Great Neptune's Man Nipples!
Well by now ye all know it be International Talk Like a Pirate Day. So ye should know your pirate A's to be sure!
Cap'n Slappy and Crumbeard will fill you in on the finer points of them, but here they be, so you can see dem coming.
Ahoy,
Avast,
Aye,
AYE AYE,
and most importantly
AAAARRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Araska is a rock, actually that is a lie, Araska is a fictional rock, in a fictional sea, in a fictional world, the only thing that could be said about is that, if said, world, sea and rock were to exist, then you would have a nice view of a fictional harbour.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Hurricane Hazel Brings The Smack Down
Hazel gave Miller a little Mayoral what for and thanks to The Star its now a good public drubbing. She's probably right, but thats what umpteenmillion years of running a damn fine city will get you, experiance.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
People are assholes, especially to themselves
Incoming rant,
So Smoking, smoking is a pretty bad habit that will kill you. I don't fault anyone of a generation older then mine for starting, the information on smoking related illness wasn't really there, and there was a lot more advertisement. For those who are of that generation, I know several who have successfully quit, my grand-parents, Trevor's dad, Erin's Mom. It was a brutal process for all of them, and for those who can't seem to quit, I accept that it is tough for you. For people of my generation who smoke, your just a bunch of fucktards, who probably couldn't read the surgeon general's warning on a gun to not apply it to your forehead.
So I get to the train station yesterday, and what do I see, I see to yuppies, hard core, Starshmuck drinking, foppish, dinks limp handedly taking a drag on their ciggies.
All right what ever, we're on a train plateform, their in an enclosed area, it is clearly marked no smoking, but you know what, not my business.
Then I look beside them. Right f'ing beside them are two octogenarians taking a drag on something entirely uncigarette like... An oxygen tank...
So open flame and oxygen interactions aside, wtf... Can you pick two of the best candidates for why second hand smoke is a bad thing. So I saunter over, and politly interject... "Hey I don't know if you are aware of it, but this plateform is a no smoking zone. Oh and did you happen to see your smoking next to this folks breathing through oxygen masks?" I was polite by acrid near the end.
To their credit they seem contrite, be it the "getting caught" or maybe they did feel remorse they apologized, interestingly I don't recall if they actually put out their smokes of not. As I departed I gave some half hearted, remark about how it was for their own good so they don't get fined. Then just as I was almost gone, they got indignant,
"but they [the oxygen gang] were smoking first."
By the Noodles of the FSM!
You'd think that watching to guys huffing back a combo of oxygen and nicotine laced tar smoke would put you off your own for at least a few minutes, but no it inspired this prats to join in.
I threw up my hands and walked away in disgust sputtering incoherent indignation of my own.
People are stupid, stupid, stupid!
So Smoking, smoking is a pretty bad habit that will kill you. I don't fault anyone of a generation older then mine for starting, the information on smoking related illness wasn't really there, and there was a lot more advertisement. For those who are of that generation, I know several who have successfully quit, my grand-parents, Trevor's dad, Erin's Mom. It was a brutal process for all of them, and for those who can't seem to quit, I accept that it is tough for you. For people of my generation who smoke, your just a bunch of fucktards, who probably couldn't read the surgeon general's warning on a gun to not apply it to your forehead.
So I get to the train station yesterday, and what do I see, I see to yuppies, hard core, Starshmuck drinking, foppish, dinks limp handedly taking a drag on their ciggies.
All right what ever, we're on a train plateform, their in an enclosed area, it is clearly marked no smoking, but you know what, not my business.
Then I look beside them. Right f'ing beside them are two octogenarians taking a drag on something entirely uncigarette like... An oxygen tank...
So open flame and oxygen interactions aside, wtf... Can you pick two of the best candidates for why second hand smoke is a bad thing. So I saunter over, and politly interject... "Hey I don't know if you are aware of it, but this plateform is a no smoking zone. Oh and did you happen to see your smoking next to this folks breathing through oxygen masks?" I was polite by acrid near the end.
To their credit they seem contrite, be it the "getting caught" or maybe they did feel remorse they apologized, interestingly I don't recall if they actually put out their smokes of not. As I departed I gave some half hearted, remark about how it was for their own good so they don't get fined. Then just as I was almost gone, they got indignant,
"but they [the oxygen gang] were smoking first."
By the Noodles of the FSM!
You'd think that watching to guys huffing back a combo of oxygen and nicotine laced tar smoke would put you off your own for at least a few minutes, but no it inspired this prats to join in.
I threw up my hands and walked away in disgust sputtering incoherent indignation of my own.
People are stupid, stupid, stupid!
Monday, September 17, 2007
2007 Enbridge CN Tower Climb for United Way
Here comes the boiler plate:
Same deal as always giant tower, early morning, exhausted Geoff, support would be appreciated. Seriously though (and I know this will make the United Wayians cranky) this will likely be my last stair climb, or maybe second last, this one is about showing myself how much I've improved my health this year. So I'd appreciate some support, but no need to give more then $5, I just need to cover the $50 minimum. I'm going to refocus my annual charity feet of strength on the Heart and Stroke Foundation, because it is more meaningful to me then the United Way.
Thanks
G
I'm participating in 2007 Enbridge CN Tower Climb for United Way.
You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below:
https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/StartUp.aspx?SID=1596603
By supporting me, you'll also be helping United Way of Greater Toronto support 200 health and social service agencies that touch the lives of people in neighbourhoods across our community.
For more information on how YOU can participate in the 2007 Enbridge CN Tower Climb for United Way, please visit us http://www.unitedwaytoronto.com/climbforunitedway.
Thanks for your support!
Same deal as always giant tower, early morning, exhausted Geoff, support would be appreciated. Seriously though (and I know this will make the United Wayians cranky) this will likely be my last stair climb, or maybe second last, this one is about showing myself how much I've improved my health this year. So I'd appreciate some support, but no need to give more then $5, I just need to cover the $50 minimum. I'm going to refocus my annual charity feet of strength on the Heart and Stroke Foundation, because it is more meaningful to me then the United Way.
Thanks
G
Friday, September 14, 2007
Meowlingual: Japanese Cat Translation Device
Meowlingual, much like the dog version Bowlingual, allows a cat owner to finally learn what their cat is trying to say to them.I don't really have more to say about this... its just.... well weird tech from Asia...
read more | digg story
read more | digg story
Monday, September 10, 2007
bb post
Well here I am writting my first entry from a blackberry, and it's a little hard. Thumbing keys is at best slower, and at worst error prone. Oh well practice makes perfect.
Ps I have a blackberry now, phone numbers will be coming soon to an email near you. Erin has my old cell and number.
G
Ps I have a blackberry now, phone numbers will be coming soon to an email near you. Erin has my old cell and number.
G
Steve Jobs Offers Early Lisa Adopters Store Credit
[blockquote]Early adopters of the iPhone weren't the only ones receiving in-store credit from Steve Jobs. In an overlooked announcement, Jobs said that early adopters of the Apple Lisa would be receiving a $7000 in-store credit.[/blockquote]I lol'd
read more | digg story
read more | digg story
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Requiem of a Reader (No Know One Has Died, I'm Just Being Macabre)
(This was written last week on Tuesday and languished unposted, reference dates as such.)
This morning on CBC's Sounds Like Canada was an interview with Ed Greenwood, author, world builder, librarian. Ed is a Canadian with about a billion books under his belt, and a fantasy world of such depth that is makes JK Rowling's books seem surface deep (and they are far from that.) Over four decades Ed Greenwood has published through TSR (and then Wizards of the Coast, and now Hasbro) his Forgotten Realms novels and gaming products. The Forgotten Realms is still my D&D world of choice and has weathered and republished itself through many generations of the game.
For me Ed Greenwood's novels were a staple of my reading through senior public and high school. In fact in both grade 12 and OAC Ed became a piece of my English projects, first as a study of a Canadian author, and then as a study of modern fantasy writing in the framework of the evolution of the genre, where I contrasted his writings with that of Lewis Carol, JRR Tolkien and Robert E Howard. (Probably a more prestigious group than he really belonged in, but that's ok, I was a fan boy.)
To this day I hold one of his novels (Elminster in Myth Drannor) as prize because he personally autographed it when I went to interview him in his unnamed Library in Toronto.
(Actually funny story, in retrospect I used social engineering to hack private employment data to find the guy. I called up a random library in the area, asked if he was an employee, they said no and I said "Oh, well I know he works for the system, I was sure it was your library would you mind checking your records to let me know which branch he is at." Friendly as ever the librarian sent me on to the right branch, and presto-changeo one fanboi had found his author/idol.)
I even made mention this weekend of that autograph because we were contrasting getting in line at a convention for 10 seconds with and author to actually receiving an autograph under novel situations. For me Ed Greenwood and Robert Sawyer both have special autographs in my collection, and my Friend Brad got a great one from the Creegan brother's (one of which is a current Barenaked Lady, and the other was the original keyboardist and long time friend of the band.)
Sadly Ed's works while thrilling in my youth no longer captivate my attention as they once did. His world I still love and visit with my swords and sorcerers, but those are my stories not his. I'm glad he still does his work, and that his world grows. I hope a new generation finds his writing and thrills as Elminster plays the role of Dues Ex Machina for witless heroes. More so I'm glad to hear him on a national radio show reminding day time listeners that pencil and paper board gaming isn't the work of the devil, and he nearly echoed my own parent's emotion. Paraphrasing, when your children and there friends are all in the basement on a Friday night being social and playing games you know they are safe, as opposed to out on the street getting into trouble.
As I wrote this, comically, Robert Sawyer also came on the radio, its like CBC's Toronto Author day. Any Robert's big shit in China these days, and his latest work Rollback was really well done. My complaint as always is he brings up a whole whack load of interesting ideas that are peripheral to his plot, and never has time to do any of it justice (short of the 3 - 4 core ideas in the story.) One idea that really caught me, and was probably touched on for less then a paragraph is how the internet is changing fact based learning as much as the calculator has changed mathematics. He briefly alluded to the idea that 'facts' in education become less essential as we have instant access to them via the internet (which we now have at our sides at all times.) Once we do away with the burden of memorization we make room for more intellectual discussion. In his book he approached it in the classic style:
Phase One: Collect underpants.
Phase Two: ?
Phase Three: Profit
So he leaves out the part about how education reconciles the internet and classroom conflict and gets straight to "profit" as grade school students engage in philosophical debate over abortion. I think the idea of engaging youth in real discussion in a meaningful way is awesome, and it isn't even an outcome I could have imagined, even though the ? process is clearly underway.
I actually read roll back in less then a day, which is really rare for me. I just couldn't put it down.
Anyways I've rambled an awful lot and delayed posting this, I'm not even sure who will read it (as it what audience should read it.)
I've committed to writing more in the coming months real writing, my goal is to bring out a short work of fiction that isn't trite. Doesn't have to be good, just not terrible, that is my foundation and my goal.
I just had an idea, filing it for later :)
Train is pulling it
G
This morning on CBC's Sounds Like Canada was an interview with Ed Greenwood, author, world builder, librarian. Ed is a Canadian with about a billion books under his belt, and a fantasy world of such depth that is makes JK Rowling's books seem surface deep (and they are far from that.) Over four decades Ed Greenwood has published through TSR (and then Wizards of the Coast, and now Hasbro) his Forgotten Realms novels and gaming products. The Forgotten Realms is still my D&D world of choice and has weathered and republished itself through many generations of the game.
For me Ed Greenwood's novels were a staple of my reading through senior public and high school. In fact in both grade 12 and OAC Ed became a piece of my English projects, first as a study of a Canadian author, and then as a study of modern fantasy writing in the framework of the evolution of the genre, where I contrasted his writings with that of Lewis Carol, JRR Tolkien and Robert E Howard. (Probably a more prestigious group than he really belonged in, but that's ok, I was a fan boy.)
To this day I hold one of his novels (Elminster in Myth Drannor) as prize because he personally autographed it when I went to interview him in his unnamed Library in Toronto.
(Actually funny story, in retrospect I used social engineering to hack private employment data to find the guy. I called up a random library in the area, asked if he was an employee, they said no and I said "Oh, well I know he works for the system, I was sure it was your library would you mind checking your records to let me know which branch he is at." Friendly as ever the librarian sent me on to the right branch, and presto-changeo one fanboi had found his author/idol.)
I even made mention this weekend of that autograph because we were contrasting getting in line at a convention for 10 seconds with and author to actually receiving an autograph under novel situations. For me Ed Greenwood and Robert Sawyer both have special autographs in my collection, and my Friend Brad got a great one from the Creegan brother's (one of which is a current Barenaked Lady, and the other was the original keyboardist and long time friend of the band.)
Sadly Ed's works while thrilling in my youth no longer captivate my attention as they once did. His world I still love and visit with my swords and sorcerers, but those are my stories not his. I'm glad he still does his work, and that his world grows. I hope a new generation finds his writing and thrills as Elminster plays the role of Dues Ex Machina for witless heroes. More so I'm glad to hear him on a national radio show reminding day time listeners that pencil and paper board gaming isn't the work of the devil, and he nearly echoed my own parent's emotion. Paraphrasing, when your children and there friends are all in the basement on a Friday night being social and playing games you know they are safe, as opposed to out on the street getting into trouble.
As I wrote this, comically, Robert Sawyer also came on the radio, its like CBC's Toronto Author day. Any Robert's big shit in China these days, and his latest work Rollback was really well done. My complaint as always is he brings up a whole whack load of interesting ideas that are peripheral to his plot, and never has time to do any of it justice (short of the 3 - 4 core ideas in the story.) One idea that really caught me, and was probably touched on for less then a paragraph is how the internet is changing fact based learning as much as the calculator has changed mathematics. He briefly alluded to the idea that 'facts' in education become less essential as we have instant access to them via the internet (which we now have at our sides at all times.) Once we do away with the burden of memorization we make room for more intellectual discussion. In his book he approached it in the classic style:
Phase One: Collect underpants.
Phase Two: ?
Phase Three: Profit
So he leaves out the part about how education reconciles the internet and classroom conflict and gets straight to "profit" as grade school students engage in philosophical debate over abortion. I think the idea of engaging youth in real discussion in a meaningful way is awesome, and it isn't even an outcome I could have imagined, even though the ? process is clearly underway.
I actually read roll back in less then a day, which is really rare for me. I just couldn't put it down.
Anyways I've rambled an awful lot and delayed posting this, I'm not even sure who will read it (as it what audience should read it.)
I've committed to writing more in the coming months real writing, my goal is to bring out a short work of fiction that isn't trite. Doesn't have to be good, just not terrible, that is my foundation and my goal.
I just had an idea, filing it for later :)
Train is pulling it
G
Mattamy House Factory
Hey all, just a quick one. Mattamy built a "house factory" in Milton to finish off the rest of Hawthorn Village. Its a really huge building Erin and I bike by frequently, and I've always wanted to see more. So CTV did a story with some video, so I thought I would share.
Cheers
Cheers
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