The Luck Key

Mariah Carey "All I Want For Christmas Is You" (Dancing With An iPod In Public)

2011-12-25T14:52:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

C'mon, dude. Make yourself seen.

2011-12-23T19:46:00.001-08:00

6:15 p.m. today. Dark. Eastbound on Hastings Street in Burnaby. Dark. A guy riding a bike in the curb lane. Dark. He's wearing black clothing. Dark. No lights or reflectors. Dark. No helmet. Dark. Idiot.

(The Customer Is) Not Always Right

2011-10-19T15:42:00.000-07:00

Two stories I enjoyed from notalwaysright.com:

Vancouver SkyTrain Map, Mario-Style

2011-10-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

From Dave's Geeky Ideas. Click the image to enlarge it.

No higher than 23°C all week

2011-07-27T15:28:00.000-07:00

An upside to this Lower Mainland summer: being able to go for a comfortable mid-afternoon one-hour-and-twenty-minute run next to Coquitlam River.

A downside to this Lower Mainland summer: not having any urge whatsoever to go tubing on said river.

Two weeks ago Biscotti was driving about two blocks away from our house when she had to swerve to avoid a black bear that ran across the road and into the woods. A few days later I was home alone and out the window I saw what looked like a big dog walking along the sidewalk across the street. I quickly realized that it was much larger than any dog I'd seen around here, and no owner had yet come into view, so up from the couch and away to the window I flew like a flash. It was a bear. It was definitely a big black bear. Biscotti says that the bear she saw was smallish, probably a cub, but the one I saw was quite large - yes, bigger than a breadbox - so we had to have seen different bears.

missing

2011-07-09T17:24:00.000-07:00

MISSING

poker

last seen with friends many many months ago.
if you spot it please call me.
thanks.

Shaq is funny

2011-06-07T16:26:00.000-07:00

Basketball player Shaquille O'Neal retired from the NBA recently. He has always amused me, both on and off the court, and my favourite Shaq story is actually a story he told on one of the latenight talk shows (I can't remember which). Talking about his physical size and the size of his vehicle, he told the show's host that when he wants to go to a restaurant or shopping, there are rarely any parking spaces on that block that are large enough for him to park in. So what he does is park as close as he can, which is usually several blocks away, and then stands on a street corner. It doesn't take long for someone driving by to recognize him and subsequently ask for an autograph. Shaq tells them sure, but only if they drive him to where he wants to go! The autograph seeker is suddenly giving Shaq a ride in a vehicle that is probably much, much smaller than Shaq's vehicle. Fantastic.

Calmly call me

2011-05-20T21:40:00.001-07:00

We moved into our new place just under two years ago. At one point since the move-in, we removed an ugly curtain that was covering an odd-shaped window in the living room. It's a vaulted ceiling, so the window is high up (above the wall-sized window) and in the shape of a triangle. The curtain removal was done because we planned on replacing it shortly thereafter with more functional and aesthetically pleasing blinds of some sort. We liked the idea of letting light in through that window, but wanted the option of not letting light in through that window, ya know?

With no window covering, there was also privacy issues. Because of the window's location, people on the sidewalk and/or road could look into our second floor. After procrastinating too long, and with summer fast approaching which means days staying lighter later, we finally made an appointment with Home Depot. Someone would come to our house, we'd chat with said someone about what we wanted, we'd say 'pimp our window', and everything would fall (up) into place. Or so we thought.

The appointment was for Tuesday, May 3, 2011. The day before she cancelled and rescheduled for Thursday the 5th. No big deal, we were both free that day; we both wanted to see what the options were and have input. We had already sent her the window's shape, measurements, and the style of blinds we were looking for - something vertical, dark, and probably solid wood, because when we want the light to be blocked, we want the light to be mothertrucking blocked.

She arrived on time and I mistook that as a good sign. Biscotti engaged her in the obligatory chitchat and that went on. And on. And on. I sat quietly, waiting for the topic of the visit's purpose to arise. It finally did, and she barely did anything. After quickly ascertaining that she wouldn't be able to get accurate measurements due to the window's elevated location (uhhh, we already sent you that), she did some rough guesstimations, found out what style we wanted, told us she'd now go suss out what our best options were for what the market has available, and she'd be in touch.

That was on Thursday, May 5, 2011. It is now past 10 p.m. on Friday, May 20, 2011. It has been two weeks and a day. We have not heard a thing. Monday is a holiday (Victoria Day!) which makes this the start of a long weekend. I doubt we'll hear anything before Tuesday, which will bring us to three weeks from our original cancelled appointment and 19 days from our actual appointment. A little help, Home Depot?

I'd like to clean your face with my fists

2011-04-11T12:00:00.000-07:00

Seriously? You're gonna make a verbal complaint about that? Let's recap. You entered and used a public bathroom. I repeat, a public bathroom. Some public bathrooms can be found in a less-than-appealing state, but this bathroom, at this time, was clean. The toilet was clean. The floor was clean. The walls were clean. Everything was clean. I presume you did your business then went to wash your hands. There was a bit of water on the counter around the sink. You then exit the bathroom and take the time to go out of your way to find a staff member to whom you remark, and I quote exactly, "the bathroom could use some attention". It's a public bathroom for crying out loud! You're a big boy - I think you can put up with a bit of water on the counter without making a fuss about it.

The staff member happened to be standing next to a boss who was being a dick about the exact same thing. The both of you can fuck off.

run pizza hockey

2011-04-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

This morning's run started out great. The weather was ideal for running and my body felt good, especially my legs, which have been a tad fatigued lately. About 15 minutes in, I started getting a bit warm. While the local temperature has been gradually increasing, it still seemed like wearing my running pants and long-sleeved shirt was the best option. No, too warm. But I could fight through that. However, at about the 30-minute mark my belly got punched. Yesterday evening at work I succumbed to my hunger and got two slices of pizza. I should've stuck with one, if any. Because at the 30-minute mark, those two slices hit me hard. Overheated and belly-punched by pizza, I couldn't continue, and for the first time in a long time I cut my run short. There are only eight more days - and three more runs - before the Sun Run happens, and I have a time-goal that I want to be under. Therefore, no more pizza before Sunday. Then, after the Sun Run, it can be a pizza-fest as I watch game three of the Canucks/Blackhawks series. Playoff hockey is just two sleeps away!

AC(C)EMMNSU = 8(9)

2011-03-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

Australia
Canada
England
Malaysia
Mexico
New Zealand
Scotland
United States of America

Two more to hit double digits. But if we're including countries where layovers were had and we never left the airport, then add China, where I've spent approximately five hours in total.

No text

2011-03-22T15:13:00.000-07:00

Cocktail Hour: Latin Crooners

2011-03-10T17:20:00.001-08:00

To the person who was looking for the Cocktail Hour: Latin Crooners CD last night: I found it just a few minutes after you left. Call me.

Stop Podcasting Yourself 155

2011-03-04T22:27:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I listened to the latest Stop Podcasting Yourself episode while walking the dogs through the trails and by the river as light rain fell. I've only listened to the last few episodes (there's one episode a week), and this one was my favourite by far. Why wasn't I turned on to this podcast earlier? Whyyyy?! One of the hosts is Graham Clark - Biscotti and I have seen him do standup comedy a few times around Vancouver. He was featured on the NBC show "Last Comic Standing". He's funny. I don't know who Dave Shumka is, but he's funny too.

Click here for this week's episode featuring Alicia Tobin.

Once upon a tweet

2011-02-28T13:37:00.000-08:00

I joined Twitter a long time ago. I stayed with it long enough to post 245 tweets (mostly inane stuff, and a significant amount aimed at - or replies to - a couple of people), with the most recent one being on May 2, 2010. From May 12, 2010, until today, 25 Twitter users have signed up to follow me. Why?! Is it based on past tweets that struck a chord with them? Did a past tweet have synergy with a product they're selling? The thing is, more than 50 million tweets are posted every single day (source), so surely there must be something more recent and relevant than anything I ever posted that could help my newest followers. Maybe the new followers simply liked my background - a wallpapered image of my dogs. Okay, but they'd first have to be on my page, and what would have brought them there? My ten-month-old declaration that green grapes are delicious?

Valentine's Day 2011

2011-02-15T11:28:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was Valentine's Day. Biscotti and I had an enjoyable, low-key evening. Our children spent time with their maternal grandparents as the two of us went for dinner just the two of us, which is a rare event. We usually have either the kids or other friends/family with us, or both. After dinner we picked up the monkeys, took them home, tucked them in bed, then watched last night's How I Met Your Mother before firing up some first-season episodes of Glee. We watched all 3 episodes from disc 3 while heavy rain and thunder and lightning occurred outside. At 1 a.m. it was time to hit the sack.

My alarm was set for 7:45 this morning, allowing me time to get up and leave the house for a run before 8:25. I finally stood up at 8:07, and was putting on my running underpants when I realized it was garbage and recycling day, which meant putting our junk curbside by 7 a.m. - oops! I sped things up and was carrying the recycling to the curb as the truck was two houses from reaching us - phew! The garbage truck always comes a couple of hours later, so that was fine. The run was a Bellini-and-ribs heavy one, and there were many broken branches and a few downed trees cluttering the trails (oh right, that storm the night before), but I still managed to keep my time-to-distance ratio (also known as my pace, I guess) respectable.

The shooting of John T. Williams by Seattle police officer Ian Birk

2011-01-04T17:16:00.000-08:00

On August 30, 2010, a man from British Columbia was shot and killed by a Seattle police officer. 50-year-old John T. Williams "was a member of the Ditidaht First Nation, also a member nation of the Nuu-Chah-Nulth. The Ditidaht First Nation is a small, remote community on the west coast of Vancouver Island" (source). The police officer was Ian Birk. Here is Seattle police spokeswoman Renee Witt on the same day of the shooting:

A video taken from inside Birk's patrol car was released on December 17, 2010. Here it is (Williams appears at 0:51 and the audio begins at 1:03):

The two videos and their discrepancies speak for themselves, but I'll add that Williams was hearing impaired.

Marathon Quest 250 is over

2011-01-02T21:49:00.001-08:00

Do you remember this post about the Albertan who planned to run 250 marathons in 2010 with hopes of raising $250,000 for Right to Play? Well, he did run number 250 on New Year's Eve, but fell a little short of his money goal. I am in awe of his accomplishment.

No, really, it's small

2010-12-22T23:59:00.001-08:00

When I first started running regularly, I was slow and unconfident. Okay, I wasn't that slow, but I was unconfident. On the trails in Pacific Spirit Park, whenever I was gaining on another runner I would slow my pace. I knew that at any time my body could reach its limit and say, "it's stopping time", and I didn't want that to happen right after passing a runner. "Hey! Look at me! You so slow and me so fast! Look at me pass you with ease! Wheeeeee! Oh, my bad. After you..."

This continued after our move and as I began running the local trails. Now though, my endurance has picked up considerably, along with my confidence, and I now have no qualms about gaining on and passing other runners. Let them look at my small ass as it gets even smaller off in the distance.

Small ass?, you ask. Yes, I answer.

Having said all that, today was an exercise in perseverance. I haven't run much lately because I've been working more than usual and the weather's been lousy and in the past week I've been fighting a battle against illness (which is now at a standstill at sorethroat hill). My pace today was sooooo slow. Fortunately it was midday on a weekday and just three days before Christmas day, so the trails were nearly vacant 'cept for me and the doggies. So, yeah, I've been feeling like crap, but keeping up the regular running would do me a world of good, so make sure I keep it up, okay? Thanks.

To be fair (to me), it has started raining

2010-11-25T15:46:00.000-08:00

Sleepy. Want to take the dogs for a snowy walk. Sleepy. Want to take the dogs for a snowy walk. Sleepy. Want to take the dogs for a snowy walk. Sleepy. Want to take the dogs for- zzzzzzzzzzz

It's so pretty and white outside, and it's mid-afternoon with plenty of daylight left, but working overnights this week has me in rest mode right now. A power nap is where it's at. The weather forecast is for rain and warmer temperatures, so after the final two overnights the snow will likely be all gone. Not cool.

David Letterman - Chilean Miner, Edison Peña

2010-11-10T15:28:00.000-08:00

Longest run since May 2008

2010-10-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

10-kilometre run. With doggies. Pouring rain. Total joy. 49:49.

mailing it in

2010-10-18T20:03:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine celebrated her birthday last week (Happy Birthday, cexylizziepants!), and I procrastinated in getting a gift in the mail for her. She's currently living in another province, one that is home to two NHL teams. Her birthday was on Thursday, and I had assumed that a birthday parcel would take 2-3 days to get to her, so if I put it in the mail on Tuesday there was a chance it'd get to her right on her birthday. However, after getting the opinions of a few other people, I became a little nervous. One person said two weeks, another said about a week, and another said 4-5 business days. Ugh. At the post office on Tuesday I considered my options that were given by the worker and went with the cheapest option which she said had a chance of getting there by Friday. The gifts weren't time-sensitive, and it wouldn't be the first time in the history of the world that a birthday gift sent by mail arrived after the fact. Would it? Doubt it.

The shipment even came with a tracking number, which was exciting for me. Only the second time in my life I've had a chance to track something. Coincidentally, the first time was waiting for an online order to arrive - an online order that was a wedding gift earlier this year for this same birthday girl! My first check of the tracking number showed me that the parcel had arrived at the post office in Coquitlam. Um, right.... I was there for that. The next check showed that the parcel had arrived at the facility in Richmond! It was about to take flight! Before I could check again, on Thursday my birthday friend thanked me on MSN Messenger! At first I wasn't sure it had, based on her first comment. We had joked about us giving her a car - a blue car - as a gift, and in the parcel I included a small blue car toy from a collection of similar cars we had here. So when the first thing she wrote was 'thanks for the blue car', I wasn't sure if she had received the package or if she was pretending we actually got her a real blue car. Turns out the parcel had indeed arrived right on her birthday! Approximately 48 hours after I handed over the parcel to Canada Post in Coquitlam, it arrived in Calgary! (Alberta: home to the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers.) I had tricked her into believing that we weren't getting her anything for her birthday, so its arrival was a surprise. Plus, she says that it was the only thing that arrived by mail that day - no bills, no nothing, just our birthday parcel. Cool.

Yesterday she told me a very cool story about the car (there were other parts to the parcel, I'm just not sharing), but I'd have to get her permission before I can tell it. If she gives permission, this post shall be edited soon to add her exact text from yesterday's chat.

It's now a day later and permission has been granted! Sort of. I can share regardless. My friend took a two-day weekend course right after the arrival of the birthday parcel. The course focused on psychic development and they were asked to bring a small item on Sundays. So BW took the blue car. All the items were put into a bag and each person chose one of the items randomly from the bag. Then each person gave a reading of the item they had chosen, with no knowledge of who brought the item. According to BW, the girl who did her reading said that the moment she started to read it, she got an image of a small boy, playing with the car.

Then,

she got the impression that it actually belongs to an older person, and it represents a car that they want
and that it was a gift
ok wait, she wrote down her impressions, so let me write them for u
small boy....son, brother.... husband, father
favorite color - blue, chosen for the color
treasured favorite toy or treasured car owned by an older version of the small boy
given to the person for safe keeping, and a strong loving relationship
brings lots of joy to the beholder
and she was so bang on about everything
and she was so HAPPY, when she gave the reading
because she could feel the energy from the car
and when she found out it was mine, rushed over to give me a huge hug
and whole class loved it
i think mine was the best reading!

a fine time up the Grind

2010-10-09T11:14:00.000-07:00

I got home about 45 minutes ago after getting up bright and early for a jaunt up the Grouse Grind. I know what you're thinking: a jaunt? Really? Dictionary.com defines jaunt as "a short journey, esp. one taken for pleasure" - surely you don't find a rainy early-Saturday hike up a mountain pleasurable. And that's where you're wrong. I find it highly pleasurable and don't do it enough. Rain or no rain, I like hiking. It would've been nice to have had the dogs trekking along with me, but, alas, they are not allowed on that trail.

After meeting my friend KB at the base of the trail just before 8 a.m., I pushed the buttons on my watch that make the numbers rise and up we went. However, KB was under the weather and that made for slow progress early on. We took a few breaks as he tried to fight through the queasiness, but just past the 1/4 mark, he decided that he better not risk anything more severe and opted to turn and return to the bottom. I was feeling pretty good, very good actually, and continued with the wet ascent. From that point on, I managed to summit without taking another break. I was feeling very, very good. So good, in fact, that I'm thinking of going for a one-hour run* with the dogs after publishing this post (which will be roughly two hours after reaching the Grind's peak).

Here's a brief summary of today's Grind time:

45:00 - KB turns around a little past the 1/4 mark.
53:00 - I pass the 2/4 mark.
1:07:00 - I pass the 3/4 mark.
1:18:00 - I summit.

I am pretty sure that the cost of the gondola ride down was $5 the last time I was there, and so was surprised to learn that the cost today was $10. If it wasn't for the rain I would've kept my money and hiked back down, but since I didn't want to risk a slip on wet wood, onto the gondola ten bucks lighter I went. On drier days it'll be hike up, hike down, fo' sho'.

Of note, I was back in the car at 9:55 a.m. and at 10:30 a.m. I was turning the car off in our driveway - pretty quick, eh? Especially considering I didn't have the carpool lane option on the highway. And now, I runnnn. C'mere doggies..

[* The run - one of my best in a long time - was actually completed in a time of 47:12. Today has been a very good day. Now to get stuff done at home with playoff baseball and regular-season hockey (including the Canucks' first game of the season!) playing on the television in the background.]

'are we family' or what?

2010-10-04T19:19:00.000-07:00

It almost went on the book, until I remembered.

A finale of two to bid you adieu: 1) it might be late, but it won't be early, and
2) lonely like the tightrope walker, hitchhiker, long-distance runner

2 things

2010-09-08T14:59:00.000-07:00

1.

On October 3, 2009, my wife and I went to a Seattle Mariners game at Safeco Field. It was a meaningless game against the Texas Rangers, but neither Biscotti's sister nor Biscotti's sister's hubby had ever been to a baseball game, so the four of us enjoyed a cold evening at Safeco Field.

Growing up in Vancouver, the Mariners were pretty much the hometown baseball team. Seattle was the closest city with a major league team, and the closest Canadian team was waaaaay far away in Toronto. We used to have a triple-A team, but now just a single-A team. Anyway, my position was centre field for the various teams I played with, and I had much admiration for Ken Griffey Jr., who played centre field for the Mariners. His cool batting stance, his smooth swing, and his ability to make leaping catches to rob hitters of home runs were all things that made this boy's heart go all a-flutter.

At the start of that game last October, I was happy Griffey was in the lineup and was aware that it could be the second last - if not the last - game Griffey played. Sitting out the Mariner's final game of the season the following day was a possibility (in fact, he did end up starting), and retirement during the off-season was a distinct possibility. I thought, 'Wouldn't it be cool to be at the game where he hits his final home run?' Considering he'd only hit 18 all season, I knew it was a long shot (no pun intended). But guess what?! He hit a long shot! It wasn't that long of a shot, but I remember it clearly from the vantage point of our centre field seats. The ball left the bat low, and stayed low. It was heading towards right field wall, and although it was low, it was going fast. My focus was rotating between the ball, the wall, and the right fielder. It became clear, as the right fielder retreated, that he wasn't going to catch the ball, and I was getting ready to watch the ball bounce off the wall when I saw it disappear into the arms of the fans in the first row. Griffey had hit a homer!

The next day I paid online attention to the Mariners game and was happy when it ended with Griffey homerless. I waited all winter to hear news of his retirement and was disappointed when he began the 2010 season. Oh well.. Every time I watched late-evening baseball highlights on television I would cross my fingers that Griffey hadn't hit a homer that day. I knew it was just a matter of time, but I wanted to know when that time was. I would also check Griffey's stats online every few days to make sure I hadn't missed anything. April ended and he was homerless. May ended and he was still homerless. June started and two days in he retired. I promptly checked his season stats online - for what would be the final time - and it was confirmed: I was at the game in which Ken Griffey Jr. hit his final career home run. I saw it in person. I am happy.

2.

My name and a picture I took are in Vancouver Then and Now.

Tomorrow's to-do list

2010-07-30T23:37:00.000-07:00

6:00 a.m.: One-hour run with the dogs
8:00 a.m.: Several hours of tennis with AM
1:30 p.m.: Eight hours of work

--------------------
The day after tomorrow revised-to-actual-time list:

6:30 a.m. - 7:25 a.m.: Run with (off-leash!) dogs
8:15 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.: Tennis with AM
1:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.: Work

Plus I got my hair trimmed between tennis and work.

Running four years to spell

2010-07-21T18:21:00.000-07:00

I've continued to run regularly, and have kept to my promise of not blogging about it, but today I break my promise. But, hey, a now-and-then running update is good, right? It lets you know I'm still keeping it going without cramming that fact down your throat, or eye sockets as it were. Today was marvelous. Today was effin' brill. Warm without being too hot, the sun shining, the river's water glistening (would you believe I have yet to go tubing this year?!), and hardly anybody else on the trails. Plus, there were NO bugs!

Enough of that. Last week, Biscotti and I celebrated our four-year anniversary in part by attending a performance of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. It's being put on by The Arts Club Theatre Company, is showing at Granville Island Stage, and is a lot of fun. A LOT of fun. There were many, many highlights, such as the sundry "definitions" of words, and several clever riffs of the spelling theme. I loved the whole show, and here's a particular bit that stuck with me:

If you took the W from answer, the H from ghost, the extra A from aardvark, and the T from listen, you could keep saying "what" and no one would ever know what you're saying, 'cause the whole word would be silent.

One more thing: "Life is Pandemonium" was phenomenal.

REMiniscing

2010-07-14T21:22:00.000-07:00

On my way to work one day last week - as I walked through the park and around the lake - I was listening to my Zen music player. The device was on the Random Play All setting and at one point Andy Kaufman's version of "It's a Small World" was playing. When that fun bongo-filled song ended, any one of the other 758 songs could have started; the one that did was R.E.M.'s "Man on the Moon". For those that don't know, that R.E.M. song is about Andy Kaufman.

Now, Andy did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Hey Andy are you goofing on Elvis?
Hey, baby.
Are we losing touch?

I smiled at that fortuitous one-two punch of songs, and then my thoughts wandered to a guy I knew named Scott. That often happens when I hear R.E.M. because one of the few times I spent time with Scott I was playing an album of theirs and he was asking about it. Scott was engaged to my stepsister when he was in a car crash and died in hospital a few days later. While growing up he had never shared living quarters with any animals - no dogs, no cats, no nothing. After presenting my stepsister with a kitten named Matilda for a Valentine's Day gift, he couldn't get over the fact that they were living with an animal! However, stepsister didn't want to keep the cat without Scott, so my mom expressed her desire to adopt her, and ours she was. Over time she became my cat, and when I moved out of my parents' place I was moving to a no-pets residence and had to leave her behind. It wasn't long before she was living with us in stealth. When it comes to Scott, I have R.E.M. and I have Matilda.

There are some other things that prompt memories of people I knew who have passed on:

Diet Coke makes me think of Jennifer, a classmate in grade eight who would often - almost always - have a can on her desk in whichever class we were in. I didn't know her well and though I could tell that there was something a little different about her, I couldn't put a finger on what it was. It wasn't until after she died during our grade nine year that I found out that she had been fighting cancer.
Will was a friend of mine from a very early age, when he was still Evan. We went to elementary school together and started high school together, at which point he was often singing the theme song to "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" . I suspect his name change had less to do with him thinking Evan sounded too childish and more to do with him wanting to be Will Smith. Now that Will Smith is a huge movie star I wish that Will could have enjoyed his many movies. He would've especially loved "Men in Black" and "I Am Legend", but he committed suicide mere months before "MiB" hit theatres. Anything to do with Will the actor reminds me of Will the friend.
One day during grade twelve, I was walking into biology class and somehow found myself singing Montell Jordan's "This Is How We Do It" with Clare. We got to the point where neither of us knew the words - about halfway through the first verse - and then Clare mentioned that we're probably not supposed to know that song that well. Well, I'll admit I liked the song. I also liked Clare. She died a few months later after getting hit by a drunk driver while crossing the street. I hear that song, I think of Clare.

In all four deaths, parents were left to grieve the loss of a child. At the start of The Last Six Minutes: A Mother's Loss and Quest for Justice (a book by Sandra Martins-Toner about the murder of her 16-year-old son), there is a page with this quote:

When a child loses his parents, he is called an orphan.
When a spouse loses her or his partner, he is called a widow or widower.

When parents lose their child, there are no words to describe them.

~ J. Neugeboren ~

Reid it and believe it: All Whites are all tied

2010-06-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

I woke up very early this morning. New Zealand was playing the first game of the day, at 4:30 a.m. local time, and damn straight I'd be up to watch. The first half was dull, and when Slovakia scored in the first five minutes of the second half it didn't look good for the All Whites. An equalizing goal was unimaginable since there were long stretches where a completed pass in their own half was cause for celebration.

BUT (all caps because it's a very big but), the All Whites managed a draw! They waited until the game was a couple of minutes into added time before Winston Reid directed a header past the Slovakian keeper. Here's the thing: I had been in and out of doze-mode for much of the second half and when the historic goal went in I was in doze-mode. D'oh(ze)! The post-goal noise - I guess mostly the excited voices of the announcers as the vuvuzelas are going all match long - woke me and I enjoyed the replays. Bravo, boys! Tied with Italy! And Slovakia and Paraguay! Group F is all square in all ways.

no mas

2010-06-13T10:32:00.000-07:00

friend
-noun

1. a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.

(source)

Why do I bother? I try and I try, and all that trying with no reward leads to feelings of annoyance more often than affection. No more. No more will I let my feelings of affection (diminishing as they are) result in annoyance and heartache.

"Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." - Bob Marley

From runs to runs

2010-06-08T10:35:00.000-07:00

I was sick a couple of weeks ago. Very very sick. Yesterday I went for my first run since, and am surprised at how well it went. I was anticipating having to either run much slower than usual or end the run much earlier than usual, but I was right on my usual 50-minute-ish pace and felt fine afterwards. While I tend to go for my runs in the mornings or early afternoons, yesterday I went at around 6 p.m. which is the latest I've ever gone for a run. Today is a beautiful day and I'm probably playing tennis with my dad later. I'm tempted to go for a run right now. I think I will.

By the way, I am still thrilled that I am able to run with the doggies on forested trails and next to a river without having to drive anywhere.

Calgary is close enough. For now.

2010-06-02T18:13:00.000-07:00

My watch is still set fifteen hours ahead of Vancouver time, but it's the date not the time that tells me it's been far too long since I've seen you.

What categories are you?

2010-05-14T16:39:00.000-07:00

“You like an epiphany or you like a surprise”
“You talk loudly in airport lineups or you are Canadian”
“You say ‘I love you’ or you say ‘I love you too’”
“You say ‘Fuck you’ or you say ‘Oh yeah? Fuck you’”

- from this Georgia Straight book-review article, excerpting “Good Egg Bad Seed” in Susan Holbrook's Joy Is So Exhausting.

Running like a swimmer

2010-05-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

I've moreorless kept up my increased running routine of late. The past few outings, though, there have been many, many bugs hanging out at face level in the middle of the path. A sure sign that summer's here. After having one too many of said bugs ending up in my mouth, I decided to adopt a swimming technique. Specifically, the breathing component of the front crawl. I would turn my head to the left to inhale, and then face forward to exhale. It worked like a charm, but it was annoying as puck and took my body and mind off of running's forward-progress mentality.

More running

2010-05-05T11:24:00.000-07:00

I've been running more lately. Running more and doing more post-run exercies/stretching than I used to. My regular running routine, when at its most regular, would be every second day. Recently, though, I wondered why I didn't run every day. After all, if the dude from a post in mid-January can run a marathon a day for five straight days, then take two days off, then run a marathon for five straight days, and keep up that routine for a full year, then surely I can run for approximately an hour every day.

Well, I'm not quite there yet. I did run two days in a row, but then took a day off and simply walked the dogs. Then I ran two days in a row, and today would be le troisième jour, mais I'm feeling like it's going to be another walking day. I'm sure that I'll be doing three days in a row soon enough, then four, then five, then six, and so on. But hey, even my body needs to be conditioned.

the sooner, right now

2010-05-01T08:19:00.000-07:00

On the one hand, the sooner he gets older the sooner we can play tennis together. On the other hand, right now his hands are so adorably cute and soft.

On the one hand, the sooner he gets older the sooner he can ask me questions that make me look at the world in a whole new way. On the other hand, right now he sees the world as an entirely innocent place.

On the one hand, the sooner he gets older the sooner he'll say the darndest things. On the other hand, right now I love watching and listening to him create his own sounds and "words" as he communicates.

On the one hand, I want him to be older. On the other hand, I want him to stay like this forever.

ow ow ow owwWWWW

2010-04-29T11:00:00.000-07:00

You don't know pain until you've had a cat attempt to jump onto your lap while you're wearing boxers and a t-shirt, and the cat doesn't quite make it and is clinging to your unprotected thigh with three of her four skin-penetrating razor-sharp claw-paws. Love ya Tildy.

Meeeeeeoooowwww. Sllrrrp sllrrrp slllllrrrrrrp.

2010-04-20T13:34:00.000-07:00

Lately I haven't been sleeping well. It's either a restless night or a too-early awakening. For those that know me, or know us, the culprit isn't who you might think. Little L has been sleeping through the night for a long, long time now. The only ones to blame are the bloody cats. Meowing obnoxiously in the middle of the night or cleaning themselves loudly just a few feet from my should-be-asleep head or scratching on a door. On the shower door, Tildy? Really? Come on! If it's not one cat, it's the other. Please, make it stop. I'd close the bedroom door, but we need it open in case L has a rare middle-of-the-night awakening. Plus, the cat(s) would then simply scratch on our door.

Plus one of the cats, the not-Tildy one, has a habit (a cute habit, some might say) of vomiting every time he eats. Yes, I've made the eating disorder jokes, but now it's just annoying. Super annoying. There's enough to deal with already with L and two large dogs and a bun in the oven, do we really need a vomiting cat? Why do we feed him, anyway? It just comes out whole onto the dining room/bedroom/hallway/kitchen floor.

Hey, anyone want a black cat? He's so purrfect and has so many cute habits. It'd be very hard to see him go, but please, TAKE HIM! TAKE HIM NOW! DO IT!

Not a New Kids song

2010-03-26T22:36:00.000-07:00

Step by step.

Literally, when running with the dogs (49:14 Wednesday, 49:30 today).

Literally, when walking to work and/or walking home.

Figuratively, when eating healthier foods.

Figuratively, when doing basic exercises more often.

Step by step.

Ooh baby, you're always on my mind.

Name acronyms - acronames?

2010-03-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

I have a niece whose first name starts with G, middle name E, last name M. Therefore, her name acronym (acroname) is GEM. Very nice. My wife and son and I recently travelled to Malaysia for a wedding of two friends. Cexylizzienegligee's brother has twin girls, whose first names start with C and O. The last name starts with W. So when discussing both girls together, it's easier to just say COW. The kicker is that they were born in the year of the cow!

While we were in Malaysia, our son turned one. The use of la/lah is common in speech and writing in Malaysia, and we used it ad nauseam. "Don't be kayu, lah!" "Don't think, just do it, lah!" It was just recently, about a month after our return from Malaysia, that I learned of COW, and it reminded me of GEM, and I thought of what our son's acroname is. It's LAA. If only our last name started with an H! But hey, LAA is the next best thing. As cexylizzienegligee said, considering he celebrated his first birthday in Malaysia, and has an acroname of LAA, he certainly seems to have an affinity for all thing Malaysian! As long as he doesn't bring home any durians, that's okay with me.

1 minute, 16 seconds

2010-02-23T10:47:00.000-08:00

Created by Oatmeal

I ran

2010-02-20T22:15:00.001-08:00

I went for a run yesterday and have no urge to document the time here. What's the point? I thought at first it would keep me motivated to run, and might come in handy if I wanted to see my improvements or my... declines? Deteriorations? But no, I just want to run. I want to get fit. More time being active and less time documenting it.

My book blog will be seeing more action, catch me there. More action there will mean less action on my error blog, where I was spending way too much time.

I spent a fortnight in Malaysia recently and had a great time. Betty & Lone had a beautiful wedding and were extremely generous and I miss them a lot.

Marathon Quest 250

2010-01-18T18:26:00.001-08:00

Even after taking into account my lack of posts lately, I'm surprised I haven't posted about this yet. Especially considering it is running related. Martin Parnell of Alberta is running 250 marathons in 2010. He'll do a marathon a day for five consecutive days, and then take two days off, and repeat that 50 times. (Well, the 50th time will end with more than two days off, I'm sure.)

From the Marathon Quest 250 homepage:

Martin Parnell will attempt to run 250 marathons in 2010. His goal is to raise $250,000 for Right To Play.

Right To Play is an humanitarian organization that uses sport and play programs to improve health, develop life skills, and foster peace with children and communities in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the world.

Right To Play also works in Canadian communities to inspire children and support their right to grow and learn through physical activity. More than 4,500 schools in Canada use the Right To Play program.

To raise $250,000, Martin will run all 250 marathons between January 1st and December 31st 2010. He'll cover a distance of 10,550km or 6550miles, which is approximately the same distance as a run from Cochrane to Boston then west through the US to Vancouver and back to Cochrane.

Visit the site to see a video introduction, and then keep checking back to follow his progress. I encourage you to consider making a donation to Right To Play through his site. Today Parnell did his 13th marathon of the year; in -7C weather his time was 5 hours, 56 minutes, 33 seconds. Ha - that's nothing compared to my run of 49 minutes, 59 seconds in 12C weather.

Today's run time

2010-01-15T14:50:00.000-08:00

I went for a run today, but today's post title is only Today's run time, not the usual Today's run route and time. Why? Because my runs are usually going to be the same route, and I'm tired of copying and pasting the route from previous posts. So from now on I'm only going to post the route if it's significantly different from the usual. Plus, I'm going to be posting more non-running stuff and can just post a one-liner run-time at the end of the posts. Today I felt like crap - felt as though each leg weighed 300lbs. But I fought through it and felt great at the end. Yay me.

Today's run time: 50 minutes, 5 seconds

Today's run route and time

2010-01-08T15:17:00.000-08:00

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
50 minutes 57 seconds

A wet run is great fun. The dogs didn't notice any of the many herons.

We're number one, we're number one

2010-01-05T14:08:00.000-08:00

It's now 2010 and the Olympics are nigh. Kudos & Kvetches in The Vancouver Courier posted the following back in November and it's taken me until now to post it here, but hey, at least I'm finally doing it:

As the province speeds headlong towards the 2010 Winter Olympics like a greased-up two-man luge, K&K is happy to report B.C.’s sacrifices, determination and winning attitude have started to pay off. According to the 2009 Child Poverty Report Card released Monday by First Call, a national child-advocacy group, B.C. has the highest child poverty rate in the country… for the sixth year in a row. In your face, Nunavat!

Of course, it’s not easy maintaining such consistent results, especially when B.C. is one of the most affluent provinces in the country, led by a government who voted to give its top 100 bureaucrats hefty wage increases last year, including Premier Gordon Campbell’s deputy minister, Jessica McDonald, who received a 43 per cent raise, pushing her salary from a paltry $243,936 to a more civilized $348,600. And let’s not forget that just two years prior, MLAs voted to give themselves a 29 per cent wage hike, and the premier a 54 per cent raise.

So how has B.C. managed to own the child poverty podium, despite such huge obstacles? Let’s start by giving a big shout out to the 156,000 kids around the province living in poverty. Without their sacrifice and dwindling resources thanks to constant cuts to social programs, B.C.’s dream of having the highest child poverty in the country would be just that… a silly dream. In short, their lack of options and poor diet make us stronger. Thank you, poor kids.

And let’s not forget the province’s steadfast refusal to increase the minimum wage, which was once the highest in the country but now secures the bottom spot, sitting at $8 an hour since 2001, to say nothing of the generous $6 “training wage” the B.C. Liberals introduced, presumably to dampen the sticker shock a princely sum like $8 an hour can cause.

Also, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention a recent article in the Georgia Straight that pointed out that B.C. Liberals—while slashing funding for mental health services, support for arts and culture and children’s sports—have shelled out nearly $1.5 million for 2010 Olympic tickets purchased by Crown corporations B.C. Hydro, ICBC and the B.C. Lottery Corporation, all at the expense of taxpayers. And “many of the tickets, including those for luxury suites in B.C. Place, GM Place and the Pacific Coliseum to watch coveted hockey and skating events, were for B.C. Liberal MLAs and cabinet ministers for the purposes of ‘Olympic community engagement and leveraging.’”

Then there’s the recently completed Vancouver Convention Centre, which was originally budgeted at $495 million, but ended up costing $883 million.

But the B.C. Liberals can’t take all the credit for the province’s gold medal performance in child poverty. Carole James and the NDP, despite initial protests, eventually accepted their “outrageous” 29 per cent wage hikes a few years back and have squandered every opportunity to defeat the government by putting its energy into opposing what it thinks are hot button issues such as gasoline taxes and now the HST.

Then, of course, there’s you, the majority of B.C. voters, who have either continually supported the government on its winning path of achieving the highest child poverty rate in the country for the past six years, or don’t bother voting at all. So take a moment and pat yourselves on the back. There’s plenty of blame to go around.

Here's a link to the original post.

Today's run route and time

2010-01-05T13:47:00.000-08:00

Today's run time
52 minutes 48 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-11-24T16:15:00.000-08:00

Today's run time
51 minutes 4 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-11-20T16:43:00.000-08:00

Today's run time
51 minutes 17 seconds

Broadview's s(ec)ure scam

2009-11-14T14:49:00.000-08:00

We've had Broadview Security as our home security system for several years now, starting back when the company was known as Brink's. When we moved about half a year ago, we had a guy come and hook up our doors and windows to the alarm system and he spent most of the day here. Our last place did not have a sliding door, and our new place does, and that's what this post is about.

You see, we started noticing a few weeks back that it was getting harder to lock the sliding door; the door wasn't getting close enough for the latch to hook onto the stationary frame. That evolved into it being difficult to even shut the sliding door, as the door's locking mechanism's were off-centre a tad.

Then one time as Biscotti struggled to close the door, she reached to the bottom of the door and easily disconnected a small, umm, thing that was narrow and a couple of inches long. "I hope that wasn't an important part of the door," she said. We figured we'd find out soon enough if something bad happened and put the thing in a catch-all drawer. The door now shut perfectly and locking it was a breeze.

Later, when we next attempted to set our alarm, we couldn't. While the system was telling us that our sliding door was open, we knew for a fact that it was closed and locked. A-ha! That thing was Broadview Security's attachment to tell the system that the door was closed. Well, surely they can hook something up that doesn't affect our ability to lock the door, let alone shut the door.

Biscotti called the company, which has its call centre in Texas. (The few times we have had false alarms we've enjoyed listening to the Texas accents on the phone.) She told them the situation and asked for someone to come and not only fix it, but make it better than before (see: not affect our closing/locking abilities). The response was that the earliest someone could come would be a week later and that we would be charged a GST fee. Biscotti balked, but was told that it wasn't the company, it was "your government" that required this (us being in Canada and the representative being in Texas). Until someone came to fix it, we could bypass the sliding door security with an extra step or two when setting the code. That was that.

The next day, we still weren't impressed with having to pay for them to fix what they faultily installed, so Biscotti called them again and was given the same line. "There's nothing we can do, it's your government," with major emphasis on your. After several minutes of Biscotti attempting to get this new rep to say something else, Biscotti told her to cancel the house call and that we would bypass the door until our contract ran out, or get a credit back and switch to a different company. At this, the rep hemmed and hawed and Biscotti then asked to speak to a manager. The rep asked if that was really necessary (seriously? When asked for a manager, get the bloody manager!), Biscotti said yes, and the rep put her on hold.

When the rep returned after just a minute or two, she said she was looking to see if our government still required the fee, and surprise, surprise, they didn't. The rep thought that would make us happy and that that would be the end of it, but Biscotti didn't let her off so easy. "So, if I hadn't protested this fee that is no longer required (I wonder if it ever was), I would've unnecessarily paid to have someone come to our house to fix this? So we would've been getting ripped off?" "Ohhh, no, ma'am." And yet, she had nothing else to say to explain how we would not have been getting ripped off by paying a fee that is not required.

Biscotti made her guarantee that when the person comes to our house that we will not have to pay a cent. That is he/she asks for payment that we will kick them out of our house (or have him/her with us as we call the Texas call centre number and ask to speak to the lady we talked to. We have her name and the pre-connection recording says that all conversations are recorded for quality assurance purposes, so her guarantee should be findable. The house call is in a couple of days - let's hope it goes smoothly.

Not everyone would protest the fee to the degree that we did, or even fight it at all. How many other customers has Broadview Security (formerly Brink's) scammed in this way?

Today's run route and time

2009-11-12T14:59:00.000-08:00

Today's run time
51 minutes

I'm making a promise to myself to do more non-running-related posts, beginning very, very soon. If you're reading this, please hold me to it.

Today's run route and time

2009-11-03T13:16:00.000-08:00

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 39 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-10-07T16:22:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 25 seconds

I felt like crap today. I happened to look at my watch just as the one-minute mark passed, and thought, 'okay - I just have to run that distance fifty more times'. The next fifty minutes and twenty-five seconds were brutal; my legs felt like they weighed two tons each and were attempting to move me in the opposite direction.

Friday's run route and time

2009-10-06T13:51:00.001-07:00

Friday's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Friday's run time
49 minutes 10 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-09-30T17:24:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 26 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-09-24T19:08:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, go about ten minutes before turning around*, run south along the trail, turn around near Lougheed Hwy, cross the pedestrian bridge near Patrica Ave, right to go north along the Trans Canada Trail/Coquitlam River, end near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave.
Today's run time
48 minutes 03 seconds

* The turn around was due to several people in different spots along the river telling me that a bear was a little farther north on the trail. I am fairly certain the bear wouldn't have been a threat, but I didn't want my off-leash dogs to provoke it.

Monday's run route and time

2009-09-22T20:12:00.000-07:00

Monday's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Monday's run time
50 minutes 11 seconds

Sunday's run route and time

2009-09-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Sunday's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Sunday's run time
52 minutes 46 seconds

The runs

2009-08-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

Thursday's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Thursday's run time
47 minutes 31 seconds

Please, encourage me to run more frequently

2009-08-22T17:54:00.000-07:00

If you'd like to see what I've been up to lately - other than watching and playing tennis (and the Little League World Series, minus the playing) - make like a bunny and hop on over to Detected Errors where you'll find plenty of goofs and gaffes to shake your head at. As a bonus, I make some very clever remarks such as, "My wife may write the writer a letter regarding the latter"; and I am not biased in the slightest. I know I pointed that blog's way in a recent post, but that's because I'm not sure how often I'll be posting on this blog from here on out. I won't stop fully completely, but once a month or so sounds about right, while Detected Errors is updated almost daily. Also, my book blog deserves more attention.

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 27 seconds

A mystery at the Nat

2009-08-20T15:55:00.000-07:00

I consider myself to be a fairly knowledgeable baseball guy, but during a recent Vancouver Canadians game there was a play that has me stumped. My stepdad - no doubt a more knowledgeable baseball guy than I am - was also there and he is also stumped.

The C's were fielding, the bases were loaded, and while I can't recall exactly what the count on the batter was, I know there were fewer than three balls. After a pitch on which the batter attempted to check his swing, the catcher wanted the lone base ump, standing near second base, to give his verdict on whether the batter swung or not. A few seconds passed as the catcher went from squatting to standing and I don't know if the home plate umpire ever appealed to the base ump. The home plate ump eventually called the base ump over and they had a brief chat before heading over to the C's dugout.

After another brief chat, the umpires walked back towards the field and motioned all the runners to advance a base. It's a balk then, right? Not so fast - in addition to the runners all advancing a base, the batter was awarded first base. So what was the ruling?

I’m Sorry to Hear That You’re Having Difficulty

2009-07-23T21:26:00.000-07:00

I read an article today that I thoroughly enjoyed and am now recommending to you. In "I’m Sorry to Hear That You’re Having Difficulty" the writer shares his experiences from his career in ISP tech support. An excerpt:

Callers from New England spoke with a certain sense of entitlement. They were usually intelligent and sometimes downright mean, but I enjoyed our conversations. A guy from Massachusetts called in one time because he had lost his Internet connection. I determined that his router was the problem, and that a reset would probably work. Unfortunately, he had just renovated the room, and figuring that he didn't ever need to touch or look at that ugly plastic box again, he completely obscured it with drywall, power cord and all. His Jersey-accented reaction, upon realizing his mistake:

"Are you telling me that I need to unplug that router and plug it back in, and I fuckin' walled it over? Fuck me. Fuck me! I'm an asshole. Fuck! You're loving this, aren't you, you cocksucker? Laugh at me. I deserve it. I'm a stupid son of a bitch. God damn it. Fuck! Jesus Christ!"

So, with his permission, I started laughing, and couldn't stop. We continued like that for a couple of minutes before he ended the conversation. "Wow. Fuck me, I'm a fuckin' retard. Laugh it up, dickhead." Then he proceeded to laugh, and hung up on me. It made my day.

Kate Miller-Heidke "R U Fucking Kidding Me?"

2009-07-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

Blogging and running, again

2009-07-08T14:08:00.000-07:00

Alrighty. It's coming up to two months since I last posted on The Luck Key. There are three main reasons. Firstly, our son, who is just over five months old now. Secondly, we recently moved out of Vancouver, which, with a five month old son and two cats and two large dogs, was no small feat. In fact, we are still in a state of chaos with unpacked boxes everywhere and a completely empty living room and dining room as we have stripped off the carpet and are painting the walls before laying down laminate. Actually, the rooms aren't entirely empty - the bigass china cabinet is on a dolly and that is gonan be a bit*h to get off the dolly once the flooring is done. Thirdly, all my blogging time is used up by Detected Errors (with the remaining computer time dominated by ESPN's Streak for the Cash).

It's for the above reasons also that before yesterday it had been two and a half months since my last run. I can not express how much of a pleasure it is to be able to run on wooded trails with the dogs without having to drive at least twenty minutes each way to do so. Yesterday was suitably painful (it'd been two and a half months after all) and I still loved it. And to think, it's just gonna get better and better!

Yesterday's run route
Starting near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail along the Coquitlam River, turn left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, turn left to go north along the Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave/Elizabeth Dr, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Yesterday's run time
49 minutes 14 seconds

Barenaked Ladies "Drawing"

2009-05-18T20:53:00.001-07:00

one hundred and sixty-four seconds

2009-05-12T14:38:00.000-07:00

The Vancouver Canucks played their last game of the season last night, losing game six in the Western Conference semifinals. They lost that last game in spectacular fashion, allowing seven goals against, while scoring five. Anytime the Canucks score five goals in a game, in front of one of the best goaltenders in the game, they should freakin' win. What's more, the seven goals scored by the Chicago Blackhawks were all scored while Roberto Luongo was still in net. No empty-netters. I'm not placing all the blame on him - there's plenty to go around - but seven goals against in the biggest game of the year, including four in the third period? Yikes. The Canucks twice had a one-goal lead in that third period. A goal by Daniel Sedin to make it 5-4 with 7:45 remaining had me daydreaming of Thursday's game seven. That daydream lasted a mere forty-five seconds (of playing time).

This morning Biscotti told me that the Canucks franchise is being moved to Las Vegas. I said, "Good, they won't break my heart anymore".

After the Canucks went up 2-1 in the best-of-seven, the Blackhawks won three straight games and advance to play either the Detroit Red Wings or the Anaheim Ducks in the Western Conference final. After the game last night, I heard a local sportscaster (can't remember who, probably on Global's 11pm news) say that in the four Chicago wins, the Canucks had third-period leads in three of them. I was close to posting that without checking on my own, and am glad I did do my own research. The Canucks had third-period leads in two of the four Chicago wins - which is still pretty bad. Shutdown defense? Killer instinct? Gone after the first round sweep.

It's disappointing. If they hadn't been in this series at all, then it'd be easier. A sweep? Oh well, they were overmatched. But no, they just couldn't put games away. Up 2-1 in the series, Vancouver had a 1-0 lead deep into game four's third period. They were 164 seconds from a commanding 3-1 series lead when Chicago scored to tie the game.

That's enough about that. I must now turn my attention to other matters, such as voting today and moving soon.

A wolf loves pork.

2009-04-28T20:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's run route and time

2009-04-24T10:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, south on Sasamat, right at Council, right at Salish, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, left at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Yesterday's run time
49 minutes 35 seconds

NHL playoffs shakeup

2009-04-20T17:07:00.001-07:00

I came across an interesting idea in a recent Georgia Straight article regarding NHL playoffs in future years. Here's an excerpt:

The top finishers in each conference get to select from the lower-ranking qualifiers in the first round only. In the NHL's case, let the three division winners in each conference pick from the teams that round out the playoff field. The first-place team would get to choose from the teams finishing fifth through eighth. The second-place finisher would then pick from the remaining teams, and the third-place team would be left with two teams to choose from. The fourth-place finisher—not a division winner—would still get home-ice advantage in the opening round and would face whichever team was not selected by the three teams that earned the right to choose.

Read the whole article by clicking here and then let me know what you think by sparking the glow under this post. I'm all for the changes suggested, for the reasons found in the article.

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, south on Sasamat, right at Council, right at Salish, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, left at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
50 minutes 38 seconds

Bendy Biscotti

2009-04-18T16:33:00.001-07:00

Lucas popped out of Biscotti on February 5. Eight and a half weeks after that momentous occasion Biscotti went snowshoeing for the first time since last March. She summited Hollyburn Peak in just under an hour and twenty minutes, and she celebrated that athletic feat with another athletic feat:

Today's run route and time

2009-04-13T13:20:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, south on Sasamat, right at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, right at Council, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
35 minutes 51 seconds

Today's run route and time

2009-04-03T18:22:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, south on Sasamat, right at Huckleberry, right at Hemlock, right at Salish, left at Sword Fern, left at Imperial, right at Salish, left at Clinton, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat & Imperial.
Today's run time
47 minutes 31 seconds

1 PHOTO. 3 WORDS. 365 DAYS...

2009-03-31T09:43:00.000-07:00

... is a cool blog established on a great idea.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

2009-03-21T21:00:00.000-07:00

05:44 - Wake up.
06:12 - Leave the house, and put gear and dogs in Tracker.
06:38 - Take Cypress exit off the highway; learn that the road up is closed until 07:00. D'oh.
07:01 - Stop at Cypress road viewpoint to take pictures.
07:20 - Begin snowshoeing.
08:23 - Reach the peak! There's no wind and it's sunny and clear. Nobody else around.
09:26 - While descending, see first person since Cypress road viewpoint.
09:55 - Return to car.
10:34 - Pull into carport at home.

A week later - upload 97 photos and 3 videos to a flickr set.

Here's one pic. Click it to enlarge it.

Silent nights

2009-03-16T17:21:00.000-07:00

Our home stereo gets used mostly for movie-watching sound, and sometimes I listen to talk radio. We rarely use it for listening to CDs anymore. Proof: I just opened the three-disc changer to see what was readily available for my hearing pleasure and found one spot empty and the other two spots each containing a Christmas CD. I closed the changer, turned off the stereo and opened up the Said the Whale folder on the computer.

Today's run route and time

2009-03-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park (on snowy trails!), start at Sasamat & Top, south on Sasamat, right at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, left at Sword Fern, left at Council, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
50 minutes 36 seconds

Saturday Night Live - People Getting Punched

2009-03-02T16:46:00.000-08:00

Today's run route and time

2009-02-27T22:43:00.001-08:00

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat & Council, west on Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, left at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Long, left at Salish, left at Sword Fern, left at Council, right at Sasamat, end at Sasamat & Imperial.
Today's run time
49 minutes 9 seconds

Right to Play

2009-02-25T17:24:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of the charity, Right to Play? They do great things for children worldwide and have been present at the past several Olympics - with a booth in the athletes village - to recruit athletes to their cause.

Right To Play is supported by an international team of top athletes from over 40 countries. As role models, these athletes inspire children, raise awareness and promote opportunities for funding for Right To Play projects. Currently Right To Play works in: Azerbaijan, Benin, Chad, China, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Jordan, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Pakistan, occupied Palestinian territory, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, and Zambia.

The above quote is from a blog post titled, Support Right To Play, Shame On VANOC and GM Canada, written by psa on the blog, Canadian Cynic. The post focuses on the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) banning Right to Play from the 2010 Olympics because of conflicting sponsorships. For shame, VANOC, for shame. I encourage you to read psa's post in full, especially if you live in British Columbia.

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, down Sasamat, right at Council, left at Sword Fern, left at Powerline, left at Salish, left at Council, right at Sword Fern, turn around at Salish, left at Long, left at Salish, right at Council, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
58 minutes 14 seconds

Your math is irrefutable

2009-02-24T16:37:00.000-08:00

The maths side of me is in love with this recent xkcd comic: Boyfriend.

I'm Alicia Silverstone and I'm a vegetarian

2009-02-21T21:46:00.000-08:00

Alicia Silverstone’s Sexy Veggie PSA
Order a FREE vegetarian starter kit at GoVeg.com

Today's run route and time

2009-02-21T14:44:00.001-08:00

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, down Sasamat, right at Council, right at Sword Fern, turn around at Salish, left at Long, left at Salish, right at Council, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
45 minutes 30 seconds

Word

2009-02-15T14:13:00.000-08:00

During a televised tennis match, either Nadal or his opponent hit a remarkable winning shot to end a long, engaging rally and the two commentators simultaneously exulted with one-word exclamations:

"Fabulous!"
"Relentless!"

I loved how the tennis display had caused the commentators to express such joy and, even moreso, how their impromptu word choices rhymed with each other and had differently spelt endings.

Talking to my dad about the teams featured in the next Amazing Race (starts tonight! Go Margie & Luke and the brunette babes!), I mentioned how an all-girl team has never won the race. Thus far, the team that has had the best chance, in my opinion, was Dustin & Kandice. Anyway, a few minutes later my dad was asking what I was saying about "inaugural"? It took some thought as to what he heard as inaugural, before I realized he misheard "an all-girl" as "inaugural". Say them out-loud and hear the similarity for yourself.

There is a corner store near my sister-in-law's place that has this written on their awning:

GROCERIES
PRODUCE
FLOWERS

Makes me think that the store is offering a warning that if you leave some bananas and and some mangoes in the same room unattended, they'll start gettin' it on and forty weeks later some poinsettias will miraculously appear.

Today's run route
In Pacific Spirit Park, start at Sasamat Reservoir, down Sasamat, right at Council, right at Sword Fern, turn around at Salish, left at Long, left at Salish, right at Council, left at Sasamat, end at Sasamat Reservoir.
Today's run time
44 minutes 25 seconds

Welcome, Lucas

2009-02-12T19:00:00.001-08:00

February 7 2009 068 Lucas
Originally uploaded by jblueafterglow

At 07:04 on Thursday, February 5, 2009, Biscotti became a mommy and I became a daddy. This is our son, Lucas. He entered the world weighing 9lbs 8oz, with a length of 53.5cm, or 21.1 inches.

Biscotti was phenomenal throughout the entire pregnancy, but particularly in the homestretch. I just asked her what I should put in this blog post announcing Lucas's arrival and she said, "He's big and cute". In the posted picture he is fifty-five hours young. The number fifty-five is the 10th Fibonacci number and the sum of the numbers 1 to 10. I find this to be noteworthy: Since Lucas's birth the Canucks are undefeated and averaging 6.5 goals per game.

Welcome, Lucas. Biscotti and I are very happy to see you.

How smart is your right foot?

2009-02-01T13:50:00.000-08:00

A Kiwi* cousin of mine sent me a forwarded email this morning. Here it is word for word..

You have to try this please, it takes 2 seconds. I could not believe this!!! It is from an orthopaedic surgeon..... .......

This will boggle your mind and you will keep you trying over and over again to see if you can outsmart your foot, but, you can't.

It's pre-programmed in your brain!

1) Without anyone watching you (they will think you are GOOFY......) and while sitting at your desk in front of your computer, lift your right foot off the floor and make clockwise circles.
2) Now, while doing this, draw the number '6' in the air with your right hand. Your foot will change direction.

I told you so!!! And there's nothing you can do about it! You and I both know how stupid it is, but before the day is done you are going to try it again, if you've not already done so.

[* As an aside, Kiwi is the nickname used internationally for people from New Zealand, as well as being a relatively common self-reference. The name derives from the kiwi, a flightless bird which is native to, and the national symbol of, New Zealand. Spelling of the word Kiwi, when used to describe the people, is often capitalised, and takes the plural form Kiwis. The bird's name is spelt with a lower-case k and, being a word of Māori origin, normally stays as kiwi when pluralised. Thus, two Kiwis refers to two people, whereas two kiwi refers to two birds. Source.]

Courting death

2009-01-04T09:39:00.000-08:00

“I’m also a victim in all of this. You can’t fix the lad’s problems, but you can fix mine.” - Spanish driver Tomas Delgado, explaining his lawsuit against a dead cyclist’s family for 29,300 euros. Delgado asked for money for damage that the impact of the cyclist’s body did to his luxury car

From The Georgia Straight's Year in Review, December 23, 2008.

xkcd

2008-12-28T17:01:00.000-08:00

I have made a discovery of magnitude.

xkcd
A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.

Some time was spent browsing the archives and below are some of my favorites. However, I encourage you to do some of your own browsing. The site gets updated every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Who is your role model?

2008-12-22T20:44:00.001-08:00

Follow the instructions:

Pick any number between 1 and 9
Multiply your number by 3
Add 3, then again multiply by 3
You'll get a 2 digit number
Add the digits together

Now scroll down...

With your final number, find your role model:

Albert Einstein
David Suzuki
Zeus
Tom Cruise
Mats Sundin
Mahatma Ghandi
Britney Spears
Bill Gates
Robert Aubertin
Barack Obama
Fox Mulder
Steven Spielberg
Rick Campanelli
Dana Murzyn
Pierre Trudeau
Bono
Mr. Rogers
Mother Theresa

Joel Plaskett "Extraordinary" (live)

2008-12-08T20:58:00.001-08:00

jokes, folks

2008-11-29T11:39:00.000-08:00

From a Georgia Straight article written by Guy MacPherson about comic Stewart Francis..

He’s an economical writer, too. There’s not a word of fat in his act. Take this brilliantly simple joke: “I love blind dates,” he says, leading us down one path, “because you can stare at their tits.” Such precision. The gag is easy enough to parse, but try coming up with something so beautifully funny. That takes talent. Like this one: “My impression of a lazy porn star: ‘Don’t make me come over there.’”

And he’ll often give you two or three laughs per joke. “I don’t think it’s fair to judge people on their looks,” he’ll tell us earnestly. “Especially the ugly ones.” Great punchline, but wait, there’s more. “They probably have feelings.” He goes from good guy to jerk to soulless asshole in three quick steps.

Same with this one: “My wife and I have decided we don’t want children.” Fair enough. “If anyone does, we can drop them off tomorrow.” Ouch. “The fat one has asthma.” Not only does he not want his own offspring, but he offhandedly dehumanizes one completely.

Noone and Stella

2008-11-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to write this post for a while. Now here it is. Not much time for blogging now that I'm no longer a bum. Working full-time for once in my life means being more selective of how spare time is spent. What I'm wondering is, come February, will there be any spare time at all?

A little over a month ago my grandma passed away. Her given name was Muriel, but she was known affectionately as Noone. She was my last living grandparent and the only one that I had ever met. She lived in New Zealand and had visited us here in Canada several times when I was younger. At least once, when I was elementary school age, she slept in my bed and I slept on the floor. Those visits stopped a while ago as her health got worse. I had also been to New Zealand a few times, living with her for a month in 1992 and visiting her in 1999.

Anyway, I wasn't that close to her, due mostly to the distance between us. But it's still been a tough go, as that generation of my family has now passed. My mom was over there for the final couple of weeks of Noone's life as they knew her passing was imminent. Soon after my mom arrived back, Stella, one of her dogs, passed away. What was shocking about that was that of her three dogs Stella was thought to be the youngest and healthiest. She was adopted from a friend of the family and, in hindsight, hid her ailments well. Too well.

I don't really have much else to say about any of this. I just wanted to put it on here as a way of honoring. I know it's not much, but it's more than nothing.

"Let's let nature take its course."

It's now 3-2!

2008-10-16T21:41:00.001-07:00

The BoSox came back! After being down 7-0 they chipped away and won it 8-7 on a bottom-of-the-ninth RBI single.

They now trail the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 in the best-of-seven ALCS.

Our perfect record remains intact.

BoSox - NoSox?

2008-10-16T20:07:00.000-07:00

What's going on? The BoSox should have had the ALCS versus the Tampa Rays wrapped up already and be preparing for the poorly-named World Series. Biscotti and I saw the BoSox in person for the first time in 2004 at Fenway Park in Boston. Later that season, the BoSox won their first World Series since 1918. The next time Biscotti and I saw the BoSox was in 2007 at Safeco Field in Seattle. Later that season, the BoSox won their first World Series since 2004. The next time Biscotti and I saw the BoSox was in 2008 at Safeco Field in Seattle. Later that season....

The Rays are leading the ALCS three games to one and lead game five 7-0 in the bottom of the seventh. BoSox have runners on first and third with two outs and there's a 2-2 count on Dustin Pedroia.

Go, BoSox, Go!

...and Justice was done.

2008-10-06T19:32:00.000-07:00

This cartoon by Geoff Olson appeared in The Vancouver Courier on November 21, 2007 - a month and a week after Robert Dziekański was tasered and died at Vancouver International Airport (YVR). I clipped it, saved it, and now that we have a scanner I'm posting it here. Click it to enlarge it.

Radiohead "Idioteque" (live)

2008-09-30T19:59:00.000-07:00

A hidden five o'clock shadow

2008-09-21T19:12:00.000-07:00

click image to enlarge

From The Georgia Straight's Best of Vancouver 2008 issue, out Thursday September 18, 2008. Click here for the above, and click here for the Best of overview page.

Look ma, no hands

2008-09-17T18:46:00.000-07:00

Wendy's on Cambie Street just north of Broadway was closed for a spell. The Canada Line construction had turned that intersection into chaos and getting to their off-8th parking lot was a very difficult task. Consequently, business had slowed. I don't know this firsthand, but had been to neighboring Mongolie Grill and they reported a business slowdown. So sure, why not turn that negative into a positive and close for renos? They recently reopened, and on my first visit post-renos I had reason to use the restroom. I then had reason to be disappointed. Many public restrooms - in malls, in restaurants, in my pants - have been converting their restrooms to a hands-free experience, meaning that after doing your bizness, you are able to wash your hands, dry your hands, and exit the restroom without having to physically touch anything.

In the Wendy's restroom, I had to..

use my hands to flush
use my hands to turn on the faucet
use my hands to get soap
use my hands to turn off the faucet
use my hands to open the door

As a result, my hands were probably dirtier after washing my hands and exiting the room than immediately prior to washing my hands. It's simple simple simple to make a restroom hands-free. You've likely been to several in your life.

Whether using a urinal or a toilet, there are sensors on the back which detect when someone is in front and gets engaged. Upon person leaving, flussssssh. Then, the faucets are motion sensor; glide your hand under the tap, and presto, you've got water. Soap I think has to be hand-operated, but that's okay because at get-soap time your hands are still pre-clean. The faucet turns off after a set time, or when it no longer senses motion. Not only does this mean not having to use your hands to turn off the water by touching a dirty handle, it also avoids pranksters from clogging the sink, leaving the water running, and exiting, thereby creating a flooded restroom. The last requirement is being able to exit without having to touch a door handle. At metrotown, the entrances to the restrooms are sort of like S-shaped paths with no doors at all, preventing the other sex from peering in with their curious eyes.

Wendy's had ample time to make their restrooms hands-free while renovating their dining-room area (which remains remarkably unchanged), but failed to do so. As well, their exterior doors still have the handles on the wrong side, despite repeated comments for change made over ten years ago.

Super Mario Rescues The Princess

2008-09-14T19:02:00.000-07:00

Probable name: Delicious

2008-09-04T20:57:00.001-07:00

Oversight. That's all I'll say about the delay. Biscotti is pregnant. She's at nineteen weeks and baby-to-be is currently the size of "a six-inch turkey sub". For those of you keeping score at home, that's turkey sub - not meatball, not cold cut trio, not lobster. Turkey. Due date is late-January/early-February.

The Luck Key

Mariah Carey "All I Want For Christmas Is You" (Dancing With An iPod In Public)

C'mon, dude. Make yourself seen.

(The Customer Is) Not Always Right

Vancouver SkyTrain Map, Mario-Style

No higher than 23°C all week

missing

Shaq is funny

Calmly call me

I'd like to clean your face with my fists

run pizza hockey

AC(C)EMMNSU = 8(9)

No text

Cocktail Hour: Latin Crooners

Stop Podcasting Yourself 155

Once upon a tweet

Valentine's Day 2011

The shooting of John T. Williams by Seattle police officer Ian Birk

Marathon Quest 250 is over

No, really, it's small

To be fair (to me), it *has* started raining

David Letterman - Chilean Miner, Edison Peña

Longest run since May 2008

mailing it in

a fine time up the Grind

'are we family' or what?

2 things

Tomorrow's to-do list

Running four years to spell

REMiniscing

Reid it and believe it: All Whites are all tied

no mas

From runs to runs

Calgary is close enough. For now.

What categories are you?

Running like a swimmer

More running

the sooner, right now

ow ow ow owwWWWW

Meeeeeeoooowwww. Sllrrrp sllrrrp slllllrrrrrrp.

Not a New Kids song

Name acronyms - acronames?

1 minute, 16 seconds

I ran

Marathon Quest 250

Today's run time

Today's run route and time

We're number one, we're number one

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Broadview's s(ec)ure scam

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Friday's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

Monday's run route and time

Sunday's run route and time

The runs

Please, encourage me to run more frequently

A mystery at the Nat

I’m Sorry to Hear That You’re Having Difficulty

Kate Miller-Heidke "R U Fucking Kidding Me?"

Blogging and running, again

Barenaked Ladies "Drawing"

one hundred and sixty-four seconds

A wolf loves pork.

Yesterday's run route and time

NHL playoffs shakeup

Bendy Biscotti

Today's run route and time

Today's run route and time

1 PHOTO. 3 WORDS. 365 DAYS...

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Silent nights

Today's run route and time

Saturday Night Live - People Getting Punched

Today's run route and time

To be fair (to me), it has started raining