Where you will find my (documented) thoughts, worries, concerns, and issues
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Entries
Coming into work on a Friday with a hangover is one of the worst feelings. Well, coming in on a Monday is probably worse, now that I think about it. Last night was Critical Mass’ annual Christmas party. This year, we …
When the temperature falls to -21 degrees with the wind chill, and the sky dumps 15 centimetres of snow on the ground, that’s when a young man’s fancy turns to… Revenge. Some months ago, Chris’ and my collective …
There are times when I wonder if I’m slightly psychic. Every time it happens, it gives me the willies. This was one time I sincerely wished I was wrong. Since long before the trip with 6060, I’d had this feeling, …
637,540 pounds of hot iron 100,000 gallons of water 17,760 gallons of fuel oil 3,000 kilometres 566 digital photographs 400 pounds of food 250 litres of gasoline 30 mugs of beer 16 hard-working people 8 days 6 hotels …
Most of you know how hard it is sometimes to catch a train. Sometimes you’re running late, or the train’s early, or your watch stopped and you’re not really sure what time it is — any number of a dozen reasons why you’d …
Well, I had meant to write this earlier this week, but after what happened on Tuesday, I hope you can understand why there’s a delay. Most of you probably don’t know that I went back to Toronto on the weekend. It was a …
Yesterday, someone whacked the biggest kid in the yard in the back of the head with a 2×4. And now he’s very, very angry. Yesterday morning, for me, was of little consequence when I got up. I was tired, mostly due to jet …
Another summer has come and (almost) gone. Luckily, it wasn’t a summer spent indoors, stuck in front of my computer (as much as it might have actually felt like that). Given, I had hoped to get out more to places I …
If there’s one thing Critical Mass knows how to do, it’s getting its employees horribly, horribly drunk. Last year, this was courtesy of the Download Overload in Westbank. However, owing to financial downturns in the …
I have a new girlfriend. She’s a little temperamental, though. She gets hot really fast, she’s always blowing steam, and at the moment has a nasty tendency to run around mostly naked. That, and she weighs 637,540 pounds. …
I knew something was up a few months ago, when Chris told me he was going to Ontario for “a friend’s wedding”. Chris is rarely that vague. More often than not, he’ll include a name, even if it’s someone I …
Once upon a time, you couldn’t go very far out here without running into a railway. Tracks criss-crossed the land like a bad hair weave. If you had to get somewhere, you went by train. There were no highways, except for …
Everyone needs a break from time to time, and Critical Mass was more than willing to give us a little time to breathe. So in addition to the statutory holiday on Monday, they decided to give us Friday off as well. So of …
I need a weekend from my weekend. Every so often, I get involved with a very busy Saturday and Sunday. Not necessarily physically demanding, but no less a drain on one’s energy level. I’m fortunate in that I don’t get …
Although it’s been a very long time since I was a scout, I still try to do good deeds. Last night, nine dedicated CMassers did a good deed. Owing to employee pressure, Critical Mass started doing charity work some months …
Note to self: Never let anyone hold a stag party for me. Stuart, Chris, and I were invited to a stag party for our friend Dory. (Dory is Janine’s fiancée; Janine is one of Therese’s best friends.) Chris opted out, as he …
When I first started work here at Critical Mass, I compared it to Radical, my previous company. I noted how the size was similar, how the age distribution was similar, how the energy was similar. Now I can add one more …
A little over two months ago, Dave “36” Chambers left Calgary for Toronto, where we were opening another office. On Friday, he came back to visit, and it was up to us to remind him why it was (or wasn’t) a …
A lot of people give Calgary a hard time. They call it “Cowtown”. They think that we’re overrun with cowboys and horses. They think everyone has a shotgun rack in their beat-up pickup truck. They think that …
It was once said that the only thing to fear is fear itself. Fear is the oppressor of souls and nations. It is the beginnings of hatred and suffering. And it’s what has kept me away from Vancouver. Fear of my past. Fear …
Someone’s out to get me, I swear. Unfortunately, that someone is probably me. This has got to have been one of the most hectic weekends I can remember. Here’s the general gist of some of the things that were going on: A …
Blepharospasm (n.): The repetitive contraction of eyelid muscles in a rhythmic fashion. In some instances, the eyelid may repeatedly close or attempt to close. The most common causes of muscle twitching in the eyelid …
Who’d ever have thought that I would one day become the centre of attention? Okay, be invited to come near the centre of attention… Alright! Be allowed to look towards the centre of attention from a far away, but …
Tonight, I saw my first hockey game in about 20 years. When you’re able to count the last time you did something in decades, you know you’re getting old. The last time I saw a hockey game, I was about seven years old …
Not since Kathryn returned to Toronto have I had some time off. I’ve been a busy little beaver, cutting down on the amount of work that’s been heaped on me in the past few weeks and months. So it goes without saying that …
Life is abdunant with difficult experiences. Some come from education, some from your job, some from a close relationship with a potential life partner. But there are few experiences that are as hard as saying goodbye to …
One year and one day ago, I did the hardest thing I’d ever done in my life: I said goodbye to Vancouver, to Radical Entertainment, and my friends. I then started a new life. Last year, I spent a month living in a city …
It’s amazing how old friends can make you feel young. A week and four days ago, Kathryn, one of our closest friends, came out to visit us (Chris, Stuart, Therese, and myself). The five of us all went to OTHS, and though …
Different company. Different industry. Same problems. The age of people staying with companies for decades is an idea I think my generation (and those succeeding) will have a hard time grasping. With the hi-tech sector …
On Wednesday, I came home to something different. Chris and I have a new roommate. Now I knew about this, so it wasn’t surprise. Nevertheless, it is taking a bit getting used to. She’s fairly short, a little overweight, …
It’s been one of those years. I really hope I don’t have to go through another one like that again. Clichéd though it be, it was a year for rediscovery — mostly of myself. I lost my self-identity in Vancouver, allowing …