Work was crappy! But oddly enough, I had better luck than everyone else. Now that's a change of pace. Here's what happened: (Note: Tommy mucked up his leg on Monday in a workplace accident - but continues to work in spite of not really being able to bend his right knee, also in spite off the doctors recommendations)

1. Tommy hit and punctured 2 barrels of Codine waste with the towmotor. Big spill, lots of cleaning up.
2. Frank got hit in the face with a piece of glass - it somehow managed to evade both his safety glasses and his respirator to cut wide and deep into his cheek.
3. Mike managed to drop a few thousand pounds of ballasts when a pallet broke in half as he tried to move a stack with the forklift. Oddly enough though, a bunch was saved by slamming into a nearby wall and smashing the glass covering over a firehose. After a lot of effort, we managed to clean everything up.

So there's an example of the ill luck that befell the members of our crew. I came out oddly unscathed, other than having to do a lot of shitty work and help deal with the other problems. We were all forced to skip out on break to get the excess of work done.

Tomorrow is going to be an absolute joy. I'll be woken up bright and early so we can move on out of our townhome and into the fancy new house. Problem is, I only got home from work a bit ago, and it's 3am. Might be tired tomorrow, perhaps. Wayne and I will be the fellas doing all the loading and unloading. I can't wait to see how fun it is with the snow and cold. Snow flurries are expected for tomorrow, which is as it should be. Then I'm supposed to goto work for the normal 5-1:30 shift. Still not sure if I'll be able to make it, but I told the guys I'd be in. I can't really afford to miss another day of work after already missing Monday because of picking the parents up at the airport. But mom insists I should take tomorrow off so I can stay and finish moving. Besides, she says, I'll be dragging my ass all night at work anyhow.

But moving is supposed to be happy, in this case. Why? Because we're going from a shitty place, to a really good place. So, I can be happy. Just pardon me if I don't have the energy to shout out my pleasure while jumping up and down.

Finally, you my readers may have figured it out for yourselves already, but I'll most likely be taking a few days off. I have no idea when we'll be getting the internet hooked up at the new place. For all I know it could be all planned already to have it by Saturday. Or, it could be a week. Who knows. I sure as hell hope it isn't a long wait though.

On that note, I'm off to get some sleep. Peace out folks.

INotD: TiddlyWinks. This refers to someone acting really, really girly.

~K

First things first. Today at work I composed a short song. What inspired this random act of creativity you ask? Well, I was outside working in the glass bin, shoveling glass - Yay!! It was cold, yet somehow I managed to sweat doing that for half an hour. Anyhow, the song is pretty short, and may not make sense to some, even with the background I just gave.

"I got the wind in my face, and I don't fucking like it. Da-nananana nananananana, na."

Thank you, thank you.

Next up, I've seen the future. That is, the future of Canadian One Hundred Dollar notes. I must say, the future looks mighty bright. Go here to look, and admire. Don't forget to look at both the front and back. I'm pretty impressed. Not just with this new note (To be put into circulation on March 17th of this year), but with the whole series of new notes, titled The Canadian Journey Series. Each new bill has really done a great job of emphasizing what it is to be Canadian, while at the same time possessing wonderful designs and world class security. My kudos goes out to everyone involved in the creation, these are truly notes to be proud of.

I can't wait for the new $20 and $50, both scheduled to be released by the end of the year.

INotD: Sac. This is Danny's favorite word at the moment. Not spelt Sack, as I would spell it. No, he likes to cut out the 'k'. I suppose for ease of typing. In conversations with the big D, it's not unusal to hear him calling someone, anyone, a sac. Hence, it has made its way onto my list.

~K

For those of you pervs who want to actually HELP someone, why don't you check this out? (By the way, this may require a very large sum of cash.)

For those people who want a laugh, check this out:

This just in from Alberta....

A scientist from Calgary's University has invented a bra that keeps women's breasts from jiggling and prevents the nipples from pushing through the fabric when cold Canadian weather sets in.

At a news conference announcing the invention the scientist was taken outside by a large group of cowboys and had the shit kicked out of him.

See, them Albertan cowboys know what bra's are really for.

Today I shoveled the driveway - it was covered in about a foot of snow. Then, when I was done that, I went over and helped the dutch lady with her driveway because she was trying to use a bloody piece of crap little plastic shovel lol and I felt pretty bad for her - what with her being a n00b n'all. So I carried over my bigass bucket shovel and helped her out. What a good Canadian I am.

Unfortunately, the asshole that owns this complex STILL hasn't bothered to plough out the entrace driveway, so everyone has been having a helluva time trying to get in and out. Getting in is extra hard because at the entrance there's like a 60 degree grade, and it kinda hinders the efforts. When I got home from work I had to take a good run at with with an asian guy pushin my car before it finally worked. I didn't really need his help when I took the big run at it, but was happy he came out though - now that's some decency I can appreciate. The problem is that the street isn't ploughed either, and it runs on about a 15 degree grade, so I had trouble enough getting and speed up there. Then, the dude was right behind me and I was trying to get out of his way. Coming into the turn at an angle was a bad idea, after he stopped and got out to help, I took the time to straighten out, and get a proper run at it. From there on in, it was just a matter of go, reverse, take another run at it - get a few more feet - reverse - run at it again, until I got down to ole #9.

Any bets on whether it'll get ploughed tomorrow?

Today's INotD is brought to us by my special guest, Colin. He likes to consider himself "the man", and as it happens, he often manages to be "the man". Here's his offering:



Colin: Ass-head. It's important to note that as well as a rear end, ass also means donkey. This may seem harmless on the surface, but it goes deeper. In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Puck changes Bottom's head to that of an ass. This reflects the idiotic nature of Bottom and his way of acting too intelligent for his own abilities. Hence, ignorant and stupid people are ass-heads.

It was snowy today. It took me 2 bloody hours to get to the airport via the 401 cuz it was pretty much a blizzard out there. As I made my way eastbound into the city, I passed a moderate pileup of cars, trucks, and semi's in the westbound lane. The drive home took even longer than the drive there, as it happens.

The good news is that I ended up not going into work. Firstly, because it was already pretty late, and secondly because look at the damn weather! I take secondary highways to work, and I wasn't about to drive through that for a small portion of a shift - providing anyone was even there. Last week the supervisor didn't show up when we had the big dumping of snow - he lives out in the boonies. Or, inasmuch as southern Ontario has boonies.

Anyhow, that's about all I've the energy to write for now. Peace out folks.

INotD: Tushmonkey.

~K

Ok everyone, go here and read.

Now, lets talk for a second about this. At first I thought this was just a joke. But it's posted on the official White House homepage, so it can't be a joke. Why? Because would they really post something like this just as a joke? It really does a wonderful job of making Bush look like a complete moron - not like he needed anymore help.

So, then I was thinking, could the site have been perhaps hacked and this garbage put up? Not likely, it was posted 3 days ago. I think if it was hacked it would have been taken down by now. For example - I saw a popular brand website get hacked once - the hacker message was taken down within minutes. The site was down for most of the remaining day - but the damaging evidence was removed.

Next, does someone running the site just NOT like the President? Look again, this transcript is marked "For Immediate Release, Office of the Press Secretary". Maybe someone there saw the transcript of Bush's conversation and found it so incredibly amusing that it had to be posted. Perhaps someone in that office really thinks he's a moron and wanted to prove it.

Finally, and most likely. Bush was simply being his idiot self, and the transcript HAD to be posted for no other reason than the peoples right to know and all that jargon.

C'mon folks, he's the Commander in Chief of the most powerful army in the world;
GET THE MAN SOME RIBS!!!!!!!!!!!

INotD: Gomer. This means the person is incredibly gullible/stupid.

~K

Well, tonight turned out to not be so boring after all. After talking on the phone with Kathryn for about two hours, I decided to go for a drive. Why not? I love driving - doesn't matter whether its summer or winter. Thus did I hop in the Grand Am and go driving.

So I was cruisin around the University when I saw this woman standing in the middle of the road, not knowing her intentions I slowed right down. When I was almost upon her she stepped in front of me and started waving, so I stopped and opened the window. She had no jacket on whatsoever, just a shirt. She asked if I could give her a ride home, so I said ok. She had been waiting out in the cold minus twenty something weather for 20 minutes waiting for a cab. She said and was freezing. I took the hint and cranked the heat.

By the way, she was bloody hammered. As in drunk. Very drunk.

So first she said she would "Make it worth my while" if I gave her a ride. An odd thing to say perhaps, that could be taken in many ways. Then she wanted to goto McDonalds, and wanted to buy me something to eat. I assumed this was the reward, so I politely declined citing how recent I had last eaten. After a long wait at the drive though line, I ordered a McChicken burger with a sprite for her. Paying was difficult, she had trouble aiming her fingers at the correct buttons to pay using her bank card. Eventually this was mastered, and we began the short trek to her complex.

The digital clock on the dash of the car read 12:50 by this time. She thought that meant she owed me twelve dollars and fifty cents. Why? Because as it turns out, she was positive I was a cab driver. I declined her payment numerous times. She didn't have any cash though, and was hoping to pay me using her bank card. I admitted that I haven't the technology to take her payment. Then, she gave me her Old Navy gift card citing that it had $25 on it. I responsed by telling her that I don't shop at Old Navy so she'd be better off to keep her card (Perhaps use the money toward a jacket?).

After 5-10 minutes of her trying to find ways to pay me and my constant refusals to accept any sort of monetary tokens - she declared me to be a nice guy. So she wrote down her phone number and msn address in case I decided that I did require payment. The phone number is illegible, but the msn is just barely readable.

When she left, I waited patiently in the driveway while she stopped at no less than 3 doors in her quest to discover the proper entrance to her home. When she finally made her way into the building, I backed out and drove home. Turns out the drive was an eventful one.

I think I've done my good deed for the day. Upon reflection, it occurs to me that she really is lucky that I was the one she decided to flag down, as opposed to someone else who may not have been so kind. Should I puff out my chest and declare that I may have saved her life? hmm.

INotD: My special guest today is none other than one of the best actors in the world. Johnny Depp. Unfortunately, I'm not personally aquainted with Mr. Depp, but I do have a quote from a recent movie - Once Upon a Time in Mexico. I especially enjoyed this movie, Depp performance was great - as usual. The INotD for today is Fuckmook. The quote I derived the term from is: "I can't see! Fuckmook! I don't have any eyes!".

~K

Yay! It's the weekend! I'm VERY pleased now. Another week of work completed, another couple hundred bucks in the bank - there is reason to smile. Since I'm supposed to spend the bulk of my weekend packing for the move next weekend, I think I'll pick up a case of beer to keep me company. Yes, that's right, moving again. I hate moving, it's a goddamn pain in the ass, yet for some reason I keep doing it. This'll be the 4th place I've lived in within an 18 month span. But whatever, it's all good. At least it'll be a really nice place, and my rent is extremely reasonable - even though it requires living with the parents :\.

I was asked to do some overtime this weekend. My response was "Oh yeah, I'll think about it" as I was thinking Fuck that. I have quite enough tedium planned for the weekend without subjecting myself to yet another painful shift.

hmm, ok that's good for now. I'm too lazy to type more at this particular juncture.

In a continuance of the guest star theme, today's INotD comes from none other than Vicarus; the man who should have won a Chezzie award simply because he is who he is - Vic. The offering for the day is: Pillowbiter. When queried about the origin, Vic replies with a shrug and "picked it up somewhere along the way". Doubtless, if you called someone a Pillowbiter in anger, they would be left sufficiently off balance for you to claim a victory for that particular exchange.

~K

WoOoOOoOoooo that was fun driving. Ok, so we got a fairly decent dumping of snow today. It started early this afternoon and went right up until I left work, and it was goin pretty heavy too. So, that means funky driving conditions on the way home at 1:30am, right? Right you are! It was great fun! First off, Frank and I decided to have some fun when we left work. He's driving an Acura EL (I think he said a 99) and I'm driving a 99 Grand Am (Built for Excitement!). So we jammed out of the parking lot and did some good ebrake slides. It was pretty funny, we'll have to jest about it tomorrow. The rest of the drive home was fun too. You see, the route I take to work is all secondary highways, so none had benefitted from any form of snow removal by the time I was making my way home. Anyhow, I was ploughing through the drifts, havin a good time. Then I got back into the city, and the roads really weren't too much better, so there was still fun to be had! So did some good sliding turns and jammin through the snow. Fun was had, then I got home.

That reminds me of something else, my retarded neighbours. So the wife is Australian, and the husband I think is Australian as well I'm not sure, but neither of them are native Canadians anyhow. So, that would explain their retarded winter behavior. It snows here. This is normal, we counter this by shoveling our driveways. Usually it'll snow, then it'll stop snowing. That's when we go clean off those driveways. Makes sense? Remember, I live in a townhouse, so that means our garages are side-by-side and we share a wide driveway. So anyhow, at the start of the season if I was out there first I'd shovel the whole area, and if they were out there first, they would do it. It was kind of a good neighbourly understanding. That works for me, I don't mind doing their driveway for them I have a good bucket shovel.

But the understanding has disappeared. Nowadays, they do only their half of the driveway, and offload excess snow onto my half. Perhaps it's just me, but I find that rude. You see, I suppose the understanding disappeared because they're always out there before I am. Why? Because they DON'T wait until it stops snowing.

"Hey, there's snow on the driveway. I'd better go shovel it off. Even though it'll be covered again in a few minutes thus making my efforts basically pointless."

My guess, is they decided that since they're always out there first, then they'll do their half only. That's just dandy, but for crying out loud, don't be so bloody rude as to pile up more of your snow onto my side.

The funny thing? I wait until it stops snowing, then I shovel both sides - because even though they've already shoveled - there's always a coat of snow on their side. Just trying to restore the good faith here. Hasn't worked yet though.

No matter, I'm moving in 9 days, so who gives a shit right?

INotD: Today we have a guest spot! The man himself, Shade! When asked about names he likes to call people his replies were: "tough call, I usually just stick to the basics... 'fucker', and the like." and "or 'dumbfuck', but that's hardly original". We decided to go with the later, with the consensus that its an "oldie but (a) goodie". Hence, today's INotD is: Dumbfuck. Shade also had the grace to provide us with an example, here it is:

"wow, another stupid dumbfuck who doesn't know how to drive."

That sounds perfectly Winnipegish to me.

~K

I came home from work tonight and was greeted by an incessant beeping sound. Irritated, I searched for the source, and found it. A little carbon monoxide alarm. Neat, never even realized we had one. I read all the instructions and information on the back, and according to what it says, it's a real alarm, and not a dead battery or service time. Seeing as it's 2am (That's when I get home from work) I really don't feel like following the instructions that bid me call 911 and leave the area immediately for fresh air. All that would serve to do is wake probably everyone up in my townhouse complex, and cause me a load of discomfort. So I opened all the windows around the place, and unplugged the alarm. It's 3:51am right now, and I'm still alive, so perhaps it's working. But the temperature inside has dropped from a relatively balmy 17 degrees down to 3 degrees, and it's still dropping. Damn, I guess when I wake up in the morning the water jug will be frozen and I'll have frost on my face.

Actually, I've got an idea, lets really see if the open windows has been working. I'll go plug the alarm back in.

There we go, well no beeps yet. Well, it beeped a couple times when I first hooked it back up - but I think those were just beeps of displeasure. So does that mean it's safe to goto bed now? I was thinking, since it's so cold in here now, the furnace is running constantly to try and keep things warm (and failing - hard to compete with 5 open windows and -23 outside). So, the GAS furnace is running, and I have a GAS leak from - oh, probably the furnace since there's nowhere else for it to be coming from. Is this a good think that I'm giving it some hard work? Maybe, maybe not. Anyhow, I'm getting pretty tired now...tired...lightheaded...sleeeeeeeeep.

If I'm not back tomorrow, call for help.

INotD: This one is comes courtesy of Shade - he saw it on Showcase tonight while watching some movie about Winnipeg and insisted I put it on. I must warn you though, this one is more offensive than all the other entries, so the faint of heart can stop reading right here. But then again, I don't think any panzies read my blog, soooo: Babyfucker.

~K

So I was thinking, this year looks to be a big year for movie grosses. In spite of the whiny commercials we see at the start of every movie now (Stop stealing our movies, you'll make us go broke ), Hollywood continues to rake in massive coin. So, with that in mind, I thought hmm, what do I think will be the top 5 highest grossing movies this year? Here are the results of my (brief) deliberations:

1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (June)- The others were huge, but Chamber made slightly less than the first, will that trend continue? Or will Azkaban break out? I have a feeling it will. Edit: I just moved Harry Potter from second to first because after thinking about it, I decided that Harry Potter has a lot more international appeal than Spider-Man, and hence will in the long run make more money overall.
2. Spider-Man 2 (July)- Did anyone notice how much money the first made? This is pretty much guaranteed to make a fortune.
3. Shrek 2 (May)- Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy will make triumphant returns to good comedy when this baby comes out.
4. Troy (May)- It's got a lot of star power going for it, a lot of hype, a huge budget, and a masterpiece of historical writing. Hopefully its not botched, but the sheer spectacle alone will vault this movie into the top ranks.
5. King Arthur (July) - It was a tough decision with this one, because there are so many other notable entries, I chose this one because everyone loves the story - and if this is done right, everyone will love the movie. Besides that, Keira Knightly seems to be on a winning streak - I think that'll continue.

Notable Entries: Van Helsing, Alexander and Hidalgo.

Movies I think look stupid: Chronicles of Riddick, Sky Captain and World of Tomorrow.

Now, I'm probably missing some other potential big ones, and there's always the sleepers that come out of nowhere and hit everyone with rave reviews and big cash. (Big Fat Greek Wedding anyone?) But I'm betting on these ones, pretty much because they're safe bets. Guess we'll see what happens as the year progresses :).

INotD: Typhoon. This one dates back to grade 6 - usually pronounced in such moronic fashion as "Taaaiiifooooooiinnnnnaaaaahhh". Stupid? Yes.

~K

I was thinking today about that oh so common saying 'misery loves company'. Why? Because just the other day I was talking with some people, and they were speaking of the hard times in their lives, and like a true ass - I kept getting that urge to say "Oh yeah? Well my life has been shit because...". I didn't, thankfully, because what a way to disrespect the people I was talking with, to try and compete with their history. What a way to disrespect the things I've gone through as well. We don't trudge through the shit and sludge that makes up our lives to complain about it later and try to make ourselves out as the tragic heroes - but to learn from it and become better people. With that in mind, I thought I might compile a little list of a few things. Not reasons why I should hate my life, but instead reasons why I should be thankful and happy with it. Here goes:

- I'm thankful my mom, my brother and I packed up one fateful day and left everything behind.
- I'm thankful for restraining orders.
- I'm thankful for my brother Dan, for being a pillar of support (even though we fought bloody often) and single handedly bringing to a close the worst 5 years of my life that I often refer to as "the dark years".
- I'm happy I went to university, and paid my own way through it (with the help of a free place to live courtesy of mom and Wayne).
- I'm thankful for all the friends/companions I've met (James, Colin, Kathryn, Barrett, Cory, Sandy, Lina, Burton to name just a couple).
- I'm happy that I've worked shitty labour jobs, because like Wayne always says at least I know what I really don't what to do now that I'm finished university.
- Probably most importantly, I'm thankful for my step father Wayne. The guy who through sheer determination and dedication dragged this family out of the fucking toilet and got us to where we are now.
- I'm thankful that a surgery exists that can repair broken knees - even though I haven't taken advantage of it yet - I will one day.
- I'm thankful for a memory that constantly reminds me where I've come from, and reminds me that nothing good in this life comes easily and without a shitload of effort.

Ok, so that's what I can come up with right now. I think the thing about a list like this, is that it's a lot harder to make than a list of things to be unhappy about. I could go on all day if I decided to bitch about the things that have pissed me off or 'ruined' my life. But what's the fucking point? The important things are those that I just mentioned, those things that make life worth living in spite of all the shit.

I've written this up stone cold sober at the urging of a certain someone (whom I send strong props to), but now that I'm done I think it's time for a drink. :) Perhaps some supper to go with it as well; being serious for a change works up an impressive appetite.

~K

I just finished reading "A Game of Thrones" by George R. R. Martin (I mentioned this book a little while back), and I must day: that book seriously kicked ass. What a way to end it, luckily I have the second book "A Clash of Kings" right here, because otherwise I'd go mad with lust for the sequel. As it is, only three books are out in the series, with the fourth hovering around completion. Martin promises the series will be no more, and no less than six books, thus avoiding the "When will it ever end?" syndrome that plagues some of the major series' out today.

Anyhow, I'm off to read some more. :D


INotD: StubbleNuts

~K

Today, I decided to give a slightly different offering from the usual fare. It's a poem! Yes, I know, poetry is boring etc etc. But in so many ways, it isn't. So read this little piece I wrote up a couple years ago and let me know how you like it :).


A Test In Devotion

It was at this time very late,
That I sat with my newest mate;
I looked upon her face uncreased,
And along this body I would feast;
Across from us, the bed we’d lay,
I turned to her, so I could say;
"I speak the truth, and hear no lies,
As the young, old men cannot rise,
So let us mingle, before time flies."

She looked at me and said aloud,
“You would seduce me? Who is so proud?
Yet I see in your eyes I cannot resist,
My only choice now is but to desist.”
Then she looked at me, eyes thin and sultry,
With joy, I knew I’d won my adultery;
Yet even as we tore off our clothes in glee,
What to my lusting eyes should I see?
This thing, sharing an appendage with me!

I screamed and yelled, and ran away,
From the foul room where that creature lay;
I vowed I would never tell my wife,
This most terrible episode of my life;
The next day she asked me for the truth,
The whole thing, with nothing construeth;
I looked right into her eyes,
And may all forgive me for my lies,
I said “I was out drinking with the guys.”

It's so hard to believe a n00b like me came up with such, such WONDERFUL poetry hey? ;).


INotD: Jizzmopper.

~K

Edit: The last 3 lines of each stanza are supposed to be indented 7 spaces but this cheap bloody crappy blogger editor won't take any sort of formatting, no tabs, no spaces...

Go HERE now!

That's the new Pontiac G6 that some of you may or may not remember me mentioning in an earlier blog. All I can say is - wow! That car looks so freaking great! I desperately need to win a lottery so I can buy a GTP, or a GXP when it inevitably comes out.

~K

So Manchester United recently picked up 18 year old Striker Dong Fangzhou, you may have noticed from the name that he's of Chinese origin. The initial fee was 500,000 pounds and may go as far as 3.5m depending on the number of first team appearances. Lets hope he kicks some ass for the Red Devils!

So I was driving to Toronto this morning to drop the folks off at Pearson Airport. Was curious what kind of traffic the 401 would have for the time, it was 5am and as it turned out Ontario's Superhighway was rather busy. I'm a big fan of the 401, I fervently believe freeways are wonderful means of moving traffic (people/goods), and that they're an integral part of any city's infastructure. Out there it consists of a mere 3 lanes per side, but in the city is where it opens up. So here we were, just past 5:30 in the morning, cruising at 125 down the highway when we passing the 401/403/410 junction. I take a look around at the 10 lanes of eastbound traffic and am greeted with a sea of taillights. Damn, I guess the morning rush does start pretty early here, a lot moreso than back in little Winnipeg anyhow :P.

I deliberated only briefly upon it, but I was thinking just how great the 401 is at moving traffic. There's a helluva lot to be moved, and it does an admirable job, which is probably why I'm such a big fan. That's not to say there aren't flaws. Times when the traffic builds and backs up are often the result of choke points as I like to refer to them as. Now, entry's and exits build up as well, but there's not much that can be done to lessen the impact of that reality other than the inclusion of 'Collectors' which has already been done, so that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about on the westbound 401 as when it goes from 10 lanes down to 3 within a few hundred metres. I'm perfectly aware that a bunch of it is send off down the southbound 403 and northbound 410, but never-the-less, this area is backed up EVERYDAY during the evening rush hour, because it's a major choke point and there's bloody shitloads of traffic leaving the city. Something really should be done someday about that. Next chokepoint is on the eastbound 401 just past the 427. At this point the collector branches off to the south and north shortly after merging part of its eastbound traffic with the express, then the express continues as 5 or 6 lanes up until it merges with the 409. So here's my problem, there's a lot of construction going on around here, so it's hard to complain about it since I haven't going through here without construction, but think about it: 10 lanes drops to 6, then at the 409 merge point it separates again into a express and collector section, but because of the construction there's only 1 lane going into the express and 2 going into the collector. Damnit, that's unacceptable! I hope it's not so bad where all the work is finished, but since I've been here all year it's been brutal to see. Traffic gets backed up a long, long ways.

Anyhow, I'm sure no one really was interested in reading about my freeway rant. But I just felt the need to get that off my chest. I still love the 401 I think it's a wonderful mover of traffic. I guess everyone should just be happy I didn't go into a rant about the very disturbing possibility of the Gardiner Expressway being dismantled (hello!?! how do you expect to get people in and out of downtown!?).

Now, I must goto work. We had a PCB spill last night, lets see what happens this eve!

INotD: StinkyNuts.

~K

A recent study from the University of California has revealed that living further north is a direct cause of longer life. As it happens, the cells in our northern bodies are far better are heating us up - they create more heat energy with less work. This allows us to deal better with the cold and, I assume, keep our bodies in better condition hence giving us a longer lifespan. I heard it on the radio while working, so I don't have all the details on the study other than what I've just posted. But hey, there's another great reason to be a Canadian!

INotD: Slapjack.

~K

So I was thinking about what to write today and I realized that I have yet another reason to complain about how dumb people can be. Last week my mom got hit by a car while she was in the parking lot at Sobeys. No, she wasn't in her car, she was walking TO her car.

Luckily, she wasn't severely damaged. So here's what happened, she's walking to her car on the left side of the road, she's within reaching distance of her Grand Am - which is to say literally right beside it. When a car comes from BEHIND (yes, that means the vehicle was on the wrong side) and sideswipes her. As as explanation, the female driver claimed that her windshield was too dirty, and she didn't see my mom in front of her.

Here's some free advice: Clean Your Windshield You Goddamn Idiot! If it's so dirty that you can't see people in front of you, then perhaps that should give you just a BIT of a clue. You, whoever the hell you are, have won the right to wear the "Fucking Moron" hat that I only gift out on special occasions. Nice job.

The following INotD comes courtesy of a certain FaitH player known as Valiant, or Jix. Anyhow, this comes from a website www.redvsblue.com, and Val seems to really love it. So without further ado, I give you: Cock-Bite!

~K (ks_world_blog@hotmail.com)

Went and saw Return of the King again today. That's the third time so far. Damn do I love that movie! Saw the SpiderMan 2 trailer again as well, damn I can't wait for that one to come out. Lookin forward to Spidey kicking Dr. Octopus in the ass.

In other news, I just fought off my fifth spontaneous nose bleed in the last 2 days, guess it's just a tad dry or somethin round here. Either that or I'm not receiving a proper vitamin intake, as that may cause nosebleeds so I've heard. Can't be from work, I wear a damned respirator all day.

Been listening to a band called Twelve Stones lately, and I must say they're pretty good. A lot of the songs have a bit of a similar sound, which makes me worry about creativity - but at least they're all of a consistent quality. That is to say, I'm enjoying the music. Running out of Pain and The Way I Feel have both left impressions on me thus far.

Speaking of bands, I'm still listening fervently to my Ill Nino's latest offering - Confession. What a kick ass CD! I'd have to say it's one of the best hard rock albums to come out in 2003. Now those guys definitely have range, from the hard anger of Te Amo...I Hate You and Lifeless Life, to the more melodic sounds found in Unframed, How Can I Live and This Times For Real. In truth, every song on this album is a gem. It's hard to say whether or not Confession is a stronger effort than their previous album Revolution Revolution. I'd have to say that in many ways, as a whole it is a superior effort simply because the level of overall refinement has risen - and it's obvious when comparing the tracks. But I must admit, some of my favorite Ill Nino tunes come from Revolution Revolution: With You, What Comes Around, and If You Still Hate Me. Let us simply say that it's a kick ass band.

INotD: Turd-Tapper. Self explanatory, again.

~K

It's funny how people can have such varied perceptions on temperature. I was talking to a fellow (Frank) I work with today about it. He was born in Costa Rica, and has lived in Canada for...not sure, a pretty long time, 10 years maybe? Anyhow it was -26 outside, and it was being complained about on the radio, people at work were going on about how damned cold it was. I mean, I'm certainly not going to say -26 isn't cold, because it sure as hell is. I was feeling pretty bloody chilled - probably because I was wearing only a t-shirt.

So Frank and I were talking about the cold, and what it can be like where I come from. That is to say, I come from the north. At least, relative to Waterloo (and certainly Costa freakin Rica), I come from pretty far north (Fairview, Alberta - look it up on a map). Anyhow, I simply talked about things that were normal during winter - walking to and from school for half an hour (1km - 4 trips a day) in anywhere from -10 to -55 (I'm factoring in windchill here. Oh, and for you Fahrenheit junkies -10'C is 14F while -55'C is -67F). By the time you arrive at your destination any exposed hair is covered by ice, everytime you blink your frozen eyelashes stick together, and it takes an effort to reopen the eyes. Any day that my eyelashes didn't freeze, I considered a nice day. Frank on the other hand found this absolutely amazing. The great thing is I didn't even have to embellish whatsoever.

I suppose that means he wouldn't have gone out to play hockey with us last week when it was -40?

But one has to be honest with oneself. If I had lived in a milder climate, then it would be equally intolerable to imagine such extremes as well. I was watching the news from Boston the other day, and couldn't help but find myself incredibly amused by the "DEEP FREEZE" they were suffering, and how incredibly cold it was (-7F, -22C) and how it was going to get even more mind-bendingly cold (-17F, -27C!!!!). I just laughed and called them wimps. But hey, for them - that's pretty chilly. Guess I gotta put things into perspective.

We northerners love to make fun of those less hardy than us, even though we secretly wish we had a warmer climate (but not too warm, because we looove our winter sports and activities). Also, just think, if all the pansies were as hardy as us, then who would we be able to make fun of?

INotD: Cock-knocker.

~K

First day back at work turned out to be not as bad as I'd feared. I ended up doing clippings for most of the day. It's an entirely mind numbing task, but easy - so I didn't really mind sitting back and doing it.

I was also gifted with an excess of sleep last night; almost 12 hours. So I'm feeling pretty damned good right now. In fact I think when I'm done this, I'll go read A Game of Thrones for a hour or two. For those of you who don't know the book I speak of, it's by George R.R. Martin, and it's the first in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. I just started today, so I'm only 70 pages in. Thus far though, it looks to have vast potential. The description is great, the dialogue moves well, and the world is vibrant with a richly textured history. I've been told that it's excellent political fantasy, and with what I've seen so far this series has the depth to be named with the best. All of this praise and I'm not even 10% through the book? Yep, I'm that excited about it.

I'd like to take this opportunity to recommend another book to all the fantasy readers who may peruse these ramblings. The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker (Book 1 of The Prince of Nothing)came out a few months back and I must say, it is excellent. It possesses all those wonderful qualities I was just praising in Martin's book. I strongly advise fantasy fans give it a look.

I'm going to go read my book now!

INotD: Assclown. (Props to C on that one.)

~K

I'm back in Ontario, and I've returned with mixed feelings. I still haven't slept and it's just about midnight. I'm NOT looking forward to going back to work tomorrow. But I guess ya do what ya gotta do for the cash we all love and hate.

Anyhow, I think I'm finally going to get some sleep. I'll be back tomorrow night with a more substantial offering.

INotD: Pudwacker. That one is pretty self explanatory.

~K

Today was my last full day in Winnipeg. The first item on the agenda was a trip to the University where I was assaulted by bouts of nostalgia. I remember well those days of class skipping - watching movies or playing foosball in the Science lounge, eating pizza from the Greenhouse Cafe. Good times, good times.

I had to fix up the graduation date that somehow had gotten screwed up. I insisted I had declared my date months ago, the office countered that I hadn't. I said I filled out a form doing so. They said no, you can't do it via forms - only via internet and phone. Having no immediate argument, I mumbled inanely about how memory can apparently confuse things. No more than three minutes laterthough , I was offered a form to fill out. A form to declare my new grad date. It looked oddly familiar too. At this point, there was really no point in arguing the case - it's not like they can go back and give me my degree when I was supposed to get it. Yet I simply find it odd the way it all played out. I think someone just lost my original offering.

For the evening, we went to Triple B's and played a lot of pool. In spite of being really rusty, I don't think I played too bad for the most part. It was good though, Triple B's used to be a fav hang out back shortly after it opened a few years back, brought back memories of good times.

Finally, as my flight departs Winnipeg in no less than 245 minutes, I'd like to offer my kudos to everyone who took the time to visit and help make this a great visit. Dan and Kelly for letting me live in their house and take over their computer, I gift to you the remainder of my Ciclon rum, enjoy! Cory/Sandy/James/Elena you guys rock for visiting (very!) often and driving me places when there was need (James can have yet another nod for Worms and Mancala ;) ). Colin cuz he continues to r0X0r and did a funny spinout on Wellington ;). Barrett, Burton, Lina, and Myles are not to be forgotten either.

It's been a fabulous time, and I really cringe at the thought of it all ending so soon. I do indeed miss this little wanna-be (as I affectionately call it) city of Winnipeg.

Here's a rundown of some memorable moments:

- Playing hockey at -40`C with Dan and Darcy.
- Shopping with James and Elena
- Driving with Cory and Sandy in extreme winter conditions - it was like rally driving!
- Voluntarily mopping the floor at Black's while Cory and Sandy watched in amusement.
- Spinning out on Wellington with Colin, Burton and Lina. Then watching two other cars spin out at the exact same spot right after us.
- New Years Eve with everyone
- Tonight at Triple B's with Cory, Sandy, Colin, Barrett, Myles, and Dan.
- Drinking at The Toad in the Hole with Colin, Burton, Lina, Cory and Sandy.
- The endless hours of playing Worms with James, Colin, Cory, Sandy and Ivan.
- Endless hours playing BF1942 with Dan.
- The Shell incident with Dan.
- Lauren and Liam constantly driving me absolutely crazy.
- Watching Canucks hockey/World Juniors with Dan + Kelly.
- The whole damned thing

Thus concludes my Winnipeg wrap-up. I don't plan on sleeping; what's the point I'd have to get up in 1.5hours anyhow. I'll sleep during the flight :).

~K (ks_world_blog@hotmail.com)

Oh! Can't forget the INotD:

Pylon. Used to illustrate extreme stupidity and/or uselessness in an individual.

Saw the game today, and it turned out to just be a piss off. The teams played an even enough first period, followed by complete Canadian domination in the second. The third started off great, then the US scored a good goal off a 3 on 2 to pull within one, scored another goal that bounced off Fleury and over his head into the net to tie the game. Then, in a mistake that will take a long time for the Canadian goalie to live down - Fleury attempted to play the puck and flipped it straight into his own defender, bouncing it back into the Canadian net. It's hockey, mistakes happen, but what a terrible time to get such an unlucky bounce. That blooper reel product turned out to be the game winner. It's a crappy way to go. But that's how sports go, results don't always come the way you wish they would've.

So we decided to go out and play some hockey - it had warmed up from -41, to -39. Where others saw frostbite, we saw opportunity. The first rink we visited was closed up, apparently the City of Winnipeg has a rule that if the temperature is below -28, the rinks should be closed to prevent kids getting frostbite and suing. Happily though, we eventually found a rink to play on. So all was good. It wasn't even cold, probably because I had about 4 layers of clothes on.

Today's INotD is: Smutmonger. As in "Hey you perv! Yeah you! Bloody smutmonger!"

~K (ks_world_blog@hotmail.com)

I'm pretty excited about the big game tomorrow morning. Here's hopin the boys come out on top! They'll be playing probably the best squad the US has ever iced at the tournament, but I still think we've got the talent to triumph.

In other news, it's bloody damn cold tonight. Last time I looked it was -43. I was outside today, walking. I was also wearing sport pants, instead of something with any ability to maintain even a semblance or warmth. I had to take a piss, but had to wait for my dingle to thaw out. Southern Ontario has been spoiling me lately with a rather tame take on winter, but leave it to Winnipeg to remind me what this season is really about: Blizzards and frozen nutsacks. Thank You!

Oh, and I'd like to send a vociferous "Fuck You!" do the Shell station on Portage Ave just past Whytewold. We stopped for gas, and they have their stupid little safety thing so you can't gas up until you either pay with credit card at the pump or with cash inside. Anyhow, we didn't notice this at first but I was on my way into the store with ten bucks to pay while Dan was just about to start pumping. So, I see there's another guy waiting at the door to go in and pay, and it's locked. The attendant was off somewhere strokin his peewee while we sat there locked outside in sub -40 weather.

Then he finally shows up, goes to the till and uses an intercom to give Dan shit for pushing the gas button before he paid, and let me tell you, this guy was a bloody prick about it. Hey moron, It's Hard To Pay Inside When We're Locked Out!!! Then he finally unlocked the door and I gave him his 10 bloody dollars just as Dan stuck his head in the door and said, "You don't have to be a fucking asshole". The other customer was saying, "This store is a fucking joke", as I wandered around various piles of chips and other items left scattered around the floor.

We decided then and there - that's the last time we're going to that particular Shell station.

So, I'd like to introduce the newest addition to my blog: The Insulting Name of the Day! On most or all future blogs (or until I decide to just quit doing it) I'll be putting in an insulting name that someone may be called for whatever reasons. In some cases I may even write up a situation or an explanation, and on very rare occasions - both!

Today's INotD is: Sackface. As in: "That gas attendant today was a damn sackface."

~K

Canada took advantage of a poor effort from the Czechs and came away with a lopsided 7-1 victory today, pushing the Canadian side into the finals with a 5-0 record. They'll be meeting the USA, the tournaments other undefeated team, as they came away with a nailbiter 2-1 victory over Finland. The final is Monday at 11:30am. Can't Wait!!

Ok, tonight has been pretty fun. It's been pretty blizzard-like for most of the evening, so we hopped in Cory's Sunfire and did a lot of driving, and let me tell you it was great fun on those roads. For those of you that would have shit your pants, well, it may be justified - but in that case stay off the roads and let the rest of us have our fun.

So I promised a list of things I'm looking forward to in 2004. I'll attempt to compile a decent list, although I admit I've barely done any prep beforehand. If this list looks hastily assembled, well that's because it has been hastily assembled. :P

- You may have gathered this from my last post, but the new Corvette C6 has me salivating in anticipation. I cannot wait to see one of these on the roads...the pictures look awesome!!

- Something a little closer to my actual price range, although still far and beyond what I have the ability to afford, the new Pontiac G6 (Grand Am replacement - originally it the G6 concept was going to be the next Grand Am but Pontiac changed their minds and decided to go with the new name for such a new product - it says so on their website). The official unveiling of the G6 sport sedan will be this January - if its even close to the concept, then I think it'll kick some major ass.

- More cars! I mentioned two specifically cause those are tops on my list, but there are so many more promising vehicles coming out...keep an eye on the detroit auto show this month.

- I look forward to getting a computer that can play all the awesome games I've been dying to play over the last 3 years but have been unable to. WarCraft 3, Battlefield 1942, Call of Duty, etc etc. Hell, I can barely play FaitH on my comp and it's just a browser based game...that bloody build city kills my current system. It'll be nice clicking on something and it actually happening without a 5 minute wait!

- Games! As a result of money restrictions, I haven't bothered to follow the game industry as much as I used to, but I know there's a lot of kick ass games that'll be coming out, and I can't wait for those! Also, FaitH will continue to be updated and improved, which is a good thing.

- New Job! Will the gods finally deem me worthy of a position in my field? Or will I continue to scrape through life in obscurity? While I worry that a positions in my field are terribly difficult to attain (thus far it's been an exercise in futility), I think just about anything would be more enjoyable than the current work. Who knows though, it just might be time for some good luck. (see? anti cynic here)

- Collective Bargaining Agreement. It may seem an odd thing to look forward to, but the NHL is in so much trouble right now, that these all-important negotiations really need to conclude with the greatest expedience to the best possible outcome. I love hockey, and I love the NHL, but things really need to change. I desperately fear that next season may be ruined due to a lockout - here's hoping that somehow things don't go terribly awry.

- Vancouver Canucks kicking ass in the playoffs and making a strong cup run, maybe even going all the way. GO CANUCKS!

- Canadian World Juniors beating the Czechs tomorrow and going on to win the Gold. GOOO CANADA!

- Manchester United claiming the Premiership title so I can take a moment or two to gloat to my good friends the Arsenal fan (Colin) and the Chelsea fan (Barrett). ;)


Ok, now that's a fairly decent list, if I do say so myself. It also took entirely too long to write up. So, I'm gonna head to sleep now.

~K (ks_world_blog@hotmail.com)

Just saw this and had to post it...this is a link to a forum where pics are posted of the new Corvette C6. It looks bloody amazing!!!

http://www.moacsupreme.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7161

I want that car!

Two Thousand and Four, here we go! So I thought about what to write about for this my first post of the new year. I decided to write up some resolutions, at the risk of being terribly generic. I've never actually bothered with New Years Resolutions in the past, unless we include back in elementary school when we were forced to come up with some sort of crap to put on a paper and hand in. But I decided to do it for you, my ever-demanding readers. So I thought about what exactly constitutes a proper new years resolution. The accepted norm seems to be that a person will resolve to change something about themselves or their lifestyle for the better, or to do something specific such as an activity or high profile purchase such as 'i resolve to buy a fancy new house'. My resolutions, obviously, won't be so lofty as purchasing a new house. Though I'd certainly love to move out, the prospect quite simply doesn't make sense from an economical standpoint. Of course, economics can change drastically over the course of the year.

With this in mind, I resolve to:

- learn French to an at least moderate degree of fluency, thus increasing my value in the job market.
- find a job that I don't hate
- perhaps finally get that knee surgery I've been needing
- work out more often, damnit
- get a new computer, thus replacing my old piece of ass comp
- find some good people to drink with down in the Waterloo area, as of yet all the good drinking buddies I have are still in Winnipeg
- be a better person, and not a cynic

Well, maybe scratch that last one. Anyhow, thats about all I can come up with for now. If I think of something new I'll come back and edit this. Next post will be things I'm looking forward to in 2004. Yay! Already becoming less of a cynic.

~K (ks_world_blog@hotmail.com)