Off the market
Keep smilin’, keep shinin’ Knowing you can always count on me for sure That’s what friends are for That’s What Friends Are For, as sung by Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie …
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Friends
144 posts tagged with this topic.
Ontario 2026 - Old friends, dishwashers, and home
More weird dreams than I care to think about (I’m sure some of them would make interesting manga, but as a novel they’d be unworkable) kept me from decent sleep. Today was our last day in Ontario and we …
Ontario 2026 - Visiting with Friends and Family
One of the things I’m terrible at when coming to Oakville is visiting with friends. It’s not that I don’t want to visit with anyone else, it’s often that I don’t have enough time available …
A Visit with Back to the Future
Today, I visited with an old friend and they showed me something wonderful. And while the “thing” could easily be construed as a place or an object, I look at it a bit differently. I was shown trust, given a …
Turn That Music Down!
Jeremy pinged me a few weeks back: Big Sugar is coming, did I want to go? Given our previous two concerts this year alone, I was in. But more important, this is Big Sugar, which was a notable part of my late-1990s life. …
The Arkells at the Saddledome
Speaking of the next show… For Christmas 2021, I got tickets to a concert. Two of them. To The Arkells. The last time I saw The Arkells, they were opening for The Tragically Hip in Red Deer. That was the first …
Heart and Styx at the Jubilee
Jeremy and I have been to a few concerts together, notably a few Tragically Hip shows and John Fogerty’s “1969”. So, to a degree, I’m lucky that he pings me to go to shows with him. I was a bit …
Belated 50th Birthday Weekend
As you might recall, I turned 50 a few weeks ago. We had a great party, lots of people, amazing food. But I felt, even before the shindig, that I needed to something a bit more special, the blatantly stereotypical …
50 Years of Me
Well, I’ve somehow managed to make it to 50 years of age. I’m pretty sure teenaged me is mildly shocked. (50 year old me kind of is.) I’m not where I thought I’d be, even as little as a decade …
Dungeons and Dragons
Yes, I know it’s “Dungeons & Dragons”. I chose this spelling intentionally. Deal with it. I think I played D&D once as a kid with the neighbourhood kids. We ended up LARPing it a bit, as the …
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Things I have missed about summer in Ontario
I’m currently in Ontario, taking the opportunity to visit with my family. It’s always a strange feeling to come back here: it’s where I was born and grew up, but I’ve been gone for over 15 years. A lot has changed. You …
Christmas Blitzkrieg
When I have those moments when I think I’ve gotten too old, and I think I’m starting to feel like my age, I’m thankful for sudden sustained bursts of activity that remind me that, really, I just lead a much duller life …
An evening with the crew of the Starship Enterprise
Calgary’s Comic Convention seems to be growing by leaps and bounds every year. While I’ve never been, I’d heard how Leonard Nimoy had been scooped a couple of years ago (they even managed to take him out to Vulcan — no …
New Years Tea, 2012
This year, we continued with our burgeoning tradition of having afternoon tea on 1 January. In our previous two years, we ventured into the mountains to the Banff Springs, which boasts one of the best afternoon teas I’ve …
Catching up with a few Radical friends
Not long after our trip out to the Lower Mainland entered the books, I hit up some old friends of mine through Twitter, to see if they’d be interested in a get-together. I hadn’t actually seen some of them in over a …
New Year's Tea
The New Year is always a reason for change. It’s always a reason to do something differently than you’ve done before. It’s a time when people hold to ages-old traditions, and make efforts to start new ones. It’s a time …
Day of the Ya Ya
Well, Monkey, today was your Ya Ya day. In case you don’t remember what “Ya Yas” are when you get around to reading this, this is your name for The Backyardigans. And a couple of weeks ago, Mommy noticed …
Happy 2nd birthday, Monkey
Today, you turned 2, Monkey. It’s almost hard to believe that it’s been two years, and yet those two years seem to have disappeared in a blink. You’ve spent just over half of your life (to date) here in Costa Rica, and I …
RIP, Sean Lineham
Today, I arrived back in Costa Rica with my family in tow. Little did I know that my “other” family — my friends and colleagues back in Calgary, were facing quite the tragedy. I found out no sooner than I …
One last lunch with the team
For all intents and purposes, I’m off the Rolex team. I’m still on their resource sheet, but the reality is that I haven’t done sqwat with the Rolex account for over a couple of weeks now. It’s all been transferred to …
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 …
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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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 …
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, …
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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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 …
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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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) …
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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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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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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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 …
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 …
Gone in a Flash
Yeah, I know — you’ve heard it before, and you’re gonna hear it again. I hate seeing good people leave. Can’t say I blame Scott Morgan, though. He did get a sweet deal. Especially for a Flash guy. It’s not every day that …
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Thanksgiving in Ruskin
I had a quick jaunt out to Ruskin (a section of Maple Ridge, BC) for the Thanksgiving weekend. It was a trip I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to take at first. Reason: Too much work, and too tight deadlines to allow …
Dragon Boats and Best Friends
Two major things happened this weekend. My friend Chris came to town for a visit! But more on that in a moment… Gary and I had grandiose plans about setting up a dragon boat team at the office. But the plans never …
Earth Day in Montreal
We were a little slow waking up this morning. Might have been due to the change in time, or possibly due to the fact that we’re beginning to relax on this vacation, or because we simply didn’t get out of bed. All the …
Rudy's heading off for greener pastures
James on Monday. Rudy on Friday. I can’t make any “Rudy Tuesday” jokes on this one, I’m afraid. Rudy was only the second Web Developer that we hired after moving into our current building (I can’t say …
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Jaemo's farewell
Another one bites the dust. I hate it when friends leave, even if it’s just to go to another company in the city. And with James’ departure, it hits a little more. Not just because I saw a lot of my older self in him, …
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Wandering around Tokyo
[This entry originally posted on How To Get Lost: Wandering around Tokyo.] Tokyo is a wonderful city. Even in the rain. Despite a delayed start (we were up late — it doesn’t help that Chris and I yak a lot), we soon …
Ohio, Nippon!
[This entry originally posted on How To Get Lost: Ohio, Nippon!.] Last country. Almost home. Being in Japan, actually, is almost like being home. This country is so familiar to me (well, certainly Yotsukaido, Chiba, and …
Google saves the day again
As if it’s not enough that Google Desktop regularly saves my heiny by finding long-lost files (I mean, really, why is it that Microsoft created two My Documents directories in XP, and then seems to randomly choose …
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Christmas in Oakville with Chris and Kaz, New Years with Alex
I had hoped to go some place warm for the Christmas holidays this year. I wanted to put Christmas lights on a palm tree. I wanted to make sandmen. I wanted nothing more to worry about than getting a sunburn on Boxing …
Busy December weekend
I think Alex and I need to stop packing so much into a single weekend. It’s gonna kill us. Friday night was Light Night. Being fairly warm (thanks to a chinook), we went out in search of Christmas lights around town, …
12 Days of Christmas at Heritage Park
It’s been a while, hasn’t it? No, I’m not dead. I wasn’t abducted by aliens. I wasn’t held hostage. I took a bit of a break. I had to. In mid-September, I suffered a bit of a breakdown. Too much stress that I’d allowed …
More weekend antics
Yeesh. Antics is putting it lightly. Here’s the short version (‘cuz I really don’t feel like typing it all out): had to work saturday to finish performance management reviews; god I hate writing them went to jim’s …
Thanksgiving 2004
If I had a list of top ten bands that would never play Calgary, KMFDM would have been on list. But more on that in a minute or two. Today began fairly normally for a Sunday: Alex and I rose, ate, showered, and prepared …
Jon and Pearl's Wedding
I haven’t been to too many weddings this year. After last year’s complete lack of nuptuals, I’m up to my second. Thankfully, I didn’t have to go any further than a couple of kilometres. After my jaunt to Japan, having to …
Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra's Mozart on the Mountain
A busy weekend this most certainly was. But it was a fun, productive one. The first major thing was on Saturday. Mom’s in town to help out with Nana’s recovery from surgery (she had her knee replaced at the beginning of …
Luke leaves Critical Mass
Today, My Favourite Giant left Critical Mass. And we are lessened by his departure. Luke Puxley started at Critical Mass not quite two years ago. He was a daunting figure, mostly due to his sheer size. Luke is not a …
2004 Calgary Dragon Boat Festival
This weekend, we went for a little paddle. Five hundred metres in about two minutes and five seconds, to be precise. This weekend was the 13th annual Calgary Dragon Boat Festival, or the Alberta Dragon Boat Racing …
Preparing for the Calgary Dragon Boat Festival
This has been another crazy week. Lots that I’ve done, general mayhem in and out of the office, and this morning, I’m boarding a plane for San Jose. Recap: We’re gearing up for the Calgary Dragon Boat Festival, which …
Stampede Breakfast, Topmade Barbecue, and Quidam
The Calgary Stampede is up and running again. The kick-off was on Friday, with the much-anticipated Stampede parade. Naturally following the parade is another much-anticipated event in Calgary… The Stampede …
Surprise Visit to Drumheller
This weekend was a bit of a surprise. Not that it suddenly appeared from out of nowhere, but that until something happened, I had no idea what was yet to come. The weekend started with the one thing I did have control …
Victoria Day Long Weekend Aftermath
15 years ago tonight, the Calgary Flames won the Stanley Cup. Tonight, they have only three games until they win it again. It is, admittedly, a nice way to start the week off after a long weekend. The first long weekend …
So long, Jude!
And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain, Don’t carry the world upon your shoulders. For well you know that it’s a fool who plays it cool By making his world a little colder. — “Hey Jude”, The …
Going Curling for the First Time
As the weather turns more spring-like in Calgary, you start hearing unmistakable calls in the air: the robins, the magpies, the geese, the curlers… “Sweep! SWEEP! Harder! HARDER!” One of my …
Turning Japanese Again, Returning to Canada
I can’t even call this a “last day”. Yesterday, really, was our last day. Today is the packing/travelling day. And the day to say goodbye to dear friends. I hate leaving friends behind. Chris is one of my …
Turning Japanese Again, Tsukiji Market
Why had I gone to Shinagawa to kill time? Simply put, it was far enough away from Tsukiji that walking alone would eat up some time, but not so far that I would be exhausted by the time I got to my destination. I had …
Turning Japanese Again, Chris and Kaz's Wedding
I woke just before sunrise. I probably should have gotten up to look around, but decided that I’d rather sleep a bit more. I had a sneaky suspicion that it was going to be a long day. I woke again around 7:00, when my …
Turning Japanese Again, Shinkansen to Toyohashi and Irako
I slept a little oddly, considering we’d been up for over 24 hours straight. Woke up once around 3:00 (mostly to go to the bathroom), again at about 5:00, and finally at about 7:50. At that point, it was enough to say …
Planning for a Return Trip to Japan
Fourteen days, and counting. Two weeks from today, I’m off to Japan. Again. Relax, this isn’t going to turn into a yearly thing. If I’d had a choice, I’d probably be going to Australia this year, maybe New Zealand. But …
Friends from university
Pretty much keep with the trend, I woke late again. When I walked out of the bedroom, though, I found the door to Craig and Cathy’s bedroom open. Given the time of the morning, I assumed Craig would be asleep. I peered …
VIA Train from Montreal to Toronto
Morning came early. (When your hosts have to get up early to go to work, you get up early, too.) The plan was simple: on their way to work, Therese and Stuart would drop me off at Central Station where, like when I …
Touring Montreal, Schwartz's Deli
I slept not as long as the previous night, but enough to feel suitably rested. I wanted to make sure that I didn’t sleep too long — this was my last full day with Therese and Stuart, and I didn’t want to waste it. We had …
Shopping in downtown Montreal
I slept nearly 12 hours. I woke up sporadically, hearing the odd noise of running water and cats playing. Simply put, though, I was too damn tired to care. I hadn’t slept that well in ages. I woke up in time for lunch, …
Flying to Montreal to visit friends
I honestly couldn’t wait for 5:00 to come this morning. Today is the start of my first break longer than a long weekend in almost a year. I’ve been working away on my job, barely taking time off, slaving through one of …
Fond Farewell, Mr. Fullerton
It seems that Critical Mass is losing too many good people within a very short period of time. First, it was a round of layoffs nearly three weeks ago. Now it’s a series of resignations. Among them is Arthur. Arthur came …
Lord of the Geeks - The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
One trilogy to rule them all. One trilogy to find them. One trilogy to bring them all, and in the darkness, bind them. Despite my repeated objections with the stupid things the movie industry does to we patrons of the …
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Happy 30th Birthday Teak
It’s not every day that you turn 30. Unfortunately, it’s long since been my turn. This time, it was for my friend Teak. You may remember Teak from a previous birthday of his, when Chris and I felt the need for a little …
Jim and Luke's 26th birthday
You’d think I’d have learned from my jaunt out on Thursday night. I guess I did to a point, but I made one key error: I went out to celebrate Jim’s birthday. For the record, Jim’s a great guy. He’s a lot of fun — he has …
Therese gets her doctorate in psychology
I love seeing old friends. I just hate seeing them leave. Therese was in town this weekend. Not really to visit with people so much (though that was one thing she did), but to defend her dissertation — the last step in …
CBC TV 50th Anniversary VIA Rail train - Reunion
This weekend, I visited southern Ontario. Even though I’ve only just left, it almost feels like I was never even there. A few weeks back, Critical Mass announced (to the employees) that it was in the process of pitching …
A friend gets a job with Critical Mass
Critical Mass is growing. We’re preparing for a (hoped) massive expansion, but also have organic growth to contend with. This is what led Critical Mass to have to hire a new Project Analyst. And luckily for me, it’s my …
Friends move away to Montreal
I hate saying goodbye to close friends. Early this morning, Therese and Stuart boarded their WestJet flight with a trunkful of luggage and two cats. They’re moving to Montreal. By about this time, they’re over Ontario, …
Friends - Visiting and moving away
Last weekend was the first weekend in a while where a) I wasn’t busy with work or family, and b) wasn’t trying to paint the house. (No, I’m not done painting. I’m just sick of it.) So I opted to relax a little bit. It …
Painting my house (among other things)
I need a weekend from my weekend. ‘Course, it’s my fault for trying to do so much at once. For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been preparing to paint my house. (The outside, that is.) I should have painted it last year, …
Leaking hot water heater and house party
I’ve often heard it said that there’s nothing like the sound of pitter-pattering around your home. This weekend, I found that sometimes this sound isn’t so nice. Like when your hot water heater is leaking. I noticed it …
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Disc (Frisbee) golf in Canmore
Heat arrived in Calgary this weekend. It’s been warm here for a few weeks now (off and on, anyway), but this was the first really hot time in the ol’ town. Which, of course, is a perfect excuse to flee the city for a …
Critical Mass Reckless Summer Reunion
There are certainly worse ways to spend Friday the 13th. There are certainly more healthy ones. But when Critical Mass decides to throw a party for its employees, you can be sure of two things: There will be a lot of …
Chasing CPR Empress 2816 to Brooks
While this weekend was absolutely amazing, too many of these and I’ll die from exhaustion. I started early Saturday morning. Those of you who are chiming in with “must be train stuff” can smile smugly — ‘cuz …
My Trip to Japan, returning home
When I finally arrived home from my stint with the CBC so many months ago, I was happy to be back. It will be nice to be home after my trip to Japan, even though it’s sad to leave it so soon. When I arrived almost two …
My Trip to Japan, Yokohama
Another day, another adventure. Today, though, we would throw in a different nationality. We all rose at basically the same time and quickly prepared for our departure. We needed to be in Yokohama by about 10:30, which …
My Trip to Japan, Odaiba Seaside Park
Today was a good day. Not that other days have been bad by any means, but when you can sit back and reflect and feel really good — that’s a particularly good day. Chris was up early to meet Kaz at Tokyo station. We had …
My Trip to Japan, Harajuku and Shibuya
I think a good rule of thumb for how long you should stay in one place while on vacation is your comfort level. When you become too comfortable, you’ve stayed too long. I’ve become very comfortable with Tokyo. That’s not …
My Trip to Japan, Daihonzan Naritasan Shinshoji Temple
After a few days of non-stop touring, a slow day is much appreciated, even though it wasn’t planned that way. Chris was up before me, starting to clean up the apartment. It wasn’t messy by any means, but today we’re …
My Trip to Japan, Tsukiji Fish Market
The Japanese have borrowed many concepts of rail management from North America. For instance, you will generally see words like “rapid” or “limited express” when you see train listings. And you’ll …
My Trip to Japan, Shinkansen to Mount Fuji
We woke up relatively early this morning. For anyone on vacation, that’s before noon. For us, it was around 09:00. The goal today was Mount Fuji, about an hour south of Tokyo. An hour by bullet, that is. Following the …
My Trip to Japan, Akehabara and Shibuya
Today was a bit of a late start for us. Not for any particular reason, we just slept in a little bit. Today was Tokyo day. Sure, we’d been to Tokyo before for clubbing, but I didn’t really see much of Tokyo. It’s hard to …
My Trip to Japan, Tokyo and Shibuya
I’ve gone clubbing in Tokyo, and lived to tell about it. It’s an odd statement, I know, but allow me to explain. Chris and I didn’t have any real set plans. In fact, I didn’t really know what we were going to do until …
My Trip to Japan, Touring Chiba
By comparison with yesterday’s activities, it would appear that I slept the entire day away. For starters, I awoke after 10:00, the long day previous having sapped pretty much all my energy. Kaz was still here, but …
My Trip to Japan, Calgary to Yotsukaido
It hasn’t been that long since my last outing, but it’s time again for my next great adventure. This time, I’m leaving the continent for the first time in almost 14 years — I’m going to Japan. Chris is staying there …
CBC documentaries at the Glenbow Museum
Last October, I bade farewell to my newly-made friends from the CBC Television 50th Anniversary Train. Since then, I have only talked to them over email and phone. It’s not the same as being there in person. And I’ve …
The Hell of my job
Not that I’m complaining. This week had been a stressful and depressing one. First off was the Technology department meeting for Critical Mass. The company’s been going through a structural overhaul. It’s not the first …
Old friends in Southern Ontario
With Cathy at work, and Craig sleeping for the day (he’s currently working nights), there was little that would cause me to rise early. Well, almost nothing. I had a lunch date to keep. Rising at a reasonable hour, I …
A Busy Calgary Christmas
This has simultaneously been the quietest and the busiest Christmas season I think I’ve ever experienced. I had been looking forward to two weeks of quiet rest, working on personal projects, sleeping, watching movies, …
Lord of the Rings The Two Towers midnight show
Assuming you’re not avoiding the media or living under a rather large rock, you’ve probably heard that the second chapter of the Lord of the Rings trilogy opened today. Yes, you’ve guessed right: I’ve already seen it. A …
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Lord of the Rings DVD release
On Tuesday (12 November 2002), the extended version of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was released on DVD. The standard theatrical release came out a few months ago, but this was the one I was waiting for …
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Visiting More in Vancouver
T-Minus 4 days First order of the day was to move out of Joel and Michelle’s piano room. Although I greatly appreciate their hospitality, I do need to be with the rest of the CBC. The show starts tomorrow morning. I …
Touring West Vancouver, Dinner with Greg
T-Minus 5 days Today was supposed to be tourist day. It was supposed to be sunny and warm, with nice little chirping birds and happy people out enjoying the “last day of summer”. (School starts tomorrow.) So …
Visiting in Vancouver
T-Minus 6 days Today was much quieter than the previous two days … if you don’t count two kids, that is. After waking and spending a morning with Joel and Michelle’s family, Joel showed me his new pet project. …
Riding BC Rail's Cariboo Prospector
T-Minus 7 days Five-thirty is an unfair time of the morning. Especially if your alarm clock wakes you in the middle of a really good dream. This morning, I took a taxi to the BC Rail station and boarded the Cariboo …
Riding a VIA Train Coast to Coast with the CBC
There are times that I’m almost envious of myself. Well, okay, one time that I’m envious of myself. Hey, it’s better than being jealous of others… I’m going on a train trip. But not any train trip. In fact, this …
My Housewarming Party
96 hamburgers 48 hotdogs 4 jumbo-size bags of chips 104 cans of pop 240 bottles of beer 13 bottles of wine 14 hours of music 1 house equals A good time All new homeowners have one responsibility to fulfill. It’s not …
White Water Rafting on the Kicking Horse River, Upper and Lower Legs
One of these days, I’m gonna learn to stop cheating death (or at least severe injury) and cease doing really foolish things. Like whitewater rafting. As you no doubt have already guessed, we were downriver again this …
Critical Mass 5th Anniversary Surprise Party
There are parties. Then there’s a Critical Mass party. Five years ago yesterday (4 July 1997), Critical Mass launched its first ever website, MBUSA.com. That first launch wasn’t perfect, but it started a business …
Canada Day on Parliment Hill in Ottawa
It was a hot night in Ottawa, following Stuart and Therese’s wedding. It was only going to get hotter. A lot hotter. The next day was 1 July, otherwise known as Canada Day. Otherwise known as the single biggest excuse to …
Stuart and Therese's Wedding in Ottawa
There comes a time in your life when things start getting a lot more adult than you’re normally used to. For me, it was when my friends started getting married. But I didn’t really start getting self-conscious about it …
Cleaning the Apartment, Rug Doctors, Golf, Wedding Showers
I remember when I used to have time to kick back, relax, and spend an afternoon watching TV. I think I was five. This weekend past was yet another in a string of busy, hectic times. As June rolls towards a close, many …
Star Wars and the Last Episode of The X-Files
Long weekends are rarely long enough. I’d like one to last about a year, personally, but without all the seasonal changes. But I suppose that’s what Hawaii is for… My weekend (sort of) started on Thursday night, …
Chris Goes to Japan ... the Second Time
Maybe this is forever, Forever fades away, Like a rocket ascending into space, Could you not be sad, Could you not break down, After all I won’t let go, Until you’re safe and sound. — “Safe and Sound”, …
A Surprise Engagement
Ever tried to catch a thrown brick? It ain’t easy. First, you prepare for the heavy weight, which often has sharp edges, and then you try to position your body so that you can buffer the shock and try to prevent bodily …
Preparing to Move to Japan
Although it’s very tempting to say that it’s the beginning of the end — it wouldn’t really be appropriate. It’s no longer a guess, it’s not a possibility, it’s not even a plan anymore. It’s fact. Chris is going to Japan. …
Revenge is Sweet
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 …
Mark and Darla's Wedding in Toronto, Appleby College, Hart House
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 …
Gerry and Sam's Wedding in Ottawa, VIA Train to Toronto
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 …
The Return of 36 Chambers of Shaolin
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 …
Visiting Vancouver, Blue Jays and Mariners Baseball Game in Seattle
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 …
Easter with my family, friends
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 …
Saying Good-bye to Good Friends
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 …
Topics
Remembering a Year Since Leaving Vancouver
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 …
Kathryn comes for a visit
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 …
Our new roommate, Miao Yin
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, …
Writing Short Stories
Old hobbies die hard. Have keyboard, will write. Love four word sentences. A lot of you … some of you … at least ONE of you asked why I didn’t send a log about Thanksgiving. No particular reason, I just …
Wedding in Toronto
Whirlwind weekends. Gotta love ’em… This weekend, as some of you already know, I was in Toronto. One of my friends, Jay, was getting married to his girlfriend of six years, and I was fortunate enough to witness …
Chris' Arrival in Calgary, Living with my Best Friend
My time here in Calgary is finite. I’m not staying here forever. Don’t get me wrong, I like this city — but there’s more to this planet than a single settlement near the foot of the Canadian Rockies. When I first arrived …
Softball Tournament in Calgary
This weekend saw the first league tournament of the season. Frankly, I couldn’t quite figure out why we had a tournament so early in the year (we’ve had TWO regular season games so far, both on the same day). But I …
Easter in Calgary, Visiting with Friends, Eating Russian Food
Years ago, Easter weekend meant a trip to my grandmother’s in Toronto for a dinner with the rest of the family. It’s been a while since I’d been in a large family gathering for Easter, but this year certainly did put a …
Kicking Back in Calgary
If it were possible to work like a dog, my name would be Rover. Bow wow. I’m working on the latest and greatest version of a website we’re doing for one of our Fortune 500 clients. There are nine people on the team: …
Moving into my First Calgary Apartment, Mother's Pizza
I hate moving… I’ve been doing a lot of it lately. I’ve moved three times in the past four months. Makes the moves I did in co-op seem trivial (I moved only every four months). But this time I’m not going anywhere …
Visiting Friends in Calgary, Deciding to Leave Vancouver
I get by with a little help from my friends. In this case, it was Stuart and Therese, two of my oldest and closest friends. I ventured to the wilds of Calgary to say “Hi” and check out the sights. Well, at …
Why I Don't Want to be a Technical Writer Anymore
It’s been a busy beginning to the year. I think it’s just a sign of things to come. You’ve probably been wondering where I’ve been — didn’t I send all those logs during Christmas? Where are all the ones from January? …
Visit to Ontario, Worth the Drive to Acton, Waterloo
The Old Man was still cursing the sink the following morning. By the time Allison and I left for Waterloo, the plumber had arrived to solve the problem once and for all. (It would take an additional two hours, and …
Visit to Ontario, Touring Downtown Toronto
The alarm went off at 6:45am. I was up almost immediately, Allison begged for “five more minutes”. I took the opportunity to quickly have some orange juice. Allison was in the shower moments later. We had to …
Visit to Ontario, Visiting with Friends
If Sunday was quiet, Monday was dead. Being Thanksgiving Monday, it also meant that every store in Ontario was closed. (Stupid Holiday Shopping Act.) As it stood, Allison had work to do. Unlike myself, who was trying his …
A Boys Night out in Calgary, Drumheller, Banff (Bamf!), and Star Wars
This weekend, I did something a little different than usual. I went to Calgary. Alone. Well, not totally alone. I went to visit Stuart, who I had only seen for a whopping six hours at Christmas. Ideally, I would have …
Weekend in Calgary, Banff (Bamf!)
This entry is long overdue — I should have issued this sometime last week. But it’s been one of those weeks where I’ve barely had time to check my email, let alone write any. It all started a few weeks ago, when I heard …
Music Trip to Orlando, All-nighter in Oakville and Arrival in Florida
A Dream… “Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking.” came a husky voice over the p.a. I shut off my walkman to listen to the message. “We have encountered some technical difficulties, …