rethinking

enjoy the vacation... I wish you all a happy non denominational holiday and perhaps an oasis of sorts.

is your brain well furnished?

There was a trip to the mall today to possibly retrieve some presents... I had 2 in mind, and I knew exactly where to find them and everything, but of course there was nothing. I also had no patience to browse because there were people everywhere and they were getting in my way like crazy.

The camera was with me and I was going to capture some sort of epic moment or a beautiful thing, but then I was reminded what a crappy town R-Hill really is. I was astounded by how ugly it is, especially when covered in snow. I think my favourite thing about the hill is when you go up the hill (damn straight, we actually have a hill) and stand in the library parking lot (yeah, that's the reward at the top of the hill) and on a clear day you can see Toronto and the CN Tower is just there.

That's also why there is no photograph accompanying this posting... I also thought I'd give you a break.

freedom and winter trees

For some reason I thought I had some rants together for a post, but alas I didn't.
What else can I offer to post? That's a good question. I haven't read anything that is particularly worth passing on.

Neil Young - Love is a rose.

Ok right now it is T-2 hours from final exam.. or so. I can't wait to get this over with...bye bye syntax.

I also cannot wait to leave what has become the wretched hell hole of London..because everyone is gone and the people that are left live a bus ride or a long walk away.

Hopefully within the next week I'll have something nice and long and terrible to read. Some editor conversations need to be had and finished. And then none of you will want to talk to me after.

Who wants to come save me? c'mooon. I know you do. I don't really hate being alone, it's not that at all, it's that I've been in solitary confinement since Saturday pretty much, there was someone else here but we were both locked away studying. I want to have a full conversation with someone...and it's been a ridiculous last few days which I don't want to get into, but the words, "damn I can't believe that happened" come to mind and just a crap load of pure frustration.
Milkshake anyone?

draw me a picture of what you see

"Your desk is a random assortment of items"
"yeah there's a lot of shit on my table"

"I'm an orphan, my parents died in a car wreck, let's cuddle"

some of the many terrible things you just might here around here.

I wrote one exam already and I had an assignment for that class handed back to me with a thumbs up, here is what part of it looked like.
































(ok I didn't collect the data, I just annotated the map, that's the south-west quarter of France circa 1900)
I nailed that assignment, you have no idea, it's even on the fridge. It didn't matter that I messed up a good part of that exam, that assignment made my day.

Less school, more messed up song lists. This is my "calm the fuck down" list, as of right now, because I need it.
1. Jason Collett - Blue Sky
2. Willy Mason - It's a hard hand to hold
3. The Virgins - Fight to Survive
4. Colin Meloy - Everyday is like Sunday
5. Thanksgiving - Young
6. Wilco - Can't Stand It
7. The Eames Era - Could be Anything
8. Songs: Ohia - Coxcomb
9. The Sounds - Seven days a week
10. Porcupine Tree - Piano Lessons
11. Brighteyes - Land locked blues
12. Dandy Warhols - We used to be friends

That's all I got for now, if you'd like any of these, you know where to find me or if you have something for me to add.

the school issue

The following is an excerpt from some notes of mine, now I understand why I never learn anything:

-"l'occitant for beginners sera en français, there is no particular variety that can be taught parce qu'il y a des variétés rurales..."
Other reasons:
- I thought of another reason that I don't learn anything and I can't remember... it might be that I don't learn well by reading or that if there is a computer in front of me I am probably reading some ultra nerd article.
-Focusing comes in 10 minute bursts.
-In the past, people have been convinced that I have ADHD or dyslexia - I do get bored while writing exams

Stay in school kids and study hard because then one day you might be able to send your family emails that you arrived safely in San Francisco for some reason on someone else's dime. I say this having just received an email confirming a safe return from San Francisco and be too busy to email back explaining why you were there in the first place.

I am being forced to come to terms with the fact that I don't procrastinate. I do in that I dick around when I have homework to do and I just do my homework half-assed, but I always get things done. I plan for the procrastination, which apparently means I don't procrastinate... my roommate was getting aggrevated and quoted me as saying "oh man.... I don't know how I'm ever going to get this done, it needs to be in in three days." Point taken.

Ultimately, I think it comes down to the fact that I wake up early and get in that work before anyone else is up.

The only link I have for you today is wear truth.

This is my shelf that's out in the livingroom...G drew on it and A coloured it in.


(I don't know why I didn't take it head on...you get the idea)
There is a statement involved... what do you think it is?

This is me studying or doing an assignment or something. There is a spaceman hiding under the table.

Sleepers awoken from dreams of fury

The other day, I went to hand in two assignments (one was at least 3 days early!) and ran into a lot of people. I ran into an old high school friend of mine, who proceeded to tease me for not having exams - because apparently even though I did about the same, if not better than this person in high school in science and math courses, I'm suddenly dumb and not taking real courses now. That really pissed me off. I am not only learning things, I am learning them in a foreign language and I don't rub that in people's faces, unless push comes to shove.

I just looked over at this touristy calendar from Germany someone sent me, and it's in three languages, German and English (this seems obvious) and Chinese, though some of it appears to be in Japanese...oookay. Raise your hand if you're surprised..that's what I thought.
(it is confirmed that it is in fact in Japanese and Chinese, and the days actually say things along the lines of "fire day" and "day day")

WATCH THIS. If this won't make you smile, then I don't know what will.

These two photos are rather old, but I got nothing new to show.

sorry it's too bright

Classes are done for the semester. Supa.

I'm happy about taking off from here after exams, but home isn't where I want to be, though I don't know where I want to go however. I think I will scrap the plans to go to Chicago and another random city during reading week since a week in Chicago would be ridiculous and there isn't another city in the area and apparently the rest of the US within driving distance sucks. Instead, I think I will take that week to go to Vancouver, unless the other trip picks up momentum, in which case, Vancouver will be another weekend. This also depends on brother. That was so confusing.

I found a program for the future: "In the field of French language and linguistics, major areas of concentration include theoretical and applied linguistics through the following fields in particular: contrastive studies, sociolinguistics; lexicology; terminology, translation; semantics; pragmatics, text linguistics; computer assisted language learning and second language acquisition."
That would be amazing.

I feel like I need throw in something intellectual. So umm... After reading a bunch of French books, I've noticed something strange, the table of contents is in the back, followed by the index, etc. That wasn't intellectual at all, I apologize. In my search for intellect, I found the contrary, here is something to anger anyone, this and also here. I know that, I have a bias, but this makes it sounds like there was a country there before...But it is a lot more complicated than that. It makes me sick that people like this exist, let alone that this man runs a country.


Import socks. Festive.



As for the rest of life, things are better now, clearer and under control.

Sleepy Eyes make for great visions

This weekend was spent being secretly bummed out. Shh.. don't tell anyone. One highlight though included a surprise bottle of Fanta, if you've never had this and you're in the neighbourhood, come by and have some. It's super awesome. Also, I finally saw Eulogy. Not an amazingly spectacular movie, but funny.

There is this assignment I have and I chose to do an inner monologue of a girl. Her story is a sub-story in this other story and she has a pretty winding life and I don't know how to judge her. It's good venting because the more of it I write, the more I can relate to her. Is this turning into my own monologue? This (English / German) is the story by the way.

The people next door or downstairs or upstairs are really lucky I don't know where they are... otherwise they would have gotten a sock shoved in their mouth by now. Or two. No one needs to cheer indoors, I don't care. Maybe if you're a cheerleader, I guess, however they are not. They are howling and yelling at all times of the day and listening to obscenely loud things all the time to the point where my mattress vibrates accordingly.

Judging by the ranting of this, I am still pretty bummed and very borderline pissed. Not even the smiley soup is cheering up. I'm not sure what is going on, well I am quite sure about exactly what is going on. Though there are plans for the future now. Things have peaked my interest, but grades must go up or at least not down. Maybe with goal in mind, this can be done.

There has been a lot of talk, here is a picture of Friday morning, it continued to snow after this.

epiclys nerdis

You look like kind of like a vulcan.
That's not cool.
You just need that spiffy outfit.
Aren't vulcans are naked?
What?
Birds don't wear clothes.
What?
Birds..a vulcan is a bird.
I think you mean vulture.
Oh..what's a vulcan?
A species on Star Trek...damn we're nerds.

That was a lovely introduction...and leads to beat poetry. This guy kicks ass and here is his beat poetry. I like this about him. (thanks Inna &co.)

I changed this to my desktop wallpaper and gosh darnit, it cheered me right up.

red pomegranate stained fingers

My last post was pretty crappy and I'm sorry. I was trying to think what else I could offer you. After I did the following, I slept a lot.

(by the way, this is a terrible idea, because whenever you eat them, you get sharpie all over your hands)

I have been watching a lot of random shows as of lately, which I don't enjoy because I don't watch tv really and I don't want to start.

Today I stuck around school for an extra two hours because I had a mandatory conference with a prof and I didn't feel like trekking through the cold again. I managed to hold my own in the conversation, which I was pretty happy about because I suck at German. Though, I was thoroughly annoyed when all the commentary that I got from him was the equivalent, "good, let's go over some of your sentences and correct them together." Then he said something I didn't understand, which turned out to be word order, the worst part of German grammar, in my opinion, worse than adjectival endings, but none of you know anything about that, now do you? I know waaaaaaaay too much about grammar for my own good. Anyway, that conference thing was a waste of time, which I really didn't expect it to be because the professor is a rather amazing one and maybe a little nuts if he thinks I do good work.

Well I'll leave you with that. Enjoy.

Concerto magnifico

Take 10:39 of you day and experience this

cease production now...this is who we are now.

I see faces

There has been no posting for a while not because there was nothing going on, but because there was too much going on. Things just might be ok now.

red stained fingers. pomegranets.

Here is some documentation of a massive pillow fight.
stills
video

What else to share... I went home for the weekend and I feel like I have visited Barcelona thanks to the folks. I now also have a strong desire to learn Ladino. After 500 years of it being maintained outside of Spain, my parents' generation is the last that will speak it. I think I should do my part. I mean ancient Spanish could be useful.
I was going to share something more meaningful, but I realised that I would be vague and it would be useless and frustrating to write about something personal so vaguely.

someone else's today

days turn into weeks

Today is my parents' 26th wedding anniversary. It's crazy to think that they have been married longer than they have been single and they still like each other after everything they've gone through - like picking up and leaving and going to a country in another continent where they barely spoke the language. Anyway, here is a photo of them bracing their first real winter and looking ridiculous while at it, this is the only picture I had around that was "proper" (i.e. no bunny ears or inappropriate use of eggs and a cucumber by my dad).

















In an entirely unrelated note: Here is a video I made. The face on the egg was entirely an accident, I swear, but at least it came out funny.

How was everyone's weekend? Mine was not too shabby. I almost went to see Arcadia - a play that is on campus right now but freaked out when I found out it was 3 hours long. I went out instead.

I think the super high light of the weekend was when I walked, walked! into a propane tank and knocked it over. My knee is just a lovely shade of pink and puffy now. I also walked into a stack of chairs (or a series of chairs, I can't remember) late last week, with the same knee, actually.

That's all I got for today.

thorny ways go far

Since there were two comments about this... Yes you can eat cactus (or mostly any plant for that matter). The best example of this is the peyote cactus which produces mescaline, a nice hallucinogenic drug, made famous in "The Doors of Perception" (where the Doors got their name) by Aldous Huxley (who also wrote "Brave New World"). I, of course, as an innocent 4 year old, did not eat this cactus because I'm sure my parents would not have planted that outside. I just ate some sort of leafy cactus.

round 2 has begun.

I hope everyone had a fun Halloween... I didn't do anything except get soaked in the rain. I got an email from my darling brother which mostly said that:
"My friend Lachlan and I explored the mother-son relationship of children born by cesarean section during roman times. We did this for Halloween."
Those were by the far the creepiest photographs I have ever seen... though seeing someone jump rope over an umbilical cord is kind of funny. I suppose if you want to see them, I can forward them to you.

Super nintendo has been rediscovered, well it was never really discovered by me because we never had anything like that before, but it is filling up a lot of our time.

No pictures this time.. I think you've had enough.

Picture this

A few days ago we played pictionary. It's a damn good thing I have a chalkboard in my room, so we all gathered round and played. Here is the photo evidence.



Jerry Springer








Christopher Walken








Road Trip


Jungle Fever

My roommate then redrew a postcard on there and now I can't ever erase my chalkboard.

Sunshine, it's cold out.

New amazing singer. His name is Adrian Orange and his band is Thanksgiving. I've only heard one song but I'm sold. The one song I've heard can be found here (just keep scrolling til you find it, "ageism").

This afternoon I sneaked off to the mall to go pick up some SLR photos I had taken since summer. It was quite the hassle to get to the mall, and I would like to say that almost getting run over by a car reversing on to me and waiting for the crowded bus was worth it, but the photos weren't spectacular. In fact, based on these, I think I might be slanted. Here are some of them.

This one is from summer, when I went up to a friend's cottage and we climbed a tower.

Attempting to: be artistic / finish the roll of film.

see above.

they looked so sad.

This is the cactus I got for my birthday. I got it because of this photo:

The story behind this is the only time I was ever seen sitting on those rocks outside the house was when I was caught eating the cactus back there. Now this wasn't taken in frosty Canada, but rather where cactus can prosper outdoors all year round (i.e. where I was born) so there was evidently enough cactus there for me to be seen there more than once. Maybe that's where my herbivourous habits come from.

So to make up for all those slanted photos.

When I got home, the locks had been changed. A pleasant surprise.

In other news, I have added links on the side bar there on your right.
Also, email vs. letter vs. bird behaviour research - here.

Amazing graffiti art.

recounting what happens when...

Person: Franz Ferdinand is on SNL tonight.
Me: nice.
Person: yeah I'm excited, I've never heard/seen him before.
Me: it's a band...
Person: oh..
Me: Franz Ferdinand was assassinated and that began WWI
Person: huh.

This was a half rowdy weekend and some injuries were sustained, mainly by me, of course. Some liquor just goes down way too easy. I didn't get very much reading done, well not news anyway, but I did manage to get quite a bit of leisure reading, which I got mocked for because it's a "nerd book." Pff..Some people don't know fun when they see it. I'm probably one of those people.
I also managed to do something I can't do while sober: send a text message. It was sent to a friend of mine because I realised at midnight Friday night that I had forgotten her birthday the day before...the thing is, she lives in Switzerland and I have no idea in what language I sent the message.

On the news this morning I learned very little about the happenings of the world. Bloggers are apparently allowed to run wild on CNN (this is the only almost suitable news channel available, because CTV makes things like "Celine wants another baby" a headline).

Here is a postcard I recently received. My friend is going to be studying near there.






I think this is the castle which was the basis for Cinderella's castle... I also think Ludwig was the guy who built all the ridiculous castles around Europe - including Versailles near Paris... I could be quite wrong about that one.

Also, my roommate told me that I would really enjoy mail art. I probably would.

daft punk played at my house, my house

Today, I walked past the front door into the living room and the mat in front of the door slid towards me and stopped at my feet.

Apparently I have been so out of touch that my roommates miss me. This is strange to me.

Phthong is a word.

I just got a crap load of photos printed because there is some sort of promotion going on where they are super cheap.

I miss sitting on the back porch with a pot full of green tea and reading. I wish we had a back porch out here, or any porch for that matter. Anyone want to get me a covered porch so I can sit on it and read?

Here are 6 things you have probably never thought of.

For some reason, I have had this perpetual feeling of invasion.

A Wonderful Day in the Neighbourhood

I have almost entirely evacuated my room for studying out in the living room on the wonderful brown corduroy couch. There are piles of books and papers and dictionaries surrounding my chair. My roommate sits opposed to me with just a laptop, a few sheets and a pen. I feel so inefficient.

Three different tests are taking place this week. I'm excited, are you? Anyway, enough rant about the arbitrary life I lead... you want to hear some good things. or interesting things. or nothing at all.

Pretty Things are a very nice 60s guitar band. But no one has offered me any good music yet. I am bored with my music.

This is an interesting article. Here is my favourite exerpt.
"On the island where the tiny human remains were found, researchers have also found evidence of giant rats and little elephants. "

I watched a documentary about uncovered skulls on the Discovery Channel. There was an abnormal skull, with eyes close together and a large head. They were confused as to what species it was (i.e. Human or a predecessor) because it is dated to have been alive at the time humans were around. The head was of a 5 or 6 year old child. The scientist said that they didn't think it was alien, which seems like a rather obvious conclusion to me, and not even an option for a scientist. However, the scientist went on to say that they were contemplating the idea that the skull could perhaps be a hybrid of a human with an alien. I was then really doubting the quality of documentaries that the Discovery channel airs. In case you were wondering, they were shaped skulls.

"Media flocked to the trial like perverts to a Britney Spears fan site" - a&e guy.

There was a lot of tv watching a few days ago. I apolgoize for all the references.

If I put all my poems together, I'd sound like Beck

I'm not an artist in any shape, size or form, but I pretend to be. And because of the recent holidays, I was inspired to make a rabbi out of Lego.


















Roommate J was inspired to make me out of Lego. There are three things wrong (well two depending on opinion) with the figure Can you spot them? Maybe you will win a prize.

Here is some life information that you may or may not want to hear (my guess is that it's the latter):

Roommate J also had this crazy idea about buying the good TP, and it was a marvelous idea. Though it was no classy TP like this one.

I flipped through old (2-3 years old) magazines recently and saw advertisements for bands and albums that I recently discovered and love.

Tea is still the greatest thing that has ever been. Coffee is included in that.

I am lacking good new music. The random stuff that made it onto my water buffalo (my mp3 player) is not as good as I'd hope it'd be. I need to get the audio books in there. Someone please send me some music.

I began a new hobby which I don't think will last.

Take care of yourselves, all of you.

UPDATE: somehow I missed showing you all this wonderful contraption.

Review

Anyone who knows me, knows that I procrastinate like hell (isn’t that where this blog came from?) but I also manage to get things done miraculously. Right now there are about four different things that need to get done for various times of the day, but here are some thoughts from the weekend spent at home:

- The car smelled like guavas, a scent I hadn’t experienced in over a year and even then it was from a canned juice.
- On the bus, it was like we were old friends and I don’t even know her name, but I did promise her that I would write and post about the ridiculous voyage we had and the term “self-googler” that was coined along the way
- We bonded over vintage t-shirts and how now the only worth of an anti-drug t-shirt campaign is sarcasm
- Wanting to photographically capture the feeling of an afternoon spent happily with family
- Discussions left unresolved, life questions we could no answer, mainly because they were only clear in our heads, I remembered why I hate that he lives on the other side of the country – those moments where we related our entire lives and how they were together an dhow they were apart
- Finding that stationary is the hardest instrument to find. Postcards as well. Envelopes to hold these things too
- A haphazard good-bye

The weekend was very enjoyable over all, but involved no Thanksgiving dinner spiel, my family doesn’t do that. I did however find out that the rest of my family is going on a wonderful little trip to the old country in April for my uncle’s birthday/holidays, but I don’t get to go because it is exactly when I have exams. There have been promises of a make-up trip for me, though I don’t think I’m ready to go back yet (having been there somewhat recently).

After my return, my room looks even more like a wasteland, I should put away some books because clearly, none of them are being read.

In other news, get me one of these.

Longer than I meant it to be

So I came across this article and thought I'd share. I thought a book was literally thrown at people, but it is just about this book. This incident reminds me of what happened about six months ago when I was walking home from my first exam. I agreed to answer questions for a survey for a book, which began with questions about evolution versus creationism (he actually did not write down that I believe in evolution) which ended up being about my religious beliefs and beliefs about an after life, etc. It was a pretty interesting debate until in the heat of the argument the survey-guy yelled out "I just want you to accept Jesus into your life" (or something similar) to which I lost it. At least my yelling at him for that comment discouraged others from answering their questions. I was absolutely appalled not only that in 2005 someone would be standing on the corner trying to convert me to his beliefs, but also that in 2005 someone could be so ignorant about other worldly religions and speak about them as though he had mastered their teachings. He had every right to ask me those questions and debate with me, just no right to tell me what to believe. Clearly, that whole event still bothers me for so many reasons, but I shall stop here.

Book thrown at proponents of Intelligent Design
13:01 06 October 2005
NewScientist.com news service
Celeste Biever

"Devastating" early drafts of a controversial book recommended as reading at a US high school reveal how the word “creationism” had been later swapped for “intelligent design”, a landmark US trial scrutinising the teaching of ID heard on Wednesday.
The early drafts of the book Of Pandas and People, was used as evidence to link the book to creationism, which it is illegal to teach in US schools.
“ID proponents have said for years that they are not creationists,” says Nick Matzke of the National Center for Science Education in Oakland, California, which is advising 11 parents who are suing the school board of Dover High School in Pennsylvania for incorporating ID into the science curriculum. “This proves beyond a doubt that this is simply a new name for creationism.”
ID proposes that life is so complex that it cannot have emerged without the guidance of an intelligent designer. The schoolÂ’s board voted in November 2004 to encourage students to consider ID as an alternative to evolution and recommended Of Pandas and People.
The parents claim this is a veiled attempt to bring creationism into the school. They are suing on the grounds that it has been ruled unconstitutional to teach anything in US schools that does not have a primarily secular motive and effect on pupils.
Trojan horse
The early versions of the book were displayed to the court by expert witness for the plaintiffs and creationist historian Barbara Forrest of the Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond. She suggested that they were strong proof that ID is indeed creationism by another name.
Forrest compared early drafts of Of Pandas and People to a later 1987 copy, and showed how in several instances the word “creationism” had been replaced by “intelligent design”, and “creationist” simply replaced by “intelligent design proponent”.
“Forrest’s testimony showed that ID is not a scientific theory, but a Trojan horse for creationism,” said Eric Rothshild of Pepper Hamilton in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, an attorney for the plaintiffs.
Evolving drafts
Matzke, who was at the trial, points out that the “switching” of the words is also suspicious because of its timing, which came just after the US Supreme Court’s decision on 19 June 1987 that it was unconstitutional to teach creationism in schools.
The names of the drafts alone are incriminating, he says. The first draft, in 1983, was called Creation Biology, the next is Biology and Creation, dated 1986, and is followed by Biology and Origin in 1987. It is not until later in 1987 that Of Pandas and People emerges.
His comments infuriated John West, of the Discovery Institute, a think tank based in Seattle, Washington, that supports ID, but which has declined to testify on behalf of the defence in the trial.
West says that Forrest, author of a book called Creationism’s Trojan Horse: The wedge of intelligent design has used the drafts selectively and “cherry picked” the pages shown.
Attempts to discredit Forrest as a witness, by the defence lawyers from the Thomas More Law Center, in Ann Arbor, Michigan were not upheld by the judge.
Misconstrued creationism
West says that Of Pandas and People, while supporting ID, does not promote religion but rather leaves open the question of whether an intelligent designer lies within nature, or outside it. But he admits that the book states: "This is not a question that science can answer."
He says that while the timing of the changes in the drafts may not be a coincidence, this does not mean Of Pandas and People is a religious book. “If they did drop out the term creationism, [it is] because people may have misconstrued it,” he says.
Forrest will continue to be cross-examined by the defence's attorneys on Thursday. A full report on the trial at its completion will appear on NewScientist.com and New Scientist print edition.

No Comment

Write off the cuff
In the not-too-distant future when you see someone impatiently tapping their sleeve while waiting for a flight , they might in fact be writing a letter of complaint to the airline company.
German electronics company Infineon Technologies reckons the main reason wearable computers have yet to take off is that there is no simple way to use a keyboard for text entry. The solution, according to Infineon, is to fit a keyboard into a jacket during manufacture.
The garment can be woven from ordinary cloth. The arm of the jacket is then interlaced with a criss-cross of thin insulated wires, with the insulation etched away at spots corresponding to the keys of a keyboard layout. When a low voltage is fed through the wires, touching the pads bridges the wires underneath, turning the sleeve into a keyboard.
To protect the keyboard from wear-and-tear and washing, the overall area is sealed with insulating polymer. The woven wires would be connected directly to the rest of the electronics, which would either be embedded in the lining of the coat or carried somewhere on the body.

Boys with broken bicycles make me sad

The other day we made our way to WalMart because Henrietta the morbid egg cooker was doing a half-assed job. We took Stewie the irresponsible, day dreaming roommate and managed to pick up Cat, the dilly-dallying, fun having friend on the side of the road. After about 25 minutes, we managed to lose both of them. Stewie was found by the cosmetics wandering around aimlessly. I circled the store several times, passing by insane amounts of people who seemed perplexed as to why I was in such a rush, with no success. We told Stewie to stay put by some sort of pastry by the front doors and split up to find Cat, who had apparently been wandering around looking for us. I hate WalMart and its low, low prices.

This weekend has been filled with wasting time and no work. That makes it very similar to every other week in the past, I suppose.

There has been much talk about writing the last few days, both stories and poems (and music, but I have nothing to say about that). It makes me want to write...But I'm not a very good writer and I am also not particularly original, which does not make for very good writing. Someone convinced me to post something I did write, I wrote it over about a week in the summer during free time at work. It needs serious editing, but here it is. You might notice its resemblance to another text, upon which it is based. Formatting has been fixed (Thanks for posting it IR). And remember that I admitted that I'm a terrible writer and such, so I'm not going to be held accountable for this.

Photo History

Once upon a time I began to scan all the family photos, I had a good 500+ scanned. Then I got a call while I was away on vacation that my computer had a minor malfunction, but it would be okay. When I returned home, I was informed that the C: drive actually melted. I was slightly upset. It is now over two years later and I have begun this project again, here are some results.

I worked very hard to create these thumbnails...so click on them to see the full photo. (I did this so you wouldn't be bombarded with massive photos).



Here is my great grandmother, she was from Jablonetz, Czech (it might have been Germany at the time). I googled the name of the photographer, but lucky for me all the results were in Czech, good thing I can't read Czech.



Here is a photo of my dad when he was probably about 15 or 16 at someone's wedding.



This is my dad's dad, this photo is from the 70s I assume. This is what he alwas looked like to me.



These are both my grandparents. I was named after my grandmother.



I think this is where my grandmother worked, she is the woman in the middle in the white dress. She was a hair dresser in Bulgaria, though I have memories of her doing the neighbourhood women's hair.



This is that same grandmother as a child.



My grandpa was in a brass band. He's in the second row, third from the left.



My mom dressed up as a Gypsy for a holiday that is somewhat similar to Hallowe'en (except this is a much longer history, I believe).



My favourite polaroid ever. My brother is the kid in the middle, the other two are my cousins.

you are my sister

(the link works now, click 'link' to download)
I got an email today which contained this mp3 and past due birthday wishes. It almost brought a tear to my eye.

You are my sister, we were born
So innocent, so full of need
There were times we were friends but times I was so cruel
Each night I'd ask for you to watch me as I sleep
I was so afraid of the night
You seemed to move through the places that I feared
You lived inside my world so softly
Protected only by the kindness of your nature
You are my sister
And I love you
May all of your dreams come true
We felt so differently then
So similar over the years
The way we laugh the way we experience pain
So many memories
But theres nothing left to gain from remembering
Faces and worlds that no one else will ever know
You are my sister
And I love you
May all of your dreams come true
I want this for you
They're gonna come true (gonna come true)

recovery

I am home for the weekend and I'm sick. I hate having colds, especially when there are impending essays that require deep thought (I hope someone got that reference) or the ability to write an essay that is actually rather easy.

A lot of scary things have been happening lately, I wonder if anyone else has noticed this. I feel like maybe these scary things were always happening and I just know about more of them now. Hmm.

I still can't really think right now...my head just hurts and I don't feel like writing der Essay.

Let's all pretend that this was a good post and maybe it will come true.

Substitution

I got new fish...two. Names are still debated, they are red platty fish, they are a red-orange colour with black on the ends of their fins and on their face in a goatee fashion. One looks like an old man. I was thinking Sharky for one. Any suggestions?

Gig posters has some really neat posters. There are cool Shins and Decemberists posters, among others. Also a really nice print of Jason Lee.

My posting has been rather crappy lately and I apologize. My time has been occupied with procrastination and random bursts of reading and work, also with thoughts, which I currently do not feel the urge to share, maybe later.

And so ends today's entry. I hope you weren't terribly bored.

it is now later, I have a thought to share, it is more of a question. If you are in a relationship of any sort, be it romantic, academic, plutonic, etc. would you rather be the more intelligent or the less intelligent of the two? I mean overall and not in a bad way - perhaps the other person has more education and is older, has more life experience, etc. (whatever the case may be). Would you rather feel 'superior' or 'inferior' (I use those terms quite loosely) but rather be challenged by concepts and ideas that you never thought about or don't have knowledge of in the least? I agree that this is a weird question, but it comes out of a discussion I recently had with someone and just wondering if there is any general consensus on things.

joker

there is a price to pay. watch this.

Special Mention

So there has been lack of good posting and I hope that the following makes up for it.

Ok go. (Thanks Cat)

...

There is nothing new to report. I am currently without all my links for various reasons, mainly a missing CD.

Things are well.

Sunny Day

This weekend was my first cottage experience and it was fun. My roommate and I ventured our way up to her cottage where there was major partying going on. In the end there wasn't anything particularly wild that occurred except a lot of drinking and reminiscing in which we did not partake. The weather was pretty good, except for one evening where it rained like mad...We still sat outside under a tarp. The highlight was probably people shooting off pink and green roman candles into the water. Pitch black and reflections. It was quite beautiful. I wish something could have capture that more permanently.

We read a lot. We wandered into town. There were visits to shady yard sales. I saw the greatest table ever at a reasonable price I could not afford.

Here are some photos.

Great Television

I'm not going to lie, I am impressed by this.

picasso brother sister

The Dispossessed

I don't usually post political things, but this is somewhere in between and a little bit personal. I'm sure most people are somewhat aware about what has been going on way off there in the middle east. In my opinion, which is not that substantiated (i.e. I'm not a poli sci major) everything would be fine if politicians didn't get involved. The people of both sides are just regular people and get along just fine until extremists (on both ends) and politicians (also, on both ends) are the most heard voices.

from here

The Dispossessed

By ELIE WIESEL
Published: August 21, 2005

IN 1991, when Saddam Hussein's Scud missiles fell in a deafening din on Tel Aviv, some Palestinians danced in the streets and on the roofs of their houses. I saw them. I was in Jerusalem, and I could see what was happening in the Arab quarter of the Old City. It happened again later, each time a suicide terrorist set off a bomb on a bus or in a restaurant. I evoke these scenes with sadness, and for a reason: we have just seen them repeated in Gaza.

Forum: Op-Ed Contributors
The images of the evacuation itself are heart-rending. Some of them are unbearable. Angry men, crying women. Children, led away on foot or in the arms of soldiers who are sobbing themselves.

Let's not forget: these men and women lived in Gaza for 38 years. Successive governments, from the left and the right, encouraged them to settle there. In the eyes of their families, they were pioneers, whose idealism was to be celebrated.

And here they are, obliged to uproot themselves, to take their holy and precious belongings, their memories and their prayers, their dreams and their dead, to go off in search of a bed to sleep in, a table to eat on, a new home, a future among strangers.

From far away, we watch them on television screens and in the pages of newspapers. Some have behaved in an offensive and undignified manner. They insulted and wounded soldiers; they spat on officers - including some who are decorated heroes, all of them ready to give their lives for their country. But the majority have responded in a dignified way: with tears. As though united in the same despair, soldiers and evacuees cried together, even to such an extent that certain commentators have reproached them, saying: our warriors of yesterday and tomorrow shouldn't give way to easy emotion.

On a strictly military level, the operation is a success. For that, and for his brave decision to pursue future peace even at present political cost, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon deserves praise. But starting now, Israelis and Palestinians must face the question: What next?

And here I am obliged to take a step back. In the tradition I claim, the Jew is ordered by King Solomon "not to rejoice when the enemy falls." I don't know whether the Koran suggests the same.

I know only that in my opinion, what is missing from the chapter now closing is a collective gesture that ought to be made, but that hasn't been made, by the Palestinians.

Let's imagine it, if you will. Let's imagine that, faced with the tears and suffering of the evacuees, the Palestinians had chosen to silence their joy and their pride, rather than to organize military parades with masked fighters, machine guns in hand, shooting in the air as though celebrating a great battlefield victory. Yes, imagine that President Mahmoud Abbas and his colleagues, in advising their followers, extolled moderation, restraint, respect and a little understanding for the Jews who felt themselves struck by an unhappy fate. They would have won general admiration.

I will perhaps be told that when the Palestinians cried at the loss of their homes, few Israelis were moved. That's possible. But how many Israelis rejoiced?

And now, where are we? A lull is imperative. The tears must be allowed to dry and the wounds to heal. Haste, in this delicate moment, is dangerous. Any pressure from outside risks being counterproductive.

Why these words of warning? Because last May, at an official dinner offered by King Abdullah II of Jordan, I spoke with the Palestinian prime minister, Ahmed Qurei. When I asked him what he thought of Mr. Sharon's courageous decision regarding Gaza, it was with a wave of the hand that he objected, adding with disdain: "All that is worth nothing, means nothing. If Sharon doesn't begin right away to negotiate definitive borders, a great catastrophe will be the result." He repeated those words: "right away" and "a great catastrophe."

The optimist in me wants very much to believe that those were just words. Gaza, after all, is but one chapter in a book that must ultimately be about peace.

no sleep-o

There was very little work done this week. On Tuesday two friends from out of town finally made their way out here. I was really glad to see them both, one I hadn't seen in four years and the other in two. Since the former had never been out here, there was some major sight seeing to be done. I also realised how much my French sucks, I can't speak for beans, though I can't really in English either.

We did the usual CN Tower, etc. in the city.
The following day we headed to Niagara which was fun. We also paid $15 for hamburgers and saw people who were attached to slot machines. So Niagara was also slightly depressing.
As per always, here is the photo documentation for the events.


Power station




The drive home was smooth until we hit the city again. It was fantastic to see the lightening and hear the thunder. The rain was incredible. There was immense flooding. We have photos.




This is interesting. Thanks O. Apparently this whole Lego art thing is catching on. I might become a modern art fan.