BMO locked me out AGAIN
GAH! I already hate BMO’s online security. Now I hate it more, if it is in fact possible to hate something more than “totally”. I just wanted to into my account. Nothing serious. But the password they made me …
2007th
2007s
Entries
201 items
RIP Netscape
Back when I started with Critical Mass in 2000, the browser wars were still hotly contested but it was already clear that Netscape was losing. Standards were slowly (finally) creeping into the mix, and Netscape was on …
Father Christmas
A bit of a realisation hit me today: this is the fifth Christmas since my father passed away. Five years of listening to Christmas at King’s College‘s version of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing and God Rest Ye Merry …
Christmas in Calgary 2007
Another Christmas has come and is now waning. It’s been a long, but good day. Our child isn’t old enough yet to truly understand Christmas (although the morning nap appeared to be aborted due to the desire to be around …
A little housecleaning
Those of you reading my RSS feeds have probably noticed a wad of older articles and photo pages showing up lately. Not really a lot of new stuff. No, my blog ain’t broken — I’m just tidying up a bit. Over the last year, …
A full night's sleep
Since our family expanded by one, I’ve yet to have a full night’s sleep. In the first few weeks, it was both of us up at various points to feed and/or change diapers. As the weeks became months (we’re at roughly 3.5 …
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Calgary Winter Weather
Posted by mobile phone: I’m sort of working from home today (taking care of my family is more accurate). We had to drive down to the south end of town to Alex’s doctor. If you live in Calgary, you know what that means …
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The Dirty Jobs Drinking Game
Everyone thinks their job sucks. It can be for any number of reasons. But there’s one guy out there who looks for the dirty jobs. The ones that no-one really wants to do, but does anyway. The ones where if the job wasn’t …
Damn Good Manager
I love skipping through my hits every now and then. Not so much for ego (though there is no question that ego is an element of the desire), but also out of plain ol’ curiousity — how are people finding all the crap I …
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My baby's back!
Over the last week-and-a-bit, I’ve been without my family. Alex and the wee one were out in BC visiting with family. Me? On self-imposed exile in the basement to try and wrap up as much of the renovations as possible. …
Drywall ain't light
After work tonight, I zipped down to the Home Depot to get more building supplies. Namely, sheetrock. I’m almost ready to start putting the stuff up (I might even start tonight, if I can get all the insulation in place), …
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Laminate flooring sucks
I state this now: I will never use laminate flooring again. Ever. I don’t care how inexpensive and near-indestructable it is — the stuff simply is not well-designed and is far too cumbersome for one person to install …
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We have a travel-safe baby
I’ve had the luxury of travelling many places of the last few years. Of those times, I’ve been on more than a few planes that were exhibit to babies that did not travel well. And by not travelling well, I mean they …
West LRT Line in Calgary approved
It’s official — I’m going to be able to ride the C-Train to work in four years. Sounds like a long time away, but the reality is that this is going to make my life a lot better. Back when I used to live in Sunnyside, I …
Canada's history is wasted on its youth
The CBC published a news article about how Canada’s youth scores a measly 18% on a Canadian history quiz. Everyone is aghast at the marks — are we truly that bad at our own history? Of course we are. Because we haven’t …
Calgary is big enough for better transit
As I’ve said before, I’m no expert. I haven’t been everywhere or done everything. But one thing I have done is paid attention to public transit systems, especially the ones I’ve had to deal with on a daily basis. Such as …
Bank of Montreal, I hate your security
Oh. My. Lord. I haven’t been this pissed off in a very, very long time. I actually yelled at the poor person on the phone trying to help me. It’s not her fault. It’s the Bank of Montreal. Who obviously has NO FUCKING …
Been around the block a few times
It kind of came to me this morning, as I sat on the #2 heading down 17th Avenue. I’ve been on the internet for over 15 years. Rapidly approaching half my life online. I’m that old fart you see sitting in the corner, …
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Colbert no longer for President
Okay, yes, everyone’s heard about Stephen Colbert‘s run for the presidency. Those of you who watch his show regularly (sadly, I do not; though Alex is becoming a massive fan) know what Colbert is like. Perhaps not the …
I Was Benno
Yesterday, I had a truly moving experience. I watched a movie. Not just any movie, but an experimental film created by a friend. A movie with a message (unlike much of the shlock that comes out of Hollywood). The message …
Pwned
This morning, the Blue Business Unit (aka the Mercedes-Benz USA team) decided to prank the Gold Business Unit (aka the Rolex team). Toilet paper — hundreds of rolls — over everything. Silly string. Blue streamers. And …
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Examples of Online Shopping Experience
This was originally posted at http://experiencematters.criticalmass.com. The site is no longer active. We’ve been talking a lot about ideas. But ideas don’t always translate well without examples. Thankfully, the …
Poor performing US President = strong Canadian dollar?
Oh, I’m gonna get in some hot water for this one… So the other day, I heard a comment that the Loonie was the highest it’s been since the early 1970s. About the time Tricky Dicky was in the Oval Office. That made …
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Time moves more slowly at an agency
Everyone comments on time moving so fast. The older you get, the faster it goes. Now that I have a child, everyone tells me that before I know it, they’ll be graduating high school and I won’t know what hit me. Right …
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Improving Calgary Transit in the city core
I’ve gone back to taking the bus. While biking to work is (believe it or not) faster than taking the bus, I’m not too fond of the idea of biking down the side of the hill (switchback or not) in the dark, where I know …
Is Microsoft's Popfly an easy out?
This was originally posted at http://experiencematters.criticalmass.com. The site is no longer active. Microsoft was a little late to the internet game, that much isn’t new. In 1993, Bill Gates said “we’re not …
The heating system is complete
It’s taken a bit longer to get this one sorted out than I would have liked, but the house is finally completely heated — upstairs and down — and with all the sensors needed to make sure it’s comfortable. Added bonus: we …
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I hate Microsoft Word
[Warning: Objectionable language within.] I can’t really think of much more frustrating than to find out that two days — 16 hours of hard thinking — has suddenly vanished before your eyes. Not because someone stole your …
Will Microsoft ever admit that Vista was a bad idea?
It takes a big person to admit that they’ve made a mistake. Companies, regardless of how large they become, were reticent until recent years to come clean with their blunders. Microsoft ain’t one of them. They still …
Six weeks with a baby
They say that the first six weeks are the toughest. If you can make it through the six weeks without bodily harm to anyone, and still able to smile, then you’ll be able to make it another couple of decades. …
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RIP Miss Moneypenny
Lois Maxwell, the actress who first played original long-suffering admirer of super spy James Bond, passed away yesterday at 80. In my world, this is pretty significant news. But then, I am a movie geek. And like many …
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Framing is complete!
Well… the walls are all in place, the doorways are in place, the bracing for the bulkhead is in place, and even some of the wiring has already been run. So far, we’re off to a (mostly) rousing start. But there’s …
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Remembering my circuits classes the hard way
Okay, first off: Roger and Ed. I didn’t take Engineering, so this wasn’t pounded in my head. So go easy on me, okay? I spend the weekend working as much as I could in the basement, trying to make some more headway given …
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Expensive floors are a problem
There’s two ways to install a floor: the cheap way and the expensive way. This isn’t about right and wrong — though important, for once this hasn’t been the sole guiding factor. And when the difference between them is …
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Could Google do evil?
My coworker Martin sent around a link to an article that paints Google as being a great big source of evil, tantamount to being the core of a near-police state. To say that it’s a little alarmist is putting it mildly. I …
Apple doesn't hate Canada ... Rogers, Bell, and Telus do
Those of us who’ve paid not only close attention to the rollout of the much-anticipated Apple iPhone but also to the Canadian mobile market don’t find this surprising. But we’re in the minority. A significantly larger …
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A really bad joke
I would never consider myself a funny person. I have my moments, but most of the time I’m not what you would call funny. I work with funny people, who have comedic timing, which I’m very thankful for. But I’ve never been …
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The iPhone is obsolete
This was originally posted at http://experiencematters.criticalmass.com/2007/09/13/the-iphone-is-obsolete/. The site is no longer active. Unless you’ve been living in the middle of Mongolia for the last six months, you …
Experience Matters
We’ve been in the interactive marketing industry now for over 11 years. We’ve been there, we’ve done that, we’ve seen … well, maybe not all of it, but we’ve seen a lot. A lot of it is not great (ranges from okay …
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We have heat!
Just as the first sub-zero forecast appears on our horizon, we have some heat to keep us from freezing. It’s taken a while longer than we planned, but thankfully it’s now up and running. The house is warm again (and not …
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10 Years Ago
Do you remember where you were 10 years ago? Today is the tragic anniversary of Princess Diana’s death. As I write this, services have already been conducted in England. I was reminded of where I was 10 years ago, and …
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How much has my world changed?
Once you have a kid, your life is supposed to end. You’re supposed to become one of the living dead due to sleep deprivation. You don’t see friends anymore. You can’t go anywhere. You now hold a fragile china cup that …
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My first diaper
We’re at home now. It was a blissfully short stay at the hospital for Alex and baby, and now we’re adjusting to the new family life. Except for Asia. She’s not really digging this loud pink thing that’s stealing her …
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Alex is a rockstar!
Today started off like an ordinary day. I got up, showered, went to work, had breakfast, and prepared to go through the motions of an ordinary day. Then I got a text message from Alex. Her water had broken. We were at …
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It's a girl!
The as-of-yet unnamed Baby Sowrey entered this world at 18:24, weighing in at a hefty 9lbs. Both mom and baby are healthy and well (if a bit tired) and resting. Dad, on the other hand, is a bit of a nervous wreck… …
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Water has broken!
Stay tuned, folks! The world’s about to change. 🙂 Update: we’re at the hospital, but we might be sent home until things pick up a bit. But no matter what, baby’s coming in 18 hours, so says the doctor. Update (14:30 …
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It's...
10 points if you actually understand this post.
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I'm on crack
Well, it’s happened. I am now officially on crack. Crackberry, that is… Yes, I’ve bought a Blackberry. A model 8830 to be specific. Alex is calling it my delayed father’s day present. I can live with that. No, …
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iPhones take a long time to charge
Something else I’ve noticed about the iPhone — it takes a long time to charge. Or at least, the one I have in my possessive trust certainly does. For the record, I’m comparing this to my cell phone, an LG 6070. Perhaps …
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We have (new) electricity
And the wonders of renovations continue. As you are aware, we’re getting a new electrical service. The panel moved, the meter moved outside, and the wires into the house are being moved to the roof. Yesterday (yes, I’m a …
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T minus 14 days and counting
Two weeks, today. That’s the due date. It can’t come soon enough for Alex. I think I’m finally getting scared. Before I was excited. Now I’m actually worried. Dunno why, I just am.
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It's...
A treatise on It’s/Its from my alma mater.
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Why does my dryer not get hot?
Okay, this is actually more of a rhetorical question. I now know the answer to the question, thanks to a call to my handy electrician, Mark. My biggest worry was that I’d made a mistake with high-amperage wiring. Turns …
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Pictures from my new lens
On the weekend, I spun by a very busy The Camera Store to pick up my new lens, a Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM. This is the standard prime used for virtually every camera for the last 60 years or so. Even the digitals picked …
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It's...
A trick. Get an axe.
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New appliances and a pruned tree
It’s amazing now much work you can get done once you’ve got a floor to stand on! Even if it’s a little on the unfinished side. Where to start? Well, first there’s the electrical. Enmax is supposed to be here tomorrow or …
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It's...
A lobster!
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Renovation update
Today was a day of considerable progress, especially since I wasn’t actually doing any of it. But progress in any form is appreciated, since it means I can continue moving forward with changes and getting things back to …
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The concrete is in!
FINALLY! This was a process far more painful than it really needed to be. But if nothing else, it really just illustrates the difficulty in getting things done in Calgary as of late. There were a few too many challenges …
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And so the concrete begins ... I hope
Imagine my delight at the arrival of a Bobcat out in front of the house, with a guy dressed like he’s been pouring concrete. Which, oddly enough, he has. It seems that, like with many companies in Alberta as of late, …
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Still no floor
I’m pissed. Way beyond pissed. I’m about ready to kidnap the schmuck at the concrete vendor who keeps screwing me over, handcuff him to the sewer pipes in the basement, and tell the concrete vendor if they want him back …
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Car seats for smaller cars, please!
Yesterday, Alex picked up our new car seat. It’s a Britax Marathon, designed to grow with the child as it grows. A smart idea. And because it’s a permanent seat (as opposed to a removable seat), we think there’s a bit …
A Tale of Spam
I could classify this as “rants”, but I’m not actually feeling the urge to rant. In fact, I’m more feeling the urge to laugh heartily at spam. Namely its ineffectiveness. Yes, I’m sure that there are people …
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T-30 days and counting
It’s officially less than a month until the wee one arrives. That’s assuming, of course, that El Bebe arrives on the due date (29 August, updated from the doctor). The odds are about 6% that it’ll happen. We’re already …
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I have an iPhone ... sort of
Friday was a slow day at Critical Mass, being the “day after” the Town Hall. These sorts of Fridays are often plagued with low productivity, lots of bleary eyes and headaches, lots of greasy food, and more …
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More delays in the basement
About two and a half weeks ago, the heating pipes went in. The theory that we’ve been holding to all along is that the pipes would go in mere days before concrete would permanently seal them in place. This was done to …
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Critical Mass Summer Event 2007, Day 3
There are parties, and there are parties. Then there’s a Critical Mass party. There’s usually a recovery period afterwards, too. This party started with the ever-popular Town Hall. We’ve done a variety of versions of …
iPhone Torture
Neil just showed me his iPhone. He’s from Chicago, so it’s fully functional. (We’ll have some in the office shortly, but no voice service.) It’s soooooooooo nice. The videos you see on Apple.com don’t lie — that’s what …
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Critical Mass Summer Event 2007, Day 2
It’s Town Hall week (but you already know that), and that means another installment of BeerCamp. We don’t do these nearly as frequently as we should, but they’re always a welcome addition to our regular cycle of meetings …
Critical Mass Summer Event 2007, Day 1
It’s that time of the year again — the annual Critical Mass Summer Event. Unlike last year’s events, this year we’ve had to take a slightly different approach. Frankly, we’ve officially become too big to ship everyone …
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Caught in the Google Dance
There are times when your very existence is effectively controlled by someone else. And when that someone else pays you no attention, you start to feel very neglected. Such is my case with Google. But for the record, I’m …
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Family reunion in Ruskin
Allen organised a family reunion, mostly for the local folks. The family is scattered far and wide, but it’s not easy for everyone to come out. I think Alex and I came from the furthest distance away. Flying wasn’t easy. …
Raining in Ruskin
We flew out from Calgary this morning to Abbotsford, to attend Alex’s family reunion (hosted by Allen at the family “farm”). I haven’t been here since sometime last year, and I’m struggling to remember …
The Internet is down
I so love The Onion.
Quack
This definitely falls into “WTF” territory. Tim found this and had us all saying basically the same thing: What the heck? A giant yellow rubber duck in France.
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Problems at Calgary Farmers Market?
We’ve been going to the Calgary Farmers Market for a very long time now. Not quite since it opened, but I think not long afterwards. When we lived in Garrison Woods, it was a weekend ritual (it was a five-minute walk …
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Hunting dragonflies
It’s hot in Calgary. Hit 33.5 degrees on the Mini’s thermometer. That’s pretty darn warm for Cowtown. And for some reason, it brings out the dragonflies. I found them buzzing around one of the bushes next to the front …
Some new electrical
Part of the renovations include some changes to the electrical system. As you’ve probably already read, I’ve torn out large chunks of the wiring in the basement. I had to — it was quite the mess. The electrical panel …
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Movie and Music Piracy in Canada all wrong?
If you’ve been reading this site for any length of time, you’ve probably come across a rant or two of mine about all the garbage surrounding things like DRM and the MPAA saying stupid things. Recently, Canada passed …
Heating pipes are approved
Well, good news. The heating pipes are now ready. At least the inspectors says so. The heat is a long way from being done, but a least a bit of it is good to go. The inspector left the papers behind, including a note …
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The piping is in
Canyon works quickly! I got a call from them yesterday saying they were getting started with the heat piping, and would take 1-2 days to get it all in. I came home last night, and it was all in. Almost. Okay, so things …
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Renovation catchup, with pictures!
Okay, yes, I’ve been busy. And I’ve been far too lax with all the photographs thus far. Thankfully, Alex has been very good at filling in the blanks. So, from the top, here’s what we’ve got so far… We started with …
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The basement is ready for heating
Today, Canyon starts the process of installing the heating pipes for the floor. (With luck, it’s also the day our electrician starts moving the service and installing the new box.) We’re one step closer to having a …
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Pancake coma setting in
One of the great things about the Calgary Stampede is all the pancake breakfasts (a Calgary tradition) that go on during the Greatest Outdoor Show On Earth. One of the worst things is when you eat too much. I think I …
Great Canadian Video Game Contest
In a previous life, I worked for Radical Entertainment, maker of video games. Very fun company, very fun job. Well, when I wasn’t writing technical documents, which is about the most boring job I think I’ve ever done. …
Up at the cottage
Over the weekend, I had the chance to go stay with my sister and brother-in-law’s cottage near Huntsville, ON. It’s been a long time since I was last there, and it was good to see my family one last time before it …
A Middle Ontario wedding
My friend Kathryn got married this weekend. A truly wonderful event that forced my hand to leave the comfort of my familiar Cowtown (and miss the opening of the Calgary Stampede) to visit rural Ontario and experience the …
More than meets the eye
Tonight, we went to see the Transformers movie. I got three words for you: Giant. Robot. Mayhem. I grew up with Transformers. I had the toys. I watched the cartoon. I saw the (first) movie. I even dabbled with the later …
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Some assembly required
And a whole lotta frustration! Tonight, I put together another section of framing. A four-foot section. In two hours. Doesn’t seem like a lot, does it? Nor should it — other much longer sections went together a lot …
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What is inside a 50 year-old furnace?
Ever asked yourself what’s inside a 50 year-old furnace? Yeah, me neither. And yet, the answer to this very question was provided to me as I continued with the renovations in the basement. Namely, taking the 50 year-old …
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Chasing CPR Empress 2816 from Calgary to Canmore
Every time that I’ve chased CP 2816, it’s been eastbound. Never before have I had the chance to actually do a westbound chase. Today, I finally got that chance. I almost didn’t. A small crisis at work broke out, and I …
Canada Day 2007
It’s not every day you get to celebrate someone’s 140th birthday, and they’re pretty happy about the whole affair. I got to spend it what I’ve done for several years now, helping out with the Rocky Mountain Rail Society …
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The new K2 ain't much better...
To add to my existing woes, I thought I might be “smart” and update to the new K2 to try and fix some of the issues that the new WordPress brought down upon me. At least the annoying bug with the WordPress …
WordPress 2.2.1 broke my site!
Nurtz. This doesn’t happen often, and until now hasn’t happened at all. But the most recent upgrade of WordPress has officially broken my site. My biggest problem is that I’m using the K2 package, which doesn’t work …
Back to renovations after almost a week of clients
On Monday, I managed to slap together the first of the framing for the outer walls. That was also the first day of client meetings, and we had a lot of material to cover. Yesterday was the last day of meetings, so I did …
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Another case of really bad customer service
You’ve heard me rant about both Calgary Transit and Air Canada. They have their cases of really missing the ball on serving their audience. As much as I complain about them, they’ve got nothing on this case of just …
Plates in, first framing up
So last night I was in quite the rush to get home and get back to working in the basement. I’m trying to make the most use of time possible to try and get everything into place before the floor heating pipes are laid — …
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Basement floorplan, version 3
Here’s what’s different: Office and mechanical rooms swapped (this was done because the boiler can’t vent up a chimney — too low-temperature, so the condensation from the exhaust would completely rust the thing out; on …
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Finally we get to rebuilding
I’ve finally managed to add something to the basement rather than just take it away. (That’s adding something myself, I should add — the plumbers have already beaten me to the punch of adding something.) But first I had …
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The building supplies arrive
On Saturday, I scooted around doing a number of errands. One of them was ordering in the materials I need to frame and insulate the basement. Part of this is in preparation for the heated floor, part of this is to …
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Funniest. Commercial. Ever.
Well, at least this year. If you’ve ever worked in an office, you’ll enjoy this. Bud Light Swear Jar.
The plumbing begins in the basement
When I got home yesterday, we had a brand-new visitor at the house: a giant yellow refuse bin from Rubbish Express. This is to haul away all the leftovers pulled from the basement in the process of preparing it for …
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Yoshirolla Kilomantra mayhem
Okay, I know, I’m probably doing something I said I wouldn’t be doing. But I have to admit, this is already pretty cool. When I put out my first post a couple of days ago, I shot to the top of a list of one for …
Clearing out the basement
The first contractors arrive tomorrow, so we’ve been in a push to get the basement ready for them. So far, we’ve managed to remove all the inner walls, lights (except two in the ceiling), carpet, some of the floor tiles, …
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My favourite cooking show
Some years ago, and I honestly don’t know how many now, I started watching cooking shows. I’d like to think that, largely, they’re the reason (sometimes to blame) for my cooking ability. Yes, Virginia, you can learn …
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Yoshirolla Kilomantra
We’re running a contest here at Critical Mass, to see who can rank the highest for our chosen keywords: Yoshirolla kilomantra. Since I’m a judge, I’m not going to compete heavily. I’m just going to set a bar that I …
Now I really want a Mac
Damn you, Apple! You’re making me want to upgrade my system, and that’s just incompatible with my bank account! Especially when I still want to get a Rolex. I just finished scooting through the new Apple.com design …
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Dim sum with the newlyweds
There was a wedding over the weekend. But we didn’t go to it. Disappointed, but admittedly it wasn’t within our direct social circle, so I can complain in any way. So first, congratulations to both Geoff and Deanna. And …
Sod laying party
I’ve been to a variety of parties over the years, spanning many themes and genres. But I have to admit, I’ve never been to a sod-laying party before. I gotta say, it wasn’t half bad. Kyla, Alex’s friend and co-worker, …
Why Prince Harry should be king
There are just some downright strange things that you can come across in the news sometimes. Like this, for example: Prince Harry visits Calgary cowboy bar I nearly fell off my chair when I read that. I mean, come on, …
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Mozart on roller skates
Some of you might have already seen the Audi commercial. Pretty neat. Even neater, when it comes right down to it, is the guy who thought of this in the first place. (I’m not certain, but I think he’s also in the Audi …
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How interactive marketing fails because of technical architecture
Interactive marketing is a branch of advertising that aims to involve people directly in marketing materials, providing an avenue for engagement that’s just not possible with print, radio, or television advertisements. …
Flying the Zip Line at Canada Olympic Park
Team building is one of the important things you have to do when you have a group of significant size. Especially when they’re of different specializations and tend not to intermingle regularly. That is what brought us …
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Creative writing challenge
Last night seemed to be one filled with sequels to previous dreams I’d had. Very odd. In one of them though, I was in an English class being taught by John Houseman. (Don’t ask, most of my dreams make no sense at all.) …
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When home renovations go bad!
Not every renovation goes exactly as planned. Sometimes, you have the little curveballs that make an otherwise simple fix into a veritable nightmare. I hit one of those last night. I spent most of the weekend cleaning up …
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eBay buys StumbleUpon
I know I’m posting a lot of these acquisition notices lately, but it’s not for want of traffic. This is for honest curiousity. Actually, it leans much more towards the “WTF” end of the pendulum swing. …
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Google sucks up Panoramio
Google has bought Panoramio. I have to admit that this doesn’t come as a huge surprise — this is something that Google really needed in their world. For those of you unfamiliar with Panoramio, I strongly recommend you …
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Google in 20 years
A little morning humour for you all. This had me chuckling heartily for a couple of minutes. Google in 20 years. (Warning: Some objectionable language, but when you’ve lost your keys, I’m sure you’ve said the same …
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Where does he find these wonderful sites?
Andre’s got good stuff again. I’d love to know where he finds this. First up, something called The Vader Project, a reimagining of Vader’s helmet. I love the rusty riveted-iron version. Then there’s Pacman’s skeleton. …
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Add another to the trilogy list
It’s not every year that you see two great trilogies come to live. Heck, it’s three so far! Today, thanks to my friend Robyn, we saw the Shrek trilogy come to life. I have to say, while it might not be as good as the …
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Pirating Star Wars
(Oh, I’m just dying to see what links to this article because of that title!) No, this is not about copying the Star Wars movies. So if that’s what you’re looking for, please look elsewhere. This is about two great …
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A wake for Rich
Tonight was the wake for Rich. It was a chance for those who knew him to get together and remember the life he led, to share in his memory, and spend one last time collectively in his presence. How do you say goodbye to …
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Fare thee well, Rich
A few months ago, friend and colleague Rich contracted large cell lymphoma, a rather nasty form of cancer. There was a massive upwelling of support from the company and its staff (especially those of us who knew Rich …
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Getting closer to fatherhood
Until about three weeks ago, the only way I knew Alex was pregnant was a slowly growing belly and her insistence that the baby was, in fact, using her internal organs as its sparring partners. The problem with human …
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DRM's new name - Digital Consumer Enablement
To paraphrase Shakespeare: Would a pile of crap by any other name smell just as bad? Apparently, the head of HBO doesn’t think so. He wants to rename DRM so people think of it in a nicer light. There’s only problem with …
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The easiest move ever
So my friend Adrian finally bought a place of his own. Impressive, given what he had been looking at only a few months ago. And he chose well, too. It’s not a bad place at all, and if he treats it well, should appreciate …
Critical Mass does Spiderman
One of the biggest movies of this year will likely be Spiderman 3. Obviously, that’s hard to know for sure, but we’ll know by December. Anyhoo, the Critical Mass Social Club is now in full swing, and one of the first …
Breakpoints patented?
I’m really beginning to hate to have to revisit US Patent Law. Especially for something this stupid. Seiko Epson has applied and won a patent for, of all things, breakpoints. Yes, breakpoints. For those of you who have …
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Keebler posted this on his site, and I think I shall do the same in support against the DCMA. (You know how much I just love the DCMA, RIAA, and MPAA’s attempts to completely control all media and tell everyone that they …
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Up a notch in ranking
I freely admit that I don’t have a lot of truly useful information in this site. While I do get a considerable number of hits for how to throw a surprise party, steam locomotive 2816, movie piracy (and Calgary movie …
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Refreshing legalese
I hate legalese. It’s far too complicated for the average person, and frankly, I think far too complicated even for the people who are supposed to be completely on top of it. Figures that a technology firm would race to …
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Renovations, Part 1 - Demolition
It is said that it is easier to destroy than it is to create. However, it is not said that it is also more fun. I wonder why? This morning, we started the first part of our house renovation: tearing apart the crap that’s …
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Riding the Trans Siberian in luxury
Not quite two years ago, I had the pleasure of riding trains from St. Petersburg, Russia all the way to Hong Kong. Quite the experience, let me tell you. One part of it was riding the Trans Siberian Railway from Moscow …
The patent process is now officially broken
I’ve ranted about this topic before. I’m loathe to see that nothing’s changed, and it’s only getting worse. Back in the old days, a patent meant something. It meant you’d spent time, money, and a lot of effort to …
Take the Web Design Survey!
A List Apart, one of my fav industry mags (even if it is only on the web) has put together a pretty neat little survey, to try and figure out what our goofy little industry looks like. And to hopefully garner a bit more …
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Basement floor plan, first draft
A few measurements, pencil, copy of Visio (on the company laptop, admittedly), tape measure, and a lot of time and patience leads to something moderately useful. We’ve got a first draft at a floor plan. For the basement, …
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Gearing up for renovations
We’re almost completely moved into the house, and while it’s still cluttered, we’re already looking to renovating the basement. We have to renovate, really. The basement isn’t set up for what Alex and I need. We want …
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Using captcha instead of usernames and passwords
So in all the mayhem that is/was the first three months of the year, we apparently completely missed news about the Web 2.0 Expo. Well, either that or we completely dismissed it based on the name alone. Either way, it …
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Is Blinkx Remote the end of TV?
The big networks are panicking about their content appearing on YouTube and Google Video. Lawsuits abound. But the content keeps coming. The effect of all this content is interesting — users are actually dropping their …
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Beware of XHTML
This one is the current industry buzz. Basically, a slam against XHTML and a suggestion to return to HTML 4.01 in lieu of using XHTML 1.0 (or 1.1). You know I can’t let this go without a comment … or three. 😉 …
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Bon Voyage Jim and Mia
I remember when Jim and Mia started with Critical Mass. Mia was an import, from our sister/spin-off company Large Medium in Stockholm, Sweden. Back then we were doing exchanges with Large Medium as a form of …
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Updates to the Rolex Website
Almost since we launched the new Rolex.com website back at the end January, we’ve been working on more updates. First off are four additional languages with which to learn all there is about Rolex: Spanish, Japanese, …
Pictures from Hawaii
Well, I haven’t had a chance to finish with the blog entries yet (editing is such sweet fun), but I do at least have the gallery of photos from our last Hawaii trip up for viewing. The full list will appear in the …
Houses sold and moved
I hurt. A lot. Yesterday, with the exceptional help of good friends, we moved into our “new” house. This after a major screw-up with U-Haul (they neglected to tell us when the truck was actually available) …
Timeshare Sales, Beach Day and Royal Kona Luau
Alex wanted a beach day. And beach day we had. Well, once we sat through a rather lengthy time share sales pitch, anyway. That was part of the deal from the activity purchase. USD$100 off the total price if we sat …
Aloha from Hawaii
Yeah, I know — why am I on a computer if I’m on vacation? Relax, I have good reason. Our house is now effectively sold, and for whatever reason we’ve been unable to fax properly from Hawaii back to Calgary. Very odd, …
Down in South Kona
Ah, there’s nothing like waking up on a sunny day. Even better, there’s nothing like clean underwear. After a hearty breakfast, we made an effort to do two things: Book a dinner cruise (they’re usually fun) Book a luau …
I got my bag back!
We slept last night with the sliding door to the balcony open (with the screen door closed) and the air conditioning off. A bit humid, but wow, does one feel better with fresh air in your lungs. I honestly don’t think …
How not to start a vacation
Oy. This vacation is not off to a good start. One of the conditions of this vacation was that we were to incur no red-eye flights (in other words, no sleeping on the plane). That meant getting there and back was going to …
Ugh. Moving again.
As you’ve already heard, we’ve bought another house. It’s actually smaller than our current house, but should allow for a little more flexibility, and easier for us to content with the arrival of our firstborn in a few …
Askimet - The best WordPress plugin ever!
How much do I have to give praise to Askimet? This little plugin has allowed me to go back to using WordPress without the fear of my database being choked up with a million spam comments. Back when I was using WordPress …
Go Rich, Go!
About a week ago, I learned that one of my colleagues, Rich, had been diagnosed with large-cell lymphoma. That’s a tough thing to hear about a friend of yours, someone you’ve worked with for years and know quite well. I …
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Au revoir, Aaron
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I hate it when good people leave. Aaron Glenn started with Critical Mass a couple of years ago. (Admittedly, I can’t remember exactly when he started — that’s how long he’s …
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Critical Mass CMMYs 2007
Hangovers will rule far and wide this morning across three cities. I suspect we might not see most of Toronto online today. Last night was the first-ever Tri-City CMMY Post Awards Bash. Or something like that. In the …
Take Steve Ballmer ... Please!
So trolling through my daily RSS feeds, I came across not one, but two news articles that further make me wonder how the hell Steve Ballmer got to be the head of Microsoft, and why no-one has bothered to take this guy …
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Number Portability in Canada
It’s only taken, like, forever for Canada to finally bring this little piece of heaven to its consumers: the ability to take one’s assigned phone number from one carrier to another. Mind you, it’s really only for …
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Losing another friend
Jim’s quitting. I just found out tonight. I’ve suspected for a couple of weeks, though. It started when Jim sent me an IM asking for an offsite lunch. Just him and myself. That was my warning bell. The reason was because …
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Imagini VisualDNA
[Ed. note: The links in this article no longer work, as Imagini apparently no longer exists, despite being a neat idea. I’m leaving the article, however, as record, even with the broken links.] One of my …
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Buying another house
It’s official — we have a new house. Well, not a new house, but a different house than the one we’re currently in, hence new to us. Why a new house?, you may ask. The honest reality is that we can’t stay in this one much …
Be Afraid. Very Afraid.
It’s a whole new world, folks.
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Inspirational Star Trek
As you might recall from earlier posts, I’m a reformed Trekkie. That means I not only understand Trekkie jokes, but I can also appreciate them without getting offended. In particular, the Star Trek Inspirational Posters. …
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Apparently I've been lying all this time...
So I’m taking a moment for a break at lunch to read my favourite article, The Globe and Mail’s Social Studies page. I read the following: U.S. researchers are developing “truth detection” software, to see if …
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What is that irritating whine?
A word to the RIAA: SHUT UP! Who the hell do these people think they are? Why are they telling me what I can do with the material that I’ve legally paid for? Why should I do anything more than punch the first RIAA rep I …
Pictures return to Sowrey.Org
It’s been a long time since a photograph has been seen here. It’s not for a lack of wanting. As of right now, I’ve got 3,606 pictures in my library, covering a huge range of subjects and topics. (988 of those are for …
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79th Annual Academy Awards
It’s time for my only annual awards show. The Oscars. The Big One. The only thing I’m willing to stay up for until it’s over. Been this way since … well, heck, since I was an early teen, I think. Aside from CTV’s …
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iTunes experience is better than Windows Media
I have two iPods. One I purchased (a Nano) and one I received as a gift. The music on my iPods comes from a rather large (700+) CD collection and iTunes. I do not download (anymore). I find that the experience using …
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Seeing my child for the first time
Alex had to go in for another ultrasound today to complete the nuchal translucency test. Despite all the fires going on at the office from my time away, I simply couldn’t stay away. The ultrasound tech took us into a …
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Flying Cows
I hate Air Canada. Yes, I’m complaining again. It’s their seats. It’s ridiculous. Never get pinned in the row in front of the wing exit row. It’s narrower than the rest (I’m certain of this). I got stuck behind Grandpa …
RedDot Product Roadmap at Summit 2007
Darren G. and Michael T. doing the presentation. Core values: leadership (excellent choice of word) in ease-of-use. Web-centric technology. Long-standing customer satisfaction. Differentiators: seamless management of …
Gala Banquet at Summit 2007
After the last batch of sessions this afternoon, we broke up for about two hours to wait for the gala event. Apparently, this is the big event of the Summit conference. Bad things tend to happen. (Jim, think of any given …
Content Object Modelling at Summit 2007
Seth Miller of Miller Systems. A highly recommended presentation. Young guy. Definitely a tinkerer gone pro. Miller Systems is a UX-centric web dev firm. Been around 12 years. RedDot partner since 2002. Several …
Solve the Challenges of Social Computing with RedDot at Summit 2007
Just spent an hour talking with the presenter (Darren Guarnaccia) about RedDot software and partnership avenues. Anyhoo, on with the good stuff… “This stuff is a little bit forward thinking.” It’s …
Complementing and Enhancing Search Engine Optmization (SEO) Using RedDot CMS at Summit 2007
Presented by Shannon Ryan of Non-Linear Creations. We know a lot about SEO, so we’re gonna be picky. A couple of slides on Non-Linear’s business models. But emphasis on Digital Marketing with emphasis on Email Marketing …
Case Study - Optimizing Content Management at the National Aquarium of Baltimore at Summit 2007
All content managed through RedDot, no external components. 10% of entire revenue stream done through RedDot (including onlike ticket sales). http://www.aqua.org/ Went through a similar development process to what we …
Broadband Video News Powered by RedDot at Summit 2007
Talked to these guys last night. Heavy duty RedDot users. Don’t use the built-in publishing system — wrote an entire export using RQL. Publishes are down to 1 minute, and they’ve got at least 100 times the content (and …
Another Day at Summit 2007
There was a “commonwealth” dinner last night. Originally meant to be just we Canucks (there’s quite a few of us), the Australian contingent was invited to come along as well. Apparently, Australia is becoming …
RedDot CMS and Live Server Upgrade to Streamline Info Architecture at Summit 2007
Mostly regarding the work done for the National Insurance Crime Bureau. Purple Monkey (agency doing presentation) seems to run similar to the way CM works with respect to helping clients figure out what they need. Wanted …
RedDot Best Practices in Template Creation at Summit 2007
Nathan Carver presenting. Talked with this guy many times before. Admits that this is a tough topic as experience with templates is varied. Prefers div to tables (no surprise there). Dangers of nested containers: more …
Leveraging RedDot CMS to create UNICEF websites around the world at Summit 2007
A little late in starting. Presenter reminds me of Rosemary, for some reason. Organizational structure (IT team separate from content entry) similar to how we want to work. RedDot responsible for publishing the sites. …
RedDot Keynote at Summit 2007
Okay, hard for me to avoid it now. We use RedDot. There, I’ve said it. Now let’s move on. Met Detlef Kamps (RedDot President) last night. Nice guy. German, and speaks English very well. Looking forward to my breakfast …
Keynote at Summit 2007
I have no idea who the guy is on the stage. He came out after a Harold Faltermeyer-esque opening movie (complete with Windows system click sound at the end) and started talking. No introduction whatsoever. John …
Live from Huntington Beach
So as you’ve already read, I’m currently in Huntington Beach. Why? In an acronym: CMS. Recently, as some of you know, we launched the Rolex.com website. It was done using a CMS system. I’m here for two reasons: to see …
Air Canada Sucks
Yes, I know I’ve ranted about Air Canada and their lousy service few times before, but just when you’d think they’d start to act better, they slap you in the face again. I’m currently in Huntington Beach, CA (more on …
The new Rolex website is live
Over a year ago, we started on a brave new project: bring a whole new experience to the Rolex brand. It’s been a tough year. Countless designs. Several prototypes. A lot of lost sleep. (Not to mention some martial …
Bathroom humour in domain names
I’m in the process of updating the IPs for a whack of domain names and realized something about some of the top-level (and second-level) domains out there. Some of them, at least in English, were chosen really poorly: bj …
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Rankin Family Reunion in Calgary
Last night, we attended what I can only describe as a typical Maritime house/kitchen party. Except without the screech or incomprehensible accents. Back in the early 1990s, Canada had a brief flirtation with popular …
Forbidden Starbucks
I came across an article in Yahoo!’s Oddly Enough section this morning about how an internet protest movement is might drive out Starbucks from their location in the Forbidden City. Frankly, I’m trying to understand how …
The Return of Rivetgirl
I first met Tamara, really, at the Kelowna getaway back in 2000. As I recall, she did Tiffany at the karaoke night (which created a mosh pit). At the time, Tamara was in Critical Mass’ Production team, a group who …
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Kitty in a cone
There’s just nothing so pathetic as a cat that has to wear a cone. Asia’s whiskers are capped, her ears are muffled, and there’s this strange thing that she can’t seem to back out of no matter how hard she tries. I feel …
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I need a new watch
I’m a closet watch geek. Sort of like a closet Trekkie, but without the tendency for pointy ears. I’ve been one for years. I’ve had countless watches, including radio watches, pocket watches (I’ve got seven), dress …
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Disbelieving DRM and copy protection
I don’t believe in copy protection, like I don’t believe in the Easter Bunny or Jimmy Hoffa. It’s a myth that people cling to like a squirrel to a curtain, which is to say they have to because they are unable to see any …
I want an iPhone
I think I’m in love with Apple. For years, I’ve wanted a good cell phone. And that’s hard to come across in North America unless you go to Blackberry (in my world). I fell in love with keitais when I was in Japan in 2004 …
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Slowly letting the cat out of the bag
So a few people know now. We’re keeping it light, mostly because there’s a lot of concern that we might not be able to carry this baby to term. It’s Alex’s first pregnancy, and we know a lot of people who’ve had trouble. …
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Calgary is turning into Toronto
For the record, I don’t consider this a good thing. My first real opinion of Calgary formed a few years ago when Therese, Stuart, Gerry, and I were merging onto Crowchild Trail one day. Stuart was driving like he did in …
Funeral for Dale Garraway
On Tuesday, 2 January, Dale Garraway passed away at the age of 57. His funeral was today, attended by several hundred friends and family. I didn’t know Dale all that well — he was still Mr. Garraway to me — but I’m close …
When science goes wrong, redux
This isn’t the first time I’ve ranted about this. It just amazes me when people think there’s value in looking at things we know to be dangerous. In a recent posting on NewScientist.com, scientists report that they think …
With a few bugs, it would seem...
Grr. So much for local dev and test, and upload to live server. It’s not behaving, which is frustrating me immensely. So bear with me while I make K2 work properly.
All new for 2007!
It’s taken me a few months, but I’m finally back up and running with something a lot better: a new blog format (and technology) and a new host. Okay, so first the blog… It’s taken me months — literally — to move …
It's alive!
Alex went for an ultrasound today. She’s had them before for strange pains she’s had in her abdomen, but this was for something very specific. As you already know, Alex had a positive pregnancy test on 31 December. That …
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2006, A Year in Review
Wow, what another roller coaster year. Highs, lows, excitement, disappointment, joy, sorrow, laughter, and pain. Things I regret, things I wish I did, things I wish I didn’t do. Lots of potential, lots of opportunity. …
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Another Calgary New Years
Y’know, it never seems to fail — just when I think I’m going to have a relaxing holidays, it ends up being a total whirlwind of activity. Given, there was an upside to all of this: we got to see a lot more family this …