…it is appalling to reflect upon the billions of hours and the masses of material which are utterly wasted every single day all over the world, by being thrown away on trashy amusements, none of them providing more than a single day's excitement, most of them offereing much less, and all of them based on the idea of Having a Good Time, which really means having a momentary impulse and satisfying it. We must be related to the monkeys, because so few of us seem to realize that pleasure is not the same as happiness.
- Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
As we go down life's lonesome highway
Seems the hardest thing to do is to find a friend or two
A helping hand - some one who understands
That when you feel you've lost your way
You've got some one there to say Ill show you
- Lionel Richie (Say You, Say Me)
...to the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure.
-J.K Rowling (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)
It is not by the consolidation, or concentration of powers, but by their distribution that good government is effected.
- Thomas Jefferson
...all achievement in life requires the overcoming of fear.
- Isaac Asimov (Fantastic Voyage II: Destination Brain)
…power will always end up with the sort of people who crave it…
- Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game)
People are people and it is not wise to overtempt even the best of them.
- Isaac Asimov (Fantastic Voyage II: Destination Brain)
Beware of all, but most beware of Man!
- Alexander Pope (The Rape of the Lock, Canto I)
…past glories are poor feeding.
- Isaac Asimov (Foundation)
When a government begins to die…mistakes are about all that it can make.
- Bruce Hutchison (Mr. Prime Minister 1867-1964)
Since when is the evidence of our senses any match for the clear light of rigid reason?
- Isaac Asimov (I, Robot)
…being…rather cleverer than most men, my mistakes tend to be correspondingly huger.
- J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince)
I think that’s what people most almost always do with the stuff they can’t make out – just forget it. Doesn’t do a person much good to remember stuff that doesn’t make any sense.
- Stephen King (The Green Mile)
…for the sake of unity we cannot be neutral in Canada.
- Ernest Lapointe
Not always Actions show the man: we find
Who does a kindness, is not therefore kind;
- Alexander Pope (Moral Essays, Epistle I)
And I, too, am nothing but a silly old ass
- Robin Brockman (The Message)
People are the most interesting things in the world. They are also the scariest.
- Dean Koontz (Dragon Tears)
It may be possible for human beings to learn good habits under pressure, but relieve the pressure and the bad habits are back at once.
- Isaac Asimov (Nemesis)
...when one had an opportunity to choose between power and honour, honour was more important.
- Karen Molson (The Molson's: Their Lives & Times 1780-2000)
If trouble were as easy to get out of-as into-life would be one sweet song.
- Isaac Asimov (Fantastic Voyage II: Destination Brain)
…luck is an unwelcome intrusion into the illusion of an ordered universe…
- Leonard Koppett (The Thinking Fan's Guide to Baseball)
The truth…It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.
- J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)
The most important things are the hardest things to say. They are the things you get ashamed of, because words diminish them – words shrink things that seemed limitless when they were in your head to no more than living size when they’re brought out. But it’s more than that isn’t it? The most important things lie too close to wherever your secret heart is buried, like landmarks to a treasure your enemies would love to steal away. And you may make revelations that cost you dearly only to have people look at you in a funny way, not understanding what you’ve said at all, or why you thought it was so important that you almost cried when you were saying it. That’s the worst, I think. When the secret stays locked within not for want of a teller but for want of an understanding ear.
- Stephen King (The Body)
Some men…choose to seek greatness, while others are forced to it. It is always better to choose then to be forced. A man who's forced is never completely his own master. He must dance on the strings of those who forced him.
- Robert Jordan (The Great Hunt)
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Boredom Reaches Peak
At least I am hoping my boredom has reached it's peak or I am going to end up in a looney bin very soon.
Yesterday, after months of doing barely anything at work, I was given something to do by a coworker. Most people would not accept work from a coworker but given my high level of boredom I accepted and accepted gladly. The work was nothing more than filing papers but my excitement at actually having some work to do made it seem like I had just won the lottery.
How sad is that?!?!
Yesterday, after months of doing barely anything at work, I was given something to do by a coworker. Most people would not accept work from a coworker but given my high level of boredom I accepted and accepted gladly. The work was nothing more than filing papers but my excitement at actually having some work to do made it seem like I had just won the lottery.
How sad is that?!?!
Monday, September 22, 2008
The Long Trek Home
The road home from the big apple was rather serene until we arrived back on Canadian soil. As we traveled through New Jersey the setting sun helped create a reflective backdrop to us as we all were lost in memory of the various highlights of the weekend. As our thoughts turned to the tasty foot long hotdog smothered with cheese and kraut we all had at Shea (the best ballpark dog I’ve ever had; so good in fact I had two) our stomach’s broke the calm by reminding us all that the last bit of nourishment we ate that day was that tasty hotdog at the game.
After finding our intended place for dining, Perkins, and filling our gullets we continued our drive through Pennsylvania in darkness. At least it was late enough for the evening sports to be on and we landed on WGN radio and the Cubs game. The innings past by in the game and each mile got us closer to New York State and more importantly, Carlos Zambrano inched closer to the Cubs first no hitter in 36 years. As the announcers found every possible way of letting us know the predicament without actually saying “no hitter” our attention to the game intensified and peaked in the ninth when the rare feat was accomplished.
That was the peak of our enjoyment on the road too (except for the brief stop at duty free when we got to buy alcohol for cheap). Not too long after the game ended we started looking for a place to sleep. As the wind picked up outside we were growing restless in the car. Relying on a GPS unit we took a cutoff in hopes of finding a hotel/motel but instead of finding one we spent half an hour driving in circles before getting back on the interstate. As an aside: all trip long we had a discussion going about old school maps and the new fangled GPS units. I defended the use of maps while my traveling mates held the GPS unit in high regard. In this instance neither helped.
We finally found shelter not long before the remnants of Ike unleashed in the area. The next day we saw the outcome of the storm’s wrath as we dodged tree limbs on the interstate. After a short stop at the duty free, we were finally back in Canada but our troubles were far from over. Unbeknownst to us, somewhere along the way one of our tires picked up an unwanted passenger that caused what began as a slow leak and progressed to a more pronounced leak. We made several stops to add air to the tire before arriving in my driveway and called CAA. The trip, which was great until this side of the border, was over for me. Half an hour or so later, will full bellies, my dad and sister were on their own home stretch.
After finding our intended place for dining, Perkins, and filling our gullets we continued our drive through Pennsylvania in darkness. At least it was late enough for the evening sports to be on and we landed on WGN radio and the Cubs game. The innings past by in the game and each mile got us closer to New York State and more importantly, Carlos Zambrano inched closer to the Cubs first no hitter in 36 years. As the announcers found every possible way of letting us know the predicament without actually saying “no hitter” our attention to the game intensified and peaked in the ninth when the rare feat was accomplished.
That was the peak of our enjoyment on the road too (except for the brief stop at duty free when we got to buy alcohol for cheap). Not too long after the game ended we started looking for a place to sleep. As the wind picked up outside we were growing restless in the car. Relying on a GPS unit we took a cutoff in hopes of finding a hotel/motel but instead of finding one we spent half an hour driving in circles before getting back on the interstate. As an aside: all trip long we had a discussion going about old school maps and the new fangled GPS units. I defended the use of maps while my traveling mates held the GPS unit in high regard. In this instance neither helped.
We finally found shelter not long before the remnants of Ike unleashed in the area. The next day we saw the outcome of the storm’s wrath as we dodged tree limbs on the interstate. After a short stop at the duty free, we were finally back in Canada but our troubles were far from over. Unbeknownst to us, somewhere along the way one of our tires picked up an unwanted passenger that caused what began as a slow leak and progressed to a more pronounced leak. We made several stops to add air to the tire before arriving in my driveway and called CAA. The trip, which was great until this side of the border, was over for me. Half an hour or so later, will full bellies, my dad and sister were on their own home stretch.
A Tale of Two Stadiums
We are up to the main reason for my recent trip to New York City, visiting the two ballparks that will be replaced for the 2009 season. Apparently, New York is really where the money is these days since both the storied Yankee Stadium and the ugly sister called Shea are both being taken out of commission at the end of this baseball season.
Although both stadiums have witnessed some ‘amazing’ baseball (even if the one more so than the other) there is definitely no telling which one is in the hearts of the city folk. That is evident by the name assigned to each of the new stadiums; Yankee Stadium and Citi Field. Yankee Stadium can be seen as being modernized (i.e. more comfortable seating and more expensive luxury suites) since the name remains the same while Shea is flat out being replaced (and it is obvious why it’s needed). The Yankees fans seem to be saddened by the replacement of the House That Ruth Built and its 85 years of mostly fond memories even though the new park is supposedly going to a replica of the old but over in Queens it’s a different story. Even with the memory of the Miracle Mets of 1969 and the infamous Bill Buckner blunder in game 6 of the 1986 World Series, most Mets fans are more than happy to be getting a new field. The replacement of Shea does not seem to be talked about outside of Queens whereas the closing of Yankee Stadium is talked about everywhere (at least everywhere in North America).
Despite the dilapidated look of Shea and the narrow stairs, walkways and concourse of Yankee Stadium, both ballparks are still fun to watch games at. A lot of that enjoyment likely has to do with the relaxed and fun atmosphere created by the stadium’s personnel rather than the actual buildings. At Yankee Stadium one of New York’s finest seemed to be right at home in the stands. He was seen sending text messages, eating peanuts, chatting with fans and posing for pictures (perhaps even taking some for others as well). At Shea, we had an usher that was authentically friendly and seemed like he would like nothing better than to grab a seat beside us and talk about the history of the Mets or the stadium or anything else we wanted to talk about.
In the end, I’m glad I went to Yankee Stadium before they sell off every urinal and toilet seat to help recover the costs of constructing the new stadium but I prefer comfort over nostalgia at sporting events and think a new stadium is needed. Once the Yankees start winning in the new building the old stadium will be locked into the history books. As for Shea, I feel for the Mets fans that had to sit in that building the past several years when it was way past decent. The new stadium should give more life to the fans and hopefully the team as they continue on another September fall from grace. Cherish the memories of old but enjoy all the comforts afforded by the modern day.
Although both stadiums have witnessed some ‘amazing’ baseball (even if the one more so than the other) there is definitely no telling which one is in the hearts of the city folk. That is evident by the name assigned to each of the new stadiums; Yankee Stadium and Citi Field. Yankee Stadium can be seen as being modernized (i.e. more comfortable seating and more expensive luxury suites) since the name remains the same while Shea is flat out being replaced (and it is obvious why it’s needed). The Yankees fans seem to be saddened by the replacement of the House That Ruth Built and its 85 years of mostly fond memories even though the new park is supposedly going to a replica of the old but over in Queens it’s a different story. Even with the memory of the Miracle Mets of 1969 and the infamous Bill Buckner blunder in game 6 of the 1986 World Series, most Mets fans are more than happy to be getting a new field. The replacement of Shea does not seem to be talked about outside of Queens whereas the closing of Yankee Stadium is talked about everywhere (at least everywhere in North America).
Despite the dilapidated look of Shea and the narrow stairs, walkways and concourse of Yankee Stadium, both ballparks are still fun to watch games at. A lot of that enjoyment likely has to do with the relaxed and fun atmosphere created by the stadium’s personnel rather than the actual buildings. At Yankee Stadium one of New York’s finest seemed to be right at home in the stands. He was seen sending text messages, eating peanuts, chatting with fans and posing for pictures (perhaps even taking some for others as well). At Shea, we had an usher that was authentically friendly and seemed like he would like nothing better than to grab a seat beside us and talk about the history of the Mets or the stadium or anything else we wanted to talk about.
In the end, I’m glad I went to Yankee Stadium before they sell off every urinal and toilet seat to help recover the costs of constructing the new stadium but I prefer comfort over nostalgia at sporting events and think a new stadium is needed. Once the Yankees start winning in the new building the old stadium will be locked into the history books. As for Shea, I feel for the Mets fans that had to sit in that building the past several years when it was way past decent. The new stadium should give more life to the fans and hopefully the team as they continue on another September fall from grace. Cherish the memories of old but enjoy all the comforts afforded by the modern day.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
From Tourists to Subway Pros
While in New York City, we did not do much of the normal stuff, you know check out the view from the top of the Empire State building, shop, or check out the club or bar scene but we did find our way to Times Square. We stayed out in Queens, a few blocks from the Mets home, so we had to rely on the subway to get to Manhattan and our main destination, Yankee Stadium.
Getting to Manhattan and Times Square was not difficult for us at all. We got on the 7 train at the beginning and got off at the end in the middle of Times Square. Since our time was short there, we wandered aimlessly along the streets, stopping for Starbucks and the Yankees clubhouse before jumping back on the subway to head to the Bronx. We made the switch at Grand Central Station to the northbound train into the Bronx a lot more complicated than it had to be but we ended up at Yankee Stadium anyhow.
We returned to Times Square for dinner and had no difficulty on the subway this time. We did get off at Grand Central Station and walk to Times Square so we missed the switch but we would have had no trouble the second time. Getting back to Queens and our hotel left us feeling like pros on the subway as we had no difficulty at all. To us, it seemed like we started our day as tourists but ended the day as seasoned pros on the subway.
Getting to Manhattan and Times Square was not difficult for us at all. We got on the 7 train at the beginning and got off at the end in the middle of Times Square. Since our time was short there, we wandered aimlessly along the streets, stopping for Starbucks and the Yankees clubhouse before jumping back on the subway to head to the Bronx. We made the switch at Grand Central Station to the northbound train into the Bronx a lot more complicated than it had to be but we ended up at Yankee Stadium anyhow.
We returned to Times Square for dinner and had no difficulty on the subway this time. We did get off at Grand Central Station and walk to Times Square so we missed the switch but we would have had no trouble the second time. Getting back to Queens and our hotel left us feeling like pros on the subway as we had no difficulty at all. To us, it seemed like we started our day as tourists but ended the day as seasoned pros on the subway.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Tommy Boy Moment En Route to the Big Apple
One week ago today I was in a car in Pennsylvania heading south to New York City. Right now I am so wishing I could go back in time…or maybe even forward in time so I would not be at work anymore. Anyhow, despite the long drive it was a fun trip. We went to both MLB stadiums and wandered the streets of Manhattan for a short time all while mastering the expansive subway system. The fun was not limited to our adventures in the big city; it started somewhere near the Pocono’s and had me looking as stupid as David Spade’s character in Tommy Boy at the gas station (the scene where David’s character is looking for a town using the wrong map).
We got the Triptych from CAA to guide us to New York. It is useful as it shows construction zones and the location of food, gas, lodgings and points of interest. We also had the New York Tour Book that gives more information on the points of interest, lodgings, etc. As my dad fiddled around with his new GPS unit, I followed along with the old school maps and my triptych. I was checking out the points of interest to see if any of them interested us. As we neared the Pocono area I noticed a point of interest near Mount Pocono and began searching the tour book for what the point of interest was but I could not locate the town in the Tour Book. Five minutes of searching, likely cursing under my breath all the while, I finally realized something…I would never find Mount Pocono in the Tour Book I had. Mount Pocono happens to be in Pennsylvania not New York, the state for which the Tour Book contained information.
It turned out I needed a new Tour Book not a new map as the gas attendant so bluntly put it in Tommy Boy. And that was my first thought after I realized the mistake I made and started laughing in the back seat. My sister got just as big a laugh out of that occurrence as I did when I told her the reason of my seemingly unprompted laughter.
We got the Triptych from CAA to guide us to New York. It is useful as it shows construction zones and the location of food, gas, lodgings and points of interest. We also had the New York Tour Book that gives more information on the points of interest, lodgings, etc. As my dad fiddled around with his new GPS unit, I followed along with the old school maps and my triptych. I was checking out the points of interest to see if any of them interested us. As we neared the Pocono area I noticed a point of interest near Mount Pocono and began searching the tour book for what the point of interest was but I could not locate the town in the Tour Book. Five minutes of searching, likely cursing under my breath all the while, I finally realized something…I would never find Mount Pocono in the Tour Book I had. Mount Pocono happens to be in Pennsylvania not New York, the state for which the Tour Book contained information.
It turned out I needed a new Tour Book not a new map as the gas attendant so bluntly put it in Tommy Boy. And that was my first thought after I realized the mistake I made and started laughing in the back seat. My sister got just as big a laugh out of that occurrence as I did when I told her the reason of my seemingly unprompted laughter.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Indecision Results in Weird Combination
It has been a while since I have posted something with substance so I thought I’d reach down into my memory to come up with something. Well, actually, this memory came back to me last night while I was thinking of something to feed my son and it gave me a chuckle so I thought I’d share it with you all. Oh yeah, it really doesn’t have much substance either but it is better than a list of quotes.
After several rounds of opening the fridge and cupboards I could find nothing to feed my son. After checking out some mindless show on tv, I finally decided to feed him some cheese. But cheese is not a stand alone meal so what could I give him to go with the cheese? There is a loaf of bread on the counter…and some peanut butter in the cupboard. Peanut butter does not really go well with cheese though does it?
…One night, back in my first year of university, I woke up in the middle of the night and had a craving for cheese, cheddar cheese. But while I tossed and turned in bed trying to convince myself I didn’t want cheese, I started craving peanut butter as well. I finally decided I should fill my cravings but I couldn’t settle on which craving to settle because surely I couldn’t have both. Or could I?
In my childhood, I concocted numerous original drinks by mixing whatever liquids were in the fridge together (i.e. orange juice and milk) so why not take that to another level. Instead of staying up pondering this rather insignificant dilemma, I decided to make a peanut butter and cheese sandwich. Let’s just say it was an interesting combination. Although it was far from awful, I have not combined those two ingredients since that first time.
After several rounds of opening the fridge and cupboards I could find nothing to feed my son. After checking out some mindless show on tv, I finally decided to feed him some cheese. But cheese is not a stand alone meal so what could I give him to go with the cheese? There is a loaf of bread on the counter…and some peanut butter in the cupboard. Peanut butter does not really go well with cheese though does it?
…One night, back in my first year of university, I woke up in the middle of the night and had a craving for cheese, cheddar cheese. But while I tossed and turned in bed trying to convince myself I didn’t want cheese, I started craving peanut butter as well. I finally decided I should fill my cravings but I couldn’t settle on which craving to settle because surely I couldn’t have both. Or could I?
In my childhood, I concocted numerous original drinks by mixing whatever liquids were in the fridge together (i.e. orange juice and milk) so why not take that to another level. Instead of staying up pondering this rather insignificant dilemma, I decided to make a peanut butter and cheese sandwich. Let’s just say it was an interesting combination. Although it was far from awful, I have not combined those two ingredients since that first time.
Monday, September 01, 2008
August 2008 Quotes
You get what you pay for
But I just had no intention of living this way
- Counting Crows (Raining in Baltimore)
...fire was evil stuff that delighted in escaping the hands which created it.
- Stephen King (The Waste Lands)
Deeds may do the job where words fail.
- Isaac Asimov (Foundation's Edge)
There must be a difference in what you saw...depending on wether you sought adventure or had it forced on you.
- Robert Jordan (The Eye of the World)
Women cost a man money, they fought like alley cats, and they caused trouble. Any and all trouble a man had could be laid to women, one way or another.
- Robert Jordan (The Fires of Heaven)
A woman's eyes cut deeper than a knife…
- Robert Jordan (Lord of Chaos)
...it would be desirable to be considered generous; nevertheless, if generosity is practiced in such a way that you will be considered generous, it will harm you.
- Niccolo Machiavelli (The Prince)
Life was such a wheel that no man could stand upon it for long. And it always, at the end, came round to the same place again.
- Stephen King (The Stand)
Some wars could not be won, but they still must be fought.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
And prudence in counsel is clearly a form of knowledge; good counsel cannot be due to ignorance and stupidity.
- Francis MacDonald Cornford (The Republic of Plato)
I'm just waiting for that cold black soul of mine
To come alive
- The Refreshments (Nada)
...fear remains the greatest enemy of peace.
- D.C. Masters (A Short History of Canada)
Let others know you possessed a secret, and some would work to learn it; that was a fact of nature.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
Humor is almost always anger with its makeup on...
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
I have always felt that when punishment is done, the fault that caused it should be erased.
- Robert Jordan (The Dragon Reborn)
Few if any seemed to have grasped the Principle of Reality; new knowledge leads always to yet more awesome mysteries.
- Stephen King (The Gunslinger)
It's up to men to build things...It's up to God to blow them down.
- Stephen King (The Drawing of the Three)
As long as men live upon this planet, they will, they must continue to think; and they will think in spite of the worst tyrannies and cruelties that they can devise for one another.
- Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
We all love to instruct, though we can teach only what is not worth knowing.
- Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)
What possible use could be made of an experience if one allowed it to invoke only rage?
- Whitley Strieber (Transformation: The Breakthrough)
When you’re in bed with someone you love, particularly for the first time, five o’clock seems almost holy.
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
Men listened closer to calm tones than to the loudest shouts, so long as firmness and certainty accompanied the calm.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
And in that moment I realized that I would be a fool to dissipate my energies and that success in anything called for the utmost concentration in that field.
- Paul Gallico (One Writer’s Life)
The best way toward greatness is to mix with the great.
- Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
But I just had no intention of living this way
- Counting Crows (Raining in Baltimore)
...fire was evil stuff that delighted in escaping the hands which created it.
- Stephen King (The Waste Lands)
Deeds may do the job where words fail.
- Isaac Asimov (Foundation's Edge)
There must be a difference in what you saw...depending on wether you sought adventure or had it forced on you.
- Robert Jordan (The Eye of the World)
Women cost a man money, they fought like alley cats, and they caused trouble. Any and all trouble a man had could be laid to women, one way or another.
- Robert Jordan (The Fires of Heaven)
A woman's eyes cut deeper than a knife…
- Robert Jordan (Lord of Chaos)
...it would be desirable to be considered generous; nevertheless, if generosity is practiced in such a way that you will be considered generous, it will harm you.
- Niccolo Machiavelli (The Prince)
Life was such a wheel that no man could stand upon it for long. And it always, at the end, came round to the same place again.
- Stephen King (The Stand)
Some wars could not be won, but they still must be fought.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
And prudence in counsel is clearly a form of knowledge; good counsel cannot be due to ignorance and stupidity.
- Francis MacDonald Cornford (The Republic of Plato)
I'm just waiting for that cold black soul of mine
To come alive
- The Refreshments (Nada)
...fear remains the greatest enemy of peace.
- D.C. Masters (A Short History of Canada)
Let others know you possessed a secret, and some would work to learn it; that was a fact of nature.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
Humor is almost always anger with its makeup on...
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
I have always felt that when punishment is done, the fault that caused it should be erased.
- Robert Jordan (The Dragon Reborn)
Few if any seemed to have grasped the Principle of Reality; new knowledge leads always to yet more awesome mysteries.
- Stephen King (The Gunslinger)
It's up to men to build things...It's up to God to blow them down.
- Stephen King (The Drawing of the Three)
As long as men live upon this planet, they will, they must continue to think; and they will think in spite of the worst tyrannies and cruelties that they can devise for one another.
- Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
We all love to instruct, though we can teach only what is not worth knowing.
- Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)
What possible use could be made of an experience if one allowed it to invoke only rage?
- Whitley Strieber (Transformation: The Breakthrough)
When you’re in bed with someone you love, particularly for the first time, five o’clock seems almost holy.
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
Men listened closer to calm tones than to the loudest shouts, so long as firmness and certainty accompanied the calm.
- Robert Jordan (New Spring)
And in that moment I realized that I would be a fool to dissipate my energies and that success in anything called for the utmost concentration in that field.
- Paul Gallico (One Writer’s Life)
The best way toward greatness is to mix with the great.
- Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
What's Next?
Some days I have it, like this one, and some days I don’t. Today is one of those days I don’t. Things were going fairly well until I got off the train. As I was walking beside the train I stumbled a bit too far to one side and a small silver piece of metal attached to the side of the train reached out and attacked me out of nowhere with surprising quickness. I didn’t even see it coming. With a little less quickness, okay, with a quickness reminiscent of the speed of a turtle, I reacted and saved my arm from being mutilated. Unfortunately, my shirt was not so lucky. Although my arm was left with only a tiny red mark where skin was scraped off, my shirt has a gaping hole in the sleeve. Its frayed ends dangling from the wound reaching towards the warm safe piece of fabric it should be connected to.
One would think the shirt mutilation was bad enough for one day, and I would tend to agree, but my bad luck (or is it bad karma?) was far from over. An innocent trip to the washroom turned into a nightmare for my pants as the button on the waist was severed from the pants. I have never been more appreciative of a belt than I am right now as it is the only thing ensuring my pants stay together, saving me from embarrassment and giving a free show.
An ordinary day has now turned into one filled with nervous tension as I await the next small tragedy to befall me.
One would think the shirt mutilation was bad enough for one day, and I would tend to agree, but my bad luck (or is it bad karma?) was far from over. An innocent trip to the washroom turned into a nightmare for my pants as the button on the waist was severed from the pants. I have never been more appreciative of a belt than I am right now as it is the only thing ensuring my pants stay together, saving me from embarrassment and giving a free show.
An ordinary day has now turned into one filled with nervous tension as I await the next small tragedy to befall me.
Friday, August 01, 2008
July 2008 Quotes
Oh Canada, standing tall together,
We'll raise our hands and hail our flag
The maple leaf forever.
- Stompin' Tom Connors (Canada Day, Up Canada Way)
Resignation to inevitable evils is the duty of us all... - Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)
Don't ask me where I'm going, cause I don't care
I want a ticket that'll take me anywhere but here
- Sammy Kershaw (Anywhere But Here)
And it's been so long since I have felt fine
That's the reason
That I gotta get out of here
I'm so alone
Don't you know that I gotta get out of here
- Jim Croce (New York's Not My Home)
I'm sorry if I ruined your day
I really hope that you understand
I'm a million miles away
Looking for a place to land
- Great Big Sea (Something To It)
Can you help me remember how to smile
Make it somehow all seem worthwhile
How on earth did I get so jaded
Life's mystery seems so faded
- Soul Asylum (Runaway Train)
Yes; thank my stars! as early as I knew
This Town, I had the sense to hate it too:
- Alexander Pope (The Satires of Dr. John Donne, Satire II)
…nobody beat the system or won the game, and only suckers ever thought they were ahead. - Stephen King (Salems Lot)
First things first; take care of what can be done now before worrying too long over what might never be. - Robert Jordan (Lord of Chaos)
The lessons which are remembered the longest…are always the ones that are self-taught. - Stephen King (The Waste Lands)
God doesn't always dish it in your face…Most times, but not always. - Stephen King (The Drawing of the Three)
Paltry irritations sometimes had a way of festering into lifelong antagonisms. - Robert Jordan (New Spring)
'Scuse me but I don't remember
Where were you when I needed you most?
- Def Leppard (Deliver Me)
But if you're gonna make a difference,
If you're gonna leave your mark.
You can't follow like a bunch of sheep
You got to listen to your heart
- Garth Brooks (Against the Grain)
A man with a good wife is the luckiest of God’s creatures, and one without must be among the most miserable… - Stephen King (The Green Mile)
…boredom is good. People with a high tolerance for boredom can get a bit of thinking done. - Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
Great golf seems always within the reach of the body and only rarely within the grasp of the mind. To play golf well, a golfer need only master himself, need only discipline his own brain. - Bob Cullen (Why Golf?)
If it happens, God lets it happen, and when we say “I don’t understand”, God replies “I don’t care”. - Stephen King (The Green Mile)
I know that it's time
for a cool change
- Little River Band (Cool Change)
So much of our life is spent on solving problems to avoid immediate pain or to bring immediate profit…that we forget how true and inexhaustible is the happiness of pure knowing. - Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
…I realized something is badly out of whack when there is such a dichotomy between a person’s waking and sleeping lives.
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
…if a woman did not want to hear something, she could ignore it till you yourself started to doubt you had spoken.
- Robert Jordan (Crossroads of Twilight)
It is individuality that we war against: we should think we had done wonders if we had made ourselves all alike; forgetting that the unlikeness of one person to another is generally the first thing which draws the attention of either to the imperfection of his own type, and the superiority of another, or the possibility, by combining the advantages of both, of producing something better than either.
- John Stuart Mill (On Liberty)
Yet it cannot be called virtue to kill one’s fellow citizens, to betray one’s friends, to be treacherous, merciless and irreligious; power may be gained by acting in such ways, but not glory.
- Niccolo Machiavelli (The Prince)
Only enemies speak the truth. Friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty.
- Stephen King (The Gunslinger)
We'll raise our hands and hail our flag
The maple leaf forever.
- Stompin' Tom Connors (Canada Day, Up Canada Way)
Resignation to inevitable evils is the duty of us all... - Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)
Don't ask me where I'm going, cause I don't care
I want a ticket that'll take me anywhere but here
- Sammy Kershaw (Anywhere But Here)
And it's been so long since I have felt fine
That's the reason
That I gotta get out of here
I'm so alone
Don't you know that I gotta get out of here
- Jim Croce (New York's Not My Home)
I'm sorry if I ruined your day
I really hope that you understand
I'm a million miles away
Looking for a place to land
- Great Big Sea (Something To It)
Can you help me remember how to smile
Make it somehow all seem worthwhile
How on earth did I get so jaded
Life's mystery seems so faded
- Soul Asylum (Runaway Train)
Yes; thank my stars! as early as I knew
This Town, I had the sense to hate it too:
- Alexander Pope (The Satires of Dr. John Donne, Satire II)
…nobody beat the system or won the game, and only suckers ever thought they were ahead. - Stephen King (Salems Lot)
First things first; take care of what can be done now before worrying too long over what might never be. - Robert Jordan (Lord of Chaos)
The lessons which are remembered the longest…are always the ones that are self-taught. - Stephen King (The Waste Lands)
God doesn't always dish it in your face…Most times, but not always. - Stephen King (The Drawing of the Three)
Paltry irritations sometimes had a way of festering into lifelong antagonisms. - Robert Jordan (New Spring)
'Scuse me but I don't remember
Where were you when I needed you most?
- Def Leppard (Deliver Me)
But if you're gonna make a difference,
If you're gonna leave your mark.
You can't follow like a bunch of sheep
You got to listen to your heart
- Garth Brooks (Against the Grain)
A man with a good wife is the luckiest of God’s creatures, and one without must be among the most miserable… - Stephen King (The Green Mile)
…boredom is good. People with a high tolerance for boredom can get a bit of thinking done. - Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
Great golf seems always within the reach of the body and only rarely within the grasp of the mind. To play golf well, a golfer need only master himself, need only discipline his own brain. - Bob Cullen (Why Golf?)
If it happens, God lets it happen, and when we say “I don’t understand”, God replies “I don’t care”. - Stephen King (The Green Mile)
I know that it's time
for a cool change
- Little River Band (Cool Change)
So much of our life is spent on solving problems to avoid immediate pain or to bring immediate profit…that we forget how true and inexhaustible is the happiness of pure knowing. - Gilbert Highet (Man's Unconquerable Mind)
…I realized something is badly out of whack when there is such a dichotomy between a person’s waking and sleeping lives.
- Stephen King (Bag of Bones)
…if a woman did not want to hear something, she could ignore it till you yourself started to doubt you had spoken.
- Robert Jordan (Crossroads of Twilight)
It is individuality that we war against: we should think we had done wonders if we had made ourselves all alike; forgetting that the unlikeness of one person to another is generally the first thing which draws the attention of either to the imperfection of his own type, and the superiority of another, or the possibility, by combining the advantages of both, of producing something better than either.
- John Stuart Mill (On Liberty)
Yet it cannot be called virtue to kill one’s fellow citizens, to betray one’s friends, to be treacherous, merciless and irreligious; power may be gained by acting in such ways, but not glory.
- Niccolo Machiavelli (The Prince)
Only enemies speak the truth. Friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty.
- Stephen King (The Gunslinger)
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