I'm having a devil of a time remembering things lately. I had a good blog topic on my mind this morning but I'm neck deep in work items again this week and I forgot to write my blog idea down at the moment I had it. Consequently, now that the afternoon has rolled around I have forgotten what I was going to say.

If I think of it, I'll try to write it down immediately for you, my reading public.

Toodles!

I'm always a little disappointed when Naughty Amateur Home Videos has obvious professionals on it.

I forgot what I wanted to put here today. I thought of something while I was driving but its left me.

Instead I will say how disappointed I am in the outcome of the Vancouver Canucks hockey game. They just didn't show up in this third period. How sad. A Minnesota Wild versus Anaheim Mighty Ducks semi-final? What kind of nonsense is that?

Toodles!

I think the girl working at the reception desk, at the Days Inn in Brandon, is even cuter this trip. She was also kinda flirty, which is never a bad thing.

As well, there was an audacious young girl in the pool while I was there. Black with pink trim bikini, that didn't really hide all the curves. It was a nice diversion during my relaxation from the drive. Didn't hurt that she was a mad tease, although it did get to be a little 'over the top'.

Toodles.

What's the statute of limitations on the use of 'brb' in instant message conversations? Everyone uses it and it can mean anything from 30 seconds, to almost forever. It seems like there should be some kind of definition on be RIGHT back, and be back later. I chat online a lot and 'brb' gets used for such a wide variety of reasons that you never know whether its a, just a few seconds, thing or a much longer period of time. I think it would be a good idea if we, as online chatters, added 'bbl' to our lexicon for, be back later, to cover those instances when we have to go do something, but we don't know how long it will take.

Toodles.

I'm still hearing the Outlook Express 'you have mail' bleep, when I haven't got any new mail. Am I going (more) crazy?

I officially hate small towns. I know Humboldt has declared itself a city but after what I witnessed today it is very much a town. A larger than normal town, I will grant, but still a town.

SGI screwed me on my truck, again. They listed it as an SLE and not the SLS that it actually is. The autobody place went by that and ordered the bumper for an SLE, which will not match my SLS truck. I can forgive the autobody people for that. Its an honest mistake because you would expect SGI to do their job right. They didn't, of course, and that's a whole different issue I won't go into here. So I get a call from the autobody place this morning. There's been a mistake, we can't do your bumper today, we're sorry. That's fine. If you can't get it done, I guess I'll come by AT LUNCH and swap back the loaner for my truck.

This lunch distinction is an important one. I specfically said I'd come by at lunch and get my truck. So I drive the half an hour to Humboldt, pull up to the door, and ITS CLOSED!!! What the hell!?!

And this is the crux of my complaint. What business, in a REAL city, closes its doors completely for lunch!?! None that I can think of. Sure, they might stop working for the lunch hour, but there's at least someone there to answer phones and anyone that might come through the door. In a small town they lock the doors, close the shop, and everyone leaves. This is my beef, and the reason I'm annoyed. Maybe I should have known but I specifically said I was coming at lunch. Why didn't the person on the phone tell me they closed the office for lunch!?!

Toodles

P.S. They have a Subway in Wynyard but not in Humboldt? What's that all about!?! Just one more reason why Humboldt is a penny ante city.

P.P.S. I had a Mr. Sub sandwich for lunch today. I'm really not sure you get your money's worth at $6.50 a sandwich.

Why do I put an 'i' on the end of words that end in 'ion'. For example, inspiration becomes inspirationi. Do I secretly yearn to be Italian?

Some ruminations on the morning drive back to Watson.

I hate tractors. This time of year just drives me nutty. You'll be flying along at normal road speed. A corner comes up and you cruise around it smoothly. Then, around the other side of the curve is a bloody Case IH tractor. You can't just zip around it because coming in the other lane is inevitable tractor. So you have to slam on the brakes, bloody near locking them up, to slow down behind this tractor. I hate tractors.

What's the deal with people in white cars? I was driving back this morning and two cars passed me like I was standing still. Both were white. Now, I could handle this if I was going slow. I was not. I was doing my usual generous interpretation of the speed limit. They went by me like I was an old person driver. I figure they had to be doing 150 or better. And its not like they were Mustangs, Corvettes, or Camaros. One was a Chrsyler Neon and the other was an old model Cavalier sedan. Not exactly sport models. I hope they don't come upon a tractor. 8-(

Toodles!

So, I watched 'Men With Brooms' this evening. I dunno. For a Canadian movie it was pretty decent. The production values were all up, and it looked pretty decent. Acting was strong, there was nothing amateurish about it. However, after all that I can not recommend it.

Curling is just not enough to hang a movie around. Yes, it has a certain mystique amongst Canadians but there isn't a national mythos to it. All folklore about curling is regionally based so as a Prairie son I have trouble buying into the legend of northern Ontario. I dunno, call me crazy but I just wasn't moved. I'm sure there is a kernel of real myth to this movie but I couldn't feel it because I'm not from that region. It means nothing to me.

Nonetheless, the did the best they could with the material they had. The story was a little muddled but overall they made their point. As a Canadian, if you get a chance to watch it for free, go ahead. But don't spend your money renting it.

Thus concludes today's movie review. Toodles!

I'm printing, which always seems to take forever. Thus I have a few minutes to blog.

1) I have a sinus headache centered just to the right of my nose. The feeling is quite intense and I would like it to go away.
2) I almost hit some deer last night. I was just leaving Yorkton. I looked down to open my container of ranch dipping sauce for my P'zone. When I looked up, the second of two (maybe more?) deer were scampering across the road ahead of me. I wasn't really even that freaked out. Strange.
3) I had a bizarre Superman dream a few nights ago. I don't remember the specifics as it was a few days ago, and I've been super busy since then. It had something to do with space, aliens, Superman saving humanity, and hiding his children from the alien invaders. I have my most interesting dreams.
4) My trip to Winnipeg was good.
a) I got to meet my (our, if you were on the trip) friends that we met in the Dominican Republic. They seemed genuinely happy to see me. That felt strange and weird at the same time.
b) I took control of our project in Balmoral. It did not go perfectly smoothly but I stepped up and took charge. I was proud of myself.
5) I hate my allergies.

Printing is done. Gotta go. Toodles!

A blonde pushes her BMW into a gas station. She tells the mechanic it died. After he works on it for a few minutes, it is idling smoothly.
She says, "What's the story?"
He replies, "Just crap in the carburetor."
She asks, "How often do I have to do that?"

Its gonna be a tough day. I had a weird night of dreams. They were filled with some chaotic, ununderstandable imagery. I'm left feeling confused and jangled this morning at my desk, and I'm struggling to put aside thoughts that want to tumble over each other. My brain is muddled.

As an example. The last one I remember had me going to the mall with my sister. It was, for the most part, Lawson Heights Mall across the street from my house in Saskatoon. (for those of you with a weak stomach take care) We went to this one shop that a cheap jewelry store but in the dream it was part that, part beauty store. I forget the exact reason why we were there or the exact sequence of events but, what ended up happening was strange. Candace was talking to the woman who runs the store (in the dream). The person was supposed to be a woman I know from Saskatoon but, her appearance was more like a cross between that woman, and the wife of the couple I went to Tampa Bay with. (I know, this is weird. It gets worse) Candace is chatting with this woman about some kind of beauty thing. Oh yeah, I remember now, she was getting her hair done. The woman suggested Candace might like hair extensions like the litte girl in the Toronto Maple Leafs jersey, who just walked past the store (outside on the street somehow, even though we were in the mall) I start biting my nail and I break it. (this is the bizarre part) It breaks down the center and then half of it breaks again. (wait for the gruesome part) I hate a broken nail so I break it off, but I break the piece in the center, so i have have a nail on one side, a gap, then a quarter of a nail on the other. The junk I broke off is not a typical chunk of nail though. Its a little cube. This intrigues me and I examine it. Eventually I put it in my mouth a chew it. There is an outer shell of traditional nail material on one side and the rest is fat. I chew up and eat that. It tastes like beef.

Now that you are all retching, I'll finish the dream. Candace is disgusted by my nails and talks me into having a manicure from this woman who runs the store. I sit down on this contraption that moves and articulates like a giant battlemech and eventually it surrounds and contains me. I put my hand up on this little ledge and the woman starts doing my nails. We know each other, as I've had dealings with her before. We chat, talk back and forth, and she's coming on to me, in a sly, subtle way. . .

That's the end. I came out of the dream at that point. There was other stuff in there but I covered the highlights. I am messed up. 8-|

Toodles!

I think the girl working at the reception desk of the Brandon Days Inn tonight is cute.

Ever have a movie affect you, and the affect was really not intended? I'm having that condition with this damn Shallow Hal movie. I know its not really intended to be a message movie. It's the Farrelly brothers For Christ Sake!!! You're supposed to laugh at the fat jokes and leave remembering nothing.

So why do I keep thinking about this stupid movie? Its defninitely frustrating and bordering on infuriating. I'm not SUPPOSED to be thinking about it. But I keep thinking about it. The central theme, the search for inner beauty, as opposed to external beauty, just keeps hammering in my brain. Am I being shallow? Do I suffer from the same syndrome that afflicted Shallow Hal? Should I change my ways? Am I doing something wrong? This stupid, bloody movie is torturing my soul!

Saddam Hussein's son comes home from shopping with everything in a cardboard box......
His dad says: "Why have you brought the shopping home in a cardboard box, son?"
His son replies: "Because there's no Baghdad."

A word to the wise; be careful when having orange juice after brushing your teeth. It doesn't happen all the time, but sometimes when I do that, I get a horrible burning sensation from my throat, right down to the pit of my stomach. It is distinctly unpleasant.

I have the most intense headache this morning.

Nine Inch Nails is good music to listen to when you're depressed. I especially recommend the album "The Downward Spiral". Its not good music because it inspires you, and lifts you from your malaise. Its appropriate music for depression. Its all noisy, and chaotic, with dark, and foreboding lyrics underlying the frenetic, disturbed beats.

What a boring day this has been. I don't even have a decent occurrence to put in my blog entry. My doldrums that begun on the weekend have continued into this week. My complaint for the day? Allergies. I'm getting the ol' tickle in the nose, from the beginning of spring. How slow a news day is it when the biggest thing to write about is allergies.

Work is caught up, and all systems are up to date. My projects are all in a comfortable state of completion. Murray got some encouraging news on a couple of towns in Saskatchewan so things are looking bright for another good year. I finished my EIT report and have only to send it off to APEGS for the long, arduous review. I've had a couple computer questions come in about our network here, but nothing that required a lot of research. Everything is in a comfortable equilibrium. Its almost eerie.

Toodles!

How do you decide how much vanity you are entitled to?