Gravity's Plaything

The Law of Diminishing Expectations

2012-02-05T21:06:00.004-04:00

Just sayin's all.

Self Checkouts Need a Minimum IQ

2011-10-02T18:10:00.002-03:00

I was desperately trying to get through the grocery store today - it's been a miserable, rain-soaked weekend here, I was damp just wanted it all to end.

I get to the self-checkout lineup - 5 people in line for 3 machines (one was down) but still fewer than the traditional check-outs.

A women who obviously had literally zero idea how the thing worked was using a self-checkout and, worst of all, she had a cart full of groceries. I clued into what she was doing and it was appalling.

A) Remove item from cart
B) Lay item on top of scanner
C) Wait (As system tells her to try scanning an item)
D) Place item in bag (As system says "Please scan that first, please")
E) Look Confused
F) Return to "A" above for the next item

The cashier that works the central desk came over, put things back into her cart, showed her how to scan the barcode first, and THEN put it in the cart.

The moment the cashier left, she'd to back to step "A" and start the cycle over again.

After the 4th visit, the cashier just gave up and started to scan the things herself. As she was putting things into the woman's bags, the woman would just leave them on the scanner.

I finally got one of the other machines (6 items, including to weighables, finished in less than 2min thanks very much) I turned to see they're finally gotten everything scanned.

The women reached into her purse, took out a handful of 20's... and laid them on the F*CKING scanner.

Worse, I just know somewhere in town, right the minute, she's going on to her husband about "how slow that self checkout is" and "it's no faster than the old way."

Nazi Smashers!

2011-07-24T21:08:00.003-03:00

In celebration of Robert FINALLY having a full weekend off, we went to two movies this weekend. We finally caught Harry Potter and Captain America. A few hours ago, a few questions came to me:

Is "Villains Without Noses" going to be the new "thing"?
Which movies will Kleenex sponsor if the previous answer is "Yes"?

Potter was a known quantity and the film worked very well. As Robert put it, obviously the movie had to stick to Rowling's biggest plot points and, despite people making fun of Rowling as a successful "amateur writer", she managed to dig out good and well planned resolutions to MANY MANY plot twists. Kudos from both of us, Ms Rowling. Kudos. PS Did anyone else notice that Hermione did a LOT of the heavy lifting and no one said so much as "Thanks! Good Job". I mean, seriously, if it wasn't for her magic handbag and being able to "pop" them just about anywhere, they'd have been royally boned.

On the other hand, I have to say Captain America wasn't my cup of tea. I never read the comic as a child and I'm aware the pacing of the movie was supposed to closely match the news reels of the time but, by the time things started to happen, I was, well, bored. Thor as least kept me engaged.

Of course, during most of the movie all I could think of was that old lady from the early Simpson's episode who thought Bart was going to use his pay to by the new "Nazi Smashers" comic. Two hours of "Nazi Smashers" "Nazi Smashers" ....

Sunday PM Coffee View

2011-07-03T16:43:00.003-03:00

Spent late morning and good part of the afternoon at the Hopewell Rocks. Weather was glorious. After about 6km of walking (long story), I dropped into the restaurant and had a nice coffee on the back deck. (Photo above embiggens a bit when clicked.)

I wore my "Michigan Athletics" t-shirt. (It's also called my ironic t-shirt - despite reading "Michigan Athletics" I bought it at a Tesco in York, UK for like 4GBP.) No less that 5 people asked some variant of "Are you from Michigan?" and many others were staring outright. It does make one wonder how they would have thought if it'd worn a "Mars Attacks!" t-shirt.

[Update] I did a quick google search and it appears to be a half-hearted knock-off of the NCAA Michigan logo. So, I guess I look like a dumpy, ex-college jock in it. Thanks! (But it does explain one comment I heard as I walked past a group of people.)

Before? Well, DUH!

2011-06-26T20:17:00.005-03:00

Sign on storage container beside one of the local Walmarts. Click to embiggen.

And... We're Home

2011-06-09T11:38:00.003-03:00

Before I forget, this is an image showing the back of our hotel room door. We were the red dot (room 1010), obviously. Once I got a good look out the back windows, I realized the building was only half a block deep, not a full block. Still, the room was impressive considering how little we spent for it. Thanks Expedia! (No disclosure needed - I don't work for Expedia, just had good luck with them most of the times I've used them.)

The trip back was a long, long bit of nasty when you're not good with hot weather. It was humidex 40C in NYC when we were leaving. Even though we were flying at 4PM, we left for the airport at about 11AM because the heat was just unbearable and we'd really checked everything off our lists.

The short walk to the 52nd Street subway was miserable.
The subway station was hot and damp.
The E train was ... coolish.
Penn Station was hot... and a zoo.
On the train to EWR, we chose the ONE car with broken AC.

Newark airport was relatively pleasant and coolish. We had a meal and that, plus some e-book reading, burned the time until check-in.

The flight to Montreal was uneventful. When we landed I told R I'd hit harder bumps on a cross-town bus.

Then, all hell broke loose. It was quite muggy in Montreal and one of those massive lightning storms that blows through in summer arrived just after we got to our gate (A7.) We had nice seats by the windows -- looking out on the tarmac -- and it really was pretty spectacular. Lightning strikes right out of the best Hollywood movie. The rainfall was EPIC. It was about 1.5 hours to our boarding time, so I wasn't too concerned.

The storm continued outside but we weren't getting a lot of information about delays. We were in the newer area of Trudeau Airport - the gate speaker system tends to keep announcements at the relevant gate area so you rarely hear announcements even at the next gate over. Despite the rain, I saw at least two flights board and leave.

At about 8:30PM (25min to our flight take-off), I glanced at our gate's flight screen and ... it'd changed from "Air Canada ... Moncton 20:55PM" to "Porter Airlines ... Toronto 21:15". Waaaa???? I went to the desk and asked about our flight. Porter Lady was NOT helpful.

"I don't know. I don't work for Air Canada. It's not leaving from here."

Thanks.

The board was no help - it was still showing A7 as the gate. (Aside: Most flights from Montreal to Moncton leave from the, frankly, shitty gates at the far end of the airport. This was the first time I'd seen them use the nicer, newer building. I started steeling myself for a mad dash across the airport.) Back at the gate, tempers were starting to build.

Then, the gate agent from Air Canada arrived and told us strange news. She was the person in charge of boarding us and even SHE hadn't been told where they moved the plane. So, in a real triumph of customer service ... she sat down on a bench with us all. This defused the anger instantly. It really made all the difference - if she'd left us on our own, the frustration would have boiled over. Great work.

About 20min later, Porter airlines got their turn at the WTF table. They'd sent down a few passengers and, minutes later, brought them back up. One gate agent told the other the computer than manages refuelling would not allow the Porter plane to refuel at the gate (because the computer still thinks my Air Canada is supposed to be there, I assume.) So, Porter moved their plane and OUR gate agent was radioed we would indeed be leaving from A7 after all.

Yay us! She looked relieved. We'd be leaving about 30min late so the other passengers, R and I were relieved. For about 10 mins.

I heard the gate phone ring and looked up to see the gate agent talking into it ... and covering her face with her hand. Oh. Dear. She announced that, due to the massive number of grounded planes, we would indeed be moving but just to Gate 15 - other corner of that area. Unknown to us, the plane we would be boarding had landed close to an hour earlier but had sat on the tarmac waiting for a gate to open so they could let people off. Gate 15 was the first one open. In that context, sitting around inside the building wasn't that bad.

As I'd said above, we were all tired but in reasonable spirits thanks to the first gate agent, so we toddled down to A15. A new gate agent arrived - in good spirits despite all the kerfuffle. (Hopefully our original agent got to go home.) Just before they deplaned, the gate display suddenly said we'd be flying to Ottawa!! Before anyone could panic, the gate agent grabbed the mic and announced the computer controlling the screen didn't know what the hell it was talking about (in BOTH official languages) and we were indeed leaving from this one.

Our flight was originally supposed to leave at 855pm. By the time we got on board, it was almost 1030pm. Then... the captain came over the intercom with two pieces of news:

We'd have to wait for a few connecting passengers who, like the people on this plane, had landed but were trapped waiting for a gate. He said this wasn't a big deal because
In all the mess, we'd lost our ground staff (the guys with the glowing flashlights that make sure we don't knock things over as we pull away) and would have to wait our turn for the next set.

During the next 45min, we waited on the plane. I was sitting in row 23 (window) looking out on the tarmac at a lone, full, baggage container. It sat there, all by itself.

Was it ours?
Would we take off in a rush and NOT bring our checked luggage?
Should I buzz one of the cabin staff and mention it?

I didn't have to answer that last question because, minutes before we pushed back for take off, a luggage loading truck pulled up beside it. The driver spoke into his radio for a few seconds, got out of the truck and examined the tags on a few of the pieces. A minute or two later, we pushed back and I assumed that meant WE had our luggage - though the people on the plane that left before us would likely be a little upset when they landed.

The flight was reasonably smooth except for the part where we flew through another lightning storm over eastern Maine. (For any Twilight Zone fans, I could see the wing and there were no demons chewing on the engines.) I don't think we got struck and, as I write this I haven't developed any super powers. Bummer.

We were supposed to arrive at 1115pm but it was about 140am when we touched down. As luck would have it, Our bags were first off the plane and we got the first taxi home.

Whew: 15hrs from start to finish - a little horrifying when you consider Google Maps tells me it's under 13hrs to drive door to door.

OMGWTF!!!

2011-06-03T21:44:00.006-03:00

We're in New York for a few days vacation and, as we've done in the past, we're at the Salisbury Hotel. It's not the most modern but it's well located on 57th near Central Park. The rooms are generous by local standards and even the most basic seems large.

Today we arrived at about noon after a flight into Montreal and a second into Newark. (Air Canada -the worst- they don't fly, they just taxi to Montreal!)

As happens, there were no cleaned rooms available and we were asked to come back at 2pm.

We wandered for a while and got back shortly after 2. The front desk conferred for a while and one said, to the other, "Should we give them that one?" The other agreed, keys were cut and we headed up to 1010 to see what awaited us - a little unnerved.

The room, and that term doesn't apply in this case, could house at least 10 comfortably - it's a mansion that spans the entire floor from the front to the back of the building.

The door opens into the dining room! It has a dining table for four! This area alone is easily 10x12. To the right is the living room - standard issue with a three-person couch and two single comfy chairs, coffee table, end tables, big screen tv, work desk and chair. It's not cramped because it's fricking 10x17!!!!

Turning back through the dining room there is a hallway with the bathroom and the smaller of the two closets. This leads into the bedroom with another larger closet, two double beds, dressers and a second tv. Sadly it's only 10x15. How can one live in these conditions, I ask? :)

Honestly I don't know what we did to get this sort of luck - wish I knew, we'd do it more often.

And, oh yes, just because we were pixelated by the place we still took the time to put the luggage in the bath tub and search the place for...unexpected "guests". Zero just like the last two times we've been here.

Doctor Who - The Rebel Flesh - Questions

2011-05-25T21:00:00.005-03:00

*** SPOILERS ***

I had a thought that there may have been three Doctors in the episode: the original, the copy at the end and, perhaps, the copy dropped off back in time to try working things out. Rewatched and have a few questions. Most of which are more likely red-herrings than Chekov's guns.

At about 6min in, while Amy's saying "Where are these Dustie Springfield loving monks?" they're walking into the monestery. The camera watches them through a hole in a stack of packing material and moves to watch them continue. Camera movement is POV - implying someone is watching rather than a simple tracking shot.

In the intro we see the death of a ganger copy of one of the men in the acid. Yet, when the Doctor and group arrive, it's Jenn who needs a new copy. (Time between the two incidents could be explained as there was a span of time between the two events.)

After the first time the Doctor touches the pool of "The Flesh", he pulls back and says "I understand" but later says he could only feel it reaching out to him. Did he get a message fom the matter in the pit?

An obvious question - The Doctor hints he's seen later versions of this process but doesn't say where - can't see his shoes so I can't tell if we're still looking at the real Doctor (after acid problem, real Doctor wears brown shoes. I'm betting copy is wearing black.)

During the solar storm, the 3 or 4 gangers were lined up watching something. They scream in that direction, and their faces start to melt, when the storm gets very intense.

Moments after the Doctor runs off to get the Tardis (and lose said shoes), the grey-haired male worker opens the cabinet containing flares and closes it to find the Doctor standing there. (Doctor says "Door?" implying "Where is it?") Could this be the future copy just back?

Where did Jennifer get her limp? When she goes to the "rack" room to be copied, her gait is fine. When we next see original Jennifer she's limping very badly. The limp could be explained away by, say, falling from the cradle device during the surge.

Finally, some speculation. Because they're perfect copies, right down to "hairs on their chinny-chin-chin", a Ganger with the correct finger-prints (check), nervous-system (check) and memories could potentially make a duplicate of itself. Is this what we have here: a group of Gangers, believing they're the originals, making copies of themselves who, eventually, kill and assume the guise of their originals? Are they really pumping the acid somewhere or are they feeding a supply on the mainland where no one exists any longer? Perhaps limping Jennifer is (was?) the only original left?

6:10PM - Still here

2011-05-21T18:11:00.003-03:00

Excuse me, I've got a bag of old clothing and shoes I have to scatter about the neighborhood.

Well, that didn't work.

2011-05-01T08:07:00.002-03:00

ScriptFrenzy is over for another year and 50 pages of script is far from a success.

Next year the goal will be:

spend January choosing the idea (not letting it just "come to me" on March 27th)
spend February researching the idea (instead of March 28-30th)
spend March solidifying plot thread and story boarding (instead of March 31st)

The valuable lesson here: if you don't do that leg work, the plot will paint you into a corner and your characters will be standing around on the stage, giving you the stink-eye because they have NOTHING TO SAY that MOVES THE PLOT FORWARD.

Oh, well, November's "National Novel Writing Month" - don't look at me like that!

Not that I post here regularly but ...

2011-03-31T21:05:00.002-03:00

Script Frenzy 2011

See you May 1st.

Castle Episode: Vampire Weekend

2011-03-20T19:39:00.002-03:00

Fillion's "Captain Mal" outfit was a fabulous shout-out to we, the Firefly fans. Abbey's "But you wore that costume 5 years ago" was priceless.

As a public service, I really have to point out that people with Porphyria don't burst into flames when exposed to sunlight.

X-chromosome based porphyria runs in my family - both my sisters "expressed" it (my brother and I luckily didn't.) They have some liver and blood issues and do sunburn VERY fast - they get a nasty burn within about 5 min of being exposed to direct sunlight. Some of my earliest summer memories are of them in giant sun hats. At not time have I seen them burst into flames.

Spending the Weekend with Nathan Fillion

2011-03-19T20:27:00.006-03:00

Thanks to M at work, who's loaned me both Season 1 AND 2 of Castle, it's going to be a LONG weekend.

It's now Sat at about 8:30 and I've just finished Season 1. 24 eps in Season 2, eh? Well, I'll have to get SOME sleep tomorrow so it'll likely be 10-12eps tomorrow.

Great show. I'm honestly shocked I didn't check it out earlier. (And those of you wondering - a gentleman wouldn't include Fillion's famous butt-shot willy-nilly.)

I'm happy to report Robert doesn't feel abandoned as he's been Netflix'ing episodes of Hoarders and muttering we should tidy up more often.

Girl got Pipes

2011-02-28T17:33:00.000-04:00

Movies!

2011-02-27T13:31:00.003-04:00

It's "Oscar Night" - but as I don't have a television any longer...

Spent an hour or so this morning, wandering through Apple's movie trailer site here. After matching findings there to my local cinema's "Coming Soon" page, I was happy to form the following list:

Adjustment Bureau - Mar 4th (this weekend!)
Battle: LA - Mar 11th
Hanna - Apr 08
Priest in 3D - May 13th
Cowboys vs Aliens - Jul 29th.

I'd love to see "Potiche" (with Catherine Deneuve) in a real cinema but that's not likely to happen here so I'll likely have to improvise.

This evening, I'm on my own and planning a scenery-chewing, end-of-the-world double feature: The Omega Man and Soylent Green.

Sigh

2011-02-19T19:14:00.004-04:00

Today I was riding a bus that includes a stop at a local cineplex. Shortly after I got on the bus, 4 children and their "Mom" got on.

Just before my stop, it went down like this:

Kid: "Can we see one of the 3D movies?"
Mom: "No 3D movies. I take off those glasses and I can't see shit."

Movie: Barney's Version

2011-01-23T16:24:00.004-04:00

As a Canadian, I wouldn't be worth my maple syrup ration if I hadn't read at last some of Mordecai Richler's work. I've read some of his fiction over the years, "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" for example and I've read some of his non-fiction as well. I like his work and I liked the man. He seemed to enjoy choosing one side of an argument just to keep the conversation lively. I confess I didn't read Barney's Version before seeing the movie.

Based on the last novel published before his death, the movie tells the story of Barney Panofsky (Paul Giamatti) a Montreal-based television producer. When a retired detective, who believes Barney got away with the murder of his friend Boogie, publishes a book about it, Barney reflects on his life and three failed marriages - his version of the events.

Barney and his friends are louts, boozers, dopers and, well Les Boys if you know what I mean. The thing that keeps coming to mind, though, is the way the women in the film are portrayed. With the exception of Barney's daughter, the come across as brittle, icy and lacking in sympathy. Even his 3rd wife Miriam (Rosamund Pike), the great love of his life, does something completely false to her character when Barney reveals a secret.

Despite my misgivings, Barney's Version is worth a look. Giamatti RULES the screen completely and utterly. And, if you're a fan of Canadian cinema, keep your eyes peels for cameos by several Canadian directors.

Netflix? WTF?

2011-01-21T07:23:00.006-04:00

I signed up for the 1mo free trial of NetFlix Canada and I'm largely happy. Due to rights issues, newer releases are pretty much a dog's dinner -- many times search returns the movie's not available. The service does offer quite a collection of older things (Red Dwarf at my beck and call) and foreign movies. This pleases me.

Last night I decided to watch London River. It stars UK actress Brenda Blethyn and Mali actor Sotigui Kouyaté as parents who travel to London after the April 2005 terrorist attacks in search of their respective children - each of which hasn't been heard from since the explosions.

About 20min into the movie, Kouyaté has an extended conversation with a policeman - in French. Hmm, no sub-titles. I paused the movie and examines the controls finding nothing. Hmm.

I did a quick search with my iTouch and sure-enough. Netflix doesn't offer user-controllable sub-titles. If they feel a movie needs them, they're hard-burned into the stream. As a side note, this has the deaf community rightfully pissed-off.

So I restarted the movie. My French comprehension isn't the best but Kouyaté spoke a slowish version. Blethyn and the other actors spoke classic "French as a second language" so I was able to follow the movie reasonably well.

Now, Robert has the day off and is planning on watching this one. So, Netflix, it had better have English sub-titles because Robert doesn't speak Korean. Just sayin'.

The King's Speech

2011-01-03T20:09:00.002-04:00

I've been trying to see this since before Christmas. Went this afternoon and I'm VERY glad I did. It's really quite brilliant.

Based on true events, it shows the relationship between Albert, Duke of York (who would become King George VI) and Lionel Logue, his Australian speech therapist. The duke had been born left-handed but forced to use his right. When this is done to a child, they often develop a stammer.*

Colin Firth is amazing. He makes the King's stuttering look genuine and exquisitely painful to watch. Both he and Bonham-Carter make royals more real: they're not the cut-outs we've come to expect in movies such as this. They're human but with major responsibility thrust upon them. Firth's character rules lands almost around the globe but a stammer frustrates his confidence in himself.

Helena Bonham-Carter gets back to her acting roots, here she plays the Duke's wife Elizabeth but, in the real world, we'd recognize the character as "The Queen Mum - the Early Years." Culturally, the Queen Mother had a "with it" glow about her. You always got the feeling she was a monarch who knew the score. Bonham-Carter manages to inject that into her character throughout the movie. When Logue's wife returns home unexpectedly to find the Queen of England sitting at her dining table having tea and a biscuit:

Mrs Logue (visibly shocked): You're ...
Q of E (smiling sweetly): "Your majesty" the first time "Ma'am" after that. "Ma'am" as with "ham" not "Mum" as with "hum"

Playing Logue, Geoffrey Rush plays the actor turned speech therapist with all guns blazing. Logue appears unimpressed by the pomp and genuinely wants to help "Bertie." The one place where his performance fails is, well, my fault. My Canadian ear couldn't really hear his Australian accent despite other characters pointing it out from time to time.

The King's Speech is well worth seeing.

* My uncle was also forced to use his right hand at school. In fact, when he started to stutter one of the teachers used to call him "The Stuttering Cow." I was born left-handed and my older sisters taught me to print with my left hand before starting school. I'm told I mentioned being "encouraged" to use my right hand shortly after starting primary school but my parents visited the teacher the next day. Dad said my Mom used some, uh, "colourful language" and the "encouragement" stopped immediately.

Well. What is it?

2011-01-03T10:43:00.002-04:00

This why they shouldn't sell housewares in supermarkets; it causes schizophrenic behavior in the dishes.

This is why Netflix Canada Sucks

2010-12-30T09:27:00.003-04:00

Just sayin'

It's like Netflix Canada is a tunnel back to 1980 or something.

Internet Ruins Bookstore Experience

2010-12-29T21:28:00.005-04:00

Last month I visited my doctor for the annual visit. Nothing dramatic to report. I mentioned I wanted to start eating better - years with an ulcer had left me in perma-graze (when an empty stomach is painful, you start to eat every two hours whether you're hungry or not - great way to add unwanted weight.) My doctor suggested I look into "mediterranean diet" as it works and it heart healthy.

Today I thought "why not drop by Chapters* and see what books are available?" Ha!

First of the place was packed - post Christmas shoppers. When I finally got near the shelves I realized I'm out of practise: I lost patience within 5min. For years I've been ordering online with a click zip boom the box is on the way. Is this the end of an era? No way! Tomorrow I'm going back and this time I'm not giving up!

* It's like Borders or Barnes and Nobel for Americans - Blackstones if you're in the UK.

Great - Just FDING Great

2010-12-16T20:53:00.004-04:00

I got home a little late this evening - bad news at my job is always delivered at 345pm.

Almost immediately I noticed a pile of cheques near my computer. Rent cheques that I've been meaning to give the landlord for over a week. Arghh!

So, I log into gmail to send him a "pick them up anytime tomorrow am" message and, there's a message from him waiting with the subject "Crack in the door frame." Here's most of it:

Don't panic when you go home tonight and see a crack in your door frame. Someone called 911 and said there was a fire in your apt. The fire dept. and the police showed up and pushed the door until the frame broke only to find no fire! I have done a temporary repair and will do a stronger repair tomorrow. Sorry that this has happened to you and I hope it does not stress you two out.

WTF. I hadn't even notice it as I walked in but the firemen really did a number on the frame. The landlord's done a bit of a repair but the whole thing will likely have to be replaced tomorrow.

I called him and chatted a bit about what'd happened. The police told him the call hadn't come from within the building so they're assuming someone on the street called it in.

So guess what I'm going to do tomorrow? I'm dropping by the local police station - lucky it's only 5min from work - and listening to the call to see if I recognize the caller.

Merry F*DING Chistmas!

Harry Potter Finale?

2010-12-11T07:31:00.001-04:00

OK, it HAS been a while since I read the last book but this doesn't look at all familiar.

Oh Sweet God

2010-11-23T19:23:00.004-04:00

This happened last weekend and I'm still shaking my head about it. R and I were in line at a local Shoppers Drug Mart (if you're from NYC, think "Duane Reade".)

There's one gal ahead of us, early 20s, tot in a stroller. She's got two of these things at right.

The cashier (early 20's too) takes her money and returns the change and ... nothing.

I'm waiting for R so I was browsing and wasn't paying much attention. The two women are having a discussion of some type but the customer isn't leaving. The cashier pulls out one of those can-openers with a bottle opener on one end and lays it on the counter. The coke buyer is gesturing but dammit she's not opening her pop. They're both looking awkward. I start to overhear what's being said, start to catch on and frankly I'm stunned. Finally, out of frustration, R says "Can I help?"

The woman buying the pop turns and says "We don't know how to open these." R reaches over and uses the opener to open the two bottles. The gal thanks him and is on her merry way.

Unstoppable Perhaps but also Forgettable

2010-11-14T18:43:00.007-04:00

The other half was working today, I got bored and rather than take over a small country I decided to take in a movie. Unstoppable.

It was either that or Megamind and, much as I adore Tina Fey after Date Night, I have a rule: I don't watch - even for free - movies where Jim Carrey, Eric Stoltz or Will Ferrell are involved. Period. No Exceptions.

If you've been in a cave for the last few months, you might be interested to know Unstoppable stars Denzel Washington, Chris Pine and Rosario Dawson and involves a train. A big train. A big runaway train. That's unstoppable. OK the real issue is that the train's cargo is pretty toxic and pretty explodey (toxsplodey??) and while it's running though the woods in Philadelphia it'll hit populated areas any minute.

Washington has reached the point in his career where his characters are about to retire. In this case, he's a likeable semi-crusty fellow who's a "railway engineer" (if you're Canadian) or "driver" (if you're from the U.S.) He's paired with Pine who plays a fresh-from-training "conductor". They both have backstories but, well, they're "lite backstories" and don't really drive the plot. Dawson job is never actually discussed but she seems to be responsible for coordinating the company's trains across Pennsylvania. (MY GOD I'm tired of typing the word "train.") Her people are directly responsible for whatever happens if/when this UNSTOPPABLE train crashes.

The plot in this movie is thinner than my excuses so I'm going to stop right here. By revealing the actor's jobs I've spoiled oh, I'm gonna say 5% of the plot?

I like the leads to various degrees:

Dawson brings a presence to any role because works damn hard. When she's listening to another actor speak, she makes you believe it's Connie listening (that's her character's name. Oh, crap, 5.5% gone) not Rosario waiting for her next line.

Washington has never been one of my favourites - it's difficult for him to play "tough" without just being a cranky-puss. He's more likeable here than I've ever seen him before. But don't get all weepy, that's not saying much.

Pine, of course, I've seen in "Star Trek" duh! (And perhaps a one-off he did in 6-Ft Under.) Yes, I know his cheekbones, pecs and blue eyes are supposed to make every woman plus 10% of the men, me included, swoon and faint but... meh. Just meh. The boy makes me wanna sleep with a Glock 17 under my pillow for some reason.

The movie itself is pretty ham-fisted: "people=good, corporations=bad" plays a big role. The "based on true facts" at the front and the montage at the end were just confusing. (Bugger, that's 6% gone.)

Should you see Unstoppable?

If you don't need a great deal of plot or character development and if (BIG IF) you are prepared for something hinted at in the trailer being ripped from your fingers during the movie, I'd give you a guarded "Yes". (6.2% and I don't give a damn any longer.)

If there's nothing better showing and you don't feel like driving to another cinema and just going home isn't an option... Sure. Why not.

Give Yourself Over to Absolute Pleasure

2010-10-31T20:51:00.003-03:00

The one, the only, the original Rocky Horror Picture Show - it slaps Glee's face and sends it home to its Mama.

The stocking budget for this must have been through the roof!

Happy Halloween!

Nerdy Dining

2010-10-30T09:00:00.005-03:00

In an article published in io9.com in early Oct, I learned of a new restaurant in London called Inamo. I wanted to surprise R so I booked a reservation for Tuesday evening and just told him to not plan anything for that night.

Inamo is unusual in that the computerized projectors are mounted above (pointing down on) the tables and each place has a small, round touch-pad on the right. Once seated, you use the touch-pad to:

navigate through the menu (get it? get it?) and order drinks/food
change the table-top pattern to something you like (or set it to change every few minutes)
play either solo-games or interactive ones (R and I played Battleship while waiting)
request your bill without having to flag down a wait-person
get directions to the subway*
order a taxi**

[Update: found a Youtube video showing the menu interface.]

To be honest, R and I are in the nerdy end of the spectrum and I wanted to see the tech involved. The food was a very pleasant surprise - it was freaking awesome. Shreaded duck with Hoi-sin in savoury pancakes, cinnamon chicken - YUM!

The best part, the wait staff didn't have to hover in case we needed anything. Instead, they could glide into the room to deliver food and, if needed, quietly take away unneeded plates. The place is designed for a plate by plate, long slow meal. (Order a dish, share it. Still hungry? Order another.) The downside was we had a fixed deadline so we ordered almost a complete meal at once. Next time, we'll take out time. (And there will be a next time. If they're still in business, we're there!)

* And, really, one should trust the computer. I looked up directions to the nearest Tube station (as we had to get down to the Thames) and had them in my head. Not really trusting, though, I asked the wait-person who brought the bill and she said "oh, no, Oxford Circus is closer than Bond St, just take ...". Foolishly, we followed her instructions and ended up walking aimlessly for 20min until we stumbled on Tottenham Court Road station - a third one!"

** In retrospect, we should have called a taxi and spent a few pounds.

We Just Flew in from London...

2010-10-28T21:16:00.003-03:00

... And, boy, are our arms tired.

In the time it took for us to get here, we could have flown ourselves.

The day started normally - breakfast, a walk, last minute packing, the Tube to Victoria Station and the Gatwick Express to the airport. There was a long line at check-in but not horrific. After a quick lunch and the usual security drama, we boarded what I'll jokingly call "the plane".

Here's a fun fact - when you call a plane a "757-200" it means it's optimal configuration is 200 seats. The plane they put us on was called that but somehow had 240 seats by R's estimate. I'm short and have short, stumpy legs and when I put a paperback book in the seat pocket, there was zero clearance between my knees and the pocket. Even when the seats are "in their upright locked position" you cannot stand in front of the seat. It seat edge is too far forward for you to stand.

To make matters worse, the entertainment system was not working and worst of all, severe headwinds turned the flight from just over 5 hours to over 7.5. People were so disgruntled the crew didn't even do that fake "goodbye thank you" nonsense as we left the plane. The copilot stood there saying "this way please" over and over.

Add close to 45 min in line at customs and, is it just me or are the questions they ask just getting more and more weird.

Agent Hawtness*: Where did you stay?
Me: Best western the Cromwell on. Cromwell Road
AH: What's to do there?
Me: (confused) pardon?
AH: is there anything to do there?
Me: Not specifically. It's across from Gloucester Rd tube station and there's a selfserve laundry down the street. The Victoria and Albert Museum is just down the road as well.
AH: ok

And we were done. Took forever to get luggage thank you Halifax airport with your chinzy baggage handler.

Now we're safely ensconced in an undisclosed area of Halifax. I checked my bag - my years supply of Natural Source Lime shower Gel is intact - that pleases me. I'm also pleased the major dough I spent on books, clothes, shower gel And DVDs** was under my customs limit.

Technically I should be sleepy but I'm not. R is, mind you, he's zonked out. I'm gong to turn in and give it a try.

* I said his questions were weird I didn't say he wasn't a tasty bit of salty goodness
** I now possess a complete set of Eddie Izzard comedy tours included Stripped. Video extras and all sort of stuff.

Tidying up in London

2010-10-27T17:59:00.004-03:00

Last day and we didn't make a big deal of it. After breakfast we went over to Piccadilly Circus for a little book shopping. As we passed the Apollo Cinema we noticed it was showing Red in about 15 min - we'd missed it before leaving Canada. We bought tickets of course. Tiny cinema (maybe 40 seats) but one of those HD LCD digital screens. We liked the movie and thought Helen Mirren stole every scene she was in.

After the movie we headed to Waterstones - the biggest bookstore in Europe - just down the street. I remembered just then we'd left the tickets to Burke and Hare back at the hotel so while R shopped I took the Tube back and fetched them. (I was both museumed and booked out at this point anyway.)

I got back and we continued shopping on Oxford St. What a zoo. I bought more clothes (don't ask) and we ended up walking from Marble Arch to Charing Cross Rd and down to Leicester Square in time for the Burke and Hare preview at the Odeon.

Briefly, Burke and Hare lived in Edinburgh in the early 1800s. At the time the teaching hospitals had trouble acquiring bodies for dissection by med students and these gentlemen had a solution - the murdered people for money. The movie stars Simon Pegg and Andy "smegeol" Sirtis plus a massive number cameos (identify the hangman at your peril)

The movie is quite funny and well worth seeing when it shows locally.

Ok time to start packing and totaling the damage for the customs people. Tomorrow we fly to Halifax and begin a slow wander home.

Posh Theatre

2010-10-26T11:13:00.003-03:00

Yesterday had a lot of running about. We went to the Museum of Natural History in the morning. We found it a little disappointing. If you've been to Toronto it was like walking into the Royal Ontario Museum only to find they'd set up the Ontario Science Centre inside when you weren't looking. I'd expected something more formal. It didn't help that we've managed to visit during "half-term" again.

In the evening we went to The Old Vic for a performance of Design for Living (Noel Coward). Drole and witty, the actors were spot on - save the gentleman who couldn't do an American accent if his life depended. There were two British stereotypes sitting behind us - fanh fahn, jolly good, i knew him from my forth form, etc types - they were so hysterically "how Americans see the Britons" R and I assumed they were part of the show. As it turned out one did indeed have a friend called Monty who was in his forth form.

Today the rain started and will likely follow us for the rest of the week. Tonight we're going to Forbidden Planet, dinner at Idamo (google it) and then, as this will be our last visit to London for quite some time, were taking the London Eye at 830 to see London at night.

Tomorrow will be the last full day - some shopping and we're seeing "Burke and Hare" in the evening.

Also of interest is that I haven't had a tension headache since we left Canada. Hmmmmmm

Saturday - it's late so sue me

2010-10-24T12:25:00.003-03:00

Sorry I'm having trouble adapting to the time and yesterday was pretty hectic.

After breakfast we wandered a bit and headed over to the Tate Museum. (There's a joke somewhere about the Taint Museum but I won't bother.). The Tate had an exhibit about Eadward Muybridge - he effectively invented cinema - which was great. Also present were finalists for the Turner Prize 2010 (which kinda sucked)

After the museum we popped home to get ready for our macaron class at L'Atelier des chefs. We left at 330 for the 430 class as we knew all day that one tube line was down all weekend and two more had partial closures. What we didn't account for was the volume of people shifting onto the other lines.

So, it was 405 before we found ourselves in a station halfway to class waiting 8 min before the next connecting train looking at each other and saying "we are in so much trouble". You have to be at class at least 10 minutes before it begins OR THEY GIVE AWAY YOUR SEAT!!!!

We raced up to ground level and tried getting a cab. The first cabbie said "oh that's just around that corner." and drove off. I was pretty pissed because I knew it wasn't - we still to go one more tube stop and we'd still have had an 11 min walk.

The next cabbie said "sure hop in" and we were off. Somehow he managed to get us there - in London traffic - by 421. The previous class had run over and we were just in time.

Class was amazing. Macarons are very simple but practice makes perfect. Mode later with pictures.

A day of happy inconvenience

2010-10-23T01:46:00.002-03:00

We took the train into the city - we'd inadvertently taken the Hogwarts Express instead of the Gatwick Express. That explained all the pointy hats and wands but it all worked out in the end. Pounds were dropped on our Oyster cards - two lineups to get a machine that could a) read the cards and b) accept my bills. Arghh

But, as luck would have it, that delayed us enough so our room was ready when we got to the hotel. Room is quite small but well designed - meaning it's fine for us but it's likely called nasty things in hotel review sites.

We spent most of the morning and afternoon wandering about. We picked tickets to Hamlet for that night and Design for Living for Monday.

In the evening we went back to the National Theatre to see Hamlet. Despite being the Bard's most well known play it's not my favourite - I prefer the comedies. The director had set it in what appeared to be modern day Denmark but one where a seeming police state is in place. Armed security guards were everywhere and the old king's ghost is aimed at with ak47's.

The acting was largely disappointing - a handful of the actors seemed aware they had to enunciate to fill the air with their voices (no one was mic'ed so other that Ophelia, Polonius and Hamet himself you struggled to hear what was being said. After close to 2 hours there was a 20min break and R and I did something we've never done before ... we left.

As we stood we looked at each other and said "do you want to leave?" And we did. It was 9 on the clock but 5 in our brains and we were starving. We walked along Southbank and across the Thames on the Humberton? Footbridge. London is exquisite at night. I wish pictures could do here justice. The Eye was lit beautifully and if we weren't looking for food we'd have tried to go up it.

We took the tube back to South Kensington and settled for a Pret a Manger. A sandwich seemed just the thing. (I chose sweet-potato and felafel. A short ride home and we turned in for the night.

Saturday: macarons!

And .... We're Here

2010-10-22T02:25:00.002-03:00

Took off 45 min late because Canada Customs chose our plane (at random) for a complete search before we boarded.

Made up some time but still 20min late at Gatwick

Fastest immigration interview evah - less that 1 min

Now in yotel (http://www.yotel.com I think) for a 3hr nap.

And away we go....

2010-10-21T17:56:00.002-03:00

At the gate waiting for departure. We survived the security with no hurt feelings. I'm ok with the nude scanner. R won't do it. Guess which one of us got randomly chosen. Sigh.

Now let's put all this behind us and focus -- a week in London. Sweet

In Which Our Hero Attends... A Chick Flick

2010-10-08T19:43:00.003-03:00

I was on my own this week, R was out of town on a visit to his mom and step-dad. My friends H and J invited to me to go to dinner and a movie with them. StreetDance 3D.

You know what? It was pretty darn good. Let's be fair: it's not presenting itself as Academy Award material. There's a basic story here, holding together dance numbers and, well, you'd have to be pretty out of it if you think the film won't finish the way we all know it will. But that's not important, really.

Carly (Nichola Burley) finds herself leading talented street dance troupe in the British Finals because her boyfriend - the troop's leader - suddenly leaves to find himself or find some space. (Yeah, I know you're thinking "Un, hun.") Things start to fall apart immediately, she's fresh and talented but she's never run a troop before.

Fate tosses her into the path of ballet school doyenne Helena (the ageless and flawless Charlotte Rampling) who strike a deal with Carly: all the rehearsal space they need, if Helena's master class is folded into the troop. What a twist?!?

The de-facto leader of the ballet students is Tomas (Richard Winsor). From moment one, it's pretty clear the sparks will fly with he and Carly. But, that's what happens, right. The street dancers are edgy and proud. The ballet people are snooty and refined. Sparks fly.

I'll stop there - you can guess the rest of the movie. There are tears, anger, understanding, Tomas' rack... and plenty of dance numbers.

The acting is surprisingly good. Rampling, of course, could play a patrician ballet teacher in her sleep. Burley is adorable and sweet without being cloying and makes Carly very likeable. Winsor was complete surprise - H and I were shocked to see he's almost exclusively a dancer but, we reasoned, he's used to conveying ideas in dance and movement - in this movie he just had to speak. The other actors were very talented as well - both as dancers and actors.

Should you see StreetDance? Yeah, why not. I little "chick flick" is good for the soul. At least it's not a Julia Roberts train wreck or Burlesque which opens at the end of November. According to IMDB, it's about a "small-town girl (Christina Aguilera?!) ventures to Los Angeles and finds her place in a neo-burlesque club run by a former dancer (Cher?!)."

Good Movie? It's EASY, EH?

2010-09-25T15:43:00.004-03:00

"Easy A" is a rare movie because it actually works.

I won't bore you with a plot summary; watch the trailer below. There are many who'd say it's a rehash of the John Hughes movies in the 80's and, yes, that feeling is there. I have to say, though, I saw most of the Hughes movies back then and "Easy A" has a more positive tone about it.

It's hard to carry a movie and Emma Stone makes being in EVERY scene look downright easy. Her "Olive" character is charming, funny and smart without the smarminess you'd expect to see. Her comedic timing is flawless. Stone has a massive career in front of her.*

The rest of the film is a cast of whacky characters played by an array of familiar faces. Patricia Clarkson is an absolute scream as Olive's mother.

Put down the mouse, go find some friends and see this movie.

* When R and I were leaving the theatre, we both said the same thing at the same time (which I warn you happens after over 20yrs together): "Please, please let Emma Stone stay normal and not spiral into a Lohan." Please say a prayer to the deity to which you attach meaning that she'll channel the energy of Meryl Streep instead. Thanks.

I think we all saw this coming,eh?

2010-09-14T20:27:00.001-03:00

Feel the power... of beard

2010-08-26T19:32:00.001-03:00

Wheezy Waiter - madcap adventures every weekday.

A Day by the Sea

2010-07-17T16:46:00.002-03:00

Had the day to myself so I drove north to Bouctouche and visited "La Dune" - The Irving Eco-Center. Despite the sun there was a reasonably cool breeze.

Many photos here.

Some thoughts:

Bouctouche really, REALLY has to do something about tourist traffic.
Why are there so many jellyfish in the water??

This is where I'll be on Oct 15th

2010-06-29T16:57:00.001-03:00

Dame Helen Mirren with an automatic weapon. What's not to like?

This is How REAL Canadian's Protest

2010-06-28T19:52:00.001-03:00

Holiday Snaps!!

2010-06-07T20:20:00.004-03:00

I'm going to update this posting as I finish groups of photos. The links will be in the form of PicasaWeb slideshows. At the end of the slideshow, you'll see a page with all the pictures that have gone by. "Folders" are public access and very SFW.

07-June

Bath, Somerset

08-June

Brighton

Link to a Video You can hear R laughing (and almost choking) in the background.

Edinburgh

10-June

The Return of the Native (Canadians)

2010-06-04T17:10:00.000-03:00

Customs and Immigration Toronto Airport

Agent (examining passports): So, are you two brothers?

Jim (very jetlagged): No we're married.

AWK-WARD!

We are in T.O. - flying home tonight.

Do you wanna bump?

2010-06-03T15:07:00.000-03:00

OK, we were supposed to fly back to Canada this afternoon. When we
got to the airport, a rep from the charter company stopped and said,
basically, have I got an offer for you.

Long story short, we ALMOST got on the plane - we were told to run to
the check-in desk as they had two seats BUT they were mistaken.

They've given us a generous package and we'll fly back tomorrow
instead by way of Toronto. I should still have Saturday and Sunday to
clear away the jet lag.

Well Maybe Not

2010-06-03T08:55:00.000-03:00

Just got to Gatwick and the Canadian Affairs rep tells us the flights
overbooked. It looks like we'll be bumped to tomorrow with a
compensation package. Kinda disappointed but there's still a chance
we'll fly tonight. Cross fingers!

It had to End Sometime

2010-06-02T00:04:00.001-03:00

May can be a troubled month, weatherwise. When we
chose to take three weeks of it to spend in the UK we knew it could be
a crap shoot. To our surprise we rolled 7's most every day.

There had been a sprinkling of rain in Bath when we arrives (was it
really, only 3 weeks ago?). Again, in Edinburgh, a few drops but
overnight.

Today was the first rainy day we've had in three week, at least from
the perspective of being inconvenienced.

When we first arrived in York the day before, the weather had been
glorious and, tired from the journey, we'd walked around the city just
taking in the sites. I took a few photos but had over and over made
noted to come back later.

Today proved quite rainy and, save a few pix from yesterday, there is
precious little photographic evidence of our visit.

York has the highest concentration of "Nordic infuence" we've
experienced thus far. Originally called Yorvick by Scandinavian
occupiers, you can still find their influence in many areas:

- many streets in the name "gate" (Monksgate, Mikklegate) from the
Norse word "gait" meaning "road"
- the structures the allow passage through the still-standing city
walls end in "bar" (Bootham Bar) from the word meaning, well, "gate"

So, in short: a gate is a "bar" and a road is a "gate" and a bar is a
"pub". Get it? Got it? Good!

Another Nordic influence is on the heads of many city residents: blond
hair. We've spent the last three weeks visiting many different areas
of the island and when we arrived we noted the number of natural blond/
blued-eyed people here. Ok, I know this is sexist but we based this
mainly on men and smaller children as they dye their hair less often.

I also have to do some reading on the accent in this area. R found the
locals very difficult to understand.

York city walls are quite extraordinary and one can walk quite far on
them - in some cases walking on the wall allows you to skip several,
annoying street lights. The walls and fortications around the city
tend to dates from the 500s, yes "the five hundreds", to the 1200s.

There's an area of the city called "the Shambles" which is not as
nasty as the name implies. It simply means this is probably the
oldest area where the streets are VERY narrow, crooked and it's very
easy to get turned around. The streets are lined with small shops and
it's a very pedestrian area. Quite fun.

York is a tourist destination and we arrived at the end of the Spring
Bank Holiday and the beginning of the school Half-term. The city is
inundated with people despite the rain.

As the title of this post implies, things do come to an end
eventually. Tomorrow we leave for a quick overnight in London before
our flight back to Canada and a slow, reluctant meander back to Moncton.

We've only been here for three weeks but it feels like months! As
happened last time, the people of the UK have been wonderful hosts -
even when they asked "are you American?" for the hundredth time. (Grin)

Last day in London

2010-05-31T03:58:00.000-03:00

Haven't post a great deal the last couple of days. Been wandering
about London mostly. We saw "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert the
Musical" (yes the name is that long) on Sat nite. Whether or not you
were a fan of the movie, you may enjoy it. For R and I it was an
exteded version of the drag shows from the 80's - with better
production values. But, the 100s of chicks there for drunken hen
parties had fun.

Last night we saw a wonderous MacBeth at the Globe. Fantastic
performances all around. My spine didn't care for the seating (despite
the rented cushion) so I won't do a bould feature. But that's my own
infirmity not a reflection on the cast or production. I have to say
the use of the witches was genius and I'll say no more lest I spoil.

This morning we leave for a couple of days in York. If the grand, old
duke is there, perhaps he can confirm rumoirs re the size of his army.

Oxford, Brighton and Things Apple-ish

2010-05-28T14:09:00.000-03:00

Yesterday we made a little day trip to Oxford. We like the feel of
university towns - they usually have ecclectic shops and people and an
energetic feel. Oxford, being one of the original college towns, is no
exception. It's actually quite beautiful and remarkably easy to get
around as it's foot friendly. There's a walking path along the river
as well. We could see ourselves living in a place like that. Toward
the end of the visit, we dropped into the cinema to see "Prince of
Persia". Good picture btw.

Today (Friday) we had early morning plans. This was the day Apple was
launching the iPad in the UK so we went over to see the fanboys. By
the time we got to Regent St we weren't disappointed. There were
easily 400 people lined up to enter the store. Police were out in full
force and Stephen Fry was giving a press conference. I got a few
pictures before a policeman shooed me away (politely). Whenever a
customer left with their new iPad, the store staff was waiting in a
line by the door to clap and cheer for them. I'm not sure if I liked
or was disturbed by the theatre of it all. I'd thought I might have
an opportunity to heft one but alas no. Life and vacations are too
short to stand in line to heft an iPad.

After all that excitement we were in the mood for more and decided to
jump on a train to Brighton. (These BritRail passes are just amazing.)
Brighton is a seaside holiday city on the south coast of England less
than an hour from London. When we arrived, we could tell it had that
"port city" feel you get in Halifax or St. John's. If Oxford is trendy
and smart, Brighton is common and coarse. It's as if you mashed St.
John's and Niagara Falls together. The beach would disappoint most
North Americans as it's pebbles. Large pebbles.

Toward one end of town is Brighton Pier. It's a massive structure
sticking out into the ocean housing: thrill rides, concession stands,
bars and casino style games. Loud music is playing constantly, people
are laughing, kids are running and screeching. And... It works. For
some reason the sorts of things that make Niagara Falls nasty don't
seem to do so here. I could see myself sitting with friends on a hot
summer night, having a drink at one of the outdoor pubs on the pier,
with music blaring and thrill rides squeezing screams out of people
and it being a pretty darn good time. Could I live there all the
time? No. Could I visit? Yeah.

As we made our way back toward the train station, more and more people
we coming in the other direction. This is the beginning of the long
weekend in the UK (Monday is the Spring Bank Holiday).

On the street leading to the station R noted a small shop selling
Apple products. With one customer inside. And three iPads on display.
After the crush on Regent Street this morning it was a shock to walk
inside and pick one up.

I got to play with it for about 10 minutes and likely could have
stayed longer. For me, the iPad is a collection of "littles". The
screen's a little too big as I'd prefer it were half that size. It
weighs a little too much as it's hard to hold with one hand. In the
current configuration it costs a little too much. Do I want one now? No.

Back in London

2010-05-27T05:50:00.004-03:00

Yesterday was a bit of a write-off for us. The heat and the tsuris of Paris just drained us. We slept until almost 10am (and anyone who knows me knows that's rare.)

We decided to have a leisurely day so we wandered out for breakfast and, afterword, the Victoria and Albert Museum. As luck would have it, the V&A is just down the street from our hotel - a mere 20min stroll.

Unlike the previous day, the weather was cool and overcast. My sunburned head appreciated the change. The walk down Cromwell Road was pleasant despite it was almost lunch time and the crowds were out in full force. I should think learning to live in London would be relatively easy. It's a bit frantic and the traffic is miserable but it's not as, well, tight-assed as Toronto.

The V&A was a revelation for me. I'd always, mistakenly, assumed it was limited to the decorative arts: china and tableware and drapes etc. I was completely mistaken. The part of their sculpture collection that they're able to show is massive. The place is huge and couldn't be examined in a single sitting. We focused on a couple of relatively modern areas and will have to come back some time for the rest. I did get many photos but didn't have the "digital negative" card with me. Hopefully I can balance the levels on the simple JPGs using "old school" photoshop techniques.

The main building at the V&A has a central courtyard with a largish reflecting pool, a small cafe and some tables. Despite the cool it was quite busy - school children gossiping by the pool, "ladies" having a light lunch (gossip optional).

After a snack in lieu of lunch, we ended our visit and continue on Cromwell which turns into Brompton Road which is home to Harrods. After the previous day's crowds we didn't spend a great deal of time here. We stayed long enough to find the Ladurée mini shop and buy... more macarons.

Ladurée has been in business since 1860. Yes, it's another business that's older than Canada. They're informally credited with inventing the macaron and we'd meant to visit the original Paris bakery but the weather was too brutal. Instead the satellite shop in Harrods would have to do.

The verdict? I honestly don't believe they were better than the one's we bought at the Galeries Lafayette. R believes it may be due to the heat/humidity in Paris as they were in my backpack for at least 90 minutes before we ate them. Perhaps eating them in the Tuilerie Gardens did the trick? The Harrods ones were lovely but not celestial. I guess I not only love eating French confections, I prefer eating them in Paris. R and I were joking we're open a macaron shop in Canada and take North America by storm. HA!

We've got a few days to wander about London before we leave for York. Our only plans are theatre-based: Priscilla Queen of the Desert on Saturday and "The Scottish Play" at the Globe Theatre on Sunday.

Paris continued

2010-05-26T16:29:00.002-03:00

(Back for a recharge)

So it's unspeakably hot in Paris and we're slowly navigating our way across it in midst of rapidly growing throngs of people. (We'd arrived at 1030am and it was approaching noon.)

One fallacy I'd like to break right now: Parisians don't sneer at foreigner's attempts at speaking French. Each and every time I spoke to people - on the street or in shops - they smiled and listened patiently.

To get out of the heat and check for bargains, we dropped into the Gallairies La Fayette. No bargains were to be found. (If you're from Canada, this of the place as a Parisian Creeds or Holts.) However, we did find a small chocolate shop in the store called Jean-Paul Hevin which sells "des macarons" read about them here (there'll be a test later):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaron

So we bought a six-pack of them each in several flavours and continued our death march across the city. We got lost several times. We were hungry, hot and pretty miserable. Earlier we couldn't get away from restaurants but by this time they were nowhere to be found. As luck would have it, just as we were about to give up and turn back, R noticed several people walking toward is with recently purchased lunch items. A few moments later were having a light lunch in a corner sandwich shop.

With full stomachs we hit the streets again but the sun was at its highest. By now it was at least 33C and the heat ws oppressive.

In the midst of all this trauma we turned the corner and stumbled into ... The Tuillerie Gardens. Situated between the Louvre and l'Oblisque the place is closer to what Canadians think of as a park. Groups of trees make little pools of shade and the terrain catches most breezes. At the end we entered there is a round reflecting pool. There a communal chairs here and there for people to use. Parisians were there in numbers sitting under trees or sunning by the edge of the pool.

Immediately in front of us were a couple of trees over a pair of empty seats. We sat to take stock and reconsult the map and cool off a bit.

I said "Let's have a couple of macarons". So we sat there for a few minutes, in a garden built for Marie Antoinette, and ate a few of the most exquisite foods on the planet. When you first open the box, the scent of them delights your nose. These confections were so good they could make angels weep. In all honesty I feel they could be used to stop time. I tried an orange and a vanilla one and I was ready to go back to the fight. R felt the same - time to push forward.

At the end of the gardens we finally found a Metro entrance. Be warned: unlike Montreal, Toronto or New York, many Paris metro stations are not obviously marked. We used the metro to get to the Arche de Triomphe but the line to get in was too long. We walked the side streets for a bit and eventually took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It's very impressive even now in the age of NYC sky-scrapers. The lines to ascend on the funiculars were massive. There was a short line at the "walk up" leg which was no surprise in the heat. (We even had a "Paris moment" - as we arrived a gypsy was nabbed by an undercover cop immediately after picking a pocket.) We walked about the general area of the tower but our hearts just weren't in it.

While it wasn't time for us to return to the station for the train back to London, we decided to go back to the general area near the station. It was reasonably shaded there and we found the one restaurant where no one outside was smoking and had a light supper. By this time the sun was low enough to throw most of the streets in shadow and with the wind that had come up it started to cool. After another wander through the neighborhood, we had a drink in the station lounge and waited to board the train.

The trip home seemed to take FOREVER but I guess it due to the 16 hour day and that we were in sweaty clothes that were just too heavy for the heat.

I firmly believe a one-day trip to Paris wasn't a mistake. Our downfall was the weather. If it had been 17C and cloudy, it would have been a great walking tour of a big, complicated, real city.

All Paris in a Day

2010-05-26T05:52:00.000-03:00

As if! I have to say the Eurostar was disappointingly normal. You are
subjected to the basics of security. You board the train. Two hours
later you find yourself in Paris. No excited announcements that we've
achieved some sort of massive speed. In fact, perhaps because of how I
drive, it didn't seem all that fast.

Paris? My first visit to Paris? We arrived on the last of two days in
MAY when it was 33C!!

If you arrive expecting the romantic, American movie version of Paris
you will be very disappointed. The area around Gare du Nord is, using
a British term, grotty. The less emphasis on this neighborhood the
better.

We walked down Rue La Fayette as we were generally aiming for the
Palais Royale. Two things struck me about the city:

- Everyone smokes like it's a cure for cancer
- Littering appears to be a national sport

More later time for breakfast!

I Love London in the AM

2010-05-25T00:58:00.000-03:00

We arrived in London yesterday morning at 6am. The overnight train
was ... Interesting. I never sleep in moving vehicles as a rule but
got an hour or two through sheer exhaustion.

We took a cab to the hotel and, even at that hour, traffic was heavy-
ish. When we arrived, we were shocked to find the room was actually
ready - we'd expected we'd have to stow our luggage until at least 3pm.

Because we were pretty much exhausted, we spent the day doing pretty
utilitarian things.

We were desperate for a laundry so we packed things up and went
looking for breakfast and a wash.

Not far from the hotel, on Gloucester Road, we found Fait Maison. A
lovely French cafe, we sat at a street-side table eating quiche et
pain au raisin while watching Londoners start their day.

Eventually we found a launderette near the hotel and wandered about
the neighborhood during the wash and subsequent dry cycles. We got
Oyster cards for use in the underground. We prefer these to tourist
cards because they can be topped up at many stations - even with coins!

After wash day was complete we took the tube to St Pancras station to
pick up our tickets to Paris on the Eurostar for the next day. Nothing
fancy, just a cheap day return.

In the afternoon the exhaustion was starting to catch up so we had an
early night. Tommorrow we leave for Paris at 655am so sleep would be
good.

Heading South

2010-05-24T13:32:00.000-03:00

Sunday pm

Well thank Zod we got Oban-Glasgow reservations. There are maybe 5 unreserved seats and people seem genuinely confused that they can't just jump on the train at the last minute.

As luck would have it, our seats on the 12:11 train are facing forward and I can see the sights I missed on the way in. I planned a little better so I can get a few pictures on the way to Glasgow. We'll have a few hours there before the overnight to London. This is a multi-destination train, a concept that's almost non-existant in Canada. A train leaves a departure station and along the way is split - with the two pieces going onward on different routes.

On the train we left Glasgow on last Friday, passengers were told "Oban in the first two cars, Maillagh in the last three". When we reached Crianlarach, the train broke in two with our part going to Oban and the rest continuing to Mallagh. Funnily, on Friday R decided to go to the washroom while they were splitting. The wee scots woman we were sharing a table with said "Yood better check he dinna go too far or he'll be off to Mailligh!"

At this moment, were waiting for the other half to arrive so we can continue onward. Scotland and Canada differ in so many ways. Crainlarach appears to be a tiny community and yet it's still serviced by british rail. Is it the distances between Canadian communities that make rail difficult to justify? Or is it the lack of coordination with other forms of transportation like buses, subways and trains.

You Otter read this

2010-05-24T13:31:00.001-03:00

Sat - again no hotel Internet

The heat broke after sundown last night and I got some rest. (R slept like a log - go figure).

After breakfast, which I chose to make continental as I'm not doing my stomach any favours lately, we decided to spend the morning at the Scotish Sea Life Conservatory.

The conservatory is a 20min bus ride outside of Oban. It also visits several even tinier communities as well as a wee airport.

The place is both a working conservatory as well as a tourist information spot consisting of several buildings housing gift shop and cafe as well as housing the wildlife. We arrived moments before it was time to feed ... the otters.

A mated pair of Canadian otters is housed here. They are cute as buttons. Later in the visit we saw the seals being fed as well as tank after tank of sea life. Took many pictures but flash photography was discouraged for most of the indoor exhibits. Luckily my little Canon can save digital negatives (thanks to hacked firmware) so I may be able to rescue a few of the flash- less shots.

We got back into town at 2ish and noticed the marquee for the Highland Theatre: a three screen cinema in an inexplicably small building in downtown Oban.

One of three films they were showing was The Ghost Writer (Pierce Brosnan and Ewan MacGregor) and as they had a 330pm showing we thought "why not?". We took a short walk and arrived back in time for the movie.

I can't speak for cinema 1 or 2 but cinema 3 has 27 seats with a proper projector and sound system. R and I were the only patrons. £12 bought us a private showing of a first run (in the uk) movie. Next to the cinema door is a small poster that warns behavior which spoils the experience for other patrons (IE using cell phones, talking loudly, being disruptive) will mean you will be asked to leave, not just told to stop, and repeated infringements will mean you will be banned. Wow. People being told in no uncertain terms they'll be held resposible for their behaviour. How direct! Once again I wonder if the directness that gets me into trouble in Canada has a genetic root.

We're having a "night in" tonight as we have to pack for tomorrow's travel day. We leave for Glasgow tomorrow noonish, have a few hours there to wander about and then catch an overnight sleeper train down into London. Long long day. Before I turn in I'm going to take a picture from our window - the sky is still very bright at 10pm.

Where everybody knows/has your name

2010-05-22T18:04:00.000-03:00

Friday - because the internet is not smiling on me

Oban is the classic tiny Scots village. Situated on the seaside in the
north of Scotland it is very pretty and I have to admit the scenery
between Glasgow and here was some of the most beautiful I've ever seen.

We arrived on a very crowded Friday noon train, which in itself
surprised me. I'd known that May 24 would not be a holiday here
(Britian has a spring holiday the next week) so I'd assumed this
weekend would be quiet. Immediatey after arriving we reserved seats
on the return train on Sunday and headed for our hotel.

I chose (unnamed) hotel for two reasons: it was relatively full
service and it was far from the town's pub/restaurant areas - I felt
this would make for a restful time. The place is very spartan and not
really to my taste. BUT I just spent a week in two luxury hotels and
I'm likely being too hard on this one. So, I won't name it lest I
unfairly colour someone else's opinion.

As the day is even more freakishly long here (sunrise 455am sunset
950pm) we went to the tourist office to ask about Castle Dunollie. The
lady there gave me great instuctions and added "but it's a ruin, you
know". I told her my last name and she said "oh then you must see it."

The castle (or what's left of it) is a leisurely 20min stroll from the
centre of town. It's clearly labelled but not prettified as are most
structures in the country. There's a rather steep path from the road
to it, about 40ft up overlooking the road and the sea. Ivy covered,
it's pretty impressive despite being a ruin.

She was right though - only a small part of it remains. It's likely
that last standing tower was some sort of living quarters as it's set
on the side away from the ocean. We walked into the structure briefly
but it's obviously unsafe (the clan website had warned the second
floor is off limits)

I was strangely affected by the place. I said to R "this place was
built in the 1300s by my ancestors - by men who had the same Y
chromosome as me."

I took quite a few pictures including some of a 7ft tall granite
Celtic cross near the structure. Inscribed on it is a dedication to
the 13th clan chief who ... had the same name as me. It's not a cool
as you may think - in Scotland and especially in Oban my name is
pretty common.

We carefully picked our way down to the road and wandered back into
town. We had a "fish supper" at a little shop. Oban has a giant
fishing industry so the fish was very fresh and delicious.

Food out of the way we walked back through the shops. Most were
getting ready to close for the day. R wanted to pick up a few
postcards so we went into a little shop. The fellow running the place
asked us where we were from (this is usually to identify us as Canucks
or Americans). I told him I was born in Nova Scotia and he asked my
last name. When I told him he shook my had and said "that's my last
name as well". He then asked two questions "did you drop the A?" and
"did you keep the two l's?" When I answered No and Yes respectively he
smiled and "aye good very good".

As it's unseasonably hot all over the UK, we didn't return to our
hotel room (it was an oven when we dropped off our things) instead we
walked along the harbour and sat for a while watching gulls, holiday
couples and bored teenagers.

While I was moved by the days events, I find I don't feel a great deal
of affection for Oban. Just as it'd been with Glasgow I didn't care
for the place at all despite my grandfather having left there for
Canada in the late 1800s.

R and I talked about this and we reached the conclusion: my people
felt the need to leave these places (both of which are perfectly ok
but just not what they needed) and maybe that's what I'm picking up
on : that feeling that something is better than this.

That idea will require more, serious thought.

Using a Little Latitude

2010-05-21T00:58:00.000-03:00

It's 446am and I'm awake. That in itself isn't rare for me. What I
find unusual is that sunrise has already happened. And last night,
sunset was at about 945pm.

When I compared this to home I was a little surprised: the day here
is already over am hour longer. I knew Scotland was generally
farther north than where we live, a full 10 degrees, but I didn't
expect such a dramatic difference.

Last one for a day or two

2010-05-20T18:59:00.000-03:00

The Falkirk Wheel was pretty darn awesome as was the village. Got
pics and a video of the thing in action.

This pm we did the last few things about town (I'm buying clothing and
discarding old stuff as we go) and we just finished packing. Tomorrow
is a travel day; we leave for Oban midmorning. Oban is a sleepy little
place north of Glasgow and, if the interwebs are to be believed we'll
likely be without Internet until late Monday. Will take lots of photos
of Dunollie and Dunfastafnag Castles.

See you in a few days!

Oot and Aboot in the Trossards

2010-05-20T13:07:00.000-03:00

Wow what a day! I was too exhausted to post last nite. We wanted to
see Loch Lomond and Stirling Castle and it might have been possible
with the train passes but it was more convenient to take a semi-guided
tour bus as we found one that did both.

The bus left at 930am full of 11 Japanese, two Argentinians, three
floridians and us. The driver, Alaisdair, seemed nice enough and was
full of witty stories but now and then he'd go on about something (tax
or maybe the lack of religious schooling in Scotland these days) but
he'd end it with "bu' thets jess muh opinyoon" and a laugh. The
japanese just smiled and nodded - only one or two spoke English.

The trip to Loch Lomond was fairly quick and we stopped at an
interpretation centre near it. I'd made the mistake of having a
continental breakfast that morning and by now (1030) I was starving.
I ducked into a little tea shop nearby and got an authentic, fresh
Scottish scone and blackberry jam. Yum. I ate on the run and a local
duck was determined to get a crumb or two.

We only spent a short time at Lomond as were going to visit what the
driver rightly called a much better place: Loch Katrine.

In in middle of the Trossacks area of Scotland, Loch Katrine is the
main watersource for Glasgow - supplying millions of litres of water
to the city each day.

We arrived with time to have lunch before taking ta loch cruise on The
Sir Walter Scott - a steam ship from the 1800s. We spent just over an
hour cruising up and back on the loch - I got many fantastic shots as
the place was a beautiful as the driver had promised.

After a short delay - several of the passengers hadn't understood we
were to leave immediately - we were off to Stirling Castle.

By the time we arrived it was starting to mist which sort of added to
the whole "Scottish Experience." We spent a great deal of time
wandering through the castle once occupied by Mary Queen of Scots. I
got many pics of the castle and the surrounding area. The gift shop
was manned by Findlay and I had to tell R "Yes he's cute as a button
with a sweet shy smile, deep blue eyes and an accent as soft as butter
but we can't just tuck him in our luggage because someone is bound to
miss him."

We returned to Edinburgh (a few pics of the Forth Bridge on the way)
had dinner and returned to the hotel.

Right now its the next morning and we're on the train to Falkirk to
see the Falkirk Wheel.

A wee tale

2010-05-18T19:22:00.000-03:00

Yesterday was the travel day. We left Bath at 830am and took our first
"pass" trip to Birmingham. (BritRail passes are awesome - they glance
at them and left you on just about any train.) Thanks to the ash
cloud, the train was a little full and we couldn't sit together. The
trip was relatively uneventful save what R calls "Business Cell Twats."

The reason for the stop in Birmingham? It broke up a LONG ride to
Edinburgh. We arrived at about 10am. The station was in a retail area
of the city - literally 100 yards away. We tossed our bigger bags into
"left luggage" (store your bags for a fee) and wandered about for a
couple of hours. We had a civilized lunch at a Pret a Manger and did
some comparison shopping - Apple products are about the same price
with the GBP at the current rate. (Yes this was the second Apple
store we were in. Don't judge.)

Back at the station we waited for the Edinburgh trains platform to be
announced. It was only 15 min before departure when the board said
track 4. So R, I and about 150 other passengers headed down the stairs
to #4.

Not five minutes later they announced it had been moved to track 7.
Annoying or what? We all walked back up the stairs across the
terminal and down to the other track.

The four hour ride to Edinburgh was pretty basic and we arrived at
about 5pm. We're staying in the Fraser Suites - given what we paid
Expedia we were shocked at how posh the place is.

As with last visit Edinburgh it really feels like home here. We had a
long walk around the new town, a great Beef Pie dinner at the Auld
Hundred pub and turned in.

This morning we got what we thought was a late start at about 9am.
Wrong as most places don't even start serving breakfast before 10am.
Edinburgh is not a city of early risers. After breakfast we walked
over to the New Town and decided to take advantage of one of those hop-
on hop-off bus tours so we could see parts of the area not really
accessible on foot. Using this we rode out to Leith as well as the
more remote areas of both Old and New Town.

In the afternoon we walked to the top of the Burns Monument on Princes
Street. I was surprised it was actually walkable. (I'd seen and
photographed it during the last visit and just didn't notice the
entrance.)

There are three stages totalling 240+ stairs. Just over 100 take you
to the first level. And, to be honest, this was a far as I got. I'm
tremendously claustrophobic (I sometimes can't cope with elevators)
and even that stairwell was a bit much for me. I know my limits and
didn't want to be in the situation where I'd forced myself up and
couldn't get down.

So I waited on level 1 while R continued upward. He tells me the next
level stairwell brushed your shoulders and the last was so narrow one
had to slip up sideways! Top that with a topmost platform so small
four people take up the whole floor and have to move simultaneously
around to see the view and exit!!! Yes I know my limits and that was
well beyond them.

In the afternoon we explored a bit more and despite being told my clan
tartan "just isn't that popular" i was able to find a wool scarf in
it. We had a supper of haggis, tatties and neeps, yum.

Tomorrow we're off to Loch Lomond and Stirling Castle for a little day
trip.

Last night in Bath

2010-05-16T17:44:00.000-03:00

Despite a spot of rain this morning, it was a nice Sunday. After
breakfast we went for a long walk through the downtown. During the
walk we located the William Herschel Museum. He lived in Bath for
quite some time (the museum is in his former home) and you'll have
heard of him as he discovered Uranus. (Stop snickering immediately
this is serous science.) Info on this great scientist can be found
here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Herschel

It started raining at this point so we took refuge at a Cafe Nero
coffee house for a drink and a newpaper read. The paper told us the
ash cloud was being bothersome. As we were planning a long train trip
into Edinburgh tomorrow we thought we'd better bring our passes to the
train station and secure reservations.

We returned to the hotel to drop off rain wear and pick up my camera
as we were heading over to the Bath Catherdral to take some snaps and
stay for the Evensong Choral service but...

While we were here we heard a loudspeaker from the rec area/rugby
pitch across the street welcoming people to the Bath Coffee Festival.

http://www.bathcoffeefestival.co.uk/

So... we went over. I shouldn't have been surprised as Bath is known
as The Festival City. As it happened this was the first festival of
its type in the UK!

As you might guess it was in a giant tent filled with coffee merchants
and companies that sell coffee makers and small companies that made
coffee products (coffee flavored ice cream and toffee for example) -
it was great fun. I must have had 4 cups of coffee in small glasses.
As we were leaving R noticed something on the lawn in front of the
pavillion: a set of Samba instruments. When we lived in Halifax he had
been a member of the Samba-Nova band. The festival organizer told us
the band organizers would be back in a few minutes and told R to hang
around as they could use an experienced serto player. So we did.

R played with them for over an hour - as happens in the samba
community there are always extra instruments so adults and children
are invited to join in. The kids had a blast! I chose to take pictures
and video rather than grab an agogo!

By this time we'd missed the Evensong service so the Bath Abbey will
have to wait for the next time. After dropping by the train station
and a quick supper we started to get ready for tomorrow: we're off for
a brief visit to Birmingham and later in the day off to Edinburgh.
Likely no posts tomorrow as it's a travel day.

Who's Rayman?

2010-05-16T03:05:00.000-03:00

Saturday was our first, real day of vacation. We're sincerely trying
to keep things low key and we pretty much succeeded.

We couldn't face breakfast because our stomaches were still on
Canadian time so we hit the streets. It was sunny and quite warm.
Behind the buildings across the street from the hotel is the city
common. They were having a "fun day" and the Bath Rugby team were
practicing.

Our first stop was the Roman Baths - http://www.romanbaths.co.uk/

Based around the only volcanic hotspring in the UK, it's a chance to
see evidence of the Roman occupation but the site has been a hot-
spring site since about 850BC. The entry fee included an audio guided
tour which is almost mandatory these days. (Someone should write a
scholarly paper on the effect of MP3 players on the modern museum.) As
you might expect, the player worked by entering numbers shown on
plaques here and there.

The Roman Baths take this a little further by adding separate sets of
numbers for children as well as a more personal account of visiting by
writer Bill Bryson.

The main narrative was quite detailed, and perhaps a little heavy for
my travel-addled brain, but the woman who recorded it had a rather
impressive accent known as Received Pronunciation or RP. To North
Americans, RP is a very posh-sounding accent - it's how the Queen
sounded on Christmas morning when we were chidren.

Some of the RP vowels are difficult to follow. For example the "long
o" sound in "home" sounds closer to "ay" in "hay". This meant the
narrator thoughout the tour made "Roman troups" sound like "Ray-man
troups". It took a while getting used to.

Toward the end of the tour you find yourself at the edge of the
original spa pool which is surrounded by uneven tiles. At that point I
was listening to one of Bryson's commentaries and he noted "where
you're walking right now Roman sandles walked." That made his point
clearly.

The rest of the day was largely retail therepy this of little
consequence. After watching Doctor Who live (well, if I hadn't I'd
have lost my star commentor status on io9.com) we walked just over the
bridge to a Turkish restaurant called Marmaris. The food was excellent
but the portions are Gigantic!!! Be warned.

As today is Sunday we're going to church. Yes you read that correctly.

And I awoke...

2010-05-15T02:38:00.000-03:00

... at 4:30am local time - as always.

The day you arrive is almost always a write-off. With jet lag and
travel and such it's difficult to get much done.

We did manage to get a 90 min nap at the airport hotel. I'm not a "nap
person" so that in itself was a small miracle.

The train into London was lovely as always. If you've never travelled
by train, they tend to go through the back ends of communities where
property values are lower. The Gatwick Express is no exception -
several times we passed the rear of rowhouses that resembled a
Coronation Street soundstage.

Victoria Station was a madhouse at 11am but then it's alway crowded
and noisy. We had to get across a bit of the city to Paddington
Station for the train to Bath. We only had 90 min to make it so we
took the Tube and made it there in 20. I doubt a cab could have done
the same. Thank Zod we packed light!

The train to Bath was uneventful but the countryside was spectacular
as always. So many greens. (FYI for my IT buds - the train passed
Oracle's GIANT complex in Reading. WOW!) I know it the "glow factor"
brought on by travel but the lands here really are breathtaking. It's
most evident as you arrive in Bath where rows of Georgian houses perch
on hillsides.

Eddie Izzard - brilliant Brit comedian - has said "I'm from England
where history was invented." Bath sends that point home subtly. While
it received its charter in 1590 from Queen Elizabeth I (yes, the
first!) Bath was established as a resort town by the Romans - who
loved the hotsprings - in (gulp) 54AD. Near our hotel is a sign that
reads "Office of Carstairs Accounting since 1750." In case you don't
recall, Canada was established in 1867. (You don't supposed Carstairs
did the paperwork?)

With a population of just under 90,000, Bath is a great place to start
a vacation. It's a university town so the population is a nice mix of
ages. UNESCO declared it a world heritage site due mostly to the
effort to maintain its classic georgian architecture. There are very
VERY strict rules about making changes to both the outside and inside
of most buildings and homes. This prevents exquisite buildings being
turned into condos but can make a simple change challenging. While
walking yesterday we saw one of those "public notice" signs informing
the community that the owner of the building was seeking permission to
install an alarm system. As it would require work on the interior
walls and would potentially be visible from the street, the public and
the city have to be involved.

This attention to detail doesn't stop progress. We're staying at the
Carfax Hotel. I strongly recommend it. It occupies a span of three
row houses in a beautiful Georgian complex. The rooms are huge by
even Norh American standards. There are 15ft ceilings with crown
mouldings that look like they were finished moments before Canada was
made a country. I chose the hotel largely for its location - a 10min
walk from the central part of town but in a quiet neighborhood with
parks and, of course, the Avon river.

After getting settled in the hotel, we walked about the city for a few
hours. Our rule is always: never do anything you really want to do on
your first day as you'll be tired and cranky. So were leaving the
Roman Baths and the Bath Abbey for, well, today or tomorrow.

When we were here last, there was a massive constuction site in the
centre of town. An ugly shopping mall that had somehow gotten built in
the 60s(?) was being demolished to be replaced by something called the
Southgate Shopping Complex. I remember thinking that last part
sounded like a threat. I had pictured a shopping mall and it seemed so
out of place. Yesterday we realized the builders knew what they
were doing. The "complex" is a series of smaller buildings that have
been designed to fit in with the rest of the architecture of the
area. None of them are more than 3 stories tall and shopping
storefronts are limited to the first floor. Between the buildings
they've created new streets so they whole thing seems like a nice
compromise - the builder gets retail and office space and the city
doesn't have a shopping mall in the middle of town. And, yes they have
an Apple store!

After walking about refamiliarizing ourselves with the city, we had a
quiet dinner (at the Thai by the Weir restaurant very good!) took a
post-prandial walk through one of the parks near the hotel and
wandered back to the room. In bed and asleep by 9.

And here I am waiting for the rest of the world to awaken. Weather
today is supposed to be sunny - I'm hoping for some photo ops.

Welcome to Gatwick

2010-05-14T02:27:00.000-03:00

Well we're here. The flight was uneventful and we arrived 10 min
early. As it was 5:30am there were few people in the airport. We
walked a good kilometer to passport control.

R got a stern chap: Name!? Reason for visit?!

I got a rather nice guy. He looked at my passport and said "Family
visit?"

"No just a holiday."

"Well with your name and born in NEW Glasgow. Where is that located?"

"Nova Scotia. I guess I can understand."

"Yes it like you've got a miniature Scotland over there." We laughed.

With that he stamped my passport and we were off to get the luggage.
Right now we're in the Yotel. It's a capsule hotel in the airport -
pictures to follow. Tiny efficient room. Very tiny. It's booked for 4
hours - enough time for a shower and a quick nap before the Gatwick
Express into London and the noon train to Bath.

And so it begins

2010-05-13T17:49:00.001-03:00

R and I rented a car for the drive to Halifax. This was a good thing
because the flight we would have used was cancelled!!

Here's how we left.

We loaded the luggage into the trunk - it was a small Hyundai with one
of those luggage covers. We jumped in and I'm about to start the car
when I notice ... the luggage cover is still up.

I got out, cursing, and closed it. Back in the car I started the car
and backed up about a foot.

"Just a sec" he says "I want to check my passport one more time." I
sat while retrieved it from his backpack.

A moment later he found it. And something unspoken filled the car.

"Did you want me to check mine?" I asked.

Sheepishly he nodded. Sigh. I popped the car into park, jumped out,
opened the trunk and took my passport carrier from my pack. I closed
the trunk and got back in the drivers seat while pulling out my
passport.

"Lets check the expiry dates one more time.". Not that it mattered at
this point, we checked them. I tucked the passport away, put the car
in reverse and backed up again ... One foot.

I'd forgetten to put down the luggage cover AGAIN. Arghhh!

That taken care of, it was a quick drive to the airport and here we
are. We're waiting to board and the grand adventure begin!!!

By the way free wifi at Halifax airport woo hoo!

Packing Light

2010-05-09T19:09:00.003-03:00

R and I leave for the UK this Thursday... for 3 weeks! This weekend we've been looking at the luggage situation.

Last time we each took one of those large rolling suitcases. It wasn't too bad - we over-packed of course -- I came back with clothing I didn't even wear! Luckily we're both strong because hefting them up into train storage areas, up flights of stairs at hotels and, once, a 20 min walk from Euston Station to the hotel wasn't great fun. (If Google Maps says it's only a 5 min walk somewhere, take it with a grain of salt.)

This time we're taking a different approach. A few articles lead us to believe we could get away with a carry-on each (plus a day pack) for the entire trip. "For three weeks?" I can hear you saying. Yes!

FIRST: Take only about a weeks worth of clothing. We usually do a laundry at least once when we're gone for more than a week anyway. Doing laundry in a foreign city is a great way to meet people. Pop things into the dryer, toss some coins in the machine and head out to the pub (there's ALWAYS a pub nearby) and have a drink while things are drying. Chat with some locals.

SECOND: Roll those clothes. The New York Times has a slide-show that demos things quite nicely. This afternoon, I was able to get 3 pair of pants, 5 shirts plus 5 days of socks and underwear into a standard 20-in carry-on bag. And it closed without have to push the zipper closed. Sweet. Of course, we'll each have a day pack too.

It's all falling into place.

In which we go to the movies!

2010-04-24T19:02:00.005-03:00

I'll begin with a horrific confession. Other than "the early days" on The Daily Show and his performance in Little Miss Sunshine, I've seen very little of Steve Carell's work. I'd seen clips of his work on The Office and the show was not to my taste. (But, to be fair, I felt the same way about the UK version.)

Even more shocking, please sit now if you're standing, I've never seen any of Tina Fey's work. None. Nada. I really can't say why. 30 Rock just didn't do it for me.

In both cases, the loss is definitely mine.

R and I had a date night seeing ... of course ... Date Night. We settled into a sparsely-populated theatre - it wasn't the prime evening showing - the lights went down and the fun began. (MINOR Spoilers Ahead - be ye warned, maties.)

Fey and Carell play Claire and Phil the classic Mr and Mrs Everyman - harried with work, kids and life (in that order) they're a little rundown with it all. They see the humor in their situation and have the grace to live up to it. They're genuinely likable characters as well and it's clear they really love each other.

They realize their weekly date nights have become cliché and predictable. They try to break out of their rut by dressing and going to a swanky restaurant. It's there that Carell's Phil decides to do something impulsive and, well, the fuse is lit. The theme for this film could be "Impulsive = Bad Idea."

Date Night has a series of small roles by big names: Mark Wahlberg, James Franco, Mila Kunis, Ray Liotta and the always delicious Mark Ruffalo but they're there only to support Fey and Carell who carry the movie beautifully.

A good movie causes the viewer to suspend belief and they're able to pull that off for me, anyway. Phil and Claire are the funny, brave and clever people. You find yourself honestly believing these bizarre experiences are happening to them and you care. I'd have dinner with them - if only to make fun of the other diners. (When you see the movie, you'll know what I mean and you'll never look at a shoe-box the same way again!)

Stay for the trailers. There are the requisite out-takes but one reveals Fey is quite adept at improvisation.

Rating: Go! Now!

Now I'm starting to get pissed

2010-04-15T21:18:00.003-03:00

* The following was posted from an iPod Touch using the new Atomic Web browser which kicks serious ass. After using this for 15 min I bought the full version. Steve Jobs should hang his turtlenecked head in shame for foisting micro-Safari on us.

Volcanos? Are you freaking kidding me? WTF! Ok Iceland better get it's act together and get that thing under control. I'm going to Europe in less than a month come hell or highwater. (Being a risk manager I'm formulating plans involving flying to Madrid and heading north.)

Real Customer Service

2010-04-14T16:19:00.003-03:00

R and I are going to the UK again and, as happens when you book your own travel, you find yourself talking to Customer Service Reps.

In the last couple of weeks I've had the pleasure of talking with CSRs for two companies based in the UK: Canadian Affair and ScotRail.

I'm happy to report, in both cases, I've spoken to the nicest, friendliest and most helpful CSRs in my life. I don't remember when I've hung up the phone after making such a call and felt as good, or better, than when I called.

Thighs ... er CLASH of the Titans

2010-04-04T20:30:00.005-03:00

On the recommendation of my peeps are io9, I took in the 2D version of Clash of the Titans this weekend. Let's face it, in our house we call Easter weekend the "Spring Non-Christians Go to the Movies" weekend.

Several people are io9 had warned the 3D version of Clash had been done post-production and, unlike Alice in Wonderland, not done very well. I opted for the cinema within walking distance of my place. (R was working so I went on my own.)

What can I say - it's a not-so-cheesy remake of a very cheesy movie. Everyone manages to keep a straight face and, unlike the original, doesn't try to fit the entirety of re-thought Greek myth into 1.5 hours. Without spoiling, I'll remind you that Hollywood has played fast and loose with Greek myth this time as well. Don't think, just watch.

The acting's not bad - Ralph Fiennes (Hades) comes closest to chewing on the scenery but, thankfully, holds back. Gemma Arterton (Io) will look familiar because she's getting work everywhere - in fact the trailer for "Prince of Persia" played before Clash started*. She's also been in both St Trinians movies. She brought a touch of class to the thing but seemed to have a good time. Liam Neeson as a very bearded Zeus? I'll leave it there.

Ok, I gotta say it: Sam Worthington is a hot piece of tasty and the miniskirt in the first third of the movie was a little distracting. Now that that's out of the way, he wasn't bad as the reluctant demi-god. There seemed to be some real chemistry between he and Pete Postlethwaite (playing his adoptive father.)

As I've said many times before, I like to watch actors when they're not speaking - it says a lot about their acting abilities if they can find something to do when you're not waiting for their next cue. There were no "when's my next line?" divas here.

But, don't let character development get in the way of CGI! Monsters a plenty and none of 'em real beyond computer memory. They weren't bad but I'm betting that's the spot where the 3D process fell on its ass.

So, in a nutshell, "Release the Kraken!" Go see it, have fun and don't worry about whether Io would have ever met Perseus - for at least a couple of hours anyway.

* Other trailers included a new "A-Team" trailer - which makes more use of Bradley Cooper's ... assets and a trailer for "The Losers" starring Chris Evans and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. I bring this up because "The Losers" seems, at a glance, to be very similar to "A-Team" but is being released a month earlier. Huh! Yes, yes, I know - the Losers are left for dead and the A-Team are just in prison but 4 guys on the run, a sexy woman helping them ... sexily? Gotta wonder.

I couldn't agree more

2010-04-03T21:01:00.001-03:00

Philip Pullman ("The Golden Compass") on censorship.

A test of mobile posting

2010-03-31T07:43:00.000-03:00

Sometimes you can't get an Internet connection. Sometimes you fling
ideas into the ether and hope for the best!

A little theatre would be nice

2010-03-23T18:47:00.008-03:00

Click to embiggen

The last time we spent vacation time in London, we toured the Shakespeare's Globe Theatre* - there were no productions at the time. This time we planned ahead and we've got tickets to "The Scottish Play"** for May 30th.

Originally, this was to be the evening before we returned to Canada but it won't be. Let this be a lesson to people who plan ahead: charter flights get moved around. Ours was moved from Sunday-to-Sunday to Thursday-to-Friday, meaning we had to add a couple of days on the front and back to retain the two-weeks we'd carefully planned. (Yes, a few extra days in the UK, I know it's a burden we must bear.)

Here's another item I might be able to pick up along the way. (Wink)

* It's not the original. That spot has a few building on top of it. This one is faithfully and lovingly re-built (using Elizabethan techniques) a short distance from the original. It's an amazing space and has the only, legal, thatched roof building in London. (Yes, they're illegal. Fire of London in 1666? Remember? No, I didn't start it. Sheesh!)
** A bit of theatre superstition. It's consider bad luck to say "MacBeth" inside a theatre. (No. It would be childish to sit there saying "Wow, I hope they start MACBETH soon" or "Hi, are you as excited to see MACBETH as I am?")

I wanted the quickest way to Paddington...

2010-02-18T17:45:00.004-04:00

... evidently Streetview suggests I take flight.

Click to embiggen.

I thought only fixed males sprayed.

2010-02-15T19:55:00.001-04:00

Commercial? Tiny Film?

2010-02-04T18:11:00.001-04:00

I vote for the latter. This is the most moving piece of film I've seen in decades.

I tried, I really did

2010-01-22T20:12:00.002-04:00

Once again, I tried that "A picture a day" challenge and, frankly, I'm giving up. Really, this time of year, in this weather, it's difficult to conjure up enthusiasm for the day to day life.

How about I promise many photos of England, Scotland (including the family castle) and another surprise or two?

Nerdgasm

2010-01-08T21:03:00.002-04:00

I was a lucky fellow today. I chanced upon an online jumble-sale at work and picked up these DVDs for a very reasonable price.

From APAD-10

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (the British TV version not that odd movie from a few years ago) and 9 of the 10 seasons of Stargate SG-1.

Given a few things that happened at work today that depressed me immensely, this was the universe's way of saying "Cheer up!"

The Biggest Phallic Symbol in New Brunswick

2010-01-07T20:43:00.003-04:00

From APAD-10

Above, please find the Bell Aliant Tower. All 127 meters of tower thrusting into the sky. HA.

Wiki tells us the tower's not used that much any more. Speaking as someone who lives a few blocks from it, & occasionally in its shadow on bright summer days, I feel it should be converted into a giant sundial by painting the hours on the streets and buildings around its base.

Depressing Pano - 2010

2010-01-06T21:05:00.004-04:00

From APAD-10

Normally, Moncton get's a cold but bright winter. 2010 seems have brought a warmer but miserably dark winter. I work in a building beside the Petitcodiac River.

In summer, the riverfront is fairly pleasant as the city has reserved green space with small parks and walking areas. (Being a Nova Scotian and having lived near the harbour for most of my life, I must admit I do miss the sea. The river's OK.)

At lunch today, I went down to the river and took the shots that I made into a most depressing panorama above. Yes, the sky really was that dark - at noon!

It was so depressing, I just dropped the shots and eyeballed the lineup to make the pano. I couldn't be bothered starting the automated software. I also didn't bother trying to hide the seams because I thought the raw edges added to the overall bone-crushing depression of this winter.

In the early summer, when it's sunny and the grass isn't covered with ice and the sun is out, I'll take similar shots and prove it's really not that bad.

Early Morning, Looking Down

2010-01-05T20:03:00.003-04:00

From APAD-10

I work out at a gym in a local hotel. I pay for the privilege - more than most local, more traditional gyms. Why? Several reasons:

the gym is available 24/7
it's very lightly used, especially at the time of day I usually go (6am-ish)
it's got a very large pool (for a hotel one)

I'm a bit nostalgic about the place. It's where, a few years ago, I learned to swim. (Let's not think about me teaching myself to swim, in an unguarded pool, at 6am, shall we?)

The facility layout is unusual because the pool was originally an outdoor one. The gym is on the 2nd and 3rd floor of the hotel with the pool on, well, the 2.5th floor.

As I was leaving this morning, I took the picture above. The bleak mood of the view spoke to me - the Xmas decoration trying to light up the roof, the miserable snow on the ground, the taxi waiting for a customer that may or may not come.

I also have to re-read the chapter of the camera's manual that explains how to take night photos.

Ted to his buds

2010-01-04T20:35:00.002-04:00

From APAD-10

I like to keep a few personal things on my desk at work. OK, I'll be honest, my desk looks the aftermath of a small explosion. The little fellow above lives under my monitor.

I found him a couple of years ago while were were wandering about Cambridge (UK) one sunny afternoon. A little British bear holding the Union Flag. (I'm one of the group who feels it's the Union Flag on shore and the Union Jack when at sea.) It was a very pleasant day trip from London on the last day before we flew home.

Now, of course, we have to get planning. We're going back to the UK in mid-May for a couple of weeks. This time we're spending more time in Scotland and I really want to visit Dunollie Castle located not far outside of Oban.

Well, that was a helluva thing!

2010-01-03T13:48:00.004-04:00

Windy, rainy, miserable night. I won't complain overly - a friend of ours lost power for over 12 hours. Grace à portable generators, he and family were warm though the night.

As a follow-up to yesterday's picture, this is what our corner looks like this afternoon.

From APAD-10

People who've never been in winter weather (Floridians I'm looking at you) won't believe me when I say I prefer a cold winter. I just got back from picking up a few groceries and it's miserable out there. It's almost exactly 0C so it's not warm enough to melt everything (so slush has clogged the sewers) but it's not cold enough to freeze things (so the backed up water has formed dirty great puddles near said drains.)

I much prefer when winter is winter. Things freeze for a long period of time and then, in spring, they thaw. That's the Canadian winter I remember - things freezing solid about Nov 15th and thawing about April 15th.

It's Al Gore's fault

2010-01-02T14:59:00.002-04:00

From APAD-10

Well, it's 2 Jan and we're getting our first storm of the year. In all honesty, I feel global warming really is happening. Winters aren't nearly as long or as cold as they were when I was a lad and, well, that's a good 40 years span of time. (Memory before I was 10 is pretty fuzzy.)

The picture, above, was taken from our living room window showing the law-firm and church across the street. (There's a joke in there somewhere but I'm too tired to find it.) You may be thinking - "Winter storm, in Canada, in January? What's the problem." The problem is it's barely freezing (-1C as I write this) and it's going to rain for starting this evening. A LOT OF RAIN. In January. In Canada.

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T12:13:00.003-04:00

I'd thought that decade would never end and I'm particularly glad to put 2009 to death.

During my post-cholecystectomy convalescence, my cool co-workers (as opposed to the ratbag ones) gifted me with a bonsai tree.

From APAD-10

It's not often I'm expected to keep something alive - I'm enjoying the change.

In the background you can see R and I have found the need to get rid of books, again. And, that black box with the window on the front is something I believe used to be called a "television" or something. At the moment, I refer to it as "that black thing that takes up valuable real estate in the living room."

A small blast from the past

2009-12-19T10:55:00.002-04:00

We went to St John's Nfld last year and I'd forgotten I'd noticed this in the driver-thru of a Mary Brown Fried Chicken.

Click to embiggen and humph to yourself as appropriate.

Feelin' Fine

2009-12-17T22:23:00.002-04:00

It's been close to four weeks since surgery and I'm happy to report things are getting back to normal. I've been pretty good about taking things easy - I've only lifted more than 10 lbs once and that was an accident.

I've returned to the gym but I'm walking on treadmills only. Walking is the exercise of choice and with the weather lately it's safer to walk on a treadmill than on the sidewalks of this burg.

Starting Monday I'm allowed to start returning to a normal routine. Back in the pool will be nice.

25 Years later

2009-12-03T17:51:00.001-04:00

This is still one of my favourites

Now with LESS Gall Bladder - or my Canuck Health Care Story

2009-11-22T17:11:00.007-04:00

I occasionally have stomach pain which I'd always attributed to my hiatus hernia. A particularly bad one sent to the local ER Tuesday night. As it's flu season the place was jammed. I got to see a doctor in 2 hours but the pain had largely passed at that point. He examined me and felt was likely GERD because the pain location and quality didn't seem to be gall bladder and told me to come back it the pain returned.

I took Wed off, rested and felt a little better.

I returned to work on Thursday and immediately after lunch felt like crap - pain radiating along the breastbone and down into my lower and upper back. A co-worker who I'll call "Mom" (cuz she's got that sensibility) said "Listen, let me drive you to the ER".

Got that at 1pm and again, flu city - I had my season shot so I wasn't worried. Pain passed at 2pm and I saw a different doctor at 3pm. He listened and said "I'd like to draw blood and check a few things"

More waiting - but I wasn't feeling all that bad - so got back in at 530pm. He said "Your liver levels are fairly high. Can you come back tomorrow at 7am - when we're usually not swamped - and we'll do some more blood work and a sonogram of your gall bladder just to be sure. To be safe eat light tonight - non-fat if possible. (FYI Tomato soup made with water is non-fat. It's not gourmet cuisine but I wasn't really hungry.)

I also want to say I'm not complaining about the time spent waiting. I'd assumed I'd triage low and given the volume of people I felt blessed it wasn't much longer.

R and I went back at 7am - it wasn't really busy at the time. Blood was drawn and the sonogram was done (but very painful getting between the lower right ribs for a look. Hmmmm)

By that time, more people had started to arrive and it took some time to get the results. We went back and spoke to the 3rd doctor in as many days at about 1pm. He said "You have cholecystitis - inflammation of the gall bladder."

I said "how is that treated?" (Naive, eh?)

"Oh, we'll have to remove your gall bladder - possibly this afternoon or evening. Take your coat off, get in this johnny-coat, lay down on the stretcher and we'll start an IV while I call the on-call surgeon."

This was very surreal for me - it'd never occurred to me those on and off "stomach pains" were anything other than acid reflux. Even moreso, I felt great. When I said this, the doctor laughed. He said "I saw you leave yesterday and you didn't look sick. And you're the 2nd fellow today with the SAME problem."

So, there I lay for a couple of hours waiting for the on-call surgeon. (I'm not going to mention names to prevent Internet stalking.) She arrived and looked at the current readings and told me a few interesting points:

There'd be no removal of the gall bladder tonight (friday) because
The sonogram showed a blockage in the bile duct which was now obvious because
The whites of my eyes had turned yellow

She said ANOTHER specialist in endoscopy was going to run a scope down my throat to the bile duct by way of the stomach, check for the blockage, snip it open it a little and take out the stone. IF that worked and IF I didn't develop pancreatitis from the snipping, she'd take the gall bladder tomorrow (Saturday).

Wow. Happy belated 50th birthday, eh.

She was one of those brutally honest people I LOVE dealing with. No passive-aggression. No dancing around the obvious. I trusted her instantly.

She said "You're over 50 albeit by 2 weeks and you're male. Males tend to ignore pain or have a higher tolerance. Women tend to lose their gall bladders earlier because it's reported earlier before things get really bad. Yours has thickened and it's FULL of stones." She went on to describe how the surgery would go:

She would start the preferred method - laparoscopic. Four small incisions - one for camera, two for tools and one for releasing the carbon dioxide they flood your abdomen with during the procedure. If at any point she determined this would not work - the gall bladder was too large to remove or couldn't easily be isolated with the tools, she'd
Convert to an "open" procedure would would add a large incision and recovery time would be greatly increased.

At this point, I'm concerned but I don't feel I'm being led in the wrong direction.

She left and a couple of hours later, I was prep'ed and off to the endoscopic surgery department. I've had a couple of endoscopic stomach exams recently and I warned the team - I tend to shrug off the meds and fight like a dog when I'm under. One of the nurses had been at one of my other scopes and remembered. They were a great team - the specialist took the time to draw what was happening BOTH days (I LIKE PICTURES) - and, as they said, we've got good drugs! I was gone before they finished saying "This will sting a litt...."

A couple of hours later I woke in the hospital room that would be my weekend get-away. R told me the surgeon had been by. I had indeed fought like a bandit but the scope had been a success. They're removed a stone and some "sludge" (Hands up for "Eeeeewwww"!) and that had cleared the duct. I slept reasonably well Friday night getting all my nutrition from the IV. (Remember, I hadn't eaten since 7pm Thursday.)

Saturday arrived, my throat was sore but I was feeling pretty positive. A couple of people told me my eye colour was returning to normal - first to go, first to come back maybe?

The staff at the local hospital are just amazing. They're dealing with every little thing and they always manage to be friendly and helpful. Originally the surgeon had scheduled for 9am but she arrived at 8am with a little bad news - there had been a real emergency surgery that had jumped ahead of me (My life wasn't in danger of course!!! Who would argue?) so it'd be 1pm earliest. Really, when you think about this, it was really bad news for the poor soul who was in there from 9-12. Hope they made out OK.

Glum, R and I sat and chatted. A staff person accidentally brought me lunch which I had to send away. Sigh. One of the nurses told me - if they cancel, you'll be able to eat this evening but they haven't canceled yet!

Just before 2pm, they arrived to take me to surgery. Most of the next couple of hours is a blur - thanks to many drugs and anesthetic. The anesthetist confirmed I had fought the previous night - my vocal cords were so messed up, she added a steroid to my IV cocktail to reduce the swelling.
I awoke in the recovery room, very little pain and dazed as all get out. For some reason, I'd confused the surgery and our recent trip and was convinced the hospital was in New York. The recovery room nurses loved that one. When they felt I was sufficiently non-loopy, they took be back to the hospital room. R was able to stay with me for a few hours but I was groggy and out of it. He's so supportive - sitting there, tired out of his mind, answering the same questions over and over and over. No wonder I married him, eh?

They had wrapped me to tight and warm - and filled me with so many pain killers I wasn't in any pain. R left at the end of visiting hours (8:30) and I tried to get some sleep.

I didn't have best of nights - but mostly it was little things, random, things:

The fellow in the next bed tended to talk in his sleep which woke me quite a bit.
Both his and my IV flow monitors wait ape-shit during the night. Mine detected and stopped running because of a LARGE air bubble in the line and alarms went off everywhere. His complained every 10-15 minutes.
We were across the hall from an ice crusher so I'd just fall asleep and bam, someone needed ice
Because I'd had surgery, they had to take BP, temp and O2 level and see if my sutures were bleeding (NOT by the way) every couple of hours
And, of course, blood work at 5am!

I did get a little sleep here and there, and I'd slept from 830 to about 1230 so I shouldn't complain - and no one was deliberately trying to keep me awake!

This morning (Sunday - remember I still haven't eaten) I awoke and didn't feel too bad. The nurse offered to let me clean myself up with a basin at bedside but I figured, gotta stand up sometime, so I asked if I could get up, walk to the bathroom and wash myself there. She said, "Sure, if you feel you can. That'd be great."

It was a little shaky getting out of bed without using your abs. (The key appears to be roll onto your side and drop your legs over the side while pushing into the mattress with your "down" fist. All the force goes through your shoulders and minimized ab movement.) I tottering to the washroom, saw the bandages clearly to the first time. Pristine and white for the most part and ONLY 4 small ones! I washed up using what R refers to as a "whore's bath", pulled on a fresh "johnny coat" and underwear and left feeling pretty darn good.

Breakfast arrived while the nurse was there and I started to send it away. "No no" she said, "You're post surgery. If you're not nauseous you can eat just about anything you want!" Joy. 7pm Thurs to 8am Sun with only electrolyte and glucose IVs going into my right arm. A hard-boiled egg, a piece of toast, a bowl of oatmeal and some apple juice and a cup of coffee tasted like a feast!

The surgeon arrived shortly after breakfast and we talked about the procedure. I was shocked they hadn't had to "open" the abdomen. She said she was as well but was happy for it. She prefers it - it's cleaner and recovery time it greatly reduced.

We talked about recovery and, after finding I was felling pretty good, she suggested I might be happier leaving hospital that afternoon. I agreed - dying to sleep in my own bed! She said as long at the liver levels were approaching normal, she had no reason to keep me. Joy.

More waiting game - she was the on-call surgeon for the weekend so everything was through her. The nurses reported they'd prepared the exit paperwork and we just had to wait for her to have time to review the blood report. R and I chatted as time passed. Lunch arrived at 1pm another feast:

beef barley soup
roast ham with mashed potatoes and yellow beans
apple juice
tea
orange wedges for dessert

This was more than I have most evening meals at home. I tucked in but noted the taste was off. They'd switched me to diluadid for pain and it adds a funny taste to most everything. I cleaned up the food anyway.

As 2pm was approaching and I was getting sleepy (the hospital asks visitors to leave from 2-4PM) R helped me back into the bed I'd been avoiding all day and started to get ready to leave for a couple of hours.

I'd just gotten settled when the nurse walked in the discharge paperwork. "Who wants to go home? I do I do" Hard copies of what we'd discussed earlier. (ie I'm not to lift anything more than 10lbs for the next 4 weeks.) A script for a number of days of diluadid. A note for my HR department stating I'll be away for a few more days.

And here I am. We left at 6am on Friday to walk over the hospital. (I'd felt good and it was a lovely morning for a stroll.) I returned in a cab Sunday at 230pm minus a gall bladder.

Major shout out to the staff at the Moncton Hospital. Not once during my admittedly disturbing week did I feel lost or on my own. Busy, VERY busy people took time to listen and answer the dumbest questions. Each and every staff member I worked with was behind me 100%.

Funny the turns one's life makes, eh. And for any American reading this who's been told the Canadian system doesn't work, I have to point out, during this multi-day adventure I:

saw three different doctors
saw an endo and surgical specialist
received two surgical procedures
spent two nights in a hospital
all the sundry medications including pain meds, 48 hours of antibiotics and steroid medications and non-stop IV for over two days.

And the ONLY out of pocket expenses were a few cabs for R back and forth to the hospital, my drug plans $10 flat fee to fill the diluadid script (and a 3-day rental of the television set* which I arranged while still groggy from the first procedure.)

Maybe our system has flaws but this, my friends, was NOT one of them.

* Anyone who REALLY knows me just said "WTF??? You don't even have cable at home?"

If I had a Twitter, this would be a Tweet

2009-11-12T16:28:00.001-04:00

Irony: You spend 5 days in Manhattan and the one and only car that almost runs you over ... is from Quebec.

A small island of respite

2009-11-12T15:52:00.005-04:00

We'd arrived in NYC on the evening of the 5th, spent the next day running about (saw "After Miss Julie" that evening). Saturday was my birthday and we went to the Met to see "Turandot". Sunday was a museum day - we were on our feet and walking for close to 7 hours.

When Monday arrived, we needed a break from Manhattan's noise and bustle. So we took the tram to Roosevelt Island. The island is a narrow finger of a place in the Hudson River between Manhattan and Queens. There are conventional ways to get there (the F train swoops under the river and stops there on the way into Queens and there's a bridge into Queens as well.) But the tram shown at left is much more fun. On the Manhattan side, there's a tram station at 60th St and 2nd Avenue. Climb a set of stairs, pay your fare or swipe your Metrocard and enter one of the two tram cars. After a few moments, you're off and the tram's cable lifts you up over the streets and along the Queenboro bridge. This photo was taking inside the cabin, looking out across the bridge. The whole trip takes less than 5 minutes.

We spent the better part of Monday morning there. The island is almost completely surrounded by a riverside pedestrian walkway - well laid out and pleasant views are just about everywhere. If you find yourself missing the city, just look west.

It would be interesting to live this close to Manhattan yet still live quietly. The vast majority of housing on the island is rental properties - with some co-ops and condos - but there are a great number of families and, with all the amenities available many people only leave the island to work in one of the boroughs.

Live from the Corner of Exit and No Exit

2009-11-11T18:26:00.005-04:00

We just flew in from NYC and BOY are our arms tired! Thank you, thank you I'm here all week try the veal and tip your server. But seriously, ladies and germs, this photo was taken at the always delightful Salisbury Hotel on W 57th St. Ok, the truth, we've only stayed there twice but we were so happy we can't imagine staying anywhere else. It is close to everything - two subway stops on the street. Carnegie Hall is across the street. The place is quiet as the tomb - between rooms. This is NYC - if you don't like a little street noise consider somewhere else. The building has been in use for over 80 years - it's owned and managed by the Calvary Baptist Church - and is solidly constructed.

Got almost no sleep last night - went to South Pacific at the Lincoln Center, got home by 11ish, didn't get to sleep until 1 and woke at 4AM to get ready to go to the airport. Our flight was at 11am but the shuttle company* INSISTED on picking us up at 615AM. So it was almost 11 hours of waiting in Newark Airport, flying to Toronto, tearing through customs*, almost swallowing a burger whole so I could make the flight back here. Tomorrow I'll have pictures of Roosevelt Island.

* I'm never using them again because the pickup was just a convenience for them. A gentleman would never reveal the name of this shuttle company but they consider themselves a (ah-hem) Super shuttle service. Just "super".

** What the heck is with Toronto? You arrive to clear customs and continue within the country and they make you:

Get off the incoming plane
Walk through the entire terminal in a secure area
Stand in line to talk to Can Customs - so far so good
Pick up your checked luggage - ??
Carry it through the final customs check
Drop it on a conveyor specifically for connecting passengers post-customs luggage ???
Exit the secured area ??!??
Walk around and up to the departures level
Clear security AGAIN ??@!!@##
Walk to your connecting gate

Did we lose a war or something? They should take a lesson from Montreal.

A small tech tip

2009-10-28T21:51:00.003-03:00

This is where I put on my geek hat. If you're trying to sync your iPod Touch (or iPhone I suppose) with VirtualBox3 running WinXP as a guest on a Ubuntu machine (how's that for a mouthful?), you MUST set the machines display to the minimum needed for iTunes (1024x768) or less.

From personal experience:

Resolution at 1920x1080 - my 32GB ipod Touch took 2 frickin' hours to sync

Reducing the resolution to 1024x768 - <2min to sync.

I don't understand 'em, I just report 'em.

FYI - The better half and I are going to NYC next week - look for pictures and updates. Ciao babies.

Well done, Ensign Obvious

2009-10-09T11:04:00.002-03:00

A little bit of graffiti I found on the Halifax/Dartmouth Ferry this summer.

A simple and compelling argument

2009-09-05T10:25:00.002-03:00

What follows is an ad from the Irish group MarriagEquality. I honestly haven't seen the issue summed up so clearly before. Enjoy, think and share.

J-Pop is so far ahead you can't conceive of it.

2009-07-26T18:34:00.005-03:00

The Japanese Popular music (J-Pop) scene has always been, well, difficult for North Americans to understand. Via Lady Bunny's Blog (NSFW), I discovered this gem from Jajima Beauty Salon: Hamaguri Bomber (aka Clam Bomber). Enjoy!

Left to right the singers are Strawberry, Margaret and Naomi Yajima "discovered" in Nevada, they were brought to Japan by DJ OZMA and the performing group Tunnels.

In reality the characters are played by DJ OZMA (as Naomi) and the two partners in Tunnels (playing Strawberry and Margaret.)

Ok, maybe not the most believable drag but it's good dance tune and the production values in the video are THROUGH THE ROOF! And, one more thing, I don't speak a WORD - a syllable even - of Japanese. GIven how much fun everyone seems to be having, I assume they're not singing anything rude.

The View from the Inside

2009-07-22T16:12:00.004-03:00

About a month ago, I was diagnosed as having Barrett's Esophagus. Basically, I've lived with acid reflux/gerd for so long, the acid has damaged the lining of the esophagus. Yes, yes, I should have done something a LONG time ago. A local GI specialist did an upper GI scope - quite literally a camera down my throat. He examined the esophagus, the stomach and even a little bit into the small intestine. While Barrett's wasn't the best news, there were no ulcers and a good deal of my reflux was caused be a hiatus hernia.

Trouble was, despite being knocked out with a dose of Versed, I was pretty lively and when the good doctor tried to take "samples" of damaged tissue, I started to wake and put up a struggle. The doctor terminated the procedure and we all went home a little sad.

This morning, R and I toddled back to the hospital for GI Scope part 2. The goal today was to gather the samples from the last time. To make good and sure I would cooperate, we upped to dosage of Versed.

Well, that didn't quite work as I apparently* started to wake up. Rather than terminate the procedure again, the doctor gave me a dose of Fentanyl (which wikipedia states is "approximately 100 times more potent than morphine") Surely THAT would be enough - it's only a 20 minute procedure!

Nope, after double-stuff Versed and a chaser of Fentanyl, I still managed to wake several times. (Geez, they're gonna run out of nursing staff willing to work with me.)

Generally, though, it was a success. The good doctor (and he IS one) has 9 little samples of me. Unless something is already dramatically wrong, these will act as a base-line to compare to samples to be taken in the next year or two. If the cell mutation is stable (ore regressing), I'm golden.

* I say this because Versed tends to erase memory and make them stay erased. This morning, I apparently asked R the same questions 3/4 times - once each time I'd awaken.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Blog

2009-07-21T19:59:00.005-03:00

I guess this is what's known as "writer's block." I keep getting that old feeling - "You know, it's been a while. I really should post something." But, I get here and that little edit box opens and I draw a blank.

OK, OK, what's happening that won't be overly boring?

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Pyramus and I are going back to NYC in early November for my birthday. I know what you're thinking: "God, planning ahead much?" Well, yes, my current project work makes planning vacation both treacherous and maddening. To prove that point, we're going to London/Edinburgh next May and France/Italy in 2010. Put that in your "plan ahead" hat and smoke it.

Yes, we're going back to NYC. The last time was a blast so fingers are crossed.

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Summer here has been miserable thus far. The one thing I could always tell people who criticize our living in Moncton was that we always have warm, sunny summers. It's been pouring since FOREVER. This week was supposed to be dry and hot. Wrong, it's going to rain almost every day.

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Those of you who didn't watch Torchwood "Children of Earth" via some...uh... method earlier in the month are likely now watching it on BBC America in the US and Space: The Imagination Station in Canada. Tonight will be episode 2 of 5 and, while I won't spoil it, I will say this: don't look for things to go well for quite some time. Settle in for a whole lotta heart-ache.

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I don't think I've ever mentioned my passionate dislike for smarmy service people. Today I was corralled into meeting my TD Bank Investment Advisor. It was one of those once-a-year, "let's look at how badly your investments are performing." I could forgive them that as it may even be legislated by the government. What struck me as I sat there wasting my lunch hour was the sleazy way she tried to "make a connection" with me.

You see, I took a course in communication earlier in the year. The title was something like "Communicating with Tact and Diplomacy." It was a condition of employment as I'm told I'm far too direct. (What's wrong with saying "Get over yourself, princess" I ask?) During the snooze fest that was two days out of my life, I got a rundown of all the tips and tricks to "connect with the other person." The assumption being I genuinely care to connect with these people.

Today, I'm sitting in this woman's office and she's pulled out all the stops. She kept trying for eye-contact. She must have used my first name dozens of time in the 30min meeting. ("Use the other person's name. It'll engage them and make them feel important.") She tried to fill the meeting with meaningless, inane questions like "This weather, I swear. Good for gardens, though. Do you garden?"

"Listen." I said. "I'm kinda on a tight schedule. Can we stick to the points you wanted to cover?"

She even tried for a genuine smile but, thanks to the course, I could tell she wasn't using her eyes and it came off, well, creepy. I should have used my friend "J"s favourite line: "Are you on crack?"

Overheard at LaGuardia Airport

2009-05-13T19:28:00.002-03:00

Woman (speaking into cell phone): I've been a complete pig recently. Last night I had a bagel and this morning I had a croissant and now I have to get back on track again.

NYC Mini Update

2009-05-10T22:16:00.002-03:00

Yes, we're still in NYC. Will write more when we return home.

Among a million other things today, we went to see Jenny Holzer's "Protect Protect" exhibit at the Whitney this pm. Very powerful and sometimes heartbreaking. Will write more later.

I haven't been taking a great volume of pictures as I rarely photograph things that don't interest me and, in NYC at least, the things that interest me can't be photographed (unusual subway graffiti for example.)

Despite it likely being considered kitch, we visited the Empire State Building - both the 86th floor and 103rd floor. Damn this city's beautiful.

Gravity's Plaything

The Law of Diminishing Expectations

Self Checkouts Need a Minimum IQ

Nazi Smashers!

Sunday PM Coffee View

Before? Well, DUH!

And... We're Home

OMGWTF!!!

Doctor Who - The Rebel Flesh - Questions

6:10PM - Still here

Well, that didn't work.

Not that I post here regularly but ...

Castle Episode: Vampire Weekend

Spending the Weekend with Nathan Fillion

Girl got Pipes

Movies!

Sigh

Movie: Barney's Version

Netflix? WTF?

The King's Speech

Well. What is it?

This is why Netflix Canada Sucks

Internet Ruins Bookstore Experience

Great - Just F*DING* Great

Harry Potter Finale?

Oh Sweet God

Unstoppable Perhaps but also Forgettable

Give Yourself Over to Absolute Pleasure

Nerdy Dining

We Just Flew in from London...

Tidying up in London

Posh Theatre

Saturday - it's late so sue me

A day of happy inconvenience

And .... We're Here

And away we go....

In Which Our Hero Attends... A Chick Flick

Good Movie? It's EASY, EH?

I think we all saw this coming,eh?

Feel the power... of beard

A Day by the Sea

This is where I'll be on Oct 15th

This is How REAL Canadian's Protest

Holiday Snaps!!

The Return of the Native (Canadians)

Do you wanna bump?

Well Maybe Not

It had to End Sometime

Last day in London

Oxford, Brighton and Things Apple-ish

Back in London

Paris continued

All Paris in a Day

I Love London in the AM

Heading South

You Otter read this

Where everybody knows/has your name

Using a Little Latitude

Last one for a day or two

Oot and Aboot in the Trossards

A wee tale

Last night in Bath

Who's Rayman?

And I awoke...

Welcome to Gatwick

And so it begins

Packing Light

In which we go to the movies!

Now I'm starting to get pissed

Real Customer Service

Thighs ... er CLASH of the Titans

I couldn't agree more

A test of mobile posting

A little theatre would be nice

I wanted the quickest way to Paddington...

I thought only fixed males sprayed.

Commercial? Tiny Film?

I tried, I really did

Nerdgasm

The Biggest Phallic Symbol in New Brunswick

Great - Just FDING Great