Save the environment and swear!

Yes - profanity is good for the environment.
So stop holding it in. Out with the bad air. Sound forth a few f-bombs with all your might.
What the hell am I talking about? Anger powered energy...it's the future, baby!

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30431

Soon I can see how all of our appliances will be anger powered. Who doesn't want to pound on their computer every now and then.

Ahhh, sweet sweet anger. Now 100% more green.

Silence is better

The dangers of modern communication is the loss of context.

I'm talking about email/msn - all the different kinds of written communications that people do nowadays.

I'm always getting in trouble when people don't know whether or not I'm joking or being sarcastic or whatever. Things that work when you're actually speaking to someone can often cause 'the uncomfortable pause' when written down.

I think I'll stop typing any kind of joke or wisecrack until someone comes up with the ESP version of MSN...

Society's to blame

So I signed up for facebook today.
I was forced into it by a friend who's moving to australia - and since I want a place to crash if I ever go down there - and since facebook is his preferred means of communication - I had no alternative but to cave in to the demands of society.
Stupid society!
Not 10 minutes after I signed up - I got an email from someone I haven't seen in 5 years. What's going on with people? Why am I not permitted to shun society in peace?
You're on notice, society - I'm not embracing you - just peacefully co-existing...for now.

Rock Names

I was flipping channels on the weekend and went passed some muchmoremusic 'listed' show.
What struck me was how many rock stars from the 80s and early 90s changed their names.
Sting, Flea, Slash, The Edge, Bono amongst others.
Is that a lost tradition? You don't hear any weird names from the guys and gals in bands these days, do you?

Are kids today just less concerned with image? Maybe that's for the best...

Oh well, guess I'll give up on my own search for a new rock name...
It was a toss up between T-Bone Warner and Keith Chaos.

Maybe that's for the best too.


And in case you were wondering about people's real names... http://www.digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/realname.html

The name game

So here at work we have 6 Andrews (plus an Andre and an Andreas), 14 Chris', 8 Dans and 11 Johns - not to mention 3 Keiths.

Growing up - it always pissed me off to come across someone else with my name. It was always like - 'what are you doing with my name, dude - you're stealing some of my individuality.'
Even worse, for some reason, was a guy who had my last name as his first name and my first name as his last.
Never liked that guy.

Then when you grow up and start dating, you always seem to go through a cycle of dating girls with the same name. That also is somehow annoying (and slightly confusing). Some of my dumber friends have even dated multiple girls with the same name at the same time. Never try to answer the phone for a friend like that - you just get in trouble...

Am I the only one that is annoyed by stolen names?

Above the earth

I was down on Whyte last night - we went to the patio at Chili's. I'd never been up there before cause, you know - it's Chili's - but man, they've done a nice job up there.
It's this large, multi-level patio - with a pretty cool view of the neighbourhood.
And of course, my opinion of the place wasn't hurt by the plethora of attractive young women up there - but anyway...

My question is, why doesn't every building down there have a rooftop patio. There was nothing but flat roofs as far as the eye could see. You could have overstreet pedways going across the blocks connecting up all of these patios. You'd never have to set foot on the ground again.
Life is better up on the roof!

West facing windows

I like having a window in my office - even though all I've got to look on is a busy street and a big pile of dirt across the way. A little bit of light makes you feel alright.
My problem is in the afternoons. With the sun beating down on the window, I start to get a serious case of the head bobs going.
Nothing worse for your keyboard than a puddle of drool either.

Warranties

So I'm playing soccer on Friday night - probably I didn't take enough of a warmup - but I've been playing for about 10 minutes and then, just stretching for a ball, I feel this shooting fiery feeling going up one of the tendons behind my knee.

Now I've injured myself before, I've had one knee reconstructed, I've twisted innumerable ankles, popped many a hamstring...but this was a new one. I stopped right away and strangely, felt nothing at all - my leg felt fine. So I try to take a couple steps - just to see - and yup, that leg ain't working any more.

What's depressing, as you get older, is the number of new things that seem to break down on the body. It's just like buying any appliance these days. As soon as the warranty is up - you know it's only a matter of days before something goes wrong. With the body - there's always some new strange ache to wake up to. And the older you get, the longer it takes for them to go away.

I new I should have taken out the extended warranty.

Sleep or sleepless

I've got a friend who's been dog tired all week - falling asleep at her desk. Me, on the otherhand, I'd kill for that problem. I've had insomnia all week.

I woke up at 2:00 last night and couldn't get back to sleep till after 5:00. I was on the verge of just getting up and doing something a couple of times - instead I'd just flip on the radio. Nothing but tales of alien abductions on coast to coast.

So apart from getting whatever sleepy drug my friend is apparantly popping - what's a good cure for insomnia?

Dog days of spring...

It's getting close to the end of our project. Almost too close.
I can see that light at the end of the tunnel - the promise of no more crunch hours - the promise of being able to enjoy the rest of the summer and spend some time enjoying life a little more.

The problem comes with staying focused for these last few weeks. The light in that damn tunnel is so bright, it's hard not to step outside and enjoy it. And I also find it easier to get the wind taken out of your sails when little obstacles - things that 4 months ago wouldn't have bothered me at all - when these little obstacles come up.
Now they're like a punch in the gut - like someone laughing, telling me 'you'll never get this game done....ahahhaaha'.

Grrrrr, need to be done this project. Damn those gutpunchers!

Walk into the light...come into the light...it's so close....

The evils of marketing

Have we all fallen into some marketing trap where we have to classify everyone and everything. Everything has to fit into some neat little pigeon-hole.

Take music for example. Didn't everything used to just be Rock 'n Roll.
Sure I can see how some general classifications are useful, but then we start crossing everything, such as: acid jazz, alt country, dance punk, ambient house, brit pop, emo rock, glam rock, organic ambient... (check this out for a crazy list http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_music_genres)

At some point I just get confused about how to describe something - there's too many fine granularities.

I think from now on, I'm just going to say it's either good, bad or indifferent. You figure out the rest.

My favorite lists...

I've done a couple lists recently, so I thought I'd share my favorite list of all time.

Steve Martin in the movie Roxanne gets insulted about his nose and takes a bet to come up with 20 'something betters'.

1. Obvious: Excuse me. Is that your nose or did a bus park on your face.
2. Meteorological: Everybody take cover. She's going to blow.
3. Fashionable: You know, you could de-emphasize your nose if you wore something larger. Like ... Wyoming.
4. Personal: Well, here we are. Just the three of us.
5. Punctual: Alright gentlemen. Your nose was on time but you were fifteen minutes late.
6. Envious: Oooo, I wish I were you. Gosh. To be able to smell your own ear.
7. Naughty: Pardon me, Sir. Some of the ladies have asked if you wouldn't mind putting that thing away.
8. Philosophical: You know. It's not the size of a nose that's important. It's what's in it that matters.
9. Humorous: Laugh and the world laughs with you. Sneeze and it's goodbye Seattle.
10. Commercial: Hi, I'm Earl Schibe and I can paint that nose for $39.95.
11. Polite: Ah. Would you mind not bobbing your head. The orchestra keeps changing tempo.
12. Melodic: Everybody! "He's got the whole world in his nose."
13. Sympathetic: Oh, What happened? Did your parents lose a bet with God?
14. Complimentary: You must love the little birdies to give them this to perch on.
15. Scientific: Say, does that thing there influence the tides.
16. Obscure: Oh, I'd hate to see the grindstone.
17. Inquiry: When you stop to smell the flowers, are they afraid?
18. French: Say, the pigs have refused to find any more truffles until you leave.
19. Pornographic: Finally, a man who can satisfy two women at once.
20. Religious: The Lord giveth and He just kept on giving, didn't He.
21. Disgusting: Say, who mows your nose hair.
22. Paranoid: Keep that guy away from my cocaine!
23. Aromatic: It must be wonderful to wake up in the morning and smell the coffee ... in Brazil.
24. Appreciative: Oooo, how original. Most people just have their teeth capped.
25. Dirty: Your name wouldn't be Dick, would it?

If only I could think that fast in real life...

Great survey questions

Don't you love forms that make you wonder what the hell you're answering?

How's this for a great question... 'Which option is the least most inconvenient?'

It makes one's head explode!

Hidden Tracks

I was just listening to the song Blood from My Chemical Romance's Black Parade CD. Found it on iTunes the other day labelled 'Hidden track'.
There's something wrong about being able to buy something that's supposed to be hidden.

I like when bands have fun with a hidden track. I remember Offspring were always good with that.

I was listening to a program on sonic the other day - the history of modern music - an episode about hidden tracks. I guess there are some bands who have put the hidden track at the start of a disc - track 0. You have to go to track 1, and then hit back one more time to get to 'track 0'. Someone else found a way of inserting a hidden track between tracks in the middle of a disc. Kinda cool.

What's your favorite hidden track?

Lyrical Thursday

Some songs I like just for the tune - some songs I like for the lyrics - and some songs don't even make my 10 ten list, but still, something in the lyrics is really cool.

Here's part 1 of my list of best song lyrics:

Best Canadiana

'Hurtin Albertan with nothing more to lose. Too much oil money, not enough booze.' Corb Lund, Hurtin Albertan

'You said you didn't give a fuck about hockey, and I'd never saw someone say that before'
'You held my hand and we walked home the long way, you were losening my grip on Bobby Orr'
Tragically Hip, Fireworks

And a Couple Random Selections

'All these precious moments you promised me would come in time. So where was I when I missed mine.'
Time won't let me Go, The Bravery

'It's not the right time to be sober, now the idiots have taken over'.
The Idiots are Taking Over, NoFX

Comedy Wednesday

For your comedy break today, I bring you Russell Peters.

http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-2579833089500205658&q=Russell+Peters

Cause everybody needs a laugh on hump day (or 3rd monday as it's called around here)

Cure for Flatulence!

And all for only $12.95.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/lifestyle/orl-gaspad07may31,0,3233396.story?coll=orl-home-lifestyle

I know a few people who should take advantage of this...
You know who I'm talking about...

Tired Monday...

2 games of soccer, 2 open houses and 1 Police concert later and the weekend's over and it's back to work.
The Police put on a pretty damn good show - although I still find it amusing that they seem to have gone from punk/rock to almost adult contemporary. Whatever...it was a beautiful evening, the beer was flowing and the music was good.
Can't ask for too much more....except maybe an extra day for recovery.

Fake Friday

Hard to get excited today with the prospect of working tomorrow.
Going to be a busy weekend too - 2 soccer games and 2 days of open house to go along with working on Saturday (otherwise known as real Friday).

The Police saturday night, though. I find it interesting that their music used to be considered 'edgy'. Funny how edgy has mellowed into almost 'easy listening', old people music.

Oh well - I guess I'm old. I'm looking forward to the show!