One Whisper

Not so Ancient

2007-01-25T18:52:00.000-08:00

They call this "the Gherkin" Like as in a pickle...yep Brits are kooks. I'm working on the 27th floor doing a job and there's a balcony that goes around, right near the top.

Pile of Rocks

2007-01-25T18:45:00.000-08:00

Here's that old Roman Wall that runs through the middle of downtown London. This is near the Towe where it really comes out of the ground.
There's a pretty cool walking tour that takes you to 20-odd points around the City of London and has plaques telling you the history. By the way, the City of London is actually really tiny. Only something like a mile and a quarter a side. The rest of the Metro area is called the Greater London Authority, which except for about a decade in the 80's/90's has had it's own, autonomous government for a thousand years, since William the Conqueror in 1066.

What a Web..Everything Connects

2007-01-15T10:23:00.000-08:00

Today is Martin Luther King Day. A time that the US celebrates the contributions to civil rights
that Dr King made. Obviously a man who lived, and died for what he believed in. Which ties into my sight-seeing on the weekend. Toured around the Tower of London (actually made up of a lot of Towers), the Tower Bridge, and all the sites surrounding. I came across this in the garden/memorial to all the Merchantmen Sailors who died in the 2 World Wars.

Notice in the top picture the second name from the bottom; Sir Thomas More. Another man, who by opposing Henry VIII, died for his beliefs and his conscience, at that exact spot. The plaques lie where the Old Scaffold stood for hundreds of years outside the Tower, and high profile "Traitors" were beheaded there. The connection?.... Thomas More, who was later canonized by the Catholic church, is known for a lot of things, but in the latter years of his life he was involved in what can only be described as a heavyweight match with the Reformer, and original Protestant, Martin Luther. The Namesake of Dr King. Yep, pretty much had to go buy A Man For All Seasons and re-read it.

Please Read This...and Act.

2007-01-05T08:47:00.000-08:00

I posted about this last summer when I first heard about it. For more info go to the links in the story, or click the UN Foundation link on the right. It's only $10, which is actually $20, so you are saving 8 lives....for the cost of a case of beer.

"Dear Friend,
Thanks to your support, the Nothing But Nets campaign is gaining incredible momentum moving into 2007. Together, we raised over $2.2 million in 2006 that means more than 220,000 children in Africa will be safe each night because of you! But we have a lot more to do in 2007.
Today we wanted to let you know that we've received our first-ever challenge grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation grant will match your donations dollar for dollar, net for net! For every bed net you send to a child in Africa, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will send one, too. That is twice the number of bed nets, twice the impact, all from your donation!
Double your donation of nets today!
The announcement of the challenge grant was featured today at a Nothing But Nets event hosted by the National Basketball Association. Many of the partners of the campaign, including the People of the United Methodist Church, Sports Illustrated, VH1, United Nations Foundation, UNICEF, Mark J. Gordon Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joined the NBA in New York City to share their commitments to the campaign and raise awareness about malaria. Check out www.NothingButNets.net for stories about the event from supporters like Rick Reilly, Katherine Commale and Sam Perkins!
You can show your commitment to combating malaria as well join us by buying at least one bed net today. Your $10 donation will now go twice as far, providing two bed nets thanks to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Send a Net. Save a Life.
Wishing you the best in the New Year,
The Nothing But Nets Teamwww.nothingbutnets.net"

The Man, The Myth

2007-01-01T08:16:00.000-08:00

I had some people asking me who the heck is Chuck Norris and why is there always stuff about him. Can you say bad-A$$ed martial arts god? Defender of Liberty? ehhhh would you believe cheesey actor who made a bunch of really corny action movies in the 70's, 80's and 90's??? Anyways, for forever he's been this kind of inside joke in the Hacker community...someone you bring out when you're trash talking someone. But it's turned into this Internet quasi-legendary thing. Like: "I heard the collapse of Communism was due to the Kremlin watching a TBS weekend long Chuck Norris marathon and decided to pack it in."
Truth is, in the 60's he was a pretty good fighter, and the scene in Return of the Dragon where he is a bad guy (only time), and fights Bruce Lee, is a classic.
Here's his real website...mind you don't trip on the fromage as you enter....
http://www.chucknorris.com/

I prefer this one for obvious reasons:
http://www.chucknorrisfacts.com/

Happy New Year!

2006-12-31T06:22:00.000-08:00

In the time-honoured tradition, here is my year-end, top 5 lists of '06:
Albums
1. Rise Against - The Sufferer and the Witness
2. Dropkick Murphys – The Early Years
3. Tiger Army – II Power of Moonlite
4. The Misfits – Famous Monsters….EvilLive (tie)
5. The Kooks – Inside In, Inside Out

Books
1. An Inconvenient Truth – Al Gore
2. Freakonomics – Dubner & Levitt
3. Constantinople, The Last Great Siege 1453 – Roger Crowley
4. Portrait of the Young Man as an Artist – James Joyce
5. Reveille for Radicals – Saul Alinsky

Movies
1. Did we even go to the movies????
2. Walk the Line – Johnny Cash at least was cool
3. ummmmmm can’t remember anything else
4. Reservoir Dogs (always will be on my top 5 every year)
5. Pulp Fiction (ditto)

Chuck Norris Facts
1. Chuck Norris eats beef jerky and craps gunpowder. Then, he uses that gunpowder to make a bullet, which he uses to kill a cow and make more beef jerky. Some people refer to this as the "Circle of Life."
2. When Chuck Norris sends in his taxes, he sends blank forms and includes only a picture of himself, crouched and ready to attack. Chuck Norris has not had to pay taxes, ever.
3. When Chuck Norris was denied an Egg McMuffin at McDonald's because it was 10:35, he roundhouse kicked the store so hard it became a Wendy's.
4. When an episode of Walker Texas Ranger was aired in France, the French surrendered to Chuck Norris just to be on the safe side.
5. There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Chuck Norris lives in Oklahoma.

Thank you very much, you’re a beautiful audience, I’m here all week, try the Veal. What are your Tops of ’06?

I've Seen a Miracle!!

2006-12-31T06:18:00.000-08:00

Yep, forget water to wine, walking on water, and driving the snakes from Ireland. A true, dyed-in-the-wool miracle. British Telecom has now installed my phone line.....Wow. And the true miracle of modern customer service: it was only 2 weeks late and required only 11 phone calls to complain. Made Telus look like they move at Lightspeed.

Pre New Year Site Seeing/Rocky Road to Dublin

2006-12-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

Finally we had more than 2 consecutive hours of sunshine on Saturday before the galeforce winds brought the storms in. I had to work early, but was done pretty quick, and downtown already, so a little site-seeing was in order. Did a daylight walk around St Paul's where I went Xmas Eve, and took some great pictures that in a couple days I can post because, yeah, you guessed it, my stuff is finally getting delivered. Also, got some great shots of the Temple Bar Gate, which is the only, and oldest surviving original gate for the City of London. Back in the 1800's they took it down stone by stone to clear traffic congestion, and some rich guy reassembled it at his estate for a while. Eventually, it made itself back to the original site. It separates St Paul's Barbican and the London Stock Exchange Plaza. Lots of pictures. Best part though, was finding the Blackfriars Pub. It was built a couple hundred years ago on the site of a Monastery dating from the 13th century (hence the name). Found my new favorite bitter, London Pride, and they serve the wickedest pies ever. About ten different types, huge, and a great deal cause you get a pint with the meal. Only thing is, I don't get why the Brit insist on serving Brussel Sprouts with every meal? No wonder they're such gloomy and depressing people. Did I mention the leather, high-back chairs that you get to sit in? Yeah, Gord, Brad, lads, this is a slice of heaven, King for a Day.
Now, the night before was a bit of British culture too. A different sort. Went down to the Spotted Dog to watch a replay of the Ireland-Australia rugby match from November. Place was packed, I live in a neighbourhood with a lot of Irish. Now the Brits, in their understated, semi-pompous manner would call my neighbourhood "edgy". I would call it tough. It's no West Vancouver that's for sure. So, we're all watching the match, and we all know who's going to win. (Ireland 21-16). I'm there at the bar, and I'm wearing my Irish Rugby jersey(from my Favorite Girl!!)...minding my own business...well there was also a sizable contingent of Aussies pounding Fosters and being "enthusiastic." I'll let the verse from The Rocky Road to Dublin finish the story:

"The boys in Liverpool, when we safely landed called myself a fool, I could no longer stand it, blood began to boil, temper I was losing poor old Erin's Isle they began abusing hooray me soul says I, let the shellaillagh fly some Galway boys were nigh, saw I was a-hobblin' with a loud arragh, they joined me in the fray and soon we cleared the way on the rocky road to Dublin"
Faugh-a-ballagh indeed.
And that's a true London story, and I've got the scars to prove it ;)

More Happy News

2006-12-29T02:02:00.000-08:00

I emailed this story to our PM, and our Environment Minister.....funny, haven't heard anything back. I guess I'm not a big enough demographic group to warrant attention.
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/TECH/science/12/29/
canada.arctic.ap/index.html

Duality of Conflict

2006-12-27T06:27:00.000-08:00

Came across this story, thought it was interesting
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/US/12/26/iraq.soldier.parents.ap/
index.html
While it's obvious the majority of Iraqi's in the southern 2/3's of the country want coalition forces to leave, I'm glad that other stories come out as well. There's no doubt that the American public, and the rest of the world was lied to about the threat that the Hussein regime posed, the world is better off without him and his butchers. Getting crippled because you lost a soccer game, or being gassed with chemical weapons because you're Kurd are not normal things for citizens of a country to worry about, especially from their government. So now all these ethnic and religious groups are using this chaos to secure their power base....tell me Iran and Syria aren't involved. Ok, that the legal reasoning for invasion were false, or at best misleading is undeniable....fine, what do we do now? I think the most ironic part of the Iraq conflict and the Middle East as a whole is the dogma of hatred and intolerance that is preached by radical Imans towards Israel and the Jewish. Ironic how close the two are to each other. What do you mean? Ok, read "1,000 Questions on Islam" by Dr. Mohamed Elmasry. You'll see how Islam in 600AD was created by the Prophet Mohammed to bring faith to the pagan Arabs, and he did it by retelling the Old Testament Hebrew stories....yep, meaning that Islam is just Judaism in a different wrapper. Which makes that whole conflict even more ridiculous. I heard Dr Elmasry on the radio a while back (he's a devout Muslim BTW), and he kept saying, "there is nothing new in Islam"...and also spoke how Christianity had it's time of upheaval in the Middle Ages with the Great Schism, the Reformation, the Inquisition, probably the low point of Christianity, and now it's Islam's turn. Back to the original point. So, we were lied to...can't go back in time so we either fix the mess that's gotten started, or cut and run. Whatever path, I would love to be spared the indignant pontificating...it's getting old, and has become self-serving. Problem is, because of partisan politics, and an editorial media looking for advertising dollars, and a fickle public, the will to just bear down and finish the job will never materialize. So more innocents, and soldiers following orders will die, and nothing will get fixed. Probably better just leave the whole mess.

And Almost forgot

2006-12-26T12:17:00.000-08:00

Being here in London solo has opened up a lot of reading time....don't know how I'm going to get them all back. But one book I read, actually Christmas night in the train station, is called Freakonomics. It's by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner. One's an author and ones a crazy economist. Talks about causality in socio-econmics, like a major, unexpected side effect (positive I think), of the Roe v. Wade abortion ruling in the US for example. Really good read, can't recommend it enough. It dispels a lot of modern myths, and explains why what we perceive as a cause and effect is really just a coincidence. Good stuff.

Happy Holidays

2006-12-26T10:50:00.000-08:00

Well, let see, interesting week...
Work was work, nothing really remarkable at all.
On the weekend, tried to go to the Victoria and Albert Museum, which is massive, to see the DaVinci exhibit, but I wasn't going to wait over an hour in line to get in, so I'll ditch work this week some afternoon and go. What I ended up doing was going across the street to the Museum of Natural History. Another huge building. Another free tourist destination. It's funny, as expensive a city London is to live in and visit, there are a lot of place you can tour for free. Anyways, the museum is a couple hundred years old, and has your usual mammal, reptile, fish, rock exhibits. All of them quite dead and well preserved. Nothing so spectacular in the main building, except for the main lobby which is just incredible. They have a couple statues at the head of the main stairs, one is of the first curator, Professor Lord Sir Hugglesnort or something, kind of a boring and dour looking guy. But the cool statue is of Capt Frederick Selous, a hunter and conservationist of the early 1900s in Africa. He formed a group called the Selous Scouts in Rhodesia, Africa that were game wardens, park rangers, and later anti-terrorist soldiers....pretty interesting history, there's also a huge Park in Tanzania named after him. Back to the museum, the only standout exhibit for me was in the new wing they had a Environmental section, that was pretty detailed...showing alternate energy sources, recycling, resource management, lots of good stuff, and funny enough, probably the busiest part of the museum.
Christmas Eve was neat. Took the Tube downtown to St Paul's Cathedral, and watched the Midnight Eucharist. This place is huge, and just awe-inspiring. The Agnostic that I am was pretty happy that a bolt of lightning didn't strike me down when I walked in. It was rebuilt after the Great London Fire in the 1600's by the architect Christopher Wren. Westminster Abbey gets most of the press, but for my buck, this place is a marvel. Lots of famous people are buried in the crypt, which you can see, like Horatio Nelson, and Lord Wellington. Churchill's funeral was there, and Charles & Di got married there. Here's a link you can see what I'm talking about. http://www.stpauls.co.uk/
Then, after the service it was pretty late...and oops, no more Tubes...long walk to a bus stop that was still in service...hah
Xmas day started out pretty optimistic, did my good karma deed for the year, and helped serve dinner at St Gabriel's for the needy. Funny thing about doing it was that by far I was in the minority as an Anglophone. Just like when you walk down the street in London, I guarantee you that maybe half the people you pass are speaking English, maybe. See, even though the "official" population of the UK is around 60 million, a government study that just came out figures that if you included transient and illegal and unregistered foreigners, the population would really be about 92 million, conservatively. Same study said it could be as high as 112 Million, almost double. So yeah, stranger in a strange land for sure. But, the dinner serving was good, much more appreciative than most places I've done it. Kids were funny, most didn't believe my stories about Canadian winters....don't I have a trustworthy face?
Then things started to unravel....After I got to call my folks, and my Best Girl :) , from an Internet cafe because BT apparently needs more than a month to install a phone line, my cell phone <> mobile starts ringing....I'm on-call, and now, at 6 something at night, Xmas day I have to somehow get out to a site in Twyford (think Chilliwack in relation to Vancouver), and fix a problem....no Tube, so a long bus ride, with a lot of transfers to Paddington Station (the one with the Bear). Paddington Stn is a large National Rail terminus, so I found a westbound train to Reading that stopped in Twyford....about an hour or so ride, now it's about 9pm, get the security guard to let me in...and voila, fix the problem in about a half hour. Man I'm good, but oops, didn't plan my glorious return into the city too well. By the time I get back to the Train station, yep, you guessed it, no more trains running. Fortunately, the waiting area was heated, and since I was the only one there, I got the pick of the benches....and didn't get robbed...Being a phone guy isn't all about glory, despite what the stories you hear from me and Gord and The Kid.
I'm hoping this week that fate will be nice enough and let me get my shipment of goodies that has been sitting in Customs for the last 2+ weeks, so I can fill this blog with pictures, rather than my meandering musings...Goodnight

The Week that Was

2006-12-17T13:12:00.000-08:00

Last week was pretty interesting. I was able to get a paid business trip to the Channel Islands off the coast of France. They are part of the United Kingdom, but like Scotland, they have a semi-autonomous government. Also, it's weird, they have their own Pound Sterling notes Jersey has their own, and so does Guernsey, that exchange 1:1, but the coins are the same as the mainland. Can't use them on the mainland tho, so you try to use them up before you leave. Anyways, like the Cayman Islands, they have, "creative" tax laws, which attracts a lot of import/exporters, and banks to set up shop there. I was doing a consulting gig for Deutsche Bank, and flew to Jersey Wednesday afternoon. Let me just tell you, the place is beautiful. It's a mix of British, French, Norman, Breton buildings and culture (sound like a tour operator), and people speak either English, French or Jerrais, which is kind of a French patois based on Breton. Kind of a North France version of Cajun or Acadian. They just celebrated a few years ago something like their 600th year anniversary of being part of the UK...They were occupied by the Germans for all of World War 2 and there are monuments and museums commemorating it everywhere, old bomb shelters and coastal batteries. But what's really cool, is the old Napoleonic forts that dot the coast lines. There's one that guards the harbour at St Peter Port on Guernsey at the head of the harbour breakwater that is amazing. I have to go back and do the tours. Overall I preferred Guernsey. I guess because the main town, St Peter Port, is built on the side of the cliffs down to the harbour, like an amphitheatre, and the roads are super narrow it just seems more "European" Anyone traveling to France or England, take the time to visit, a day or two. It's only 12 miles from France, and you can catch a ferry from the port of Dinard in France, or Bournemouth in England. Buying a house there is easy too....you only need about 400 or 500 thousand Pounds to buy a "fix 'er up 'er"
Now, the cool thing is, if this project goes like it seems to I'm hoping to get some trips to the bank's locations in the Caymans, Mauritius, Dublin and Istanbul...

New Chuck Norris fact at Bottom of page!!!!!

2006-12-17T13:09:00.000-08:00

these crack me up....

Broken Record

2006-12-17T11:15:00.000-08:00

How many studies and stories do we have to see before we all kick the asses of our governments, corporations and end the general apathy toward the global warming threat? How much longer do we have to hear "geniuses" like Ralph Klein tell us that Global Warming is voodoo and nonsense science?
http://technology.sympatico.msn.cbc.ca/Arctic+ice+could+disappear
+in+summer+by+2040+study/NewsandTrends/ContentPosting.aspx?isfa=1&newsitemid=arctic-greenhouse&feedname=CBC-TECH-SCIENCE&show=False&number=0&showbyline=True&subtitle=&detect
=&abc=abc
Another legacy of ours to leave to future generations. No North Pole. At least parents won't have to face that uncomfortable conversation with their kids about whether Santa exists...of course he doesn't, he doesn't have anywhere to live. Crap

How To Crack a Stone With A Word

2006-12-09T15:25:00.000-08:00

Everyone knows the famous guards at Buckingham Palace, in their Grenadier Bearskin caps, legendary for keeping the same, serious expression on their face no matter what. Today was a tourist day for me, well at least the afternoon, and I wandered down to Piccadilly Circus, then walked to the Palace grounds. Before I went there I stopped at the traffic circle at Hyde Park and checked out the Wellington Monument and massive Wellington Arch, which ironically had the statue of Wellington removed in 1885 and replaced with a statue called a "Quadriga" which is a 4 horse, 2 wheel chariot that symbolizes peace...Anyways, back to the story, I went back toward the Palace, walking across Green Park, and passed thru the Canada Gate to the Palace grounds, which were locked up, and no fancy guards were to be seen....No tours or entry, don't know why, maybe they just let you see the Queen's house every so often, or there was a wild bender the night before and it was a mess...So, I took some pictures from afar, it's actually a pretty boring exterior compared to other buildings, then took some snaps of the Queen Victoria monument, and headed to Trafalgar Square. Along the way there is a group of buildings called the Horse Guard Barracks and Parade. It's right across from the War Ministry. At the front, there were a couple of fancy-pant guards. These guys were dressed in full, formal uniforms, and were members of one of the 2 Royal Horse Guard Regiments, the Blues and the Greys. So, I walk up to one, take a picture. They stand there just like the others, silent, looking forward, no expression, then every so often the Sergeant of the Guard comes by to check on things. I decide I'm going to make this guy crack up if it kills me. What do I do? I tell him the first joke that comes to mind....."So Mickey Mouse takes a motion to his lawyer to divorce Minnie. The lawyer looks at the paper then says, Mickey, you can't divorce Minnie on the basis that she is insane. Mickey replies, I'm not saying she's crazy, I'm saying she's f****g Goofy"...badumpa...and this young guy lets out a snort/wheeze/guffaw/some kind of half laugh....the Sergeant looks over and glares at both of us...mission accomplished. And that's a true London story.

Miller Time

2006-12-08T07:15:00.000-08:00

So, nothing really profound happening, just winding up the week. Friday really is a semi Weekend day here in London. A lot of aching heads and green gills around the office this morning. Me, I worked late last night, hoping all day that my flat was still standing after the big tornado touched down a short walk from my place during the day. More tourist things this weekend, Xmas shopping and visiting the Natural History Museum and Harrod's. Have my first business trip next week, I get to travel to the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey to do some consulting for a customer. January I'll be in Cairo Egypt to do the same. Still waiting for my phone line to get installed at home by BT.....Also found the greatest beer ever, it's called John Smith's and it's a hand-pulled bitter, meaning it's pumped by a handle that you manually crank up and down to pour, regulating the air that gets introduced to the beer, and the bitter is almost like a clean medium ale...Great stuff...wrd

Science Triumphs

2006-12-05T02:20:00.000-08:00

As promised, the crack team here has conducted and compiled an extensive study correlating the cost differential between London and Canada. We put our best man on the project. Sacrificing my self in the name of science and discovery, I used myself as the test subject in the control group. I know, the things I do for science. Anyways, after exhaustive research at Public Houses in various neighbourhoods, I have determined that the average price of a pint of Import beer, specifically Stella Artois, is 2 Pound, 20 Pence. At current exchange rates this amounts to $Cdn 4.77 which is cheaper, in fact, than most establishments in Canada. Isn't science great?

When is English Not English?

2006-12-05T02:03:00.000-08:00

It's when someone in England tries to speak it....accents aside, it's amazing that the residents of the Country that spawned English sound sometimes like they're speaking a different language...like when someone wants me to pay them 5 "bob" is that the same as 5 "quid"??? and why not just say, "that'll be 5 pounds"??? "Nosh" and "Grotty" I can't find them in the English dictionary so I have no idea what they're talking about...I feel like Andy Rooney on a rant...
This weekend, on Saturday, I went to the south bank of the Thames and visited the Imperial War Museum. Let me just say this place is massive. It's a huge, old building, with an amazing domed ceiling. Inside, which doesn't cost you a quid, bob, pound or pence, there are 4 floors above-ground, and one below. I was there for 3 hours and I didn't even get through the basement exhibits. Place is huge. This weekend I think I may go to the London Art Gallery.
Yesterday, at my first day working, I was walking from the office to a customer site with one of the techs. The road we were walking down was cobblestone, and narrow, which isn't unusual. What was unusual was that buried under, and following the course of the road, was an ancient Roman wall from the original Londinium settlement over 2000 years ago. Apparently this thing runs for a few miles, and along the way it passes under buildings that if you go to the parking garages underground, there's a 2000 year old wall pasing through. Eventually it surfaces further on. Pretty wild.

Sign Of The Times aka World Full of Hate

2006-11-29T08:33:00.000-08:00

Right now I'm in the middle of my sight-seeing, tourist day exploring London. So far, it just blows me away how much there is to see here. I got on the Tube at 7:40 am, and 9 hours later I've seen the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben (not Roethlesberger Megan), the Westminster Bridge, Millenium Pier, Queen Boadicea's statue, the Westminster Abbey where Thomas 'A Beckett was murdered by his King, Whitehall, 10 Downing St.(Tony Blair's House), Trafalgar Square, Admiralty Arch, St James Park, Churchill Museum...list goes on...and that's just the outsides....still haven't gone inside anywhere. And, I've taken about a hundred pictures that I'll keep, and share later. All these amazing things, but as a footnote you notice things that make me realize how great Canada is, and how safe and insulated we truly are. Anecdote number one: I'm in the Victoria Train Station, huge building, and I'm looking for a recycle bin for my bottle of water, but I can't find one. So, I start looking for just a trash bin, still can't find one. Finally I see a sign that says "due to safety concerns we cannot have trash bins in the station, please take your rubbish with you, or give to one of our attendants." See, the Brits have to worry about some nutcase putting a bomb in one of the trash bins and lighting it up, so they remove that risk. Second anecdote: I'm walking along the Houses of Parliament, taking pictures, and there's some sort of protest across the road, save the Emu's or something, and of course at the gates are pairs of British Cops, Bobbies, dressed like you see in the movies, all the way to their big, round caps...and no guns. As I walk by one of the gates, I see back about 10 feet in the shadows two more officers in full combat gear, and their H&Ks locked and at ready. They were smiling even less than the guards outside Buckingham Palace. When they looked at me they just watched me deciding whether I was a threat or not, and when they figured I wasn't, the guns lowered, a fraction. Sad sign of the times, and sobers you up pretty quick. On the lighter side, for all you shopping nuts, if you come to London, and go to Oxford Street, you'll never want to leave. Miles of shopping...Me, the crowds were a bit much, so I had to duck into a CD/Book store...uh-oh how am I gonna get this stuff home? Now I have to do some further research for my ongoing scientific study.

One more thing...for now

2006-11-28T13:05:00.000-08:00

So I almost forgot. Last night I went to the Cinema to see the new Bond movie...which I thought was pretty good...grittier, and no self-parody. This was the TRUE Casino Royale, not the spoof, non Bond version of old, right Rob?? Anyways, the schedule said it would start at 5:30, so because I love trailers, I'm in my seat at 5:29....and proceeded to watch 20 minutes+ of advertisements...actual movie didn't start til 6. But what was truly funny was that the second ad that ran was one that boomed out in bold letters and full THX stereo "SKI AND VISIT BEAUTIFUL BANFF ALBERTA CANADA!!!!" I nearly fell out of my seat, and was howling laughing at how crazy the situation was.....and that's a true London story. Also, because of various comments to me about the expense of London, I have started a purely scientific study comparing "lifestyle"costs to those of beloved Canada...my study will be completed soon and published right here.

Navigation and other adjustments

2006-11-28T08:19:00.000-08:00

So, let me just say that London is crazy. I was wandering around yesterday and over the course of the day I was on our near Finchley road 3 times. No big deal right? Wouldn't be except that this occurred in three different parts of the city...yeah, directions are going to be fun " 301 Finchley road? well is that the one in East London, Northwest London or really Northwest London?"
Saw something cool, at this store called B&Q..which is like our Home Depot. You know at the front entrance, where they normally put the displays of things they want to push? Well guess what the 2 products on display were? On the right was the wonderful high efficiency, roof-mounted solar-powered hot water heater system...and on the left, wait for it.....your own, personal roof mounted wind turbine system...I almost broke out the old VISA and bought one of each and sent them home....course the price was crazy as is everything that actually conserves energy...but that's a rant for next post....

Jolly Ole London

2006-11-26T04:54:00.000-08:00

After a long trip...driving, flying, waiting, flying...zzzzz.....made it here. Though the 1 and a half hour custom line-up was charming, it wasn't til I got to the downtown did it really hit me that I fricking live in London now. Crossed the Thames around the same spot Caesar did, pretty cool. Oh well. Anyways, went to my flat, dropped my gear off, slept, then got up in time to roam around. Went down to High Road and found the Spotted Dog pub, which had cold beer on tap, NFL on the bigscreen, and Crown at the bar. Food was only mildly over-done too. Today I have to do some shopping and relax, then tomorrow I have to prowl around town setting everything up...and buying Lederhosen for the company Christmas party...stuff like that
Bloody right

On the Road

2006-11-20T10:23:00.000-08:00

So, crazy week(s). I left Calgary Saturday, and I'm making my way to London...the long way. I'm in Ontario now, visiting my folks, then it's off to NB to see Jen, Big Daddy Brad, and the kids, then off to London on Friday. Still not really thinking about what I'm doing, occupied with the getting it done part....taking pictures, but won't post them til my computer gets to me in a couple weeks.....

Lest We Forget

2006-11-11T09:53:00.000-08:00

Taking the time to honour and thank all of the veterans who when their country asked them to, they served, and sometimes sacrificed themselves so that we could live the free lives we lead, and free of oppression. Like my grandfather here, his brother who gave his life, my grandmother's brothers, and my cousin Wes who today serves his country. Thank you. They stand the watch so that we can sleep in peace and safety.

How Cool Is This??

2006-11-09T09:35:00.000-08:00

As soon as winter's over, everyone go out and buy one tree, dig a hole, and plant it...what did that take? an hour, maybe two? and what $20??? How easy was that?
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/TECH/science/11/08/nobel.trees.reut/index.html
Better yet, go to Marie's Trees and buy a truckload and plant them.....don't forget, to get on the property, you'll need a case of Kokanee...Wavy Tax

2006-11-08T11:41:00.000-08:00

Rise Against
Rush out to your nearest music store and buy "The Sufferer & the Witness". Even if you don't like the style of music, go to their website, http://www.riseagainst.com/, and read the lyrics....I loved their last album Siren Song of the Counter Culture, and this might actually be better.
Truth
Also, go to the link at the bottom for the "Buy Nothing Day".... and this Friday, November 24th, don't buy anything!!! I'm traveling from Halifax to London that day, and I don't plan on spending a cent. Check it out.

2006-11-08T10:38:00.000-08:00

Did We Need Another Reason????
How many more stories, studies and revelations do we need before we stop destroying the planet?
http://www.mytelus.com/travel/article.do?pageID=home&articleID=2442513&lid=today+box
I also read that they were shutting down the Great Barrier reef to tourism because it was being destroyed by the human impact on the environment. We suck.

2006-11-06T17:50:00.000-08:00

Off to the UK...
Oh yeah, moving there...almost forgot...
Stay tuned for fun filled fotos of my frolics and follies...yeah whatever
Anyways, follow all the action here.
Wrd Bloody Wrd

2006-11-06T17:36:00.000-08:00

New Tattoo!!!
Love it...we're all gonna have them in the future...I'm just getting a headstart

2006-11-06T17:05:00.000-08:00

Ok Kids...after a bit of a hiatus, I'm back and pissed off...oooooh scary...I know.
Anyways...2 stories, that of course intertwine and have impacts on one and other....
First, a study released by the University of Dalhousie in Halifax NS states that at the current rate of consumption, pollution, and human population growth, the entire seafood and fish stocks in every sea and ocean on Earth will be completely depleted...yeah you got it right...after 2048 no more fish sticks. Here's that cheery piece of news: http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/science/11/02/seafood.crisis.ap/index.html
And on the heels of that revelation, we have the Government of Canda, and our Fisheries Minister, Loyola Hearn, stating publicly that they will join Spain in voting against the UN General Assembly Moratorium on bottom trawl fishing in International waters. We, with Spain, are the lone dissenters. Norway, with their terrible track record in whaling and Grand Banks exploitation, Oz, New Zealand and the South Pacific with their history of destroying Sea Bass stocks and everyone's favorite punching bag, the US, are all committed to signing and upholding this proposal. Here is an online petition to sign if you think this is as messed up as I do:
http://www.petitiononline.com/dragging/petition.html
And here's the email address of our Right Honourable Fisheries Minster Hearn: Min@dfo-mpo.gc.ca Let her and the Government know what you think.
And here's a link to the Suzuki Foundation site that has loads of info on the issue....:
http://www.davidsuzuki.org/Oceans/Take_Action/

"Real Revolution begins at learning. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention" - Tim McIlrath

Peace....

2006-07-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

Just a quick comment. How is it, with Oil and Gas prices going through the roof, and the average Joe is being stuck with exorbinent prices, that are increased with such precision, you'd think that all of the Gas companies were one big corporation(collusion anyone??), that the CEO of Exxon, a company that posted record PROFITs this year, has all this extra cash that they can afford to pay their CEO a bonus package worth over $400 million dollars? Aren't these the same people who justify their constant price at the pump increases by saying that their profits are shrinking. People and the government need to wake up and see and act on this blatant price gouging and do something about it...unless of course the government's in on it, then it's up to the people.

2006-07-06T13:29:00.000-07:00

Not a heck of a lot going on to write about. Finished the fence, except for the second stain coat...sure isn't easy hanging a hundred pound gate by yourself without killing yourself, and having it actually swing true. Bought a new book, though I havent started it yet, called "The Ingenuity Gap" by Thomas Homer-Dixon. Looks good, talking about how we are outstripping our ability to compensate for our inventions and technology, and how things are just getting out of balance globally. My buddy Big Daddy Brad, his lovely wife Jen and the kids just sold their place here, and are moving end of the month to Moncton NB...going to be co-pilot on the old U-Haul trip from Cowtown, East, so we get to fight over music selections for 3 or 4 days. Actually found a wicked punk pub here in Calgary this week called the Castle Pub....they had Dead Kennedys, Dropkicks, Bad Religion on their jukebox...and tons more kick ass tunes...beer's cheap, everyone hangs out...good deal..plus they have Tuesday night Punk Rock Bingo...Too many crazy things going on in the world right now, and I havent read enough to really comment about...just wild...missiles, invasions...the usual suicide bombings...earth going to hell
But hey, Stampede starts tomorrow, so all can't be that bad right?

2006-06-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

So, been off back-country camping for last little bit. Incredible spot, a little place called Drywood Creek, deep in the SouthWest corner of Alberta, south of Pincher Creek, right by the Montana and BC border. Just amazing...had a little visit from a Bear who wanted to share the water of the creek, he didnt bug me and I didn't bug him. I sure hope we dont screw things up so bad that a hundred years from now we can't enjoy places like this. Saw a really cool thing on my way down. Driving down the #2 Hwy, started seeing these massive wind turbines, all set up in farms....I'm talking 100+ feet tall, and there'd be dozens of them, then you'd drive a couple more K's down the road, and there'd be more of them. I dont know how many there are in total, who they supply, and how much they supply of the province's consumption, but we need to start installing more of them to reduce our fossil fuel reliance..then maybe we will be able to visit Drywood creek in a hundred years and share it with the bears.

2006-06-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day
I didn't get a chance to post this yesterday...too busy building a frickin' fence...but I wasn't going to not post for this occasion, to recognize Father's day.
My Dad is the toughest guy I know...and I don't mean he can go out and get all Rocky Balboa, I mean internally, intestinally, just mentally tough. I have never ever heard him complain about anything, ever. No matter how tough times were, working all day and all night not a peep. Back's sore, nothing, arthritis kicking in, suck it up. Everything i've learned about work ethic, comes from my folks..and Dad being a huge part of that. Never in an in-your-face way, but just by example..walking the walk. So, now that I look back, and I see how I approach things and deal with things, and when I get compliments on my work ethic or am rewarded for doing a good job, I think back to where I learned it, and I'm thankful to have had a teacher. So thanks Dad.

2006-06-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

Buy this book!!!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0874771013/sr=8-2/qid=1150481735/ref=pd_bbs_2/103-3601258-5486205?%5Fencoding=UTF8

if the title turns you off "I don't study martial arts"....ignore the title.
This book has so many positive ways of applying thousand year old philosophies that came from martial arts, and applying them to our modern lives...all in anecdotes featuring the MAN Bruce Lee, and others...think of it like how modern Business leaders read "The Art of War" and applying it to big business..
This book when I first read it back in college has really changed my life. For example, Joe's story about visualizing the healing process served me when I was recovering from my back surgeries and helped me heal and learn to walk again months or years ahead of when the doctors told me I would...and I still use the "lengthen your line" analogy in business all the time...

wrd

2006-06-16T08:19:00.000-07:00

On Thursday this week, US President Bush announced the creation of a new marine sanctuary that would be protected as a National Monument. It's going to encompass over 140,000 square miles of ocean, reef, and island archipelago. That's an area bigger than 46 out of the 50 states...and is home to over 7000 unique animal species, a quarter of them not found anywhere else in the world.
Now, we bash the Bush administration and other politicians constantly, and quite often with good cause, but maybe just this once they did something that we can take as being a truly good, altruistic act. Anyways, in a world and a time where both the media and the public create and spew constant negativity, and cynicism, we can just pause and appreciate one good act.

2006-06-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday me and my buddy Big Daddy Braddy, got together at the Blackfoot Diner for some greasy spoon diner breakfast, then went to our favorite used music place, Recordland on 9th Ave. They have a huge selection...and when you buy 3 $10 CDs you get them for $25...good deal..
Anyways...been feeling pretty angry and aggressive lately, which explains what I got:

Descendants - Two Things at Once (Milo Goes to College & Bonus Fat)
Ozzfest 2001 - bang yer head and get those devil horns out
Rollins Band - Come In and Burn

wrd

2006-06-14T13:14:00.000-07:00

check out the United Nations Foundation .
I only really stumbled into and got involved with this since I read an article by Rick Reilly of SI talking about the desperate need for mosquito netting in Africa to prevent the spread of Malaria, and then when you look at it, see the staggering figures...like every 30 seconds 1 African child dies as a result of Malarial infection...that 1 Million children a year...1 MILLION...so when you look at this, the $20 bucks you can donate gives 2 families insectiside treated mosquito nets that last about 4 years...not too bad...and the best part about this and other campaigns for the UN Foundation...thanks to Ted Turner, and the $1 Billion dollars he donated to cover admin costs...well, you dont have to worry about donating 10 dollars and only a nickel reaching the people who need it...plus unlike medical supply donations, the local warlords wont be likely to hijack truckloads of nets..so it may actually get there and do some good...anyways, the foundation website gives all the info, plus all of their programs and campaigns...a very worthwhile thing to be involved in...