Neil and I decided to survey our friends on a regular basis on questions that don't matter. The latest question was something like "If you died tomorrow, would your family and/or friends be shocked by what you have in your personal belongings?".
Thinking about this, I decided that the only thing people might be shocked about was what is written in past journals. So I began to read through some old entries, and stumbled across my "dream log". Apparently for about a week, I decided to keep track of my dreams. This probably didn't last long because I typically don't remember my dreams. Anywho, I particularly enjoyed this entry:
"Went drinking before a math exam. Got to exam late and couldn't multiply fractions. Caitlin wouldn't help me cheat. Second question was 'Name 9 ingredients in dill pickle chips'. I wrote salt, pepper and potatoes. I don't even like dill pickle chips".
Trying to keep up a dream (b)log isn't a bad idea.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Shark Water: Cape Town Edition
The two hour drive to Gansbaai passed them by without incident. The sun rose over the mountainous landscape as they gently dozed in the back of the shuttle. On arrival at Marine Dynamics they were greeted with yet another breakfast. Not ones to pass up food of any kind, they ate yet again: this time it was eggs, toast, meats and more fruit and cheese.
Shuffling in a single line onto the tiny boat, it became quickly apparent that the sea was angry that day. The small boat tossed the brave seafarers from side to side, up and down, back and forth. They arrived at the infamous “Shark Alley” and anchored where other boats had experienced sightings earlier in the day. As they struggled to envelop themselves in the ridiculously tight wetsuits and continued to be thrown from side to side, the first began to look slightly green. Inhaling a Gravol, she sat down and waited for the nausea to pass. Just then, the first shark was spotted port side. The second (yours truly) grabbed her camera and secured a decent viewing spot and snapped one photo before the nausea curse hit her too. Taking a spot beside the first, the two seemed to be the only ones on the voyage experiencing seasickness. The second endeavoured to choke down a Gravol as well, but alas, it was too late. Stumbling to the front of the boat, she expelled not one, but two breakfasts. The first joined her shortly thereafter and hurled so many times over the next 2.5 hours that everyone lost count. They both managed to successfully dive with the sharks for about 15 minutes, and while down there a white shark even bit the cage. Feeling a bout of nausea sweep over her yet again, the first feebly requested out of the cage to once again claim her spot at the front of the boat. In what could be interpreted as an act of defiance, she managed to throw up the remainder of her stomach contents directly onto a shark swimming in the water below. A small victory in an otherwise overwhelming defeat.
Huddled together and hating everything that life was offering them, they silently cursed the hand that the sea had dealt them that day. Focused on the horizon, they willed for a time machine to fast forward through the next couple of hours. Eventually the boat was headed back to the sweet, sweet land; and on arrival they fully understood why sailors kiss the sand. They carefully made their way back to Marine Dynamics where they were served soup that looked like vomit. It tasted pretty good, though.
As the memory of being ridiculously nauseous fades, they would probably say they are both happy to have gone shark cage diving. Though both would also agree that they will never, ever do it again.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Katy tests Delicious
Google has gone and done it. They've removed the ability to share items in Google Reader. I occasionally did this from my personal Reader site, but did it much more often for work. Now that it's gone, I'm testing new options. I'm still hopeful though, that the Google Reader community will rise up against Google on this one and demand a reinstatement of what was a wonderful feature.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
"Have you taken pounds?"
Unfortunately, I have now gotten this question TWICE! In fact, one fellow suggested that I had "taken 2 to 3 kilos" in four days! Haha. I have tried to explain that this is most certainly not a compliment in North America, but both gentlemen insist that I look better with "more pounds".
It's easy to gain weight in a country where oil is used like water. Even when I order vegetables, they come dripping in the stuff. And I have fallen in love with aloko. They are a common side dish (as are french fries and those oil rich vegetables) and are deliciously deep fried. In attempting to not get sick again, I am trying to stay away from raw food, which unfortunately increases the amount of oil in my diet.
A petit diet may be in order upon my return - I do have a wedding to be in!
It's easy to gain weight in a country where oil is used like water. Even when I order vegetables, they come dripping in the stuff. And I have fallen in love with aloko. They are a common side dish (as are french fries and those oil rich vegetables) and are deliciously deep fried. In attempting to not get sick again, I am trying to stay away from raw food, which unfortunately increases the amount of oil in my diet.
A petit diet may be in order upon my return - I do have a wedding to be in!
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Easter and Islam
Happy Easter from Senegal. It's pretty easy to forget that it's Easter here in Dakar. I don't know a lot about the intersection of Islam with daily life in Senegal, but here is what I do know:
1. According to the CIA World Factbook, Senegal is 94% Muslim;
2. Islam in Senegal and The Gambia is slightly different than other areas of the world. Instead of ordinary believers being directly connected to Allah, in Senegal there are intermediaries between Allah and the commoners; they are called the marabout (pronounced mare-a-boo). The marabout have divine power, and can have significant sway both politically and economically in Senegal.
3. It is not uncommon for families to hand over their young boys to the marabout under the pretense that the children will be given a good education. While I'm sure some are getting a scholarly education, it seems that the majority are simply learning to live on the street. These young boys are everywhere with their tins, begging for money not for them, but for the marabout. It often seems like a good option for families in extreme poverty; and actually many of the boys supposedly come from Guinea-Bissau. It's quite sad...I just looked this up on the internets - the boys are called talibes
4. I live in an area essentially under the control of the Layene brotherhood. Indeed, the area I live in is called Yoff Layene. Their huge, picturesque mosque sits on the beach a five minute walk from my place. For reasons I don't quite understand, because of this mosque, the power rarely goes out in Yoff Layene; whereas in other parts of Dakar, power outages are very common.
1. According to the CIA World Factbook, Senegal is 94% Muslim;
2. Islam in Senegal and The Gambia is slightly different than other areas of the world. Instead of ordinary believers being directly connected to Allah, in Senegal there are intermediaries between Allah and the commoners; they are called the marabout (pronounced mare-a-boo). The marabout have divine power, and can have significant sway both politically and economically in Senegal.
3. It is not uncommon for families to hand over their young boys to the marabout under the pretense that the children will be given a good education. While I'm sure some are getting a scholarly education, it seems that the majority are simply learning to live on the street. These young boys are everywhere with their tins, begging for money not for them, but for the marabout. It often seems like a good option for families in extreme poverty; and actually many of the boys supposedly come from Guinea-Bissau. It's quite sad...I just looked this up on the internets - the boys are called talibes
4. I live in an area essentially under the control of the Layene brotherhood. Indeed, the area I live in is called Yoff Layene. Their huge, picturesque mosque sits on the beach a five minute walk from my place. For reasons I don't quite understand, because of this mosque, the power rarely goes out in Yoff Layene; whereas in other parts of Dakar, power outages are very common.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Match du Football
Update: PICTURES
On Saturday March 25, I had the pleasure of attending a soccer game between the national teams of Senegal and Cameroon. Before I went, I joked with some of my Senegalese buddies that I was going to root for Cameroon, just to be a bit of a "merde perturbateur". Then the woman who owns my guesthouse told me that the last game between The Gambia and Senegal resulted in both a Gambia win, and a beating for all Gambian fans. Change of plan! GO SENEGAL!
Becca and I opted not to show up six hours early as another friend had chosen to do. Instead, we felt 1.5 hours was sufficient. The line up outside the stadium when we got there was ginormous, but moving pretty quickly. Once we got into the actual stadium, there were many more lines corresponding to the colour of your wristband. We were yellow. After standing in the yellow line for 20 minutes with no movement (the door was shut and it didn't seem that there was any intention by stadium staff to reopen it) we opted instead for the blue line. We were immediately ushered to the front of the line, for no other reason than we were white (as far as I could tell).
We had landed ourselves in the covered section. We did not pay for the covered section. Oh well! There were no seats left whatsoever, so we sat on the stairs as many others had begun to do. This stadium would fail every kind of fire regulation in Canada, that's for sure. Good thing people weren't lighting flares in the middle of the crowd - OH WAIT - they were!
The game itself, up until the 92nd minute, was not spectacular. As is typical with most soccer games I seem to watch, the score was nil-nil and the players ran a lot, and fell down a lot. But that 92nd minute changed everything. Senegal scored. I have honestly not seen so much joy and jubilation in one place. People went CRAZY. Becca and I were splashed with water as people swung their water bottles around in fits of euphoria. The man beside me, who until that point had been fairly reserved, picked me up and gave me a huge bear hug; not putting me down until about 10 seconds later. "EXTRAORDINAIRE!" "INCROYABLE!" And it went on, and on, and on. People began to storm the field, and the police didn't get them under control for a good 15-20 minutes.
It was a pretty fantastic experience. I'll add pictures to Picasa once my internet connection is strong enough to handle it.
On Saturday March 25, I had the pleasure of attending a soccer game between the national teams of Senegal and Cameroon. Before I went, I joked with some of my Senegalese buddies that I was going to root for Cameroon, just to be a bit of a "merde perturbateur". Then the woman who owns my guesthouse told me that the last game between The Gambia and Senegal resulted in both a Gambia win, and a beating for all Gambian fans. Change of plan! GO SENEGAL!
Becca and I opted not to show up six hours early as another friend had chosen to do. Instead, we felt 1.5 hours was sufficient. The line up outside the stadium when we got there was ginormous, but moving pretty quickly. Once we got into the actual stadium, there were many more lines corresponding to the colour of your wristband. We were yellow. After standing in the yellow line for 20 minutes with no movement (the door was shut and it didn't seem that there was any intention by stadium staff to reopen it) we opted instead for the blue line. We were immediately ushered to the front of the line, for no other reason than we were white (as far as I could tell).
We had landed ourselves in the covered section. We did not pay for the covered section. Oh well! There were no seats left whatsoever, so we sat on the stairs as many others had begun to do. This stadium would fail every kind of fire regulation in Canada, that's for sure. Good thing people weren't lighting flares in the middle of the crowd - OH WAIT - they were!
The game itself, up until the 92nd minute, was not spectacular. As is typical with most soccer games I seem to watch, the score was nil-nil and the players ran a lot, and fell down a lot. But that 92nd minute changed everything. Senegal scored. I have honestly not seen so much joy and jubilation in one place. People went CRAZY. Becca and I were splashed with water as people swung their water bottles around in fits of euphoria. The man beside me, who until that point had been fairly reserved, picked me up and gave me a huge bear hug; not putting me down until about 10 seconds later. "EXTRAORDINAIRE!" "INCROYABLE!" And it went on, and on, and on. People began to storm the field, and the police didn't get them under control for a good 15-20 minutes.
It was a pretty fantastic experience. I'll add pictures to Picasa once my internet connection is strong enough to handle it.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Disjointed Thoughts and Observations
I was invited to a colleague's house for dinner with her family. The father was talking about the recent French election, and the bigotry of one of the candidates. A candidate who had equated Africans with primates. Obviously awful. About ten minutes later, someone at the table said something about China. Then the kids pulled their eyes back in their imitation of a Chinese person and started talking in a ridiculous fake Chinese accent. This was encouraged by the parents with fits of laughter. I found this act racist also, and was surprised that it was fine after we had just been discussing the French attitude towards blacks. Then I wondered if I was being too sensitive? It's hard to tell sometimes.
There are no stoplights in Dakar. Why? I don't know. I find it bizarre. There are beaucoup de roundabouts, but they don't necessarily work the way they are supposed to. Often, the police are directing traffic, but with no regulations on emissions (or unenforced regulations), I imagine they'll all have terrible respiratory problems in no time at all. The pollution here is pretty, pretty, pretty bad.
People here almost unfailingly call me either "Kathy" or "Cat-ee". Somehow, these said with a French accent are much more bearable than said with an English accent. No offense meant to the Kathy's and "Cat-ee's" out there; they're just not my thing. When people introduce me, they typically say my entire name in such a way that it sounds like I am the leader of a successful military coup and am addressing my adoring public for the first time: "Now introducing CAT-EE STOCK-TON!!!!" (The crowd goes wild. In my head.)
Unfortunately, as a single female traveler/worker for the most part, it is all too easy to attract unwanted male attention. So far, I have three expressions of love under my belt. Especially unfortunately, two of them come from the young males who live in my guesthouse. This makes my daily life slightly awkward. Though it is nice to receive compliments such as "you are cool; funny; simple; not very hard" (uh...I think...) not to mention my favourite, "irresistible"!
Off to Mali for a quick four day jaunt.
There are no stoplights in Dakar. Why? I don't know. I find it bizarre. There are beaucoup de roundabouts, but they don't necessarily work the way they are supposed to. Often, the police are directing traffic, but with no regulations on emissions (or unenforced regulations), I imagine they'll all have terrible respiratory problems in no time at all. The pollution here is pretty, pretty, pretty bad.
People here almost unfailingly call me either "Kathy" or "Cat-ee". Somehow, these said with a French accent are much more bearable than said with an English accent. No offense meant to the Kathy's and "Cat-ee's" out there; they're just not my thing. When people introduce me, they typically say my entire name in such a way that it sounds like I am the leader of a successful military coup and am addressing my adoring public for the first time: "Now introducing CAT-EE STOCK-TON!!!!" (The crowd goes wild. In my head.)
Unfortunately, as a single female traveler/worker for the most part, it is all too easy to attract unwanted male attention. So far, I have three expressions of love under my belt. Especially unfortunately, two of them come from the young males who live in my guesthouse. This makes my daily life slightly awkward. Though it is nice to receive compliments such as "you are cool; funny; simple; not very hard" (uh...I think...) not to mention my favourite, "irresistible"!
Off to Mali for a quick four day jaunt.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Live-ish Blogging
Continuing the post from hier, j'ai demandé a mon amie 'puis-je manger avec toi aujourd'hui?'. She replied 'I'm fasting', then told me to call extension 7738 when I wanted to eat. I thought she was pointing me in the direction of someone else who would eat with me, mais quand je suis revenue a mon bureau, le extension était pour le 'cafetariat'. Hahahaha. Mon dieu. Luckily, someone else overheard and offered to eat lunch with me at 1:30.
Update: The reason I was told to call the cafeteria is because you have to pre-order your food. Luckily someone pointed this out to me, and I ordered 'salade kubata' et 'C bon'. Huh? Me no know. Turned out the salad was fairly close to salade Nicoise, and the C bon was fish, rice with shrimp and various other sea creatures, and something spicy. It was Senegalese; it was ok. It certainly wasn't as good as injera! I ate with colleagues and we spoke French. When I was busy chewing or not paying attention, they spoke Wolof. Waaw. I now have enough for dinner tonight, as someone was kind enough to lend me their tupperware when I asked Puis-je prendre le riz et poisson emporter?
Update: The reason I was told to call the cafeteria is because you have to pre-order your food. Luckily someone pointed this out to me, and I ordered 'salade kubata' et 'C bon'. Huh? Me no know. Turned out the salad was fairly close to salade Nicoise, and the C bon was fish, rice with shrimp and various other sea creatures, and something spicy. It was Senegalese; it was ok. It certainly wasn't as good as injera! I ate with colleagues and we spoke French. When I was busy chewing or not paying attention, they spoke Wolof. Waaw. I now have enough for dinner tonight, as someone was kind enough to lend me their tupperware when I asked Puis-je prendre le riz et poisson emporter?
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Pathetic
After writing an email to a friend about my lunch experience today, I felt it worthy of sharing with a wider audience.
I am in Dakar, Senegal. (I know, right!?) Je suis arrivée hier. After landing in the morning, I slept for a few hours, then came to the regional office, where I will be working pour les six prochaines semaines. See, Senegal is a French speaking country. My French is not great, though j'essaie de practiquer.
Now, yesterday I was told that lunch typically happens from 1pm - 2:30pm. Alors, aujourd'hui, j'ai attendu pour quelqu'un to come and get me. No one came (tear). So instead of just sucking it up and investigating the café myself, I sat in my office and thought of various ways of saying 'May I eat lunch with you' for tomorrow then looking them up on the internets.
Excusez-moi, puis-je manger mon déjeuner avec toi? (Je suis très pathétique!)
I am in Dakar, Senegal. (I know, right!?) Je suis arrivée hier. After landing in the morning, I slept for a few hours, then came to the regional office, where I will be working pour les six prochaines semaines. See, Senegal is a French speaking country. My French is not great, though j'essaie de practiquer.
Now, yesterday I was told that lunch typically happens from 1pm - 2:30pm. Alors, aujourd'hui, j'ai attendu pour quelqu'un to come and get me. No one came (tear). So instead of just sucking it up and investigating the café myself, I sat in my office and thought of various ways of saying 'May I eat lunch with you' for tomorrow then looking them up on the internets.
Excusez-moi, puis-je manger mon déjeuner avec toi? (Je suis très pathétique!)
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
February Weekends = Gone
My weekends in February are totally booked up. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just odd how that happens sometimes. In fact, it's probably the best month for that to happen since it is my most hated month. First of all, it's pronounced funny. Why is that first "r" there? I can't help but pronounce it, though I think many people probably call it "Feb-u-ary". I wish I could. Second, it's the month where I'm really starting to be done with this whole "Winter" thing. Third, there's the whole Valentine's Day thing, which is no good. I think three reasons is sufficient. What's your most hated month? This blog has really deteriorated - it's like the Sun newspaper of blogging.
Come to think of it...I think all of my weekends are booked until May! More on that later, if you're lucky.
Also - Egypt! WHOA! I said to a friend that I thought watching a potential revolution unfold was very cool. Hearing about people dying and getting beaten is, of course, not cool; but watching a population collectively stand up for what they believe will be a better future is really remarkable. And encouraging. Think we could get away with that here? Can we demand Harper step down after his five years of tyranny? Maybe I'll just write a letter to my MP...
I just visited the Globe and Mail website (you'll be pleased to hear that they got rid of the front and centre "Reader Comments" that I previously posted about) and discovered an article entitled "Hosni goes back to the Mu-Barracks". While part of me definitely groaned, the other part was not-so-secretly very pleased with their little word play. Good work G&M!
Come to think of it...I think all of my weekends are booked until May! More on that later, if you're lucky.
Also - Egypt! WHOA! I said to a friend that I thought watching a potential revolution unfold was very cool. Hearing about people dying and getting beaten is, of course, not cool; but watching a population collectively stand up for what they believe will be a better future is really remarkable. And encouraging. Think we could get away with that here? Can we demand Harper step down after his five years of tyranny? Maybe I'll just write a letter to my MP...
I just visited the Globe and Mail website (you'll be pleased to hear that they got rid of the front and centre "Reader Comments" that I previously posted about) and discovered an article entitled "Hosni goes back to the Mu-Barracks". While part of me definitely groaned, the other part was not-so-secretly very pleased with their little word play. Good work G&M!
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Christmas Days at Work
Today I spent approximately 2 hours actually working. Out of 7.5 hours. That's not bad. Here's how it all went down:
9am to 10:30am - French lesson
10:30am to 12pm - Working hard
12pm to 2:30pm - Christmas lunch
2:30pm to 3pm - Trying to convince people to be part of a Bollywood dance number for our Friday work party
3pm to 3:30pm - Working hard
3:30pm to 5:30pm - Rehearsing the Bollywood dance number
I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited about the dance number. I think it will be pretty, pretty, pretty good.
9am to 10:30am - French lesson
10:30am to 12pm - Working hard
12pm to 2:30pm - Christmas lunch
2:30pm to 3pm - Trying to convince people to be part of a Bollywood dance number for our Friday work party
3pm to 3:30pm - Working hard
3:30pm to 5:30pm - Rehearsing the Bollywood dance number
I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited about the dance number. I think it will be pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Failure, Success and Modern Living
Every now and again I go through mini life crises. Crises really is too strong a word...let's say...reflections. Recently, I have had various occasions to think about success, failure and life direction in general. Life has the potential to be quite stressful in a number of ways, depending on the individual - I think one of my greatest stresses emerges from a lack of clear direction. Other people may find this exciting, and I'm sure I would think it was exciting if I was stuck for the foreseeable future in a routine.
My musings about "what next" revolve around various questions: what's important to me; what kind of skills do I want to gain; where would I like to go; what do I need to get "there" that I don't have; will a chosen path limit my chances of meeting someone; am I sure that what I want is really what I want and not an impression left by friends, family or society; etc. I can provide some answers to some of these questions, but there are still a lot of blanks.
Today, I was directed to a TED talk about personal success that resonated with me, and I think most people would be able to relate to some aspects of it:
The idea of failure is one that has scared me for years. I used to be so afraid of failure, that I wouldn't really try. The rationale being that if you try and fail, you've really failed. If you don't try and fail, you'd probably be successful if you actually tried. Totally logical. I tend to try now, when it counts. In fact, I can easily recall instances recently where I've really failed. As it turns out, it's not that bad, and I have learned quite a bit from the experiences. Sure, it's not a nice feeling, but failing is most definitely a part of life. And it should be. As Alain de Botton says, no one can be perfect at everything.
In the end, my definition of success involves me feeling satisfied and happy both personally and professionally. I can't decide if that's too much to strive for, or completely reasonable. I think it is probably not too much to strive for. The trick will be ensuring that my expectations for myself and others have a limit. I am not reaching for the sky; and we are not all so special, despite what Mr. Rogers may have told us.
My musings about "what next" revolve around various questions: what's important to me; what kind of skills do I want to gain; where would I like to go; what do I need to get "there" that I don't have; will a chosen path limit my chances of meeting someone; am I sure that what I want is really what I want and not an impression left by friends, family or society; etc. I can provide some answers to some of these questions, but there are still a lot of blanks.
Today, I was directed to a TED talk about personal success that resonated with me, and I think most people would be able to relate to some aspects of it:
The idea of failure is one that has scared me for years. I used to be so afraid of failure, that I wouldn't really try. The rationale being that if you try and fail, you've really failed. If you don't try and fail, you'd probably be successful if you actually tried. Totally logical. I tend to try now, when it counts. In fact, I can easily recall instances recently where I've really failed. As it turns out, it's not that bad, and I have learned quite a bit from the experiences. Sure, it's not a nice feeling, but failing is most definitely a part of life. And it should be. As Alain de Botton says, no one can be perfect at everything.
In the end, my definition of success involves me feeling satisfied and happy both personally and professionally. I can't decide if that's too much to strive for, or completely reasonable. I think it is probably not too much to strive for. The trick will be ensuring that my expectations for myself and others have a limit. I am not reaching for the sky; and we are not all so special, despite what Mr. Rogers may have told us.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
The Globe and Mail
Recently, the Globe and Mail changed both their online and print look. The physical newspaper now contains colour on every page. For the website, the Globe decided to shift the immediate content to the left, perhaps to capitalize on the "F-pattern" in which people typically read websites. A few choice articles appear at the top, and then a heading called "Today's Must Reads" with four articles from different sections of the paper. And sometimes, in between these two, are reader comments.
Right there, front and centre: Reader Comments.
I am not keen on this addition to the Globe and Mail online platform. It was mostly ok, until the highlighted comments began to contain spelling and/or grammatical errors, and were signed by the likes of anonymousdoucheyuser345. Granted, some people have legitimate things to say, but I don't want to be face-to-face with them immediately when I visit the site. If I'm interested, I'll read the comments. Don't force feed them to me!
So what did I do? I searched for the "contact us" link and wrote the powers that be a little piece of my mind. I started off quite civil, but the power of the written word took over me and I became an impassioned website critic. I implored them to remove the Reader Comments and asked if a little part of them died whenever they posted a comment with a spelling error to the front page of the site. Can you imagine how newspaper editors must feel if I am this upset about it?
I was rushed in finishing my treatise, as I was late for a game of lunchtime euchre, so I quickly pounded out any remaining thoughts, signed my name and hit send. Ahh. Relief at lashing out against something you know you can't control.
I came back from lunch to a confirmation email from some Globe and Mail bot that my email had been received. I reread the words I had written, when...shock and horror! I found a spelling error. Embarrassment washed over me as I hung my head in shame. I should have taken the time to spell check before I hit send. I feel I have completely forfeited my right to complain. Le sigh. But if anyone else feels inspired to write to the Globe and Mail on their new look, I highly recommend it.
In other news, I feel quite unsettled. Not just about that debacle, but about life in general. I feel like I need some sort of change, but in what category I'm not sure. Maybe I just need a haircut.
Right there, front and centre: Reader Comments.
I am not keen on this addition to the Globe and Mail online platform. It was mostly ok, until the highlighted comments began to contain spelling and/or grammatical errors, and were signed by the likes of anonymousdoucheyuser345. Granted, some people have legitimate things to say, but I don't want to be face-to-face with them immediately when I visit the site. If I'm interested, I'll read the comments. Don't force feed them to me!
So what did I do? I searched for the "contact us" link and wrote the powers that be a little piece of my mind. I started off quite civil, but the power of the written word took over me and I became an impassioned website critic. I implored them to remove the Reader Comments and asked if a little part of them died whenever they posted a comment with a spelling error to the front page of the site. Can you imagine how newspaper editors must feel if I am this upset about it?
I was rushed in finishing my treatise, as I was late for a game of lunchtime euchre, so I quickly pounded out any remaining thoughts, signed my name and hit send. Ahh. Relief at lashing out against something you know you can't control.
I came back from lunch to a confirmation email from some Globe and Mail bot that my email had been received. I reread the words I had written, when...shock and horror! I found a spelling error. Embarrassment washed over me as I hung my head in shame. I should have taken the time to spell check before I hit send. I feel I have completely forfeited my right to complain. Le sigh. But if anyone else feels inspired to write to the Globe and Mail on their new look, I highly recommend it.
In other news, I feel quite unsettled. Not just about that debacle, but about life in general. I feel like I need some sort of change, but in what category I'm not sure. Maybe I just need a haircut.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Holy Laziness Batman!
First: a huge congratulations to Alex and Matt who were recently married. Both looked super fabulous, and Alex's fist pumping on being told she was officially a wife was both hilarious and fabulous.
Second: I have been really lazy with my assignment. The winner of the previous post was actually "Things I want to know about" with 2 face-to-face votes in its favour. I think I've been lazy because the topic is hard to write about, as I think an explanation of why I want to know about these "things" is necessary.
I'll start with one: I want to know about trees. I want to know the Latin names. I want to be able to tell you that my favourite tree is salix alba without having to look it up on the Google. My Dad knows the Latin names of trees from his forestry days and I think it's cool. It would be more cool if we both knew so that when we went for walks I could say "I dare say Father, have you ever seen such magnificent colour on an acer plantanoides as that? I quite think that is the most vivid splash of rutilus that my memory can summon!"
Unrelated: Google Translate added Latin a while ago. Lorem ipsum!
Third: I will be Adam West's Batman this Halloween. I expect only awesomeness to come from this decision.
Second: I have been really lazy with my assignment. The winner of the previous post was actually "Things I want to know about" with 2 face-to-face votes in its favour. I think I've been lazy because the topic is hard to write about, as I think an explanation of why I want to know about these "things" is necessary.
I'll start with one: I want to know about trees. I want to know the Latin names. I want to be able to tell you that my favourite tree is salix alba without having to look it up on the Google. My Dad knows the Latin names of trees from his forestry days and I think it's cool. It would be more cool if we both knew so that when we went for walks I could say "I dare say Father, have you ever seen such magnificent colour on an acer plantanoides as that? I quite think that is the most vivid splash of rutilus that my memory can summon!"
Unrelated: Google Translate added Latin a while ago. Lorem ipsum!
Third: I will be Adam West's Batman this Halloween. I expect only awesomeness to come from this decision.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Help Me!
Hello one faithful reader,
When I began to think about starting a blog, I wondered what I would possibly write about. People seem fairly concerned these days that their blogs be about something. There's the travel blog (probably the most common among my friends); the special interest blog; the look-at-me-I-have-a-family-and-house-and-too-much-time-on-my-hands-so-I'll-photo-blog-my-baby's-first-twenty-years blog...you get the picture (funny right? picture? photo-blog?). Well, clearly mine is not about anything, which is also fairly common. We're the Seinfeld's of the blogging world. Hopefully we don't come to such a disastrous end.
Anywho, as I was saying, in thinking about what to write before SaRtO:aB existed, I made a bullet point list of potential topics. And wouldn't you know it, I haven't actually written about any of them.
This is where I reach out to you, faithful reader, and ask for your guidance. (Maybe I'll even learn that there are more of you out there!) From the list below, please vote for your favourite bullet point. After one week, I will blog about the bullet point with the most votes (or more probably, the bullet point with a vote).
Seacreast out.
When I began to think about starting a blog, I wondered what I would possibly write about. People seem fairly concerned these days that their blogs be about something. There's the travel blog (probably the most common among my friends); the special interest blog; the look-at-me-I-have-a-family-and-house-and-too-much-time-on-my-hands-so-I'll-photo-blog-my-baby's-first-twenty-years blog...you get the picture (funny right? picture? photo-blog?). Well, clearly mine is not about anything, which is also fairly common. We're the Seinfeld's of the blogging world. Hopefully we don't come to such a disastrous end.
Anywho, as I was saying, in thinking about what to write before SaRtO:aB existed, I made a bullet point list of potential topics. And wouldn't you know it, I haven't actually written about any of them.
This is where I reach out to you, faithful reader, and ask for your guidance. (Maybe I'll even learn that there are more of you out there!) From the list below, please vote for your favourite bullet point. After one week, I will blog about the bullet point with the most votes (or more probably, the bullet point with a vote).
- Leaves on trees story
- Things I want to know about
- FB-pics of illicit activity
- Sentimentality
- Wallet Story
- Girlfriend vs. partner (note: I just mis-typed "partner", and instead wrote "panther" - this is a much better word than either girlfriend or partner)
- Air guitar acceptability...why?
- Hallway etiquette
Seacreast out.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Canada: not afraid...anymore
While it is now too late to listen to CBC's This is That (the last show of the summer was this morning), I would like to encourage people to visit their website, and listen religiously if it gets renewed (hopefully!)
I wish I had been listening with a pen and piece of paper, because I don't remember many of the things that had me laughing out loud. Luckily, you can stream past episodes online. The show is made up of about 4 fake news stories per week, with one liners and shorts peppered throughout.
Some of the memorable quotes/stories I recall:
(With the sound of a hand saw in the background) Next week: why adult beavers make such good pets
Canada: 9 out of 10
Canada: you're standing on it
China gets rid of Saturday and adds a second Wednesday
A billionaire has decided to buy the eastern shore (so you can see the sun set) of Hudson's Bay to build a family fun zone since global warming will ensure it's tropical up there soon, maybe even by next year. He doesn't think "Hudson's Bay" evokes family fun zone, so he's going to change the name to Pleasant Park.
Calgary's aquarium has run out of money to keep it going, so it will have to close by the end of the summer. But, to thank everyone who has supported the aquarium through the years, they're going to be holding a big seafood bbq - come one, come all!
This is the opening to This is That:
Canada: North America's third largest nation
Canada: home of Toronto
Canada: member of the internet
Canada: skies and lakes and skies
Canada: the world's richest people
Let's peer into the heart of this great nation: who it is; where it is; where it's going; and how it's getting there; and who's involved; and what's at stake...Canada
Another great aspect of the show is the feedback from the public. Some people don't get that it's a joke...their comments could probably be a show in itself.
This is That was on Saturdays at 1030 and Tuesdays at 1930 (so actually, it's NOT too late!)
I wish I had been listening with a pen and piece of paper, because I don't remember many of the things that had me laughing out loud. Luckily, you can stream past episodes online. The show is made up of about 4 fake news stories per week, with one liners and shorts peppered throughout.
Some of the memorable quotes/stories I recall:
(With the sound of a hand saw in the background) Next week: why adult beavers make such good pets
Canada: 9 out of 10
Canada: you're standing on it
China gets rid of Saturday and adds a second Wednesday
A billionaire has decided to buy the eastern shore (so you can see the sun set) of Hudson's Bay to build a family fun zone since global warming will ensure it's tropical up there soon, maybe even by next year. He doesn't think "Hudson's Bay" evokes family fun zone, so he's going to change the name to Pleasant Park.
Calgary's aquarium has run out of money to keep it going, so it will have to close by the end of the summer. But, to thank everyone who has supported the aquarium through the years, they're going to be holding a big seafood bbq - come one, come all!
This is the opening to This is That:
Canada: North America's third largest nation
Canada: home of Toronto
Canada: member of the internet
Canada: skies and lakes and skies
Canada: the world's richest people
Let's peer into the heart of this great nation: who it is; where it is; where it's going; and how it's getting there; and who's involved; and what's at stake...Canada
Another great aspect of the show is the feedback from the public. Some people don't get that it's a joke...their comments could probably be a show in itself.
This is That was on Saturdays at 1030 and Tuesdays at 1930 (so actually, it's NOT too late!)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Friday, August 13, 2010
Fun with Putin
If you're blue and you don't know where to go to, why don't you go where fashion sits...
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Watch a Gorilla Behaving Badly!
Here.
Question: Why do people hate Russian dolls?
Answer: They're so full of themselves.
This just in! Pictures of the aforementioned dock:
Question: Why do people hate Russian dolls?
Answer: They're so full of themselves.
This just in! Pictures of the aforementioned dock:
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