The morning has dawned with more hope than I've known in some time. The trials and tribulations of a day spent battling a beast that would not be slayed have been forgotten. In my deep focus, on the monster that confronted me, I had forgotten a quest that had begun a long time back in the mist. A melancholy that had dropped its curtain over me, in slow folds of heavy thick velvet, has been lifted. The completion of a long, arduous quest has lifted my spirits for the continued battle with the beast. I now face the day, my chin held high.
I got my P.Eng designation!
Toodles!
Friday, December 19, 2003
Thursday, December 18, 2003
The beast is winning.
Each stab at its black heart, does little more than scratch at the coarse, leathery exterior that protects this demon from harm. Attempts to slay this hedious beast are all repelled, and seem only to enrage the cold monster. On swipe from a rusty, pitted sword is met with a roar of fury, that alone is nearly enough to fell any warrior, no matter how hale or hardy. With each attempt to press forward, comes a ferocious blast of sulphur and burning fire. One must shield their face from the intensity.
And the sword falls.
On your knees, you search in the dirt, and scorched grass for the only weapon you can possibly wield. But even wielding it is of little consequence. On your knees, or standing proudly on your feet, no quarter is given. And you slip. And you lose ground. The beast wins. Not by superior skill but simple brutality by size. It swarms you, engulfs you, swallows you whole until you're fighting from within the beast.
And once you are within, there is no escape. You are trapped, sealed in for an eternity, lost to anything and everything you've known and loved. It holds you, captured in a moment from which you can not escape. Cold, brutal reality engulfs you, and takes you down. On your knees you wail.
No one hears.
Each stab at its black heart, does little more than scratch at the coarse, leathery exterior that protects this demon from harm. Attempts to slay this hedious beast are all repelled, and seem only to enrage the cold monster. On swipe from a rusty, pitted sword is met with a roar of fury, that alone is nearly enough to fell any warrior, no matter how hale or hardy. With each attempt to press forward, comes a ferocious blast of sulphur and burning fire. One must shield their face from the intensity.
And the sword falls.
On your knees, you search in the dirt, and scorched grass for the only weapon you can possibly wield. But even wielding it is of little consequence. On your knees, or standing proudly on your feet, no quarter is given. And you slip. And you lose ground. The beast wins. Not by superior skill but simple brutality by size. It swarms you, engulfs you, swallows you whole until you're fighting from within the beast.
And once you are within, there is no escape. You are trapped, sealed in for an eternity, lost to anything and everything you've known and loved. It holds you, captured in a moment from which you can not escape. Cold, brutal reality engulfs you, and takes you down. On your knees you wail.
No one hears.
Wednesday, December 17, 2003
Here it is, a new day, and I have a new complaint.
Why can't clothing manufacturers be more consistent in the production of garments? I needed some new jeans awhile back, and went to the store and bought some. I wanted two pair, so I got two identical ones. I tried one pair on, and they fit nicely, so I took another, identically size, pair.
I wore them back to back this week. Yesterday's pair were very snug. Not uncomfortably, sausage casing snug, but definitely full enough to know I had on tight pants. Today I wear the second, SUPPOSEDLY IDENTICAL, pair. I'm almost swimming in them. If I put enough stuff in my pockets, I could probably make them fall part way down.
So my question becomes, where's the quality control? They are tagged the same, so why aren't they the same? That just bugs me.
However, this is just my opinion, I could be wrong.
Toodles.
Why can't clothing manufacturers be more consistent in the production of garments? I needed some new jeans awhile back, and went to the store and bought some. I wanted two pair, so I got two identical ones. I tried one pair on, and they fit nicely, so I took another, identically size, pair.
I wore them back to back this week. Yesterday's pair were very snug. Not uncomfortably, sausage casing snug, but definitely full enough to know I had on tight pants. Today I wear the second, SUPPOSEDLY IDENTICAL, pair. I'm almost swimming in them. If I put enough stuff in my pockets, I could probably make them fall part way down.
So my question becomes, where's the quality control? They are tagged the same, so why aren't they the same? That just bugs me.
However, this is just my opinion, I could be wrong.
Toodles.
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
It is Tuesday, and as such, its Newlyweds and The Simple Life on CTV.
I missed this the first time. On Newlyweds today is the episode where they go camping. All around, a very funny episode. However, something happened that I missed the first time.
One of the activities the two couples indulge in is, a kind of quiz game, where you read questions out of a book and everyone has to answer. Stuff like, if you could have the body or mind of a 30 year old, when you were 90, which would you pick? But, I digress. Nick takes a long time to think about all of his answers, which pisses Jessica off because their 'true love' type questions. The ask three of these in a row and Nick thinks about each one, and Jessica gets annoyed. Finally the question comes up, do you envy anyone enough that you'd want to switch lives with them? Nick again thinks about his answer. Then, as a joke, he mentions Bruce Willis. Jessica mildly freaks. To mollify her, Nick makes the comment, I get to bang Jessica Simpson, why would i want to be someone else?
Now THAT, is funny! 8-D
Toodles.
I missed this the first time. On Newlyweds today is the episode where they go camping. All around, a very funny episode. However, something happened that I missed the first time.
One of the activities the two couples indulge in is, a kind of quiz game, where you read questions out of a book and everyone has to answer. Stuff like, if you could have the body or mind of a 30 year old, when you were 90, which would you pick? But, I digress. Nick takes a long time to think about all of his answers, which pisses Jessica off because their 'true love' type questions. The ask three of these in a row and Nick thinks about each one, and Jessica gets annoyed. Finally the question comes up, do you envy anyone enough that you'd want to switch lives with them? Nick again thinks about his answer. Then, as a joke, he mentions Bruce Willis. Jessica mildly freaks. To mollify her, Nick makes the comment, I get to bang Jessica Simpson, why would i want to be someone else?
Now THAT, is funny! 8-D
Toodles.
I drove a trailer today. Well, not the actual trailer. I guess the accurate thing to say would be, I towed a trailer. It was an interesting experience. I've never done that before. It wasn't really all that hard, or difficult an endeavour. I worried constantly about dumping the membrane unit I was hauling but in the end, even after manuevering it over rough, rutted ground, I didn't dump it, and we got the unit in the building. I consider it a success.
Meanwhile my old nemesis has jumped up to bite me in the ass again. Thus, despite an early day success, I find myself depressed. When is this going to end?
Toodles
Meanwhile my old nemesis has jumped up to bite me in the ass again. Thus, despite an early day success, I find myself depressed. When is this going to end?
Toodles
Monday, December 15, 2003
I think I have found the perfect example of how Saskatoon is not able to really progress as a city. This example I'm about to give is symptomatic of why Saskatoon is so frustrating to live in.
As you leave Saskatoon, going east, on Highway 5 to Humboldt, there is an intersection of highway and urban road. I forget exactly what street it is the butts into Highway 5, but it leads out of the new subdivision on the east side. I think its called McOrmond Road. I've been driving this stretch of road weekly, for almost two years now. You blaze into Saskatoon and don't hit a light until you get to Central Avenue, coming out of Sutherland.
Now they have a set of lights on the highway. This just bothers me. This is a highway. You are no longer 'in' Saskatoon as you take Highway 5 out from Saskatoon. The city itself is either behind you, or off to your left, as you leave the city. And here is a stupid set of traffic lights out in the middle of nowhere.
I understand why they are there. I realize that an abundance of people probably take this stretch of highway, as a shortcut to and from work, into their homes in Erindale. I am aware that these lights are probably necessary, for the two stretches of rush hour that occur on weekdays.
What gets on my nerves is, for 22 out of 24 hours in the day, the particular stretch of road does not need lights, at all. Traffic into and out of Erindale, on McOrmond Road, is light. They also build a merge road out of Erindale, onto Highway 5, so people leaving Erindale can easily merge into Highway 5 traffic. So what results is, this set of lights is only necessary for left turns across Highway 5, into Erindale, on McOrmand Road.
Let's be honest here. Is there ever so much traffic on Highway 5 into Saskatoon, that we need to stop it, and let left turns happen? Couldn't a long left turn lane be provided, so that you could queue up plenty of cars during rush hour, taking them out of highway traffic, and let them make their left turns as possible? I really fail to see the wisdom of putting lights at this particular location.
That's my opinion, I could be wrong.
As you leave Saskatoon, going east, on Highway 5 to Humboldt, there is an intersection of highway and urban road. I forget exactly what street it is the butts into Highway 5, but it leads out of the new subdivision on the east side. I think its called McOrmond Road. I've been driving this stretch of road weekly, for almost two years now. You blaze into Saskatoon and don't hit a light until you get to Central Avenue, coming out of Sutherland.
Now they have a set of lights on the highway. This just bothers me. This is a highway. You are no longer 'in' Saskatoon as you take Highway 5 out from Saskatoon. The city itself is either behind you, or off to your left, as you leave the city. And here is a stupid set of traffic lights out in the middle of nowhere.
I understand why they are there. I realize that an abundance of people probably take this stretch of highway, as a shortcut to and from work, into their homes in Erindale. I am aware that these lights are probably necessary, for the two stretches of rush hour that occur on weekdays.
What gets on my nerves is, for 22 out of 24 hours in the day, the particular stretch of road does not need lights, at all. Traffic into and out of Erindale, on McOrmond Road, is light. They also build a merge road out of Erindale, onto Highway 5, so people leaving Erindale can easily merge into Highway 5 traffic. So what results is, this set of lights is only necessary for left turns across Highway 5, into Erindale, on McOrmand Road.
Let's be honest here. Is there ever so much traffic on Highway 5 into Saskatoon, that we need to stop it, and let left turns happen? Couldn't a long left turn lane be provided, so that you could queue up plenty of cars during rush hour, taking them out of highway traffic, and let them make their left turns as possible? I really fail to see the wisdom of putting lights at this particular location.
That's my opinion, I could be wrong.
Sunday, December 14, 2003
I have a thought for you today people. Its something that came to me this evening, as I stood at the Snoop Dogg concert watching the crowd.
Why would you bring a cell phone to a rock concert? Okay, maybe you bring it with you, but why would you try talking on it? The sound quality of a cell phone is questionable at the best of times, and you're going to try and put together a coherent conversation in the din of a pounding rap show? This is insane. And yet, I noticed more that one person, pacing back and forth on the concourse, speaking animately into a cell phone. I'm sure all the tension was from having to repeat themselves five times before comprehension was reached.
Tip to idiot cell phone people. Just because you have it on you, does not mean you are obligated to use it ever minute of the day. Put down the phone, and go watch the concert.
Geesh.
Why would you bring a cell phone to a rock concert? Okay, maybe you bring it with you, but why would you try talking on it? The sound quality of a cell phone is questionable at the best of times, and you're going to try and put together a coherent conversation in the din of a pounding rap show? This is insane. And yet, I noticed more that one person, pacing back and forth on the concourse, speaking animately into a cell phone. I'm sure all the tension was from having to repeat themselves five times before comprehension was reached.
Tip to idiot cell phone people. Just because you have it on you, does not mean you are obligated to use it ever minute of the day. Put down the phone, and go watch the concert.
Geesh.