had 24.5. After the host checked their answers it became clear that they actually had only 24. The host then went on to check our score. Within a few minutes he came over to our table and indicated that he only was able to count 23 on our sheet. We then started to go through the questions one by one, that was until we reached the question about what “SWAT” stood for. It seemed that on the answer sheet that we had given him we had actually written “special tactics and tactics” instead of “special weapons and tactics” as we had written on our copy of the answer sheet. The biggest burn was that we had actually written the correct answer on the back of the sheet that we had handed him. I guess we will just have to be more careful next time.
-Several months ago, May 1 to be exact, I placed an ILL request at the A.C. Hunter library. Since the placing of the request over three months ago I have heard nothing from the library. By this point I would think that they might say that they will not be able to procure the book or give me some kind of time frame, or even just let me know that they haven’t forgotten about the book. I guess I should go back and let them know if they don’t have it shortly then it will be to late, I will have left the province. I just didn’t imagine that it would take more than 3 months (particularly when there is a free version of WorldCat with which they could have located a copy book in about 1 minute).
-Last night I played a game called ‘kubb.’ Apparently this game’s history can be traced back to the Vikings a thousand years ago. The basic premise of the game is that teams are trying to knock down the opposing team’s blocks before their own are knocked down. As one might guess, with a thousand years under its belt many variations have been developed, each of which adds a particular element to the game. If you are curious, it was pretty fun as well as simple. It should also be noted that this is definitely an outdoor game (though as a child I definitely would have been tempted to play a modified version in the living room).
-After reading a biographical timeline outlining the major events in Benazir Bhutto’s life in today’s Globe and Mail I examined their short list of sources. Along side such sources as the Encyclopaedia Britannica and H.W. Wilson were Wikipedia and Famousmuslims.com. While I don’t know exactly how these sources were used, I certainly hope that any information from any of these less than completely credible sources was confirmed in more credible sources. I really would not have expected the Globe, or any self-respecting newspaper, to turn to Wikipedia on such a subject, particularly when certain parties might be interested in presenting her in a certain light. While I don’t know that this is happening, I would still think it too risky to use Wikipedia because of the ease with which such tampering could occur.
Monday, July 30, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 109
-Though today was supposed to be rainy and overcast this was not the case. Just like the preceeding two days, Monday turned out to be a pretty clear and pleasant day. Arguably, the only problem with any of the past three days has been heat. On Sunday we even managed to make it all the way to 30 C (86 F). Fortunately, the humidity has been relatively low, making the temperatures much more tolerable than they would have otherwise been.
-A few days ago, while poking around the PEI government website I came across a body that I had never heard of before, the Anne Authority. This is the body that officially licenses Anne of Green Gables products. A list of companies so licensed can be found here. I guess when one character is such a substantial part of the economy it pays to kept track of the products that represent that image. Another question that may soon arise is what happens when Anne enters the public domain or if that is even possible?
-These past few weeks have been pretty disappointing when it comes to trivia results. Consistent with our current Rose and Thistle slump, we finished several points away from first. Pop culture keeps killing us. Though on the plus side, one of our wrong answers did cause me to learn that Casanova became a librarian in his retirement.
Unfortunately, my old trivia stand-by, Bitters, has also been less successful in these past few weeks. Again I would say that my scores are being impacted negatively because I don't watch TV, many movies, or listen to popular music.
-On a related topic, in a week from tomorrow Rose and Thistle Trivia will be adding a fancy/crazy tee-shirt component to the mix (for one week only). As I know that the host is a touch anti-American I was thinking that decking the team out in US army shirts might do the trick, but I am not sure. Another idea was that we buy a few white tee-shirts and then cover them with some of the host's favourite topics, particularly collective nouns and animal habitats, though maybe this would be a bit to much. Any ideas would be appreciated because I think just tossing on a few Hawaiian shirts won't be enough for the win.
-On Friday the Gorch Fock came into port. Since her arrival I have been informed by two independent sources that this German naval training vessel is a very famous ship in Germany. While many people were taking photos of the ship (as I was also) it seemed that many of the photos didn't really capture the entire ship. It seemed that to accomplish one would have to be a bit higher. Fortunately the ship was docked right across from the parking garage. Upon ascending to the top level I learned that not only was I the only one there, but also that I had a pretty good view of the ship and the harbour as a whole.
-For some reason I have not been posting very much. In many ways this is hard to explain because it is not as though I have been occupying my time with important time-consuming activities. It actually seems as though I have been accomplishing less in these past few days, particularly as I have been reading less than usual. More striking is that I actually managed to post today, particularly considering that I have spent several hours on work related matters already this evening. Maybe that is the trick on both fronts, work at home in the peace and quiet of an isolated room without the common distractions of an office environment.
-A few days ago, while poking around the PEI government website I came across a body that I had never heard of before, the Anne Authority. This is the body that officially licenses Anne of Green Gables products. A list of companies so licensed can be found here. I guess when one character is such a substantial part of the economy it pays to kept track of the products that represent that image. Another question that may soon arise is what happens when Anne enters the public domain or if that is even possible?
-These past few weeks have been pretty disappointing when it comes to trivia results. Consistent with our current Rose and Thistle slump, we finished several points away from first. Pop culture keeps killing us. Though on the plus side, one of our wrong answers did cause me to learn that Casanova became a librarian in his retirement.
Unfortunately, my old trivia stand-by, Bitters, has also been less successful in these past few weeks. Again I would say that my scores are being impacted negatively because I don't watch TV, many movies, or listen to popular music.
-On a related topic, in a week from tomorrow Rose and Thistle Trivia will be adding a fancy/crazy tee-shirt component to the mix (for one week only). As I know that the host is a touch anti-American I was thinking that decking the team out in US army shirts might do the trick, but I am not sure. Another idea was that we buy a few white tee-shirts and then cover them with some of the host's favourite topics, particularly collective nouns and animal habitats, though maybe this would be a bit to much. Any ideas would be appreciated because I think just tossing on a few Hawaiian shirts won't be enough for the win.
-On Friday the Gorch Fock came into port. Since her arrival I have been informed by two independent sources that this German naval training vessel is a very famous ship in Germany. While many people were taking photos of the ship (as I was also) it seemed that many of the photos didn't really capture the entire ship. It seemed that to accomplish one would have to be a bit higher. Fortunately the ship was docked right across from the parking garage. Upon ascending to the top level I learned that not only was I the only one there, but also that I had a pretty good view of the ship and the harbour as a whole.
-For some reason I have not been posting very much. In many ways this is hard to explain because it is not as though I have been occupying my time with important time-consuming activities. It actually seems as though I have been accomplishing less in these past few days, particularly as I have been reading less than usual. More striking is that I actually managed to post today, particularly considering that I have spent several hours on work related matters already this evening. Maybe that is the trick on both fronts, work at home in the peace and quiet of an isolated room without the common distractions of an office environment.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 107
-Today is another rainy day in Newfoundland (or at least St. John’s). The weather managed to change from just about perfect, or even on the hot side of things, to overcast, humid, rainy all in one night. Hopefully things will have dried up a little by the time I have to walk to work tomorrow morning.
-Though I did not have a particularly good reason to do so, I baked my first coffee cake this morning. After a quick search for the recipe card I was able to find what I was looking for. As all of the ingredients are pretty common I did not have to head over to the store before the baking process started. The only problem I encountered, and this hardly counts as a problem, was that about half way through the process I realized that my mother has been baking double batches of this cake for the past twenty-something years. As I had only added enough ingredients for a single batch my cake turned out to be much smaller than I had originally expected. Aside from the size, the cake turned out quite nicely. So far I have managed to finish off about a third of the cake, though I imagine that I probably will have to switch to a slightly more substantive food in the near future.
-Running out of propane is one of the more frustrating summer experiences. Several times this summer I have gone out to start up the barbeque only to find that it would not ignite. After a few minutes of fiddling around with the tank and nozzles it usually becomes apparent what the problem is. In this case I was a little thrown because some gas escaped, giving me the false sense that an empty tank was not the problem. Anyway, after eliminating all other possibilities and lifting what felt like an empty tank, I was pretty sure that that was it for my desire to barbeque last night.
-For the first time in about a year I was able to break out my Pictionary easels. Five of us engaged in a few exciting and vigorous games. In my opinion, Dougal’s drawing of civilian by first drawing a solider and then crossing it out to indicate a ‘not-solider’ stands as one of the better drawing sessions of the night. As usual, there were also a few correct guesses that occurred so quickly and with such sparse drawings that it is hard to believe that anything could have even been realistically guessed.
-While typing that last section I learned that Word does not recognize the name ‘Dougal.’ While I know that this isn’t the world’s most common name, I certainly would have thought that it merited at least a degree of recognition by the Microsoft empire, particularly when they recognize ‘McDougall.’
-This past week was a relatively unsuccessful trivia week. We managed to do quite poorly at the Rose and Thistle. The large number of pop culture questions really did us in. At Bitters I managed to be only 2.5 points out of second place. Unfortunately, we (at my proding) ended up making a few last minute changes that lost us a few points, though not enough to cost us the victory.
-Though I did not have a particularly good reason to do so, I baked my first coffee cake this morning. After a quick search for the recipe card I was able to find what I was looking for. As all of the ingredients are pretty common I did not have to head over to the store before the baking process started. The only problem I encountered, and this hardly counts as a problem, was that about half way through the process I realized that my mother has been baking double batches of this cake for the past twenty-something years. As I had only added enough ingredients for a single batch my cake turned out to be much smaller than I had originally expected. Aside from the size, the cake turned out quite nicely. So far I have managed to finish off about a third of the cake, though I imagine that I probably will have to switch to a slightly more substantive food in the near future.
-Running out of propane is one of the more frustrating summer experiences. Several times this summer I have gone out to start up the barbeque only to find that it would not ignite. After a few minutes of fiddling around with the tank and nozzles it usually becomes apparent what the problem is. In this case I was a little thrown because some gas escaped, giving me the false sense that an empty tank was not the problem. Anyway, after eliminating all other possibilities and lifting what felt like an empty tank, I was pretty sure that that was it for my desire to barbeque last night.
-For the first time in about a year I was able to break out my Pictionary easels. Five of us engaged in a few exciting and vigorous games. In my opinion, Dougal’s drawing of civilian by first drawing a solider and then crossing it out to indicate a ‘not-solider’ stands as one of the better drawing sessions of the night. As usual, there were also a few correct guesses that occurred so quickly and with such sparse drawings that it is hard to believe that anything could have even been realistically guessed.
-While typing that last section I learned that Word does not recognize the name ‘Dougal.’ While I know that this isn’t the world’s most common name, I certainly would have thought that it merited at least a degree of recognition by the Microsoft empire, particularly when they recognize ‘McDougall.’
-This past week was a relatively unsuccessful trivia week. We managed to do quite poorly at the Rose and Thistle. The large number of pop culture questions really did us in. At Bitters I managed to be only 2.5 points out of second place. Unfortunately, we (at my proding) ended up making a few last minute changes that lost us a few points, though not enough to cost us the victory.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Anudder night at da Rose and Thistle
So me and da b’ys was down to da Rose and Thistle for anudder crack at da trivia championship. We was all down dere a few before da event because dere has been some load a people some a dhese weeks. Anyways, me an de b’ys was dere and ready to go but we were practically de only ones dhere.
So we sits around for a while, me drinking beer and Peter on da Strongbow, when da missus gets up and starts ta giv’er. B’y, she laces into dem questions some good.
We does OK on da first one, I guesses dad she’s talking about da buddy dat made Coke (and we finds out dat she is when we corrects de quiz). Anyways, when we gets to da second questions we gets smoked. Da missus has da gall to ask da name of da group dat wrote de song for CSI. Like I knows dat. Jaysus, me and da b’ys don’t watch TV (we spends our time on da hinternet).
So over da next few questions da missus goes on givin’er, some of dem we knows, oddurs we got no clue.
By da time me beers’ gone she’s done wit da first fi’teen. We sits dere, me and da b’ys, trying to tink about CSI and I keeps saying da Pretenders, but da b’ys says she’s an group den dat, so I says da Monkees, and den de b’ys says dat dey plays dere own instruments. Wit out da words da b’ys is telling me to screw off, so I goes back to da Pretenders (da b’ys can screw off demselves).
When da missus gets back up dere and gets going it don’t take no time for her to get all dem questions out. B’y, I starts ta wonder how she makes it seem so fast, b’y she flys.
All of a sudden she’s getting on wit some question about Europe and da ‘masses.’ B’y, I got no idea what she’s getting on wit, but I goes and says ‘Hitler.’ One a da b’ys jumps in and says “b’ys, don’t forget Uncle Joe” so we goes and writes dat down. De oddur b’y says he likes Hitler (not like dat, but for da answer). In da end we goes wit Stalin cause a touch a da socialism never went astray.
Da missus kills off da night wit da final few questions and we goes on to da correcting part of da night. Soon enough we sees that we did pretty well, dough we made a mistake or two. We learns dat it wasn’t Fleetwood Mac or da Pretenders, or even da Monkees dat wrote da CSI song, but instead da frigging Who, jaysus. Soon enough we gets to da questions about da masses and learns da we shudda gon wit da gut (Hitler dat is) cause it wasn’t Stalin dat done said da thing about the masses.
When we gets to da end we sees da we were after gettin’ 25. So as da point count down nears us we starts ta get excited. B’ys, its been some long time since we won (were due). Anyway, when da missus shouts out 26 and da team at da bar shouts and hollers all I can tink of is dat bastard Stalin, infectin minds, making people tink he said stuff he didn’t. Me fist come down on da table and we goes.
Next week me and da by’s is gonna win, we deserves it.
So we sits around for a while, me drinking beer and Peter on da Strongbow, when da missus gets up and starts ta giv’er. B’y, she laces into dem questions some good.
We does OK on da first one, I guesses dad she’s talking about da buddy dat made Coke (and we finds out dat she is when we corrects de quiz). Anyways, when we gets to da second questions we gets smoked. Da missus has da gall to ask da name of da group dat wrote de song for CSI. Like I knows dat. Jaysus, me and da b’ys don’t watch TV (we spends our time on da hinternet).
So over da next few questions da missus goes on givin’er, some of dem we knows, oddurs we got no clue.
By da time me beers’ gone she’s done wit da first fi’teen. We sits dere, me and da b’ys, trying to tink about CSI and I keeps saying da Pretenders, but da b’ys says she’s an group den dat, so I says da Monkees, and den de b’ys says dat dey plays dere own instruments. Wit out da words da b’ys is telling me to screw off, so I goes back to da Pretenders (da b’ys can screw off demselves).
When da missus gets back up dere and gets going it don’t take no time for her to get all dem questions out. B’y, I starts ta wonder how she makes it seem so fast, b’y she flys.
All of a sudden she’s getting on wit some question about Europe and da ‘masses.’ B’y, I got no idea what she’s getting on wit, but I goes and says ‘Hitler.’ One a da b’ys jumps in and says “b’ys, don’t forget Uncle Joe” so we goes and writes dat down. De oddur b’y says he likes Hitler (not like dat, but for da answer). In da end we goes wit Stalin cause a touch a da socialism never went astray.
Da missus kills off da night wit da final few questions and we goes on to da correcting part of da night. Soon enough we sees that we did pretty well, dough we made a mistake or two. We learns dat it wasn’t Fleetwood Mac or da Pretenders, or even da Monkees dat wrote da CSI song, but instead da frigging Who, jaysus. Soon enough we gets to da questions about da masses and learns da we shudda gon wit da gut (Hitler dat is) cause it wasn’t Stalin dat done said da thing about the masses.
When we gets to da end we sees da we were after gettin’ 25. So as da point count down nears us we starts ta get excited. B’ys, its been some long time since we won (were due). Anyway, when da missus shouts out 26 and da team at da bar shouts and hollers all I can tink of is dat bastard Stalin, infectin minds, making people tink he said stuff he didn’t. Me fist come down on da table and we goes.
Next week me and da by’s is gonna win, we deserves it.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 105
-Today was another pretty nice day in St. John’s. While there were times today, such as now, when the sun was not shining as brightly as possible I still am willing to call it an acceptable summer day. One element that was particularly nice about today is that it wasn’t too hot, just around 20 degrees all day. This means that one doesn’t need a jacket but also won’t sweat buckets while walking. Hopefully we have a few more like this in the near future.
-Today, for the second time in about two months, I had a haircut. While not as much was chopped off this time as last, I still did managed to lose a few inches all over. The driving force behind this haircut is a dinner that I have to attend tomorrow evening. It seemed that having semi-orderly hair might be appropriate for a somewhat formal dinner.
-Since yesterday was a nice day I decided to risk exposure to the sun but instead to stay inside and play board games. At times up to eight of us were at my house playing Settlers. Eventually we branched out to Pictionary. And is usual at our house, we played Pictionary the way it was meant to be played – on easels. (Actually, on several occasions, typically before a wall needs to be painted, we have played on the walls).
-Since Friday was my birthday I played it low-key. I managed to get through most of the day with out much fuss and then make it back to have nice rare steaks for dinner. All of this was topped off by an early bedtime.
-I will be heading out for another night of Rose and Thistle trivia tonight. The regular host won’t be there (as he will be at sea) and the event will be hosted by the regular fill-in (whose name I can’t remember at the moment). For some strange reason we seem to do better when she hosts, even though Brian writes the questions for both of them.
Also, there has been some suggestion that we finally go in for the big name change. Since our night we have been “Team Steve,” but this hasn’t really been working all that well for us the past few weeks (meaning that we haven’t been winning as much). Maybe by switching up the name we will be able to get something going. It seems as though the most probable replacement name will be “Team Dynasty.”
-On Sunday I was able to return to Biscayan Cove, a location my friend Peter and I had visited earlier in the year (on an overcast day). It was pretty amazing to see the place on a sunny day. Even more amazing was that some number of people used to live there, in what must be a particularly harsh environment. It seems that the only buildings that are in use now are a few cabins in and surrounding the old town site.
-For the past few weeks the number of discussions I have had about numbers being ‘hot’ is incredible. It seems that a day can’t go by without someone suggesting that either the fives or elevens are hot, or damn hot. The only unfortunate part about this is that Neil isn’t hear to experience these comments, particularly as many are said in his honour, knowing that he would appreciate people noticing the hotness of certain numbers during supposedly random dice rolls. (Hint: Build on five, they’re hot)
-Today, for the second time in about two months, I had a haircut. While not as much was chopped off this time as last, I still did managed to lose a few inches all over. The driving force behind this haircut is a dinner that I have to attend tomorrow evening. It seemed that having semi-orderly hair might be appropriate for a somewhat formal dinner.
-Since yesterday was a nice day I decided to risk exposure to the sun but instead to stay inside and play board games. At times up to eight of us were at my house playing Settlers. Eventually we branched out to Pictionary. And is usual at our house, we played Pictionary the way it was meant to be played – on easels. (Actually, on several occasions, typically before a wall needs to be painted, we have played on the walls).
-Since Friday was my birthday I played it low-key. I managed to get through most of the day with out much fuss and then make it back to have nice rare steaks for dinner. All of this was topped off by an early bedtime.
-I will be heading out for another night of Rose and Thistle trivia tonight. The regular host won’t be there (as he will be at sea) and the event will be hosted by the regular fill-in (whose name I can’t remember at the moment). For some strange reason we seem to do better when she hosts, even though Brian writes the questions for both of them.
Also, there has been some suggestion that we finally go in for the big name change. Since our night we have been “Team Steve,” but this hasn’t really been working all that well for us the past few weeks (meaning that we haven’t been winning as much). Maybe by switching up the name we will be able to get something going. It seems as though the most probable replacement name will be “Team Dynasty.”
-On Sunday I was able to return to Biscayan Cove, a location my friend Peter and I had visited earlier in the year (on an overcast day). It was pretty amazing to see the place on a sunny day. Even more amazing was that some number of people used to live there, in what must be a particularly harsh environment. It seems that the only buildings that are in use now are a few cabins in and surrounding the old town site.
-For the past few weeks the number of discussions I have had about numbers being ‘hot’ is incredible. It seems that a day can’t go by without someone suggesting that either the fives or elevens are hot, or damn hot. The only unfortunate part about this is that Neil isn’t hear to experience these comments, particularly as many are said in his honour, knowing that he would appreciate people noticing the hotness of certain numbers during supposedly random dice rolls. (Hint: Build on five, they’re hot)
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 104
-Though we had a pretty warm and humid weekend, we seem to have slipped back into the weather that we had been having in early June. The temperatures are below 10 with pretty large amounts of fog. So much fog in fact that the Globe and Mail has been fogged out for the past two days. Word on the street is that things will turn around for the weekend, though I guess we will have to wait and see.
-After an early successful run at Rose and Thistle trivia we have now been winless for a number of weeks. Even worse than being winless, we haven't even been doing all that well. Part of the problem seems to be that we get screwed by the current pop culture questions, time after time the fact that none of watch TV comes back to haunt us. A secondary problem is that the academic questions are typically quite easy or result in a guess. There also seems to be a lack of history questions, or for that matter questions on topics that relate to any of our areas of study.
-Apparently the garbage covering by-law is now in full effect in St. John's. As I walk to work tomorrow I plan on surveying the garbage I come across to see which types of covering have been used. I am looking forward to the walk home to see if any of the garbage will be left on the street, and if so whether or not the infraction obvious. (Clearly I have a very exciting life).
-After an early successful run at Rose and Thistle trivia we have now been winless for a number of weeks. Even worse than being winless, we haven't even been doing all that well. Part of the problem seems to be that we get screwed by the current pop culture questions, time after time the fact that none of watch TV comes back to haunt us. A secondary problem is that the academic questions are typically quite easy or result in a guess. There also seems to be a lack of history questions, or for that matter questions on topics that relate to any of our areas of study.
-Apparently the garbage covering by-law is now in full effect in St. John's. As I walk to work tomorrow I plan on surveying the garbage I come across to see which types of covering have been used. I am looking forward to the walk home to see if any of the garbage will be left on the street, and if so whether or not the infraction obvious. (Clearly I have a very exciting life).
Thursday, May 31, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 100
-Today is another less than stellar Spring day in St. John’s. This morning started with flurries and temperatures in the range of zero. Gradually the day warmed up a little, though still stay well away from double digits. At one point the clouds actually left and we had something approaching sun. Maybe in a few weeks we will actually have leaves.
-While moving some boxes at work today I managed to do something that I have never done before, which is to catch my back pocket on a door handle. Somehow as I was backing through the door I managed to have to handle enter my back left pocket. As I continued to move backwards I managed to have the handle punch a hole in my pants and allow me to be hooked to the door. Classy moves.
-As the Frisbee season approaches the number of Frisbee related emails have started to once again increase. While I seem to be getting a few this year it comes no where near the record that was set in my first year.
The process of selecting the team name sparked a flurry of emails. An early suggestion of ‘Nth Team’ gain early support but failed to maintain several of its original supporters. After several non-starters Combustible Huckstables was agreed upon. Fortunately I did not enter this debate to the extent I was thinking about at one early stage.
-Trivia seems to be taking up a pretty large part of my social life. On Tuesdays I have been going to the Rose and Thistle while Thursdays are for Bitters. Unfortunately all of this practice has not been paying off in recent weeks. For two weeks in a row at Bitters my team has mis-trumped and at the Rose and Thistle we keep getting the fifty-fifties wrong. Clearly more practice is needed.
-It seems that we are just about out of that batch of bread I made a few days ago. Hopefully I will get a chance to make a replacement batch on either Saturday or Sunday. Maybe this time I will up the batch size with hopes of the resulting bread sticking around a little longer.
-Last night I played an almost wheat-less five player game of Settlers. This resource scarcity really slowed down game play. At one part in the game I felt as though I did not get any production for about 20-30 min. My game wasn’t helped by the fact that I doubled up on 4s and 5s, an ill-advised move at the best of time (unless the 4s are due).
-If memory serves me correctly, I think that I spent a few hours looking through press releases today. The goal of the exercise was to locate press releases indicating the release of the report of a judicial inquiry. Fortunately most of these reports are accompanied by such press releases. The unfortunate side of things is that the collection of press releases that I was manually browsing is not complete, and it must be browsed manually with the assistance of a comprehensive index. Hopefully I only have a few volumes at the most to look through tomorrow.
-While at the CLA conference a few days ago I noticed that one of my main roles was not the provision of information, but to direct people to other who could do a better job of providing accurate information. This status was somewhat confirmed by the presence of an “Ask Me” ribbon that was attached to my volunteer badge.
To me this seemed pretty much like the traditional ‘See’ reference from the library world. Maybe next year they might be able to introduce a little bit of library humour and convert the ‘Ask Me’ ribbon into a ‘See Reference’ ribbon.
-While moving some boxes at work today I managed to do something that I have never done before, which is to catch my back pocket on a door handle. Somehow as I was backing through the door I managed to have to handle enter my back left pocket. As I continued to move backwards I managed to have the handle punch a hole in my pants and allow me to be hooked to the door. Classy moves.
-As the Frisbee season approaches the number of Frisbee related emails have started to once again increase. While I seem to be getting a few this year it comes no where near the record that was set in my first year.
The process of selecting the team name sparked a flurry of emails. An early suggestion of ‘Nth Team’ gain early support but failed to maintain several of its original supporters. After several non-starters Combustible Huckstables was agreed upon. Fortunately I did not enter this debate to the extent I was thinking about at one early stage.
-Trivia seems to be taking up a pretty large part of my social life. On Tuesdays I have been going to the Rose and Thistle while Thursdays are for Bitters. Unfortunately all of this practice has not been paying off in recent weeks. For two weeks in a row at Bitters my team has mis-trumped and at the Rose and Thistle we keep getting the fifty-fifties wrong. Clearly more practice is needed.
-It seems that we are just about out of that batch of bread I made a few days ago. Hopefully I will get a chance to make a replacement batch on either Saturday or Sunday. Maybe this time I will up the batch size with hopes of the resulting bread sticking around a little longer.
-Last night I played an almost wheat-less five player game of Settlers. This resource scarcity really slowed down game play. At one part in the game I felt as though I did not get any production for about 20-30 min. My game wasn’t helped by the fact that I doubled up on 4s and 5s, an ill-advised move at the best of time (unless the 4s are due).
-If memory serves me correctly, I think that I spent a few hours looking through press releases today. The goal of the exercise was to locate press releases indicating the release of the report of a judicial inquiry. Fortunately most of these reports are accompanied by such press releases. The unfortunate side of things is that the collection of press releases that I was manually browsing is not complete, and it must be browsed manually with the assistance of a comprehensive index. Hopefully I only have a few volumes at the most to look through tomorrow.
-While at the CLA conference a few days ago I noticed that one of my main roles was not the provision of information, but to direct people to other who could do a better job of providing accurate information. This status was somewhat confirmed by the presence of an “Ask Me” ribbon that was attached to my volunteer badge.
To me this seemed pretty much like the traditional ‘See’ reference from the library world. Maybe next year they might be able to introduce a little bit of library humour and convert the ‘Ask Me’ ribbon into a ‘See Reference’ ribbon.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 96
-Today turned out to be a pretty a semi-typical Newfoundland day. When I went to work in the morning it was quite overcast and damp. This type of weather continued for some number of hours. Without my noticing the day somehow actually became quite nice by the time I left work. Though it was only about 10 degrees we didn’t have any wind to make it feel much cooler. This is particularly nice as there have rumblings of snow in recent forecasts. The strange thing is that we still don’t have any leaves on the trees, though as of the past few days some have started to show buds.
-Today was garbage day in my part of town. Under normal circumstance one might not think that this is worth noting, but for the past year or so a by-law has been in effect which has been forcing people to cover their garbage with the aim of preventing birds from tearing the garbage bags apart. Based on my non-random sample, most people seem to be using nets of one description or another. What is funny about this concept is that most of the nets I walk past on every garbage day come no where close to actually covering all of the garbage bags. If entire bags aren’t exposed, most lawns will have a least a section of a bag or two exposed. Compliance seems on to the letter of the law and certainly not to the spirit.
-Once again I went to the Rose and Thistle for their weekly trivia night, though this time with Dougal and Peter. While we did not win outright we did manage to tie the tie-breaker and split the prize. Amazingly, we still had some of our original winnings left at the end of the night.
-The CLA conference should be starting next week in St. John’s. We will be swamped with librarians. Unfortunately, only a few (or maybe just one) will be making the trip.
-For the past few days I have been eating grapefruit every morning. This is somewhat strange because I typically don’t eat all that much fruit. What is even stranger is that when we didn’t have any grapefruit this morning I definitely felt as though something was missing. Fortunately, some grapefruit was purchased this afternoon. I keep thinking that I should make up for this morning’s missed grapefruit by having one shortly.
-Occasionally on my way to work I stop at the local Tim Horton’s to pick a coffee to drink on my way to work. For some reason on at least two days this week (the only two days I have checked) the line has been extended past the door. In the number of years I have walked by this Tim Horton’s I have never seen this even once, and now I have seen it twice in one week. The only fortunate thing about this Tim Horton’s is that they seem particularly efficient when it comes to serving customers. One thing that seems to help them along is that they are very good at remembering the orders of regular customers and preparing them before the order is even placed.
-Today was garbage day in my part of town. Under normal circumstance one might not think that this is worth noting, but for the past year or so a by-law has been in effect which has been forcing people to cover their garbage with the aim of preventing birds from tearing the garbage bags apart. Based on my non-random sample, most people seem to be using nets of one description or another. What is funny about this concept is that most of the nets I walk past on every garbage day come no where close to actually covering all of the garbage bags. If entire bags aren’t exposed, most lawns will have a least a section of a bag or two exposed. Compliance seems on to the letter of the law and certainly not to the spirit.
-Once again I went to the Rose and Thistle for their weekly trivia night, though this time with Dougal and Peter. While we did not win outright we did manage to tie the tie-breaker and split the prize. Amazingly, we still had some of our original winnings left at the end of the night.
-The CLA conference should be starting next week in St. John’s. We will be swamped with librarians. Unfortunately, only a few (or maybe just one) will be making the trip.
-For the past few days I have been eating grapefruit every morning. This is somewhat strange because I typically don’t eat all that much fruit. What is even stranger is that when we didn’t have any grapefruit this morning I definitely felt as though something was missing. Fortunately, some grapefruit was purchased this afternoon. I keep thinking that I should make up for this morning’s missed grapefruit by having one shortly.
-Occasionally on my way to work I stop at the local Tim Horton’s to pick a coffee to drink on my way to work. For some reason on at least two days this week (the only two days I have checked) the line has been extended past the door. In the number of years I have walked by this Tim Horton’s I have never seen this even once, and now I have seen it twice in one week. The only fortunate thing about this Tim Horton’s is that they seem particularly efficient when it comes to serving customers. One thing that seems to help them along is that they are very good at remembering the orders of regular customers and preparing them before the order is even placed.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Rose and Thistle Trivia
So me and de b’ys goes down to the da Rose and Thistle for a bit ‘a trivia last night. When we walks in tru da door der ain’t really dat many people dere. So we goes and has a seat. Eventually a couple a more people comes in, dough I wouldn’t a said it was dat full, even by da end.
Peter says “what can I get ya” and I says “QV.” So in a minute he is back wit da drinks, but I got a QV light cause de b’ys is out most a de others. Jayus, b’ys, was on da go wit dat?
So we sits wit our drinks, talking and such when Mike comes in. I is right quick to notice dat he seems some dry for walking down town from da university in da rain. Turns out he got a ride. Jayus b’y, sum lucky.
So eventually de place is ready and we goes. 30 question in two rounds a fit-teen each. Soon we sees dat de questions is all over da place. We got nature, and movies, and botany, and inventions, all mixed in wit one another. So anyway, tings is ok. We guesses a few and knows a few more. Sure enough were done de first fit-teen practicly before she even started.
At da break we goes and gets drinks, dough I forget to use da batroom. We gets back and da tree of is talking for a while, waitin for da second round.
Da missus comes back from a smoke and we goes, another quick fit-teen. Same ting dis time, we knows some and we has ta guess d’others. So da missus finishes and den gives us a sec to get de last guesses in. Soon enough she’s der at da table wantin our score sheet. So we recapitulates and gives it to her, but not witout a bit a sauce.
After dat she starts to read out the de answers and we marks our sheet. Tings is going pretty good from da beginning. We sees dat we got some dat de others don’t, and we got de ones day dey do. Tings is looking good for me and de b’ys. When she’s done we tries to count our score, but she hardly gave us time. Peter came up with 20, but I saw dat we had more den dat, sos I counts her again. Soon enough I know I done a crap job, but da missus is on me back for de score. I says 22, dough I knows it might be wrong. After I says dat Mike counts and we sees dat we actually go 21. Anyway, da missus is up der counting our score too and she gets 21.
Anyway, 21 was de top score so we won. Me and de b’ys, winning Rose and Thistle trivia de first time we tries. Sure, we must be some smart. De prize is $50 bar tab, dough I can’t say day “me and da b’ys got loaded drunk” as I had to work.
Anyway, me and da b’ys ‘ill be der next week wanting da win.
Peter says “what can I get ya” and I says “QV.” So in a minute he is back wit da drinks, but I got a QV light cause de b’ys is out most a de others. Jayus, b’ys, was on da go wit dat?
So we sits wit our drinks, talking and such when Mike comes in. I is right quick to notice dat he seems some dry for walking down town from da university in da rain. Turns out he got a ride. Jayus b’y, sum lucky.
So eventually de place is ready and we goes. 30 question in two rounds a fit-teen each. Soon we sees dat de questions is all over da place. We got nature, and movies, and botany, and inventions, all mixed in wit one another. So anyway, tings is ok. We guesses a few and knows a few more. Sure enough were done de first fit-teen practicly before she even started.
At da break we goes and gets drinks, dough I forget to use da batroom. We gets back and da tree of is talking for a while, waitin for da second round.
Da missus comes back from a smoke and we goes, another quick fit-teen. Same ting dis time, we knows some and we has ta guess d’others. So da missus finishes and den gives us a sec to get de last guesses in. Soon enough she’s der at da table wantin our score sheet. So we recapitulates and gives it to her, but not witout a bit a sauce.
After dat she starts to read out the de answers and we marks our sheet. Tings is going pretty good from da beginning. We sees dat we got some dat de others don’t, and we got de ones day dey do. Tings is looking good for me and de b’ys. When she’s done we tries to count our score, but she hardly gave us time. Peter came up with 20, but I saw dat we had more den dat, sos I counts her again. Soon enough I know I done a crap job, but da missus is on me back for de score. I says 22, dough I knows it might be wrong. After I says dat Mike counts and we sees dat we actually go 21. Anyway, da missus is up der counting our score too and she gets 21.
Anyway, 21 was de top score so we won. Me and de b’ys, winning Rose and Thistle trivia de first time we tries. Sure, we must be some smart. De prize is $50 bar tab, dough I can’t say day “me and da b’ys got loaded drunk” as I had to work.
Anyway, me and da b’ys ‘ill be der next week wanting da win.
Monday, April 30, 2007
A Few Quick Notes 92
-Today has been overcast and rainy, which seems to be the typical forecast for April in St. John’s. The only good thing about the rain is that it has prevented the snow from accumulating.
-Over the past few days I have been reading judicial and magisterial inquiries. As these only happen as a result of fires or deaths none of them are all that uplifting. It is likely that later in the summer I will have to write summaries of these reports, putting me in touch with a strange element of Newfoundland history.
-It looks as though there is a weekly trivia night at the Rose and Thistle. A few of us may check it out tomorrow night. Even if the trivia isn’t all that great the drink specials seem pretty good.
-In case you are curious, tomorrow is May Day.
-Over the past few days I have been reading judicial and magisterial inquiries. As these only happen as a result of fires or deaths none of them are all that uplifting. It is likely that later in the summer I will have to write summaries of these reports, putting me in touch with a strange element of Newfoundland history.
-It looks as though there is a weekly trivia night at the Rose and Thistle. A few of us may check it out tomorrow night. Even if the trivia isn’t all that great the drink specials seem pretty good.
-In case you are curious, tomorrow is May Day.
Friday, February 09, 2007
Math & Stats trivia
Last night MSgrads ran a trivia night at the Grad House. Rebecca was the host. The format was very similar to Bitters trivia, but without the trump round. We managed to get 4 teams together, which pleased me. Our team name was the math geek classic "Perfect squares" (or, as I prefer, perfect s9u4res). There were two grad student teams, an undergrad team and a prof and post-docs team. My team came second to the profs and post-doc team. We only had first places prizes, which was a round of drinks. We also offered the profs/post-docs a free drink for showing up, because we didn't think we'd get any otherwise (I think the plan worked).
Rebecca would probably like me to note that I'm biased, but I thought the hosting was great. The final scores ranged from 42.5 to 52.5 and there was no rounds where a team scored 0 and no rounds where multiple teams got 10 points (in fact I think the only 10's received needed bonuses). Also, almost every question was correctly answered by one of the teams.
The event was judged a sucess and we'll probably hold another one, although we don't know when.
I've also set up a group for MSgrads on Facebook, and I set up trivia as an event. My plan is to continue to invite the grad student body that is on Facebook that way as well, to try to get a few more people coming.
Rebecca would probably like me to note that I'm biased, but I thought the hosting was great. The final scores ranged from 42.5 to 52.5 and there was no rounds where a team scored 0 and no rounds where multiple teams got 10 points (in fact I think the only 10's received needed bonuses). Also, almost every question was correctly answered by one of the teams.
The event was judged a sucess and we'll probably hold another one, although we don't know when.
I've also set up a group for MSgrads on Facebook, and I set up trivia as an event. My plan is to continue to invite the grad student body that is on Facebook that way as well, to try to get a few more people coming.
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