Monday, November 16, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
Cracking Walnuts with Anvils
In my ongoing search for employment I frequently find myself at the job centre on York Avenue in downtown Winnipeg. Such was the case today, and while there I needed to make use of the washrooms, located in the basement in the building.
What was notable about this, was that when I went into the stall, I noticed that the toilet paper dispenser (one that is designed to hold two of those large, rolls) was locked. This, in and of itself, wasn't particularly remarkable, what was remarkable is that the dispenser was locked using the original lock that comes as standard equipment, as well as having two, heavy metal padlocks attached to the dispenser by the way of a 1/4" thick metal hinge. This I can say is a new innovation within the last year, since that's the last time I had been in the building and made use of the washrooms.
So it got me thinking, what has changed in the last year. Are they worried about terrorists coming in and hiding bombs in the toilet paper dispensers. Or perhaps they're worried about terrorists breaking into the dispensers and using the contents to TP the offices of Canadian Forces Recruitment which is housed in the same building. Would this qualify as a level brown terror threat? Perhaps they are worried about the newly immigrated and the unemployed breaking off the covers and sneaking out with ill-gotten toilet paper. Although, anyone who is in such a condition that they would willing use such toilet paper anymore than is absolutely necessary, should have any charges dismissed on the compassionate grounds that in this case benefitting from the proceeds of crime is punishment enough.
Whatever the reasons, and I'm sure they make perfect sense in that alternate universe known as Bureaucraworld, the net effect is to give a person the sense that the government continues to waste our money on projects that are little more than using anvils to crack walnuts.
What was notable about this, was that when I went into the stall, I noticed that the toilet paper dispenser (one that is designed to hold two of those large, rolls) was locked. This, in and of itself, wasn't particularly remarkable, what was remarkable is that the dispenser was locked using the original lock that comes as standard equipment, as well as having two, heavy metal padlocks attached to the dispenser by the way of a 1/4" thick metal hinge. This I can say is a new innovation within the last year, since that's the last time I had been in the building and made use of the washrooms.
So it got me thinking, what has changed in the last year. Are they worried about terrorists coming in and hiding bombs in the toilet paper dispensers. Or perhaps they're worried about terrorists breaking into the dispensers and using the contents to TP the offices of Canadian Forces Recruitment which is housed in the same building. Would this qualify as a level brown terror threat? Perhaps they are worried about the newly immigrated and the unemployed breaking off the covers and sneaking out with ill-gotten toilet paper. Although, anyone who is in such a condition that they would willing use such toilet paper anymore than is absolutely necessary, should have any charges dismissed on the compassionate grounds that in this case benefitting from the proceeds of crime is punishment enough.
Whatever the reasons, and I'm sure they make perfect sense in that alternate universe known as Bureaucraworld, the net effect is to give a person the sense that the government continues to waste our money on projects that are little more than using anvils to crack walnuts.
Friday, September 18, 2009
A Tale of Two Talk shows
I'm not one for watching talk shows. Since I don't have a TV, I'm limited to what I might catch over the internet and the odd live event. This past week I watched two.
One featured second hand furtniture, a guy with a guitar and harmonica, and production values that make one yearn for such far off staples of the Winnipeg public access TV scene as Math with Marty, and Pollock and Pollock, (those readers not from Winnipeg should feel free to substitute their own memories of the ancient days of cable). The other featured expensive sets, a full band and high quality production values.
One featured a host whose wardrobe looked like it came from the Al Borland collection. The other a host with an expensive suit, stylists, make up artists, etc. ad nauseum.
One had local guests who are probably known only within their immediate profession and by a few family members and friends. The other had big name Hollywood guests.
One was witty, intelligent, somewhat unscripted, and unpredictable. The other had a team of writers who churned out material that was indistinguishable from the material 10 years earlier.
One was Live with Kelly Hughes (into Thin Air), the other was the Jay Leno Show.
Full disclosure time, Kelly Hughes is a friend of mine, so I am probably a little biased in this regard.
However, that being said, other than time slot and the lack of a desk, there is nothing in the Jay Leno Show to distinguish it from the Tonight Show. I was at least fortunate to watch it on Wednesday when Robin Williams was one of the guests, Robin Williams still being one of the funniest men alive. Otherwise, the show was exactly the same as it was the last time I watched it, which is probably somewhere in the area of 8-10 years ago, right down to the same lame jokes about Kevin Eubanks dating habits. This for a show that was endlessly hyped, (while I don't have a TV, I do use the internet for watching such things as football games), yet the show could just as easily be called the "Little Earlier Tonight Show," given that someone has already used the title "The Emperor's New Clothes," was already taken. While it has its amusing moments, there is nothing in the show that would qualify it as destination television.
Meanwhile, Live with Kelly Hughes, performed in front of an audience of maybe 30 people carried with it energy and vitality from start to finish. This being the first one that I've been to, I have nothing to compare it to in terms of the opening monologue length, which was quite short. That was fine though, because the real entertainment of the show was in the interviews that were conducted. The show featured interviews with three individuals connected with Thin Air: The Winnipeg International Writers Festival. They were, Margaret Sweatman, T'ai Pu and Charlene Diehl. I would try to describe the evening for you, but instead would suggest you go here and check out the podcast, which should be up within a couple of days. The laughter generated was quite hearty and genuine.
What made the evening successful is that Kelly, while poking and prodding (at times like a child using a stick on a dead frog), actually gives his guests a chance to say what they want to say. So, while Charlene Diehl, who I believe is the executive director of the festival (I'm not much for titles and so forth), took the time to promote the festival, we also got the opportunity to observe her passion for writing and I came away impressed with the fact that she has taken so much time to become familiar with the all of the writers who will be appearing in the festival.
Sure there was the odd lag in the show, sure the technical aspects didn't all run smoothly and perhaps a full two hours is a little lengthy, but I came away from the show feeling refreshed and relaxed something I didn't get watching Leno. And all of this entertainment? Every bit as free as the show on the TV. Not only that, although I didn't do it tonight, you can stop in before the show at EAT! Bistro and enjoy food that is every bit as fresh and original as the show itself.
Live With Kelly Hughes, a great way to spend a Friday night.
One featured second hand furtniture, a guy with a guitar and harmonica, and production values that make one yearn for such far off staples of the Winnipeg public access TV scene as Math with Marty, and Pollock and Pollock, (those readers not from Winnipeg should feel free to substitute their own memories of the ancient days of cable). The other featured expensive sets, a full band and high quality production values.
One featured a host whose wardrobe looked like it came from the Al Borland collection. The other a host with an expensive suit, stylists, make up artists, etc. ad nauseum.
One had local guests who are probably known only within their immediate profession and by a few family members and friends. The other had big name Hollywood guests.
One was witty, intelligent, somewhat unscripted, and unpredictable. The other had a team of writers who churned out material that was indistinguishable from the material 10 years earlier.
One was Live with Kelly Hughes (into Thin Air), the other was the Jay Leno Show.
Full disclosure time, Kelly Hughes is a friend of mine, so I am probably a little biased in this regard.
However, that being said, other than time slot and the lack of a desk, there is nothing in the Jay Leno Show to distinguish it from the Tonight Show. I was at least fortunate to watch it on Wednesday when Robin Williams was one of the guests, Robin Williams still being one of the funniest men alive. Otherwise, the show was exactly the same as it was the last time I watched it, which is probably somewhere in the area of 8-10 years ago, right down to the same lame jokes about Kevin Eubanks dating habits. This for a show that was endlessly hyped, (while I don't have a TV, I do use the internet for watching such things as football games), yet the show could just as easily be called the "Little Earlier Tonight Show," given that someone has already used the title "The Emperor's New Clothes," was already taken. While it has its amusing moments, there is nothing in the show that would qualify it as destination television.
Meanwhile, Live with Kelly Hughes, performed in front of an audience of maybe 30 people carried with it energy and vitality from start to finish. This being the first one that I've been to, I have nothing to compare it to in terms of the opening monologue length, which was quite short. That was fine though, because the real entertainment of the show was in the interviews that were conducted. The show featured interviews with three individuals connected with Thin Air: The Winnipeg International Writers Festival. They were, Margaret Sweatman, T'ai Pu and Charlene Diehl. I would try to describe the evening for you, but instead would suggest you go here and check out the podcast, which should be up within a couple of days. The laughter generated was quite hearty and genuine.
What made the evening successful is that Kelly, while poking and prodding (at times like a child using a stick on a dead frog), actually gives his guests a chance to say what they want to say. So, while Charlene Diehl, who I believe is the executive director of the festival (I'm not much for titles and so forth), took the time to promote the festival, we also got the opportunity to observe her passion for writing and I came away impressed with the fact that she has taken so much time to become familiar with the all of the writers who will be appearing in the festival.
Sure there was the odd lag in the show, sure the technical aspects didn't all run smoothly and perhaps a full two hours is a little lengthy, but I came away from the show feeling refreshed and relaxed something I didn't get watching Leno. And all of this entertainment? Every bit as free as the show on the TV. Not only that, although I didn't do it tonight, you can stop in before the show at EAT! Bistro and enjoy food that is every bit as fresh and original as the show itself.
Live With Kelly Hughes, a great way to spend a Friday night.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
NFL
Once again, the NFL season is upon us, and our sixth annual Super Bowl draft has taken place.
1. Carlos - Giants
2. Tim - Eagles
3. Donald - Ravens
4. Paul - Colts
5. Chris - Patriots
6. Kristen - Steelers
7. Brad - Chargers
8. Dallas - Titans
9. Jeremy - Vikings
10. Lyle - Bears
11. Mario - Cardinals
12. Gareth - Saints
13. Kendall - Cowboys
Yes, the Ravens were my first choice. Hopefully they don't lose any receivers.
Yes, the Ravens were my first choice. Hopefully they don't lose any receivers.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Lent
For Lent this year, I intend to read Evelyn Underhill's "Mysticism," and I might even have something to say about it.
I am doing much like last year for my Lenten activity, except that this year I have front-loaded, spending about $120 on food and sundries to last me throughout Lent (I do have some food in my apartment already and I will be using that as well). I hope to go through Lent without shopping.
I am doing much like last year for my Lenten activity, except that this year I have front-loaded, spending about $120 on food and sundries to last me throughout Lent (I do have some food in my apartment already and I will be using that as well). I hope to go through Lent without shopping.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Facebook Follies
At the end of this month, I am being ordained a transitional deacon in the Anglican church. In order to notify as many friends as possible, I created an event using Facebook's event creation tool. This was all well and good, until I discovered a couple of weeks later that several friends had received multiple invitations at random.
So, I went to the help section on Facebook and there was none. So I decided to contact their support service, and after I sent them an e-mail delineating my problem, they sent me back a FAQ type response that had no relationship to the problem that had occurred. So as of now I am in a running battle with Facebook. I insist that they publish an apology to the site ackowledging their error(the problem still has no been fixed), and they steadfastly choose to ignore me.
However, I do not intend to give up. One of the better features of Facebook is that it allows me to reconnect with some of my friends that I no longer see on a face-to-face basis. For example, it has allowed me to reconnect with several of my high school classmates, the year before my school has its 50th anniversary reunion. However, not having been in regular contact with them over the years, the emergence of this quasi-spam problem that is Facebook's fault, may lead them to belief that I am of the serial spamming nature. I do not deserve to earn this reputation through Facebook's mistakes, and therefore I am going to keep hounding them until they apologize.
So, I went to the help section on Facebook and there was none. So I decided to contact their support service, and after I sent them an e-mail delineating my problem, they sent me back a FAQ type response that had no relationship to the problem that had occurred. So as of now I am in a running battle with Facebook. I insist that they publish an apology to the site ackowledging their error(the problem still has no been fixed), and they steadfastly choose to ignore me.
However, I do not intend to give up. One of the better features of Facebook is that it allows me to reconnect with some of my friends that I no longer see on a face-to-face basis. For example, it has allowed me to reconnect with several of my high school classmates, the year before my school has its 50th anniversary reunion. However, not having been in regular contact with them over the years, the emergence of this quasi-spam problem that is Facebook's fault, may lead them to belief that I am of the serial spamming nature. I do not deserve to earn this reputation through Facebook's mistakes, and therefore I am going to keep hounding them until they apologize.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Love thy Neighbour?
As a person who travels most places either by foot or by bus, I come into contact with a great number of people that I am able to greet, even if it is only sometimes with a polite nod. Usually this seems like an easy way to make contact with people but sometimes I wonder. Like this morning.
I am in the process of looking for work and so I leave the house every day trying to look reasonably professional. This morning I was doing the monochrome look with a red shirt and red tie. For those interested in such fashion matters, the socks were also red.
As I was headed south on Sherbrook I approached a woman, about 55-60ish, who was walking north on the street. There was nothing particularly remarkable about the way she was dressed or any such thing. There is a dog who is out in the front yard of one of the houses just down from where I turn onto Sherbrook and the woman seemed to have just finished talking to the dog.
However, as she passed me she leaned in and said: "Very subtle, you almost can't see the tie since its the same colour as the shirt." Then she proceeded to grab the tie at the knot and give it a yank. The tie became slightly loosened, but because I was wearing a tie pin, did not completely become undone. Having given the tie a yank she proceeded on her way without another word or glance in my direction.
I have no idea what she was thinking. Perhaps she has a crush on Regis and I reminded her of his "Millionaire" days, although I'm not sure that's my final answer. Maybe she has just reached a point where it doesn't matter what people think of her and a harmless tug on a younger man's tie tickled her imagination.
Sometimes a slight lack of inhibition isn't a bad thing.
I am in the process of looking for work and so I leave the house every day trying to look reasonably professional. This morning I was doing the monochrome look with a red shirt and red tie. For those interested in such fashion matters, the socks were also red.
As I was headed south on Sherbrook I approached a woman, about 55-60ish, who was walking north on the street. There was nothing particularly remarkable about the way she was dressed or any such thing. There is a dog who is out in the front yard of one of the houses just down from where I turn onto Sherbrook and the woman seemed to have just finished talking to the dog.
However, as she passed me she leaned in and said: "Very subtle, you almost can't see the tie since its the same colour as the shirt." Then she proceeded to grab the tie at the knot and give it a yank. The tie became slightly loosened, but because I was wearing a tie pin, did not completely become undone. Having given the tie a yank she proceeded on her way without another word or glance in my direction.
I have no idea what she was thinking. Perhaps she has a crush on Regis and I reminded her of his "Millionaire" days, although I'm not sure that's my final answer. Maybe she has just reached a point where it doesn't matter what people think of her and a harmless tug on a younger man's tie tickled her imagination.
Sometimes a slight lack of inhibition isn't a bad thing.
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