bye for now

I know I can complain about things for a long time. If I searched hard enough, I could probably complain about everything. Driving, walking, sitting, breathing, the moon landing. The point is complaining is fun and I talk pride in my work, but I just got a mass email on my school email account about something I think I can complain about and it is completely justified and actually not complaining at all. Someone in my English class sent out a mass email to everyone in the class requesting that our classroom become “scent free”. More »

January 20th, 2010 | Tags: complain, free, scent, scent free | Category: General Ranting | Leave a comment

A trip I made downtown today started off as a quest to update my passport. I’ve never been to the government building here before. However it’s becoming obvious I’m getting more comfortable with driving around Saskatoon. I generally know where most of the places I need to go are now and I’ve almost completely stopped looking at street signs to see where I am. So as I approached the government building based on the address I had, I noticed it was right by Market Mall. However, navigating in this area become complicated with police cars everywhere for some reason. I finally made my way into the mall parkade and headed towards the gov’t building, which also happened to be the same street with all the police. Apparently I had arrived minutes before the Olympic torch was to be run by. So a little added bonus to the trip.

After seeing the torch go by and getting my passport renewed, I headed into Market Mall. I just sold a textbook this morning for $70, so I had some cash to burn. I made about 60% back on the original price of $122. I spent some time looking for a new pair of shoes as my mine are almost completely worn out but to no avail. Since I was at the mall and had some extra cash, I decided to grab some food from the food court. I noticed something strange in the food court at New York Fries specifically. They have an ad for their Twitter page on their menu. A fast food restaurant tweeting! More »

January 12th, 2010 | Category: General Ranting | Leave a comment

I was walking out of the PAC (Physical Activities Centre) at the UofS today after riding the pain train and taking it to the max (working out). And as I leave, I always have to pass the aerobics room. It’s not that I choose to go this way, I have to exit this way. I guess I could go out of an emergency exit or break a window and leave that way, but I prefer more of a subtle approach to leaving buildings. Anyway the aerobics room has one glass wall so you can see in if they choose to leave the blinds open. Today was one of the days with the blinds open. I can’t help it when the blinds are open, I have to look in and see what people are up to. More »

November 16th, 2009 | Tags: bicycle, cylcing, kids, spin class | Category: General Ranting, School | Leave a comment

I generally believe I am going to school because I want to learn. I may not be interested in every subject I am being forced to take as a result of university style schooling, but all-in-all, I want to do well so I can get a good job. Although, I’d have to say a lot of people aren’t in school for the same reasons as me. Some people simply just go because it is expected of them. And this leads to waste of time for most everyone involved.

Some people know that I have spent 4 years in post secondary prior to my schooling at the UofS. I obtained my Bachelor of Applied Information Systems (IS) from NAIT. I worked at my would-be career for 3 years after my schooling and I decided that it wasn’t for me. After galavanting around Europe, I finally decided that if I was to make any kind of success in a career I needed to go back to school. Going back to my old career in computers may have been an option, but I had already established that it wasn’t for me anymore. So I would like to say that I’m done with computers. Little did I know I’d be in a position of taking an Intro to Computer Science as a requirement for my new degree path. For someone with my schooling this course is like going back to kindergarden. Sure you know how to count to one-hundred, tie your shoes, and identify basic shapes, but now I have to complete assignments and am quizzed on my basic knowledge. You could imagine my annoyance towards this. I’ve appealed it twice only to be told finally that there is no way I will get credit for previous schooling and I have to take it again. However, there is a silver-lining to every situation. My marks are between 90% and 100% on all assignments and exams, so this will help my GPA a lot, and I get to watch people struggle with knowledge I consider very basic.

You might call me an asshole for taking enjoyment in other people’s struggles, and you are probably right but I can’t help it. These people bring it on themselves. I cannot count the times I see someone raise their hand, ask a question and, as soon as the prof. starts answering it, they have their cell phone out and start texting. Or the laptops with Facebook, some flash game, or some random website on the screen. (Mind you the majority of my final year at NAIT involved me playing Trial Bikes during class.) Then people do poorly on the assignments and exams. Our prof. doesn’t help with his pessimism. Every time he explains something he always asks negative questions.

“By show of hands, who doesn’t understand?”
“By show of hands, who is less clear because of my example?”
“By show of hands, who did that do nothing for?”

Then he wonders why everyone doesn’t raise their hand for at least one of these questions. Why not ask if anyone actually understands instead of assuming everyone doesn’t? Or at least that’s the impression I get from his line of questioning. When I first took this course it probably helped that my class was half the size. But I don’t recall anyone struggling as much as everyone seems to be in my current class. I think the major issue is there are no computers in the lecture. With the exception of the prof. for his slideshow or the laptops I mentioned earlier. But I mean computers for applying the knowledge. Instead we do examples on paper. Just like the cavemen use to do it.

November 5th, 2009 | Tags: Computer Science, hands, raised, Texting | Category: School | Leave a comment

With the debut of the movie 2012 just over a month away and the inevitable end of the Earth approaching in just over 3 years, I decided I need to post more on my blog so people have something to remember me by. That is, if anyone is still alive, and, according to the preview for 2012, there is hope! I imagine that I’m not the only person who believes that the world ending on December 21, 2012 is complete BS. I’m sure this isn’t the first time the world is has been prophesized to end and it most certainly won’t be the last.

Who has predicted the end of the world on December 21, 2012? This is question you might ask yourself. Well, no one really, the Mayan Calendar simply just doesn’t go any further. Why doesn’t it go any further? Well because it is the end of a baktun. The 13th baktun to be exact. A baktun is basically a Mayan calendar span of 44,000 days. From what I understand a baktun is simply a cycle that is supposed to repeat. What this means exactly I don’t know. Whether history is supposed to repeat itself or whatever, I don’t know. I don’t think that’s important, more so. That the Mayans do not explicitly predict the end of the world. In fact, there is supposed to a massive celebration. So if there has been 13 baktun… why wouldn’t their be a 14th?

What comes to my mind when I think of Mayan is something that happened recently that a lot of people I know thought was stupid. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The ideas in the movie were related to that of the Mayan culture. And, no, they weren’t aliens, they were inter-dimensional beings. If you think that’s ridiculous, well it sort of is. On the other hand, I don’t recall people thinking that The Lost Arc or The Holy Grail was that ridiculous in the previous Indy movies. Apparently the coffin of Jesus melting Nazis or a cup that, if you drink from it, will grant you eternal life isn’t ridiculous at all. Don’t get me wrong. I love the Indiana Jones franchise and I am more than excited to hear that Indy 5 has been announced. So if you thought that Indiana Jones 4 was stupid, well then you might as well just include the world ending in 2012 in the same basket.

Maybe you heard that Nostradamus has predicted it as well. Nostradamus has NEVER predicted the end of the world. His predictions extend until the year 3797. This isn’t to say that’s when he made his “end of the world” prediction. No, he died. I’ve read his last prediction was made from his deathbed and it was 1000 years of peace. So there’s something to look forward to. However, Nostradamus predictions were written as poems basically. And poems are always open for interpretation. So maybe, if you dig deep enough, you could imagine that he predicted the end of the world or just about anything for that matter.

Being a Canadian there is someone else who has made a prediction about our far off future that I think deserves a mention. Neil Peart of the band Rush prophesizes of the year and the events leading up until 2112. The song is also titled 2112 and I think it deserves a listen. Read this exert from the related Wiki article.

In the year 2062, a galaxy-wide war results in the union of all planets under the rule of the Red Star of the Solar Federation. By 2112, the world is controlled by the “Priests of the Temples of Syrinx”, who determine the content of all reading matter, songs, pictures – every facet of life.

A man discovers a guitar and learns to play different music. When he goes to present this to the priests of the Temples, they destroy the guitar. He goes into hiding and dreams of a world before the Solar Federation. Upon awakening he becomes distraught and commits suicide. As he dies, another planetary battle begins resulting in the ambiguous ending “Attention all planets of the Solar Federation: We have assumed control.”

To then re-ask the question: “Who has predicted the end of the world on December 21, 2012?” Hollywood. So, who are going to trust? Hollywood? Or the band Rush?

October 2nd, 2009 | Tags: 2012, 2112, End of the World, Indiana Jones, Indy, Mayan, Neil Peart, Nostradamus, Rush | Category: General Ranting | Leave a comment

I like to do this every once in a while. Post the bands or songs I’m listening to lately, so people who care can see it. Or so people can give me some recommendations. I’m just going to go through my list alphabetically, as I’m referring to my iTunes “Recently Added” playlist.

Arctic Monkeys just released a new album recently called Humbug. I was a bit surprised to the sound of it overall. It’s quite different in reference to what you may of heard of them on the radio or where ever you hear your music. I’d recommend Crying Lightning as a good basis for the album. It’s also my favorite song on the album. It doesn’t seem to about spouting clever, almost unintelligible, regional British slangs like it seemed to be on their hit, I Bet That You Look Good On The Dance Floor. I’d like to say their songs are far more groovy and do maintain the cleverness of their lyrics, but they also sound more slick than ever before.

I’m pretty sure I first heard Band of Horses on Ethel of XM, which is now synergized with Alt Nation on the merged Sirius XM. I have to say all I heard by them is listenable but, if I was to tell you to seek out one track, I’d say listen to Is There A Ghost.

I came across Empire of the Sun as a recommendation for MGMT fans. I’d like to stress that now, I am, in fact, an MGMT fan. Although I don’t think Empire of the Sun delivers as well as MGMT, I still dig the album on occasion. Some songs to check out by them would be Standing on the Shore, Walking on a Dream, and Swordfish Hotkiss Night.

Owl City is worth a big mention. I guess you can say, the band is sort of a guilty pleasure. I cannot stop listening to them for some reason. I’ve heard their music described as “The gayest straight music I’ve ever heard, and I like it” by Cane from AltNation. I shouldn’t say them, because they are one person, Adam Young. Adam Young claims that this music is a result of his insomnia, which is not the impression I get when I listen to them. I guess I would describe the music as upbeat, new-wave pop. Check out Super Honeymoon, West Coast Friendship, Cave In, The Bird and The Worm, Dental Care, and, of course, Fireflies.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Pearl Jam came out with a new album called Backspacer. The single I’ve been hearing has been The Fixer, which isn’t a bad track, but I think there are better on the album. Particularly Just Breathe. I would say that it wouldn’t have as much radio playability as The Fixer but I would propose Got Some as another strong track that could receive radio play. Maybe the next single. I think the album is great in its entirety. Probably the finest PJ albums in a while.

Wolfmother has put out a single from the forthcoming album, Cosmic Egg. The track is called New Moon Rising. I’ve got to say, I am a fan of this track and I cannot wait for the album.

In terms of music I’ve been listening to regularly go, some other noteworthy mentions are Fleetwood Mac, Spinnerette, Meatloaf, Lindy and LCD Soundsytem.

September 30th, 2009 | Tags: Arctic Monkeys, Band of Horses, Empire of the Sun, MGMT, Music, Owl City, Pearl Jam, Reviews, Wolfmother | Category: General Ranting | Leave a comment

So I’ve had an iPhone since February. I went through the update procedure of OS 3.0, which devastated most of my apps. Most of which have finally caught up only to be hit by the newest update of OS 3.1. The biggest upgrade in this is now I can visually organize my apps on my MBP through iTunes. This is such a big help considering I have 6 pages of apps now. Most of which I don’t use I might add.

Just like 3.0, 3.1 has caused problems for me. My iPhone hasn’t quite been the same since the update. Freezing doing simple tasks like browsing the web or failing every time I open an app. I’ve tried most everything thus far. Usually a reboot works – holding Sleep/Wake and Home buttons simultaneously until the Apple logo appears. The last two times, it did not. First time I tried, my iPhone simply wouldn’t reboot. Just sat in lingo at the Apple logo for literally an hour. After connecting to iTunes, I finally got functionality again. Today again, I could not access any of my apps that aren’t packaged with the iPhone. Even after a reboot (which worked this time) this problem wasn’t solved. Today I did a restore of my iPhone via iTunes. Hopefully this does the trick, if not I will have to phone Apple Support again. As my MBP’s optical drive decided to die early this month.

I think Apple’s slogan of “It just works” needs a caveat added. “It just works… until it stops completely.” Speaking from experience, when an Apple product crashes it’s all or nothing.

September 22nd, 2009 | Tags: Apple, crashes, iPhone, Macbook Pro, OS 3.1 | Category: Uncategorized | Leave a comment

If the title isn’t completely obvious (I guess it isn’t really), I have moved to Saskatchewan. Saskatoon specifically. If you are from Alberta, you might be asking why? If aren’t from Canada, you might be asking where Saskatchewan is. I’d like to direct your attention to Google Maps if that’s the case.

Well the reason I moved to Saskatchewan is none other than the University of Saskatchewan. Having attended 3 post-secondary institutes now, I can say that the U of S is clearly the superior of the 3 I’ve attended. The facilities are better and the professors are more passionate. I’m not necessarily saying I like all my professors, but it’s clear that they care about the subject they are teaching and want to teach to it to us, the student body. It’s not like they are there for their research and have to lecture as a burden.

Having not been in school for several years, I guess it’s been 5 years, I have to say, it’s not as easy as I remember. But I think I got it all under control. My first term is a little overloaded, but my second term should be a big ease up on my work load that I’m looking forward to. I imagine I shouldn’t have a problem passing all my courses this term. That’s enough about school.

Saskatoon has been, in general, a decent place to live. Not a lot of people (about 500,000), so driving is not a chore. However, I will say this, drivers are just as bad and discourteous here as Edmonton. Basically any given time I go driving, someone is going to try and cut me off just for the sake of being in front of me. Nothing I say here is going to change that, so I’ll just have to deal with it and try not to be like that myself. And, before you ask, yes, the roads are pretty bad in spots around the city. At least they attempt to fill their potholes with gravel. No worse than Edmonton I’d say though.

The driving sort of side tracked me there, but to continue on. Saskatoon has everything I could want or need close to me. The university has all kinds of facilities available. And grocery stores and other shops are within a 15 min drive. I could probably even be out of the city in 15 min.

I have to say that having my own place is a pleasant change. It’s been a long time since I lived alone. I guess only 2 years, but generally not having exclusive privacy for so long has made it a treat. Living the life of a backpacker means I generally am sharing a room with 5 to 10 people every night. So I’m sort of enjoying the fact that I barely know anyone here, but I’m sure time will change that. I’m starting to talk to people in class more and more, especially in labs.

That’s about all I have to say for now. Here’s to hoping I don’t fail all my courses.

September 21st, 2009 | Category: School | Leave a comment

I’ve been aware of this for a while, but never really thought too much into it until I recently saw an old episode of Loony Tunes. It was one of those episodes where Elmer Fudd was hunting rabbits and that rabbit – of course – happened to be Bugs Bunny. Apparently the most clever rabbit of all time. Basically the same formula for all the episodes with those two characters. You know the routines if you watched it when you were younger. Bugs plugs Elmer’s gun with his finger and the gun blows up in Elmer’s face then Bugs kisses Elmer and runs away and jumps in a hole. Or the classic moment where Bugs dresses as a girl rabbit and somehow makes a pass at Elmer Fudd. Elmer always falls for this and falls completely in love with Bugs Bunny.  Elmer will then find out it is Bugs trying to trick him and the hunt resumes. Everyone passes this off at Bugs’ clever wit. But I feel that Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd are both gay.

Just because I’m a white, straight male born in a small town in Alberta doesn’t mean I’m against gay men having a cartoon icon, but the cartoon icon they have chosen (apparently) is SpongeBob SquarePants. Don’t believe me, read the Beginning, peak popularity (1999-2004) of the Wikipedia article on SpongeBob. If you read this section, you will see that the creators even stated that SpongeBob is asexual. This is, in fact, true to what SpongeBob is… a sea sponge. Actually sea sponges are hermaphrodites. They do have both sexual organs, but not in a way that humans can. Read the wiki article about sponges if you want to find out more. So if any group should pick SpongeBob as a cartoon icon it should be hermaphrodites.

In closing, I think Bugs and Elmer should tie the knot. And, from what I derive from this picture, Elmer has accepted the fact that Bugs is the dominate member of their same sex couple as he has outwitted him in so many meetings that he is clearly the big spoon. I wish them happiness in all their years of marriage and I hope they find acceptance in the world. Congratulations you two!

May 29th, 2009 | Tags: Bugs Bunny, Sponge Bob | Category: General Ranting | Leave a comment