More Adventures in BBQ

The other night I had a go at smoking the ribs I bought at the same time as I bought the sirloin steak roasts. This time I did a dry rub with homemade chili powder, a little extra cayenne and salt. I started by pulling the membrane off the back of the ribs to make it a better experience to eat. Then I did the rub and, because of the late hour that I got home, I put 'em straight on the BBQ. This time though, instead of mesquite wood I used apple wood for smoke. I figured apple and pork go so well together so apple wood was called for this time. I had temperature issues part way through the smoking process 'cause it started raining and I didn't realize so the BBQ cooled off a little but overall I had it smoking at about 300*F for almost 4 hours. I wanted to get it closer to 250*F but I'll try that next time. I also had too much salt in the rub... in fact I may leave the salt out next time. I would have to say that they were the best ribs I've ever made... no boiling them or anything. I'm quite excited about my new found BBQ techiques since you can't get any good BBQ around my town. I've heard that there's one place in Toronto and another west of Toronto but why drive those distances when I can get fresh, quality meat locally and smoke it myself in my backyard?

Well, back to work now so I'll wish everyone a great day and get back to it.

g.

BBQ success!

So I had great success with my BBQ adventure on the weekend... I smoked a sirloin steak roast (about 8.5 lbs) on my BBQ. I used mesquite wood for smoke, ran the temp at 300*F steady for about 4 hours. It proved to be more popular than the one I did in the oven which was great news in my quest to re-create great southern BBQ. I used a dry rub on both roasts... BBQ one was salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard powder and homemade chili powder... oven one was garlic powder, rosemary, salt and pepper. This was the first time I cooked to temperature rather than time. It was less stressful than doing it by guessing the time needed to cook the roast all the way through. Both roasts were taken to 130*F and allowed to carryover cook to 140*F. They rested for 1 hour (actually the oven one rested for almost 1.5 hours). Both carved up nicely. One of the things I learned when I was reading about BBQ techniques was to have a pan of water in with the meat to keep the environment moist and help stop the meat from drying out.

I served the meat with roast potatoes and carrots as well as mashed potatoes, corn niblets, cesar salad and fresh bread. I decided to do the two styles of potatoes 'cause we had some vegetarians in the group and the mashed didn't cook with the meat like the roasted ones. Oh, and I also did a frozen veggie lasagna for them. Next time I might try and do something a little nicer than a frozen entree but I was tight on time and cookin' appliances 'cause I stuffed meat into all of them! LOL!

I've got some ribs that I'm going to do tonight or tomorrow night, depending on how soon I get home tonight. I picked up some apple wood to BBQ the ribs with, it should be tasty!

That's all for now... have a great day everyone!

g.

Woo Hoo!

Today is my last day of work this week!

Marie has a music teacher seminar to go to tomorrow so I decided to take the day off and take the kids up to my parents. My nieces are also on a day off school (as my kids are too) so the boys are gonna have fun playin' up at the farm. I'm gonna take a complete change of clothes for them 'cause there's no doubt in my mind that they will get muddy.

Ya know, lately the biggest issue I've been havin' is that I hate havin' such a long commute to work. I don't feel like I have enough time at home with my family and I certainly don't have enough vacation time... 15 days plus 3 personal obligation days. I've already used the 3 PODs and 2 vacation days for Marie's specialist appointments and I used 6 days for our trip down south, one day of vacation for this past Monday with the doctor visit for the kids and tomorrow for Marie's seminar. That leaves me 5 days for the rest of the year. My trip to Algonquin will use two days and the remaining three days will be used at Christmas. Oh well, what choice do I have eh? I get what I get.

I was chattin' with Jim about people and their "addiction" to exercise. He talked about how the endorphins that are secreeted are similar to what some drugs cause. We talked about Jill in Alaska and how she's having trouble stopping to allow her knee to heal and I said I didn't quite get it... if she would just stop, she would heal and then she could get back to what she loves. Jim helped me understand how she could be "hooked" on the physical activity. I guess that's why I'm a fat-ass... I'm not addicted! LOL!

I'm typing this while I'm on a conference call and boy, the topic is no where near exciting. I should be excited but I just can't get motivated... it's the usual large corporation of lots of talkin' and very little action.

Next random thought... I made some chicken the other night and seasoned it with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt pepper and paprika. It had a curry type of flavour and it was very enjoyable. I think I might do that again.

On the topic of food, I was lookin' at a smoker at Bass Pro as well as doin' a lot of readin' on the topic of smoke cookin' meats. I really don't think it necessary to get a smoker since I have a pretty big BBQ. I'm just going change the way I do the smoking... I'm going get a larger metal pan to but the wood in and I'm going to try bigger pieces of wood rather than the chips. I'm also going to put in a pan of water to keep the meat moist. I think my first attempt will be with ribs although I'd love to try brisket... but brisket requires long cook times, somewhere in the neighbourhood of 1-1.5 hours per pound so I could be looking at a 15 hour cook day. It's supposed to be great food though so we'll see. Marie will prolly think I'm crazy but that's nothing new.

Well, back to work now... Have a great day everyone! In fact, have a great weekend!

g.

Okay, this is AWESOME!

Check out this guy Andy Mckee... absolutely awesome guitar player!



I also watched (actually, I listened while I was at work) him and a Native American musician, Bill Miller, when they were on a woodsongs broadcast. The file is 4GB so I can't really put it up here but let me see if I can link to it somehow...

okay, here's the link to the mp3 page: http://webcast.msc.uky.edu/woodsongs-audio/427hi.mp3

and the page with all the archived shows:
http://www.woodsongs.com/showlist.asp

There lots of great music there.

Gotta run, so have a great day everyone!

g.

Strep throat, Bronchitis, a Bad Cold and a Face-plant...

So we have three sick kids now but the bright side is we should get all the sickness over with all at once.

Yesterday P* was doing one of his dare-devil/stunt guy things... he put a toboggan on his skate board and ran, jumped onto it belly first and rode it down the driveway like a luge. This seemed like a really cool thing to him at first but when he got things ready to ride it back up the driveway the toboggan shifted forward on the skateboard and he slid off and did a face-plant... ouch. He got away with only scrapes... it could have been so much worse with broken teeth or something. Thank God he only has minor injuries. Life in my home is *never* boring.

As usual, I started this post and haven't been able to come back. I've got a deadline for particular work item that I'm trying to meet so I should be responsible and get back to work.

Have a great day everyone... and keep any luging to a minimum eh!

g.

Could it be any better than this?

Take a look at the weather for the weekend for Newcastle...
Woo hoo! I know it's not anything like 30 degrees but since I'm so tired of the cold weather, I'll take 19 degrees.

Not a lot happening right now... P* is trying out for the basketball team at school which I'm so proud of. He's in the youngest grade for trying out (grade 4) so the deck is somewhat stacked against him but he's pretty good and really enjoys it so he'll try hard. It really interesting to see the kids develop and see how there are three different personalities for all three boys. M* (middle son) is more shy at first but once he gets comfortable he's more outgoing. D* is still a little young to see exactly how he is but he almost seems like he falls between the other two.



Okay, I started this post this morning and haven't been able to get back to it, so I'll call it quits for today.

Have a great weekend everyone!

g.

Three out of Four...

Well, in any other situation I'd be happy with 3 out of 4 but in this case it's 3 out of 4 kids are sick. I know, I know, I signed up for this when I let Marie get me drunk and take advantage of me...LOL! (kiddin' of course... I don't need to be drunk)

Anyway, the youngest boy seems to be doin' okay, just has the barking cough, the middle boy has the barking cough and was running a slight fever last night. At about 01:00 I was up feeding the baby (who is sicky #3) when he came down and said he was dizzy and felt like he had a fever. I couldn't find the thermometer but he was definitely warm to the touch. I woke Marie to see if she knew where the thermometer was but she thought it was in the place I had already looked so she came down and dispensed some tylenol and then she and the boy went back to bed while I finished feeding the baby. I couldn't get back to sleep right away and it must have been about 04:00 by the time I nodded off... just in time for the alarm to go off at 05:15. Needless to say, I hit the snooze a few times.

The drive in to work was uneventful and surprisingly quick for this hour. I was a little over an hour and it normally takes an hour and a half if I leave as late as I did today. Thank goodness 'cause I don't think I could stand staying here until 6:00 tonight.

Not too much else going on right now... we're trying to find a deal on carpet for the basement... I've reconnected with a few more people from my past through (you guessed it) facebook. Well, I've got a fairly usual Tuesday lined up with meetings and such. I'll have to get hold of Jim to see how things are going... according to his last post, the training is going well. He's going to connect with a friend of my sister's (from grade school) to talk training talk since she completed her first Ironman last year. I imagine she has a lot she can share with Jim when it comes to training.

Oh yeah, my car has been running great since the I changed the fuel filter so I have to surmise that it was the culprit.

Well, that's all for now. Have a great day everyone!

g.

Well... I made it in to work

The car made it in to work okay... in fact, it was running real well now that I replaced the leaking intercooler pipe. Now I hafta clean up all the sooty oil residue that was spewed into the engine bay. Man, after driving the van in yesterday it was an awesome feeling driving the car in today. I have a RocketChip performance chip in my car (thanks GeWilli) and I'm tellin' ya, it makes it real fun to drive. The power on tap is fantastic and you can really use it to move through traffic.

So this facebook thing is getting to be a bit of a problem... I can't stop looking for people from my past! I don't know what the obsession is but I'm really curious about where people are now. It's also neat to see a little about where people come from that I know now. I like all the pics that Jim put up from his younger years. I should dig up some old photos and scan them in... if nothing, it'll at least be a good chuckle for some people. :)

Well, back to work now, it's a busy one today so that's all for now.

Have a good one everyone! (I gotta get a better sign off line like GeWilli)

g.

Car start...

okay, I replaced the fuel filter with a new one and after bleeding the air out of the fuel lines I got the car started. I let it run for a while to make sure it wasn't gonna putter out like it did this morning. Good news is that is stayed running. I had to hook the van up to the car to keep the battery from going down while I cranked the engine to purge the fuel lines but the car cranked really fast after I got everything buttoned back up. Here's to hoping it'll start up for me in the morning... the gas for the van is a killer ($85 and it wasn't even completely full! OUCH!)

Good night everyone!

g.

Car no start...

Well, I think I may have experienced my first fuel gelling in 6 years of TDI ownership. I went out today and it seems like the engine is being starved of fuel and won't run. I got it started for about a minute and then it just stopped. The temperature dipped a little last night and given the time of year, perhaps the supply was switched over to summer fuel. Oh well, I'm not gonna stress over it until I get the root cause of the issue tonight. I guess I've got my evening planned out now... I think I'll buy a new fuel filter on my way home. I just have to find out the hours of the truck shop near my house since I need a CAT filter. I switched the car over to an aftermarket filter that utilizes a CAT 2 micron filter. Better for the lengevity of the engine. I always meant to install an oil by=pass filter too but never made the plunge. I wonder if it's too late with over 350,000km on the odo? Hmmm... something to think about for sure.

The party after the baptism was great this weekend but I was fighting off a bug... a thoat and ear infection. It seems to be better today. Having the basement finished to allow all the kids to play downstairs was a good thing. They played air hockey and ran around down there with little to no disturbance to the activities upstairs. The carpet is still not installed but I got some carpet from a neighbour who put hardwood down in his living room so I just cut it to fit the area around the air hockey table so it worked out fine.

Not too much else to talk about right now so have a great day everyone!

g.

Naturopath update and other thoughts...

Naturopath
So my appointment with the Naturopath went well. She seems knowledgable and we "clicked". She had done some research into my thyroid condition (although she seemed to know a bunch already when I talked to her on the phone to set up the appointment). She liked the minerals that I had started taking but adjusted the dosage and the times that I take some of them. She also added B6 and Cortex to the regimen. Once I've finished the products that I had bought she will simplify the program so I'm not taking a bunch of capsules everyday. Her approach is to get the adrenals in check and then focus specifically on the thyroid. It was a very good appointment and I say that because I'm the type of person who wants to understand things which is what makes my whole thyroid issues a bit of an anomaly in that I blindly accepted what the doctor told me 17 years ago. Anyway, I'm on track now and firmly believe I've got a sound and reasonable action plan with my naturopath.

Facebook
I've connected with a small group of people I went to highschool with through facebook. It's really neat to see where people are at now. I mean, the last time I talked with some of these people, we were literally in highschool saying goodbye and now we've got these separate lives with spouses and kids and all... wow, it really is a mind shift. I'm not looking to connect back with everyone (some people do change as I have learned all too personally recently) but there are a handful of people that I'm really glad to be able to talk with again.

Algonquin... The Common Link
It's amazing how many people here on Ontario have a realy love for Algonquin. I mean, I've always known how great it is but I didn't realize that I shared that love with so many people. Jim has been very active posting on "Algonquin" sites and he's discovered this fact for himself but for me it was really driven home with the comments I received from people who've viewed my algonquin photos in the ablum I posted up on facebook. One day I'd love to do a big trek through Algonquin with a larger group... the dymanics would be different than what I've done over the years but I think it could be really cool. Hmmm... I think I may have to organize something.

The Basement
We've got almost all the work finished in the basement and it looks awesome. I have yet to place an order for the shower stall and the carpet but that will happen over the next few weeks... it's a matter of getting Marie and the kids packed up to go to the store and pick a product. I'm thinking of building a custom shower in the bathroom instead of getting a shower stall unit. It all depends on how hard it would be to build the shower pan (and get it right) as well as the cost for any glass for the enclosure. I'm thinkin' it out for now but in the meantime it's not like we need the bathroom functional.

Easter
This weekend is Easter and we're have the baptism for G* with all the family (both sides) come back to the house for lunch. That should be interesting... in the past we've always tried to keep the two families separate by holding functions on different days but this time we're obviously only doing this on one day. It will prolly unfold as usual, each family will "stake out" their spot in the house and the two will limit the mixing... I guess I can't expect too much, afterall, it was Marie and I that chose each other not the families choosing each other. C'est la vie I guess. At least they don't fight... hee hee.

Well, I'm off tomorrow and I'm toying with the idea of leavin' early today so I prolly won't post again so... Happy Easter everyone and have a great weekend!

g.

I'm going to see a Naturopathic Doctor

I've decided that I should dig a little deeper to see what options are out there to help with the thyroid condition I have. This week I started taking the selenium, chromium and magnesium to see if there's any improvement in my energy levels and mood. (no comments from the peanut gallery!) I'm quite curious to hear what the doc has to say.

While I'm doing a little catch up on the blog... no GeWilli, I didn't get back out on my bike but I will be going out again. I did buy a new seat since I couldn't adjust the big ass-saddle I had on there. I may need to get a different seat post 'cause it looked like the one I have has some sort of mount on the top that fastens onto the rails on the seat. I'll hafta take another look to see what my options are. I'm also gonna get the bike tuned up so the derailleurs work smoothly and accurately. In talkin' with a friend at work, there's a place in Toronto that I can get cheap bikes and bike parts. The guy goes to all the police auctions and you can get high-end bikes for a song. We'll see what pans out there but for now, it's road rides on the mountain bike for me.

Well, I gotta get ready for some afternoon meetings.

Have a great day everyone (and I mean everyone, even the haters out there... they need all the good vibes they can get.)

g.

Another weekend come and gone...

Well, it was a fairly busy weekend but all in all it was a good one. My parents came down and my Dad helped me paint the basement. That's been a long job but it's almost finished. I hired a guy to hang all the doors and trim 'cause I just don't have enough hours to finish by this weekend. He came on Sunday and managed to get all the doors hung and the windows trimmed out. It's really startin' to look like nice. I've got some electrical to finish up so I'll get that done in the evenings this week. My deadline to get everything in place (minus the carpet) for this weekend, in time for G*'s baptism. We wanted to have the space ready for all the nieces and nephews so they have a place to play. I'll move the air hockey table down there and I'll prolly put a TV down there too.

Arrrg... I started this and work is getting too busy. I'll have to stop for now.

Have a good day everyone.

g.

YAY!

Well we went to get Marie's MRI results today and the good new is... it's nothing that is high risk. She has what is called a Developmental Venous Anomaly (DVA), not the Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM) that they originally thought. Phew, that's a big thing to get behind us.

It's late, I just wanted to get that up for today and now I'm going to bed (very, very late).

So much for getting to bed early during the week.

g.

I didn't get out this morning...

but before GeWilli jumps on this and says that I'm moving on to clothing optional aerobics or something like that, I had to come in early to work so I didn't have time to go for a ride. I'm gonna try to get out tonight and perhaps go a little further than yesterday. I also could't find my old seat to put back on and the seat that's on there doesn't have any way for me to adjust it (it's a big-ass saddle and when I say big-ass saddle, I'm not only describing the size of it, I'm also describing the function for which it was built --- to handle a BIG ass!). If I can't find it I'm just gonna buy another and move on.

I've been reading some interesting stuff on my thyroid condition. It's funny, I tend to dive into things and research them, expecially when it comes to my health but for some reason I always just left this one alone and trusted that I was getting the right treatment. It seems that perhaps there are some ways that may be more effective to treat hypothyroidism, or should I say, things that can be done in conjunction with the medication I take. In addition to my multivitamin, it's being suggested that I take 200 mcg of selenium, 200 mcg of chromium and 400 mcg of magnesium. I'm still in the process of validating this advice but it seems reasonable to me. Perhaps more on this later.
For now, the day is moving and so should I since this has been sitting untouched for about 2 hours now.

Have a great day everyone!

g.

So I finally got off my ass...

and did some physical exercise. I went for an early morning bike ride. As GeWilli pointed out, the caloric burn is lower than a run but to tell you the truth, I didn't really feel like starting the whole running thing yet.

So how did it go?

Well, it was a little harder than I thought it would be but it was good exercise. I did the 10 km route that I have used for running in the past. It has some good elevation changes that gave me a challenge and got me sweatin'. I started out at 05:10 and let me tell ya, it was dark. I hit CTC on my way home last night so I had the necessary lights on the bike which was a good thing 'cause there was some vehicle traffic (okay, only two cars) that passed me on the darkest stretches of the road.

Observations... well, I need to adjust the angle of my seat 'cause I found myself slipping forward and that 'caused more stress than needed. I also need to adjust the gear change mechanisms as they are a little off. The gearing was kinda off for me too and what I mean by that is when there was a slight downhill section, I quickly ran out of gear and either resorted to gliding or was peddlin' like a madman. It would have been nice to have one more gear. I'm also still uncomfortable due to the leaning forward on the handlebars and I get a little pain and numbness as a result of the pressure points. I have those handlebar dew-hickies that look like a bull's horns so that helped to give me a few different positions to alternate through. Finally, I can't wait for the season to progress a little more to give me some daylight in the 05:00 hour 'cause some of those stretches were really dark and it made it hard to see some of the bumps and potholes.

I'm actually glad I did the bike thing and I'm gonna continue with it for a while before I start the running back up and even then, I think I'll alternate the two.

Well, back to work again and in case I don't post again today, have a great day!

g.

Clothing...

how should I dress for my morning ride tomorrow? I don't think bare legs would be a good thing since it's still a little too cold for that and I'm sure that I'm gonna get hot so I won't want too much up top... layers are prolly best. Hmmm... suggestions from the experienced riders out there (or even all-weather runners)?

Reunited

Jim and I got together on Saturday for the first time in I don't know how long. We hashed through a lot of stuff that had been brewing on both sides for a while and I hafta tell ya, I feel a lot better have had some honest, clear communication with a dear friend... my brutha from another mutha!

We talked briefly about CapsizedCanoe 2007 and his solo trip, we talked about our families, I met his new puppy, Jack and we watched the last half of the Leafs game. It was nice to just hang out with a good friend.

I left for work a little late this morning (on purpose) so I got to spend some time with the kids. I just can't seem to get enough time at home these days. I wish I could work from home on a regular basis but that's not in the cards for a while. I made a decision to stick with the company that I'm with for the long haul and "develop" my career there. I figure I should be in a position to replace my director when he's ready to retire in the next 3-5 years. I work for a good company and it provides a means to provide for my family and that's important. Anything I've seen that's closer to home doesn't provide the potential that this job does and certainly doesn't pay the same as I get now so I have to shift my mental perspective to recognize that I'm here for a while and I should strive to leave my mark on the organization.

Oh, yeah, it turns out that my previous employer has made a decision to outsource the IT operations - something they had been trying to do for a number of years but they just couldn't make it work. I'm glad I'm outta there 'cause I would have ended up being an IBM employee and I don't particularly like the sound of that.

Jim has set a goal of doing a "sprint triatholon" and that has got me thinkin', with GeWilli being the biker dude he is and Jim now givin' it a try, perhaps I should give it a go again after many, many years of not riding. I used to do it and enjoy it and we have a route that I really enjoyed back when I was running on a regular basis that take me along the lakeshore. I think I may buy some new tires for my bike to make it a little better on the road. I have a mountain bike with a fairly agressive tire and I think it may be better to have a road tire on instead. Or maybe I should jsut take it out as-is for a few rides and then decide if I want to change the tires or perhaps even the whole bike. GeWilli chime in with your opinion here anytime. I think I'm gonna give an early morning ride a try later this week after I go out and buy some lights for the bike. I used to have all the stuff I needed but like I said, it's been many years and several kids since I rode and some equipment has been lost in moves and such.

Okay, decision made, I just consulted my WeatherEye desktop applet from The Weather Network and it looks like tomorrow would be a good morning for a ride so I'm gonna do it. I'll stop by Canadian Tire and pick up lights for my bike. I took a quick look and I think I'll get these since they are LEDs and should provide longer battery life:


Raleigh LED Headlight


Raleigh LED rear light

Well, with that decision made, I should get back to work so I can leave at a decent hour and stop off to buy my latest gadgets. Marie will LOVE me... perhaps I should pick her up a little something too.

g.

facebook.com

So a group of people were talking about a website that they were looking at and telling each other to join. They were laughing and saying how neat it was.

I asked, "what site is that?"

They told me, "Go check it out and sign up. It's www.facebook.com"

So I went over to take a look. I decided to set up an account since it was free and started to do a few searches. I eventually started looking for people with hometowns listed that were near where I grew up... Tottenham, Alliston, Beeton, Loretto... and to my amazement I started to see names I recognized. I decided to be daring and send a few messages to the people I remembered to see if they remembered me. Every one of them responded saying how long it had been and that they did remember me! I started to learn that there are groups on the site and so I joined a few "networks" and "groups"... one for my elemtary school and highschool, one for Toronto, ON, one for TDIs, and they even have one for Algonquin Park!

Cool.

Anyway, check it out. What I like is that it's free. Classmates charges for the same thing so obviously I like this one better! This interweb thing should be free anyhow.

Well, as usual, I gotta get back to work.

Have a great day everyone!

g.

oh yeah, it's good to be back... thanks for puttin' up with me! ;)

Post-meltdown...

First off, thanks to everyone that sent me an e-mail after I posted my leave of absence post.

I don't really want to talk about it other than to tell you that there were a lot of things happening at the same time and I was emotionally drained dealing with too much drama. It was all serious stuff and I was just on overload.

I've had a mini vacation and I'm trying to get back to normal (well, as normal as I can get) but it still feels a little weird. Anyway, I'm trying to catch up at work from being off for a week so I'll have to post more another time.

Have a good day everyone.

g.

This may be sudden... and wierd...

but I'm gonna withdraw for a few days. I'm not exactly sure why, I just want to be alone in my thoughts and focus on Marie and the kids. I don't know how long I'm gonna feel like this but I'm tired of interacting with people. I feel drained emotionally.

Bye.

g.

Static electricity

So I have these dress pants that I wear to work... several pairs in different colours. I like the way they look and fit but there is one problem. Static electricity. I've tried to use fabric softener, dryer sheets, hang dry the pants, anti-static spray... nothing works.

So here's where it get funny.

I was telling a friend at work about my static problem as we went down in the elevator. He was polite and listened to me describe the problem. I wasn't embarrased by other people in the elevator hearing about my static problem... perhaps one of them could even offer a solution. Then it took a turn... my friend waited just a moment after I had finished my "story" and said (in that certain indignant tone):

I supposed you're gonna try and blame it on the lightning rod in your pants or something

um, yeah.

gneiss schist?

You can always count on Kerry Litka for some good stories but in this case, it's more the potential good story about how her students will use the names of two prominent metamorphic rocks in New Hampshire: schist (shist) and gneiss (nice). I think I find it so amusing 'cause it's the juvenile humour that I can identify with... that and it always takes me back to my highschool days and the circle of friends I hung out with.

Kerry can also offer good advise and in her last post she offered some that I think Jim will find very useful for his marathon... Jim be sure to take note of her learnings so you don't make the same mistake buddy. To save you a click over there I'll put a quote here for ya bud:

...take my advice: do not ever attempt to carry an iPod in your sports bra on a 13 mile run...

so Jim, for the sake of your sternum, keep the MP3 player out of your bra!

Reading GeWilli's post, he wrote a lot of stuff in his last post but it's funny how things stick out in yer mind... he talked about eating lamb and he said:

"...I'm not going to make excuses for eating the baby sheep..."

and it got me thinkin'... I'm frustrated with people tellin' us that we can't offend other people with our opinions and tellin' us all the things they think we're doin' wrong! I mean, hey, you can have your opinion and do what you think is right but don't impose your point of view on me. Tell me about it but don't condemn me for differing from you. Now, I'm not talkin' about, ya know, being a sick-o murderer or racist bigot, I'm talkin' about things like the fact that I like a certain diet that includes meat and some people will tell me that I'm wrong for eatin' that way. I grew up in the middle on Ontario farm country and I know what 99.999% of the farms are run like... they care for the animals properly and they respect the land. I worked on these farms and know first hand the conditions... I'm not some city dweller who assumes that all farmers abuse their animals by puttin' the calves feet in cement to keep the meat tender... farck off, that's PETA bullsh!t propaganda. Yes, there is some really bad stuff happening out there but it's not the norm people. (hee hee, I'm tryin' to make a serious point and now all I can picture is Norm from Cheers makin' his entrance... geez, maybe I have A.D.D.) Anyway, my point? stop forcin' your ways on everyone else... make a good argument but in the end, respect other's right to make a choice for themselves.

Wow, that was another one of those moments where I kinda just went off on a thought there.

Hmmm, what else did I have to say... can't remember. Oh well, I'll post again if I feel compelled to share it.

Have a great day everyone!

g.

Going to Florida is looking less and less likely...

so I figure I'd better accept that fact and if we do manage to pull something off, it'll be that much more of a surprise. Oh well... no sense in getting worked up about something I have no control over (people being sick, etc).

Speaking of being sick, I was working Saturday and as the day went on, I started to feel worse. By the time I was wrapping it up at 3:00 I wasn't sure I'd be fit to make the drive home from where I was. At least it was a little closer than my office. I did make it home but then I told Marie that I had to go lie down and that was the last she saw of me until later that night after the kids were in bed. I got up, had some water and then went right back up to bed. The next day was a lot of the same... get up for water then right back to bed. There were a couple of exceptions and I did manage to catch a little of the Daytona 500. I got the last three laps so I got to see that amazing sprint to the end by Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick. Great ending, I just would've like to see Mark Martin win after so many attempts in his long distinguished career driving NASCAR. Anyway, back to me (LOL!), I'm still not 100% but due to some of the issues that came up on the weekend, I had to be in yesterday and then today I have a session that I have to attend so again, no staying home trying to kick the last lingering bit of crappy sickness... oh well, the people around me can thank me later for bringing the virus to them. I've never understood the pressure that employers put on people to show up when they're sick... it only ends up costing them more in productivity (the sick people not working at 100% and them making other sick and then not working 100% either). Stoopid eh?

I also think that we should re-visit the work week and shorten it to 4 days... it would help create jobs and reduce the stress, increase the happiness of staff, and be really awesome for me! I'll sign up for being off Saturday, Sunday and Monday thanks.

Speaking of work... yes, I'm doing this at work again but what else am I supposed to do? Alison didn't sign in to chat and Jim's on his day off so I had to do something to distract myself from the crap that's on my desk! LOL!

Have a great day everyone!

g.

P.S. go over and have a read of Jill's recount of her Sustina 100... it's a good read.

So I was uploading pictures from my camera this morning...

and I discovered some interesting photos the kids have taken. Ya see, I like to let the boys (the two older ones) use the camera... see what they come up with and let them be creative. Well, it turns out that it can also be a great source for photographic evidence of what they get up to when their parents aren't around... take a look at what they were apparently doing the other day.










I laughed outloud when I saw it! Awesome stuff... boys being boys!

What a nice drive in...

we got our first real snowfall here in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) and I have to say, it was kind of a nice drive in. It was very tough but I left extra early because of the weather and it was a fairly traffic-free drive in. Don't get me wrong, there were some really stooopid people out there... like the woman walking on the road because the snow was too deep on the sidewalk (I guess she'd rather challenge a 3000+ pound car or even better - a city bus), or the snowclearing service at that apartment building that decided it was best to blow the snow off the driveway and sidewalk onto the road create a really fun 2 foot deep ramp for us to try and launch our cars off, or the guy who was sittin in the curb lane after pulling his car forward out of the curb parking spot and sitting with his door open into the second lane while he... well I'm not sure what he was doing but obviously he thought we should all swerve around him and his car while he performed whatever important task he was doing... oh, I could go on but you get the picture.

I'm not sure why I feel good about the drive in... perhaps because I triumphed over the elements and made it into the office (first one on my floor here at the office) or maybe because of the whole "black Monday" event... I'm curious to see who else on my team makes it in. :)


Speaking of the office... no, I haven't been priviledged to see my window buddy doing yoga again... I hadmy camera here so I took a delayed exposure shot of Jarvis Street out my office window. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Well, I've got a work project that I'm running on Saturday and I have a lot of little things that I need to get taken care of so that it goes off without a hitch so I'm gonna leave off here and hope that everyone has a great day. By the way, no comment from me about yesterday's post... I was having a moment, or should I say a bunch of moments that weren't so pleasant...


g.

Aaaaarrrrrggggg!

that is all.

Is this Karma coming to bite me in the...

as$? I got a call from Marie yesterday afternoon saying that her mom had been taken to hospital with congestive heart failure. Yep, you heard it right, congestive heart failure. WTF?! Eeeeh. I can't believe it... they took her into the I.C. unit last night when Marie and her brother went to visit her so that took it up a notch last night. Yesterday turned from an pretty good day into a real stressful, crappy one.

Let me give some background details about work... my boss is someone who is also a friend and we worked together at a different company than we're at now. He called me when he needed someone with my skillset and I both appreciated the call and answered it since I was also looking for a change. Now, we know each other very well and so I know when there are "issues" before he says anything and we've always had a relationship where everything was black and white. No hidden meanings, no covertly made statements. It's an arrangement that I find works *very* well. Okay, so where it turned no-nice yesterday... In January there are 5 Mondays - the first was a stat holiday, the second I called in sick, the next I took as a vacation day, then a personal obligation day to take Marie to a specialist appointment (we get 3 PODs a year) and the last was another vacation day. Okay, nothing wrong with this in so far as they were all approved by my management. Well, my boss come by my desk and mentioned that I hadn't worked a Monday in January. I went over the days and he said, "it's not an issue, I'm just makin' an observation and I thought that if you continue doing this, you're gonna run out of vacation by the end of March. Ha! Ha! Ha!" I asked him if it's an issue or if there was an "optics" issue with somebody saying something (my boss' boss or people who work around). He said no, it was just an observation and there was no issue. At this point, based on our relationship and history, I assumed it wasn't an issue and didn't take any measures to change my actions. Well... this past Monday traffic was crazy with snow covered roads and it was shaping up to be a 3 hour drive into work so I made a decision... turn around and work from home. For a brief second I thought about his comment (since it was another Monday) but dismissed it because he was very clear that the Monday thing was *not* an issue. I sent an e-mail from my blackberry to tell my team where I was, went home and worked the entire day. This was good for me in that I wouldn't have to stay at work until 7:00pm to make up for the slow drive in and I didn't have to face the potential of a slow drive home where I would walk in the door at 8:30pm and not see the kids.

As it turns out, when I told him about Marie's mom and said that I may be in a little late he threw the Monday thing in my face. I was kinda broadsided with that. He said that if he was me, he would have come in not matter how long the drive was since we'd had a conversation about it the week before. I wish I hadn't been in shock that he was saying this because I should have pointed out that I confirmed with him twice that it was *not* an issue and he even tried to make light of the "observation" that he made. I don't get it. Well, I do get it, things have changed and this is how I found out about it. Oh well, no real damage done except that Marie is booked in for her MRI on Monday and I had booked a second POD to take her. So I got on the phone to my parents last night to see if my dad could go out and get Marie and the kids and bring them down the the appointment. I figured that I would work through my breaks and add them to my lunch so I have enough time to go over and take care of the kids while Marie is having her MRI. He (my Dad) said he can be the chauffeur on Monday so it's looking like things are under control on the family front. I've sent an e-mail to my boss asking to cancel the POD so I think everything should be okay on the work front now. It just sucks. All of a sudden, work is absolutely no fun anymore... I hope that feelin' passes soon.

Well, given the situation here at work, I'd better sign off here.

Have a good weekend everyone!

g.

How can I complain about this?

okay, so it's not so much a complaint as it is a statement of suckiness about a situation I find myself in. We've been blessed with an opportunity to have a family vacation for the last 3 years down in Florida. The last 3 years have been with my in-laws. Now no matter how much I tell you about issues I have with my MIL, really they are well intentioned people and I have learned to cope with the difference of opinions that I have with the MIL. (by the way, in Volkswagen speak, MIL stands for message indicator light which is usually equated to problems with a system in the car... lol kinda fittin' isn't it?) Anyway... back to my issue... this year we were supposed to vacation with my parents since we hadn't done that in a number of years. My parents are now retired and they just got back from Barbados, so I assumed that they would not be vacationing again this year. As it turns out, they are interested in going south with us.

Crap.

Now I feel like I have to choose between my in-laws and my parents 'cause we'd already been talking to the in-laws about vacation plans with the assumption that my parents wouldn't be available. I should also mention that in the past my mother has poo-pooed the idea of vacationing in Florida as they like Myrtle Beach. Again, this lead me to assume that they wouldn't be interested in coming to Florida and since Marie really wants to go there and, given the year she had, she gets priority. (Well, that and the fact that I have to live with her and I kinda like sleeping in the house... lol!) As it turns out, my parents are interested in going to Florida so I say it again...

crap.

The only glimmer of hope I have to make this decision easy is that my in-laws are not sure if they are going... they are waiting to hear how my niece is doing and if her transplant is taking. They don't want to get stuck down there if something happens up here and they want to get back. It's a little different for us since we're still young enough to make it back rather quickly but for a 70 year old, the trip back would take the better part of a week. If they don't go now, they said they would go later in the year, prolly after hurricane season. Let's hope they decide to do that so our decision is made for us.

Wow, this really sounds sh1tty... most people would love to get the opportunity to vacation every year and here I am talkin' like this. I should make it clear that I'm not complaining, just "talkin' it out" to help figure out the plan of action.

I'm gonna move on to more important topics now...

I went down to Sick Kids Hospital to drop off a book of riddles as requested by my niece. I also picked up a girl's magazine that was geared at her age group (12 yrs old). It was weird, I could only call into the room and her mom had to come out to get the stuff since she's in what they call reverse isolation. Basically, the kids in that ward have no immune system (it was shut down by the chemo in preparation for the bone marrow transplant) so they can't allow the general public in. The rooms are under positive pressure so that no unfiltered air can enter the room... such that when you open the door, air always pushes out of the room. Anyway, I have to say I was quite disappointed 'cause I thought that there would be some sort of window that we could at least see her... kinda like the old concept of the baby nursery only not a window into where they sleep, just a room where they can see people on the outside. Oh well, at least she liked the book and mag that I delivered. I think I'm gonna do that again next week since she's gonna be in there for about another month.

Well, I'm gonna go for now... I hope you don't think any less of me for having written what I wrote today. :) I'm of the mindset that if I write it, as long as it's not offensive, I'm gonna leave it up 'cause this is my place to put my thoughts and I don't feel compelled to censor them.


Have a good day everyone.

g.

Take that Mother Nature...

Jim has a condition that has given me cause to worry now that we're doin' some serious interior camping (no not that nasty rash Jim, the cream the doctor gave you should clear it up...)... Jim is allergic to bee stings. We had gone over our response plan last year to ensure that we understood ahead of time how we'd react. The plan was for Jim to immediately self-administer his epinephrine while I dropped everything, grabbed the canoe and hightail it out to Brent to make a call on Jake's satellite phone for MNR to go in and rescue Jim. We hoped that he would be able to keep administering his meds until someone got there for him. We also hoped that I could manage to get out in time to give him a chance of rescue. I have to admit, the more I thought about it, the more I was concerned about how realistic this plan really was. I mean, let's say he was stung late in the afternoon - that means that I would most likely be trying to find my way in the darkness of night, struggling to find portages, possibly missing ports and ending up shootin' rapids. Let's just say that I think that there would be a serious possibility that you would read about us in some newspaper as the latest casualties in Algonquin. Not the end I want to have. I'm more inclined to want to die the way my Granddad Doyle did... went for a nap after lunch and never woke up.

Anyway, I've got a ton of work to do so I'll end my post today with a little picture for Jim:

Have a great day everyone!

g.

Neat map of Algonquin Park

Here's a neat survey map from 1893 -->


It's neat to compare the original map to a more modern one to see the changes (location of features, lake names, etc.)
Here's the newer map from 1997 in pdf format with lots of details.

I've been reading a blog by Jill from Alaska. Yes, she's another cyclist that I've found through GeWilli. You should take a look at her blog... she writes very well (she is a journalist after all) and I found her post from yesterday to be very inspiring. She also has some fantastic photos that she takes when she's out riding. I like that a lot of her pics feature her bike standing alone like this... cool.

Well, it's Friday and I have to say I'm really glad about that... it's been a crappy week at work and I really want to get the basement finished off and move onto the next "thing". There were some issues this week that caused us to have to move the drywall guy to Monday but that's it, I'm not delaying it any longer. With the latest delay taken into account, the basement should be ready for flooring by about the 14th. We're trying to decide what kind of floor we'll put down. I originally wanted carpet but the idea of a nice, high quality laminate in a cherry wood style would look really nice I think. Hmmm, decisions, decisions.

Okay, I gotta get back to work so I can jet outta here at 3:00 today and beat the traffic home.

Have a great day and a fantastic weekend everyone!

g.

At the risk of airing my dirty laundry...

I wanted to vent a little about my mother-in-law.

I'll start by saying that I believe that she always as a good intention in her heart when she says and does things. I'll follow that up with an observation that I believe she falls flat on her face with her execution of her ideas.

She provides updates about my niece's progress with the bone marrow transplant and it seems that she ALWAYS paints the worst possible picture, often exaggerating and mis-representing facts so that the we get an inaccurate understanding of the situation.

Case in point:
She said that my brother-in-law(J*) didn't want anybody coming down to visit them at the hospital. My other brother-in-law(D*) decided to go down anyway and have a little visit with his brother. It turns out that J* was so happy to have someone come down and "have a cup of coffee" to give him a bit of a break and, I assume, remind him that we're here for him if he needs us. With this revelation, Marie was chattin' with J* and mentioned that I wanted to drop by and have a coffee with him since I'm workin' a few blocks away from the hospital. J*'s response was very positive and he said he would love to have the visit. Now I feel like a heel 'cause I've been so close to where they are and yet I haven't gone over to see them because M-I-L said it wasn't a good thing.

This is where M-I-L and I have very different approaches to things... she thinks that you should keep away from people in sensitive situations whereas I believe that when someone is suffering, you should demonstrate that you are there, be supportive and not be afraid to "make contact" to see if the person in need is receptive to you support. In some cases they want the space but at least they know that you're there if they need you and you've demonstrated it through actions as opposed to words, which people are always quick to offer but they remain just that - words. Don't get me wrong, it's important to be sensitive to what the person wants and not force yourself on them, just let them know in a gentle way that you are really there and ready to support them.

It makes me want to respond the way that stewardess in the NicoDerm commercial acts. Take a look:


Imagine me responding to my M-I-L the way she handles that guy "THE SEATBELT SIGN IS ON! GAWD!" except I'd be saying, "STOP BEIN' A MEDDLING OLD LADY! GAWD!"

(in sheepish tone) Did I mention that my in-laws are helping us finish off our basement? What? Can't I still feel that way about her even though she's helpin' us? '(sheepish tone off)

Speaking of the basement, we've put off the drywall guys until Monday so I can finish off the last few things (framing the doors, putting up the vapour barrier, finishing the insulation around where the plumber worked yesterday, etc) I should have no problem gettin all the little things done by the end of the weekend even though on Saturday we're going over the Cobourg to get help from the local Member of Parliament to get our passports processed quickly in the event that we go down to Florida on March break. Okay, a few details on that one.

We're waiting to see how our niece is doing before we go on any family trips, just in in case. With the whole flight thing for Marie, last year she had bought a ticket to fly to a music teachers conference but ended up having her seizure so we got an extension to her ticket that expires April 1st. We figured that rather than driving for 24 hours with the baby, she would use the ticket, the baby would fly for free and she would be only travelling for a few hours versus days. The theory is that it will be easier than the road trip although I have to say I'll miss havin' her as my co-pilot and relief driver. We always have a blast on these long road trips... they're such an adventure with the kids.

Anyway, I have a 10:00 conference call so I'd better stop here and get ready for the meeting... it has the possibility of bein' a little lively (in a work kinda way) because of the topic.

Have a great day everyone!

g.

Does the allure of $$$ sow it's ugly seeds?

Here's an interesting read on biofuels.

By Elisabeth Rosenthal

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

AMSTERDAM

Just a few years ago, politicians and green groups in the Netherlands were thrilled by the country's early and rapid adoption of "sustainable energy," achieved in part by coaxing electricity plants to use some biofuel — in particular, palm oil from Southeast Asia.

Spurred by government subsidies, energy companies became so enthusiastic that they designed generators that ran exclusively on the oil, which in theory would be cleaner than fossil fuels like coal because it is derived from plants.

But last year, when scientists studied practices at palm plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia, this green fairy tale began to look more like an environmental nightmare.

Rising demand for palm oil in Europe brought about the razing of huge tracts of Southeast Asian rain forest and the overuse of chemical fertilizer there. Worse still, space for the expanding palm plantations was often created by draining and burning peat land, which sent huge amount of carbon emissions into the atmosphere.

Factoring in these emissions, Indonesia had quickly become the world's third-leading producer of greenhouse gases that scientists believe are responsible for global warming, ranked after the United States and China, concluded a study released in December by researchers from Wetlands International and Delft Hydraulics, both in the Netherlands.

"It was shocking and totally smashed all the good reasons we initially went into palm oil," said Alex Kaat, a spokesman for Wetlands, a conservation group.

Biofuels, long a cornerstone of the quest for greener energy, may sometimes produce more harmful emissions than the fossil fuels they replace, scientific studies are finding.

As a result, politicians in many countries are rethinking the billions of dollars in subsidies that have indiscriminately supported the spread of all of these supposedly "eco- friendly" fuels, for use in power vehicles and factories. The 2003 European Union Biofuels Directive, which demands that all member states aim to have 5.75 percent of transportation fueled by biofuel in 2010, is now under review.

"If you make biofuels properly, you will reduce greenhouse emissions," said Peder Jensen, of the European Environment Agency in Copenhagen. "But that depends very much on the types of plants and how they're grown and processed. You can end up with a 90 percent reduction compared to fossil fuels — or a 20 percent increase."

"Its important to take a life cycle view," he said, and not to "just see what the effects are here in Europe."

In the Netherlands, the data from Indonesia have provoked soul searching, and prompted the government to suspend palm oil subsidies. A country that was a leader in green energy in Europe has now become a leader in the effort to distinguish which biofuels are truly environmentally sound. The government, environmental groups and some of the "green energy" companies in the Netherlands are trying to develop programs to trace the origin of imported palm oil, to certify what is produced in an eco- friendly manner.

Krista van Velzen, a member of Parliament, said the Netherlands should pay compensation to Indonesia for the damage palm oil has caused. "We can't only think, 'Does it pollute the Netherlands?'"

Biofuels are heavily subsidized throughout the developed world, including the European Union and the United States, and enjoy tax breaks that are given because they more expensive to produce than conventional fuel.

In the United States and Brazil most biofuel is ethanol, derived from corn and used to power vehicles. In Europe it is mostly local rapeseed and sunflower oil, used to make diesel fuel. But as many European countries push for more green energy, they are increasingly importing plant oils from the tropics, since there is simply not enough biomass at home.

On the surface, the environmental equation that supports biofuels is simple: Since they are derived from plants, biofuels absorb carbon while they are grown and release it when they are burned. In theory that neutralizes their emissions.

But the industry was promoted long before there was adequate research, said Reanne Creyghton, who runs Friends of the Earth's anti-palm oil campaign in the Netherlands. "Palm oil was advertised as green energy, but there was no research about whether it was really sustainable."

Biofuelswatch, an environmental group in Britain, now say that "biofuels should not automatically be classed as 'renewable energy.'" It supports a moratorium on subsidies until more research is done to define which biofuels are truly good for the planet. Beyond that, the group suggests that all emissions rising from the production of a biofuel be counted as emissions in the country where the fuel is actually used, providing a clearer accounting of environmental costs.

The demand for palm oil in Europe has skyrocketed in the past two decades, first for use in food and cosmetics, and more recently for biofuels. This versatile and low-cost oil is used in about 10 percent of supermarket products, from chocolate to toothpaste, accounting for 21 percent of the global market for edible oils.

Palm oil produces the most energy of all vegetable oils per liter when burned. In much of Europe it is used as a substitute for diesel oil, though in the Netherlands, with little sun for solar power and little wind for turbines, the government has encouraged its use for electricity.

Supported by hundreds of millions of euros in national subsidies, the Netherlands rapidly became the leading importer of palm oil in Europe, taking in 1.5 million tons last year, a figure that has been nearly doubling annually. The Dutch green energy giant Essent alone bought 200,000 tons, before it agreed to suspend new purchases until a better system for certifying sustainably grown palm oil could be developed. The company now has replaced the palm oil it used with conventional sources of energy and local biofuels.

But already the buoyant demand has created damage far away. "When you drastically increase the demand for agricultural products, that puts new pressure on the land and can have unintended consequences and hidden costs," Jensen, of the European Environment Agency, said.

Friends of the Earth estimates that 87 percent of the deforestation in Malaysia from 1985 to 2000 was caused by new palm oil plantations. In Indonesia, the amount of land devoted to palm oil has increased 118 percent in the past eight years.

Oil needed by poor people for food was becoming too expensive for them. "We have a problem satisfying the Netherlands' energy needs with someone else's food resources," said Creyghton of Friends of the Earth.

Such concerns were causing intense misgivings about palm oil already when, in December, scientists from Wetlands International released their bombshell calculation about the global emissions that palm farming on peat land caused.

Peat is an organic sponge that stores huge amounts of carbon, thereby helping to balance global emissions. Peat land is 90 percent water. But when it is drained, those stored gases are released into the atmosphere.

To makes matters worse, once dried, peat land is often burned to clear ground for plantations. In recent years Indonesia has been plagued by polluting wildfires so intense that they send thick clouds of smoke over much of Asia.

The Dutch study estimated that the draining of peat land in Indonesia releases 600 million tons of carbon into the atmosphere a year and that fires contributed an additional 1,400 million tons annually. The total, 2000 million tons, is equivalent to 8 percent of all global emissions caused annually by burning fossil fuels, the researchers said.

"These emissions generated by peat drainage in Indonesia were not counted before," Kaat, of Wetlands International, said. "It was a totally ignored problem." For the moment Wetlands is backing the certification system for palm oil imports, to make sure it is grown and processed in a sustainable manner.

But some environmental groups are convinced that palm oil cannot be produced sustainably at reasonable prices. Part of the reason palm oil is now relatively inexpensive is because of poor environmental practices and labor abuses, they say.

Still, some Dutch companies like Biox, a young company fully devoted to producing energy from palm oil, are confident there will be a solution and are banking on this biofuel.

Biox has applied to build three palm oil power plants in the Netherlands; the first one gained approval just last week. It is currently auditing its plantations and refineries in Indonesia for sustainability.

"Yes, there have been bad examples in the palm oil industry," said Arjen Brinkman, a company official. "But it is now clear that to serve Europe's markets for biofuel and bioenergy, you will have to prove that you produce it sustainably — that you are producing less, not more CO2."

Ya see, it another example of not lookin' at the big picture. Just because something is good from one perspective, doesn't mean it's not bad from another. Makes ya think eh?

Guy's night out recounted...

check out Jim's post about our night out last week. It was a strange experience...

It's not so much the temperature...

as it is the lack of appropriate attire for the temps. As I was readin' Geoff's post about the fact that he is still riding his bike into work, it got me thinking that my problem is that I'm not dressing for the weather. I insist on wearing things don't provide enough insulation and/or refuse to dress in enough layers for the temps. Gotta change that or stop bitchin' to the seats in my car that it's too damn cold. (I commute alone so there's no one around me when the car is so freakin' cold the seat cushions are actually hard) I can't commute on a bike like Geoff 'cause my commute is about 85km one way.

Details about yesterday... hmm... Alison "accused" me of being very brief in my e-mails... I dunno, I like to think I'm good at gettin' to the point and being very efficient with my writing... no? Screw you then! Kidding people. Alison and I had some good laughs and we both seemed to enjoy catching up. I'm not really good at regurgitating conversations... kinda like when I was as a kid tryin' to tell someone about a movie I watched - always had problems doin' that. What I can tell you is we're gonna meet up again and perhaps pull in one or two other people that we went to school with. We'll see.

Last night I went grocery shopping on the way home and picked up some nice lamb chops. Now I know that there are a lot of people out there that don't eat meat but I'm not gonna apologise for the fact that I do. In fact, lamb is my fave meat but I don't have it often so it's like a treat for me. One time, when we were first married, Marie surprised me with a nice dinner when I got home from work. She had made lamb chops and a home made plum chutney which was AWESOME! She said that she'll dig out the recipe and do it again sometime soon.

...

This post has been sittin' here all day and I keep comin' back to add to it and now I'm outta time so I'll end here.

One last thing... my niece isn't doin' well today (she had her marrow transplant today and there have been complications) so please pray for her as she struggles.

g.

Classmates part deux...

Okay, so I met up with Alison this morning and I think she may be stalking me.... JOKING!

Alison is as nice a person as I remembered and I had nothing to fear or be nervous about. We chatted for quite a while in Starbuck's across the street from my office. The topics ranged from our kids to where are they now to parenting to where we've been and who we've seen. It was a wonderful experience and we're gonna do again soon. I know that some people may want more details but I kinda hafta make up some of my time from this morning so I gotta run. I should also say that Alison made good timing from the Cook Islands to meet me and I appreciate it! ;)

g.

Whoa, that's cold...

minus 18!!! with an overnight low of -26!!! Holy cow that's cold!

Wow... that's not so good...

I re-read my post this morning and ummm... yeah... it doesn't paint a great picture does it. I need to emphasize that these were my thoughts, not the reality! LOL! Sometimes I need to take pause and think before I speak, or in this case write. My memories of Alison are good and she was always very nice... in fact, I remember her laughing at my jokes (okay, maybe THAT makes her crazy... who's gonna laugh at my jokes? LOL!) No seriously, we went to the same grade school and high school and rode on the same school buses so I can't imagine that she's changed that much.

I should also mention that I had a weird guilty feelin' about meeting up with her because I hadn't mentioned it to Marie. It wasn't for any other reason than I kept forgetting to mention it. I had told her that Alison had contacted me and made sure she knew it wasn't an "old flame" (just setting the context for her) but I forgot to tell her that we were meeting for coffee. Anyway, I told her and it wasn't an issue for her. I'll follow up later to let you know how the "reunion" goes this afternoon.

I've read Jim's post about the things that drive him crazy a few times (only 'cause he hasn't posted anything new in a week) and perhaps that's why I got thinkin' a few thoughts...

and on that note I give you...

"Things That Make Me (kinda) Crazy"

• why do people say that they will give or gave it "110%"... I mean, if they feel they gave it more than 100% then perhaps they weren't giving 100% to begin with...thoughts?
• when people are trying to say that something doesn't really bother them, they say "I could care less"... isn't it supposed to be "I couldn't care less"...? If you could care less, then it means something to you and if you couldn't care less, then it means nothing to you... I dunno... thoughts?

Okay, it's a very short list and by no means representative of all things that drive me crazy but they were two thoughts I had driving in to work today.

And in my usual style, let's move on to my next random thought... I work on the 13th floor...

gasp! you say "not the 13th floor!"

and I say, yeah, what of it? I ain't...


"very superstitious, writings on the wall..."


thanks Stevie, take five brotha... speaking of the wall, the building next to mine is a condo building and here I sit everyday, lookin' out my window at the people next door doing various things, walking 'round in their pj's, having breakfast, doing yoga, surfin' the internet... gets me thinkin', I wouldn't like to live where people are able to see that much into my home. For instance, does that woman one floor up think that we can't see her doin' the "downward facing dog"? I feel like I know her more than I should for a "window buddy". Wow, she's flexible... okay next topic!

For anyone that wanders over here and has a read of my blog, drop me a line and let me know if you have a blog (alright Jim, I already know you have a blog so calm down buddy...) so I can wander over and have a read. (VP) It's really neat that you can learn about people that you never would have known otherwise. Cool.

Geoff has been makin' life kinda hard for me by talkin' so much about "Paczki" and posting pics of that wonderful lookin' puffy ball of sweet goodness... I've never had one but I'd sure love to! I asked Marie about it 'cause her mom is of Polish decent and Marie hadn't heard of it before. Perhaps I pronounced it wrong. I'll check with her mom. This one looks the best to me, almost like a Krispy Kreme glazed jelly... mmmm, carbo-licious!

Well, it's that time again. Gotta get back to work.

Have a great day everyone!

g.

Now for the calssmates update...

So I got an e-mail a couple o' weeks ago from someone I went to grade school and high school with. She got my contact info from classmates dot com. I remembered who she was (she had also entered her maiden name otherwise I wouldn't have know) and she mentioned that she was back up where we grew up for a day trip and she ran into my mom. They chatted a bit and my mom filled her in on some details about me (married, kids, living in Newcastle, etc). My guess is that she decided to see if I had entered any info on classmates. I had 'cause I was interested in hearing from people from my high school days to see where they are now. I missed the reunion last year 'cause Marie had her seizure the day in the days before the reunion so I obviously missed that. Anyway, Alison and I traded e-mails and kinda caught up. I have to say I was a little nervous about sharing information since we hadn't talked in a while and to tell you truth I thought:

What if she's turned into some psycho person?

I mean, suppose she all of a sudden she decides we're "best friends" and it turns out that too much time has passed and I don't like who she's become? I mean, if she thinks I'm an idiot she won't keep in contact with me, she'll disappear and I'll be left thinkin' she thinks I'm nuts but that's not a feelin' I'm unfamiliar with so I'd survive. LOL! Seriously though, when there's been as many years pass as there has been in this case, people change... life has a way of "forming" us into different things... we can become jaded by bad experiences... left vulnerable by being too trusting... I don't know, I guess I'm just sayin' that I nervous about meeting up for coffee. I'll be totally honest here... I also didn't want to meet a person who may end up being "needy" or pushy and wanting to pick up where things left off. The reality is, these thoughts are overreactions 'cause it's not like we were seeing each other back then, we were just friends so that's as far as it would "pick up" from.

Okay, I got ramblin' a bit there and I can't imagine what Alison would think if she read this... I'm sure she wouldn't meet me for coffee on Thursday if she read what I just wrote! LOL!

That wasn't exactly a good bit o' writin' but I always said that I tend towards a "stream of consciousness" style than any prize winning literature. :}

I believe that my promise to follow up has been fulfilled and so I now return to work with a umm... weird but satisfied feeling.

Have a good day!

g.

Loose ends...

So I got a feedback that I am a little lax in following up on post that I promise to give more details "later". In my defense, "later" is very ambiguous so I will attempt to follow up on a couple of posts that I promised more details about.

My niece... well, that is not a happy story. My niece is quite young and she was diagnosed with aplastic anemia several years ago. This disease requires a bone marrow transplant which can, often time, be a lengthy search for a donor match. Well, as it would happen, she had not only one, but three matches in her immediate family; her oldest brother, oldest sister and youngest brother. This is quite unusual but you also have to understand that she has six siblings so if anyone had a good chance of finding a match in her immediate family, she would!

Back in 2002 she had her first transplant and at first it appeared to be successful however, after a number of months passed, it seemed that they may not have "killed off" all her bone marrow before transplanting her sister's and that meant that her marrow was "fightin' it out" with her sister's. She managed to continue for a few years with medication but last year she took a turn for the worse. Her blood counts were down and they showed no sign of recovering so they decided to attempt a second transplant. This is an unusual move since they often will not attempt a second transplant. They decided to try again since they didn't get all her stuff out before transplanting her sister's and they also have a second match to try. This time her brother will be the donor and I believe they are adding something to the preparatory routine... somethin' in the way of extra chemo and I believe some radiation treatment too. This will be the last attempt and if it's not successful, they will make her comfortable but that's about all they can do.

I'd like to ask you all to keep her in your thoughts and prayers that this time they will be successful.

I think that's all I'd like to write about on this topic. It's little hard to think about right now... I feel so helpless 'cause there's nothing I can do directly to make it easier or even go away. It's a hard thing to balance giving her parents space and wanting to be there for them. This is particularly hard on Marie since it's her oldest brother whose going through this and she's a very compassionate person who will always be there to help. My feelings of helplessness are aggravated by the fact that my uncle is also very sick but he's over in England (I think I blogged about that before). When Marie and I took our two oldest over there (before the other kids were born) to visit my family, my uncle Kevin gave us a place to stay for one of the weeks we were there. Given the situation now, I so glad we had that opportunity 'cause until then, he was one of those family members I had met once or twice but didn't really know. I also got the opportunity to strike up a friendship with my cousin (his daughter) and I really have a special place in my heart for them. I'm glad that Kevin was able to meet his granddaughter before he went into hospital... he was a proud granddad waiting for her birth when he was over here in October. He reminded me so much of my granddad (who I was named after), both in looks and mannerisms.

Okay, I'm gonna go for a bit (and do some work) but I will come back and provide an update about the whole classmates thing later.

Have a good day everyone.

g.

Ahh, the memories...

a twist on a favorite ad.

Have a good day.

g.

Jim let the cat outta the bag...

in his last post. Capsized Canoe 2008 has been discussed and we've come up with a tentative route that I'm really excited about.

Take a look at the route we're thinkin' of:

There are a number of things that I'm lookin' forward to on this route:

1. Radiant Lake is supposed to be really neat. It's quite shallow in parts during the late summer, so it'll be interesting to experience... I may even get out of the canoe and walk if it's possible.
2. Hittin' parts of the park that I've never seen before. As much as I'm lookin' forward to sittin' on the island relaxing on Robinson Lake, it's in territory that we've covered once and that takes a tiny bit away from the route. What makes up for that is the fact that we were a little taken aback at the portaging and this year we'll know what to expect and we can raise the bar some more. A back-to-back comparison of the 2.5km port using the yoke pads will be quite interesting too.
3. As weird as this sounds, I'm lookin' forward to the challenge of the 3.5km portage that I'm hoping we'll have developed our technique for this year!
   
4. The fire tower at Big Crow Lake! Here's a neat site that I found that talks about fire towers in Ontario. I enjoyed reading the bit on the history of the towers and the details about how they were set up.
5. I'd like to check out the Ranger cabin near the fire tower... I hope no one is using it.
   

If you've been on this route before, I'd love to hear about it!

Have a great day,

g.

I know, another time waster

Your Fortune Is

He who laughs last, thinks slowest.

The Wacky Fortune Cookie Generator

C'mon, now that's funny!

You Are 15% Redneck

I'll slap you so hard, your clothes will be outta style. You ain't no redneck - you're all Yankee!

How Redneck Are You?

g.

Morning funny...

Okay, I know it's not my content but I wanted to share my morning chuckle courtesy of George Carlin...

New Rule: Stop giving me that pop-up ad for classmates.com! There's a reason you don't talk to people for 25 years. Because you don't particularly like them! Besides, I already know what the captain of the football team is doing these days: mowing my lawn.

New Rule: Don't eat anything that's served to you out a window unless you're a seagull. People are acting all shocked that a human finger was found in a bowl of Wendy's chili. Hey, it cost less than a dollar. What did you expect it to contain? Trout?

New Rule: Stop saying that teenage boys who have sex with their hot, blonde teachers are permanently damaged. I have a better description for these kids: lucky bastards.

New Rule: If you need to shave and you still collect baseball cards, you're a retard. When you're a kid, the cards are keepsakes of your idols. When you're a grown man, they're pictures of men.

New Rule: The more complicated the Starbucks order, the bigger the asshole. If you walk into a Starbucks and order a "decaf grande half-soy, half-low fat, iced vanilla, double-shot, gingerbread cappuccino, extra dry, light ice, with one Sweet-n'-Low and one NutraSweet," Oooh, you're a huge asshole.

New Rule: Girls, just because your tattoo has Chinese characters in it doesn't make you spiritual. It's right above the crack of your ass. And it translates to "beef with broccoli." The last time you did anything spiritual, you were praying to God you weren't pregnant. You're not spiritual. You're just high.

New Rule: Competitive eating isn't a sport. It's one of the seven deadly sins. ESPN recently televised the US Open of Competitive Eating, because watching those athletes at the poker table was just too damned exciting. What's next, competitive farting? Oh wait. They're already doing that. It's called "The Howard Stern Show."

New Rule: I don't need a bigger mega M&M. If I'm extra hungry for M&Ms, I'll go nuts and eat two.

New Rule: No more gift registries. You know, it used to be just for weddings. Now it's for babies and new homes and graduations from rehab. Picking out the stuff you want and having other people buy it for you isn't gift giving, it's the white people version of looting.

Busy day today so I'll have to try and squeeze something in later. The first one of George's bits reminded me to talk about being e-mailed by a friend from highschool that I haven't seen since then... more on that later if I get chance. (oh, and it's not that I didn't like her, it's just that we went our separate ways and never crossed paths again, like I did with most friend from back then:) )

Have a great day!

g.

Crying Indian...oops, that's crying Native American

okay, so I was lost in my last post... GeWilli mentioned a PSA from the 70's about a native crying after witnessing the white man not caring for mother earth... leave it to Jim to come through...

without further a-do, I give you "Crying Native"...

More reading...

I added a bunch of links on the right side of the page... check 'em out. I especially like the Canadian Canoe Route site... it has a database of trips that include great details like difficulty ratings and route descriptions, including distances.

I found out that my uncle over in England is quite sick so I'd ask that you all keep him in your thoughts and prayers. He was just over visiting us in September and October so it's a little shocking to hear that he's gotten sick so quickly.

It's another busy day here at work and, in what seems to be a trend for me lately, I have absolutely no interest in doing my work. This sucks.

Anyway, Jim and I have apparently started planning Capsized Canoe 2008! He found a link describing a trip that takes us south of Burntroot to Big Crow lake where there's a fire tower that give spectacular views. I should mention that another trip log mentioned that the condition of the "hut" at the top of the tower was not good so if you're reading this and want to go, keep that in mind and stay safe.

I found myself reading some articles on Outdoor Adventure Canada and one of them was a review of a feminine product. I know, weird for me to read that but I read it because it brought up the point women would potentially have a lot more to deal with when camping. For us guys, any bush will do and our "eliminating" needs are fairly basic. The fact the autor mentioned having to pack out what you brought then led me to think back to 2005 when Jim and I stayed on the island on Cedar Lake (me and my highschool buddies called it Get-away Rock). I brought Jim up to experience all that Algonquin is and I was very disappointed to find a lot of garbage on the island, mostly things like plastic water bottles and the likes. I'm no tree huggin' hippie but that kind of thing gets me really heated.. I mean, what are people thinkin'? Since when is it okay to just drop garbage anywhere you like? Would they shit right next to their tent too? C'mon people, have some respect for our environment not to mention the next campers that use the site. We always leave a small pile of firewood for the next people to use the site and we strive to leave the site cleaner than we found it. Ya know, I remember when I was a kids, there were all these public service type campaigns that told us to conserve energy by turning off the lights when we leave the room, to put litter in it's place (a garbage can, not dropped on the ground). It seems that these messages are not being taught to our kids in the public so it depends on the parents to pass the message on. That is a pitfall in the strategy as you see when you have kids in school... the extent of parental involvement in childrens lives varies vastly. It amazes me how many kids are left to raise themselves. I was a latch key kid with my sister but my parents were still deeply involved in our lives. Being busy with jobs to pay bills doesn't mean being totally disengaged in your kids lives. Damn. This is gettin' me heated! I gotta stop before I blow a gasket! LOL!

Anyway, guilt is compelling me to get back to work so, have a great day everyone! (and by everyone, I mean Jim and Geoff since you're the only two reading this) :)

g.

I can't concentrate!

I just want to be at home with Marie and the kids.

That's all.

I thought it might help to post it.



It didn't. :}

Have a good day,
g.

A killer headache...

kept me home from work today. I woke up a bunch on time through the night and my head was still aching. It was that kind of a headache that makes you feel like you gonna throw up. Needless to say, I wasn't great to be around today. I slept most of the day... Marie is so good to me.

The baby is gaining weight well and startin' to fill out her skin. She was so skinny at one point that her skin was all baggy on her legs. She's over 7 lbs now and startin' to put on the baby fat. I'mm gonna keep it short for today and call it an early night to see if sleep will help.

Have a good night.

g.