History

For awhile now I've been thinking about what I would do differently if I could go back to high school when I was deciding my post-secondary education, or what I would do if I could go to university and that is teach...That's right, teach.

Teach what? History. I'd like to be a history teacher. Many may find it boring and yes history can be dry depending on the teacher, but I love it and I know I'd be able to make students love it.

In saying that we are approximately 3 weeks away from Remembrance Day and so in honour of the men and women who have served, and who are serving this country I am going to posting stories. Stories of honour, bravery & courage. Stories of war. Stories to remember and never forget.

Stay tuned for my history segment starting later today October 19, 2009

Should they stay or should they go

Both the US and Canada have been talking of extending their time in Afghanistan and maybe even sending over reinforcements to bolster their efforts. (NOTE: Canada saying they will not be extending or adding to their current combat efforts but adding or extending for peacekeeping/rebuilding.)

With this comes the floods of people complaining & crying, that it’s a waste of taxpayer’s money, a waste of resources, and a waste of courageous, hard working, patriotic soldiers. This isn’t just coming from everyday citizens but the likes of Jack Layton saying something along the lines, “We have to bring our men & women home, and stop wasting taxpayer’s money. We need to think of OUR people first.”

Before I go on any further I want to make it clear that I am by no means a Stephen Harper supporter, nor am I pro war (quite the opposite actually) but I do believe that pulling out to quick is a bad thing (TWSS). With conflicts escalating in neighbouring Pakistan and Iran, showing a commitment to what we started in Afghanistan and completing what we set out to do may help deter others from committing similar crimes.

To think that there wouldn’t be a backlash if we were to just walk away from the mission is ludicrous (especially in the US), which is why I like what Obama’s doing. He showing his nation’s commitment to the efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan but also initiating peace talks around the globe. Walking away now the entire North America would look like dogs running with the tails between the legs.

I say send reinforcements, add to your numbers, and do a clean sweep of Afghanistan before all of the naysayers get their wish and the government pulls the plug; letting all of our fallen brother’s die in vain.

Dear Hateful Leaf Fans

Well, the Leafs lost in overtime last night...At least they one point out of it. As Mike Komisarek said in his post game reaction, “We have to look at the positive.”

So what went wrong? Nobody can complain about the Leafs’ effort last night, Montreal was outshot and outplayed most of the game, Toronto threw over 40 shots at the net but they just had a hard time beating Carey Price. Price played really good last night and Montreal was lucky that he came ready to play.

I have been a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs all my life and I’ve read a lot of fans reactions about the game last night and it’s disgusting. After the VERY FIRST regular season game, people were complaining how awful Mike Komisarek is and that Ian White should be in the minors and that Vesa Toskala is a terrible goaltender.

It’s one game. There’s 81 more to play folks, simmer down some before you give yourself a stroke. Sure I was disappointed the Leafs didn’t get the 2 points but I am not disappointed in how the team played.

To all of the Toronto fans who really need to take a chill pill....CALM THE FUCK DOWN! If this is how you’re going to react after every time the Leafs loose, especially a spirited match like last night, then I hope you get hit in the junk with a Montreal Canadiens puck.

To all of the Leaf fans with a little more patience...GO LEAFS!

Listening is Interesting

A fun filled Wednesday had me spend two hours (6:30 – 8:30) of my morning at the hospital getting blood work, hooked up to the EKG, and peeing in a cup. As more time passed, more people came in and I did something that I’ve never really conscientiously done before; pay attention to the surrounding conversations. In other words Public Eavesdropping.

I know eavesdropping is wrong, but when you’re stuck in a small waiting area with 40+ people you’re bound to hear a few things people are talking about:

1. A hillbilly/geeky looking guy, definitely did not look like a hunter even though he was wearing a camouflage hat, playing with his blackberry talking to a man he was sitting beside says.

“I held a gun last weekend, thinking about buying it but it was $3600.”

2. Behind me a conversation went like this,

“I have lots of vegetables! (spelling error on purpose)

“WHAT!”

“I have lots of vegetables!”

“WHAT!”

“I EAT LOTS OF VEG...E..TAB...LES!!!”

“Oh.”

3. Beside me,

“I haven’t been getting the flu shot in recent years but I will when they have it at work.”

“You know that’s not the H1N1 vaccine?”

“I know. I’ll get that too when I can.”

“Experts are saying now that getting the seasonal flu shot will make you more vulnerable to H1N1.”

“They’re lying.”

So there you have it. Needless to say I had to get up and walk around often while I waited because I couldn’t take much more of what my ears were catching.

That’s it for now. I’m in the works of finding a better template...Stay tuned

Holy Thrice Cover Batman!

WOW! IS the only way to describe this cover of Thrice's Deadbolt...WOW!

Test Drive

So new look, new feel for the ol’ blogging thingy. Could be temporary, could be permanent. I’m having a hard time finding a template that works for me. I thought I found the perfect one called ‘Scrapbook’; top of the page had pics looking like their hanging by a piece of tape. Shitty part is I couldn’t find a way to change the hanging pictures. I know this doesn’t look like much for showcasing my photography/other art work but I needed some different and this was the one I found I liked the most.

So let me know what you think, what works, what doesn’t, and if you have any suggestions as to where I can find some awesome blogger templates that’d be great.

Later

Wednesday was Significant After All

So I guess I was wrong in saying that I had no reason to feel that way I did on Wednesday. I had a reason after all. September 16 (this past Wednesday) was my late Grandfather’s birthday. My Grandfather and I were quite close and I knew his birthday was in September but I thought earlier than the 16^th. Anyways my Grandfather and I were very close and I guess that’s why I had a feeling of forgetting something and maybe he was even reaching out. So today I’ll be going to the cemetery where my Grandparent’s & Uncle are resting.

Well it Wasn’t Gas!

It wasn’t anything ... (if you don’t know what I’m talking about read yesterday’s post) A completely uneventful day.

A few posts ago I talked about addressing when change is needed and what type a changes they might be. Well today I signed out of my hotmail and upon getting redirected to Sympatico/MSN I caught a glimpse of the horoscope box on the right hand side of screen and it left me saying, “hmm...interesting.”

NOTE: I’m not one for reading horoscopes AT ALL! But it’s interesting that I had the urge to do so today. Anyways here it is:

‘New ideas and concepts regarding the way you make your living might come your way today, dear Capricorn, which could cause a bit of a shake-up in your value system. You might decide to tackle an entirely new profession that you've never considered before. Books on the subject could prove supportive and encouraging, as could those closest to you. At this time, it's important to follow your heart. Go for it!’

Is this the type of change that I have been searching for? I’m not sure.
Do I think that this kind of change would benefit me? You know, a change of scenery might be nice and after seeing this I’m going to full heartedly re-evaluate what I want to do for a living.

Well that’s all I have for now.

Stay tuned for my dream/wish to run a marathon... IN GREECE!!!!!!

Unexplained Feeling

Before unlocking my iPod Touch my eyes caught the date at the top of the screen ‘Wednesday, September 16’and I instantly felt some sort of significance for this day. I’ve been looking at my calendars, checking outlook, checking my notes for things that I am suppose to do today and have found nothing. Nothing explains why I suddenly got this feeling

What does this mean? Is something going to happen that is of significance that I’ll always remember? Is it a warning sign that I am in grave danger? Or is it just gas? I don’t feel gassy though.... Weird....

I’ll update tomorrow to fill you in on the rest of my Wednesday, September 16.

CRASH, SMASH, BAM Kind of 2009-2010 NHL Season for the Leafs

1 sleep until Leafs preseason, 15 until regular season

Jonas “Monster” Gustavsson, Mike Komisarek, Francois Beauchemin, Garnet Exelby, Wayne Primeau, Rickard Wallin, Colton Orr, Joey MacDonald.

These are all the new comers the Leafs have signed/trade for this off season and soon we’ll get to see how (GM) Brian Burke’s handy work pans out. Potential to crack the line up as rookies are: Nazem Kadri, Viktor Stalberg, Tyler Bozak and Chrisian Hanson.

Can’t remember the last time I was this excited for the start of the NHL season. The Toronto Maple Leafs, although may have a hard time making the playoffs, are going to be bruisers. Last year the team was pushed around a beaten up a lot, and so Brian Burke addressed that issue by signing some big and/or nasty guys. A lot of people are complaining that Burke didn’t sign a true sniper to put the puck in the net and that he focused too much on his defence. Although I do wish that Toronto could have brought in a franchise type of player to bolsters the firing squad, I look at it this way...

The Leafs had a fair amount of young guys on their team. They also had their own share of smaller guys on their team. Their so called “snipers” weren’t able to have the space and freedom to show off their offensive abilities. They’d cross the blue line and BAM, laid out, they’d race for the puck to the end of the rink and SMASH, they’re flattened into the end boards, and get too eager in front of the net CRASH, they’re either in the net or they’re taking their teeth out of the crossbar.

When the team was getting pushed around too much last year you know who was coming to stand up for everyone? Usually a rookie... 18 years old...standing up for the rest of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He wasn’t always the only one but he showed a lot more heart and courage than most of them.

So Brian Burke hopefully solved that problem. Our “skilled” players aren’t going to be able to get knocked around without retaliation. So as long as the retaliation came come at no cost we’ll be alright and might be able to put some fear into other teams, but one of the big things that might hurt the team this year is penalties.

GM Brian Burke, and head coach Ron Wilson have both said they want the other teams to hate facing them. As long as we can do that without spending too much time in the penalty box then here’s to a hard fighting, won’t take crap from anyone kind of hockey team.

GO LEAFS!

When is Change Needed?

Questions I’ve been asking myself a lot lately. When is change needed? What needs to change? How do I get there?

Is it anxiety, is it depression, or is it both? Is it common social expectations of what one should have, should be, should be doing with their lives that makes me asks these questions?

Every now and then I get into a rut of feeling unaccomplished, unsatisfied, and just plain unhappy and trying to find an answer as to why can be extremely frustrating. I do have wonderful things in my life; a beautiful wife and an adorable daughter, both of which I am very proud of. They are what keep me balanced, keep me sane. I’ve had someone tell me that I should do more for myself and since I’ve heard that I realize that I have put myself at the bottom of my priorities list.

The problem is I don’t know how? When I do things for myself, even if it’s as simple as walking to clear my head, I feel bad because I should be doing something else, and the something else isn’t something for me. I find myself to be a very selfless person which shouldn’t be a bad thing (to be selfless) unless it’s at a point where you feel distant with who you truly are. So after so long of me putting everyone else’s needs, wants and wishes before my own I feel as if I subconsciously resent myself for how I treat myself and my deteriorating self esteem.

Maybe I need a new job, maybe I need a new house, maybe I need to live in a different part of the country or maybe something as simple as buying a new Queen or King sized bed would solve my problem. In any case at least I can rely on my wife and daughter for balance, sanity and sobriety. Also, I believe that I am headed in the right direction because I can admit to having a problem and admit that I need to change...for the better.

I hope that this doesn’t come off as me crying “Poor Me! Boo hoo hoo!” but more of a check point to evaluate what you do for yourself, and how you treat yourself.

Coming up next post....Upcoming NHL Season! Stay tuned

Canada’s Justice System...Or Lack There of

Be prepared to read folks...

WARNING: This blog post contains material some readers may find disturbing, reader discretion is advised!

1992 Sydney River, Nova Scotia.

What should have been a usual day at work turned out to be a nightmare for the entire staff at a local McDonald’s. 3 men walk into the restaurant armed ready to rob and then it turned real nasty. Three McDonald’s employees were killed and one was left permanently injured. One of the victims was shot, beaten with a bat and then had their throat slit.

The three men were all convicted of the killings and were sentenced to Life in prison without eligibility for parole for twenty years (for one of them) and twenty-five years for the other two.

The man who was eligible for parole after twenty years was eighteen at the time of the killings and after serving seventeen (that’s right 17) years the man who is now thirty-five has been granted free passes. This means he’s allowed to be on his own (no supervision) for 24 hours each month. With good behaviour over the next two months they courts will increase that to 48 hours.

Something’s wrong here...first off it looks like our government is having a hard time counting. Second a man who has spent as much time behind bars as he has been free might be a little unstable, but maybe I’m just quick to judge.

You’d think that they’d at least do an extensive mental evaluation for a case like this considering we never SEND anyone to prison for killing until they have psycho evaluation. I guess letting them out is different.

“We know you brutally and gruesomely killed but we think that 17 years taught you a lesson.” Says the Judge.

Grinning ear to ear, “Oh my yes I have!” the man says sarcastically.

“Well boys will be boys... you’re free to go, just don’t kill anyone else OK?”

And maybe it’s because I am so full of anxiety and depression that I think someone in these circumstances would be unstable, because I know I would have a grudge on society after being lock away for 17 years.

The funny part of this story is that the parole board has yet to release any reason for their decision on the free passes. A man who has no remorse, a man who has not apologized to the victim’s families, a convicted murderer is allowed out of prison three years before he was suppose to ELIGIBLE for parole and they don’t say why?

3 words come to mind look at it like this...WHAT THE FUCK??

Are the government officials so brain-dead that they can’t even keep convicted murderers behind bars? The men behind this violent crime should be thankful that they don’t live in Texas because they would have been done a long time ago. But no we live in a country with such a lenient justice system that we’ll let disgruntled 35 year old convicted murderers roam the streets.

Am I advocating for the death penalty? No!
Am I totally against the death penalty? No!

People like this need to be punished. Three meals a day, a bed, and nothing but time isn’t much of a punishment for murderers, rapists, and other violent criminals.

Make sure they get put into a cell with a huge man named ‘Billy Bob’, or ‘Big Joe’ looking for a new piece of meat. Or string them up by the eyelids and kick them in the nuts until they blink. Maybe you think that may be harsh but I personally think he should never see the light of day.

We live in a country where if you shoot a moose in the off season (and get caught) you’ll spend 12 years in prison, you’ll lose your rifles, your four-wheelers, your vehicles and in order to pay for the find you also receive you’ll probably lose your house.

Is it just me or is there something wrong with this picture?

That’s it for now.

Bigger World = More Asphalt

Have you ever dreamed or imagined a world without technology? Have you ever felt like escaping into an unknown uninhabited territory; into a deep forest?

I have.

Sometimes I dream about a world that isn’t consumed by materialistic bullshit. A world where a person, spirit, a soul, a being is king NOT money. There are so many remarkable sights, experiences to be had in this world and some I feel like it’s all a dream or it’s all fake because everyone is concerned about the price of gas, price of groceries, how much this is, how much that is, when their favourite shows are on. I see more and more people trying to out-do each other by what they have, how much money they make, the vacations they take.

We take for granted the beauty of this place. The cultural change that has happened within the last decade or so is not for the better. People are less concerned about local nature, and more concerned about whether or not their favourite stores are coming to town.

It’s time to get up and see what this world has to offer, it’s time to enjoy the breathtaking sites this world has while we still can. At the growing rate of the earth’s population, and the rate we’re flattening of forests it’s only a matter of time before everything that’s green turns into asphalt.

With all that being said I plan to take more pictures of what can be found in my local area and post them here.

That’s my rant for the day

Later

Some Summer Pics

These are just a couple of pics I shot over the past couple months. Two of them are in the Kingston area, the other is the back yard. Try to get some more up tomorrow

I CAN Read Afterall

So the other night(Monday I think), I finished reading The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan. What an awesome read, when I heard the Guillermo Del Toro was writing a book I knew it was going to be great; the man’s is a true artist in the film making world and in my opinion the novel world. To get an idea of his artistic genius have a look at winner of 3 Acadamy Awards Pan’s Labyrinth. (Love this movie)

So The Strain is about a vampiric virus circulating New York with possibility of it threatening the rest of world and threatening mankind as we know it. That’s right VAMPIRES. Not your teeny lovey vampires that sparkles like diamonds in the sunlight, but true frightening, blood sucking, human killing vampires.

This is the first full novel that I have read in years and has inspired me to get reading more. So if you like gut wrenching, nail biting, piss you pants action, drama and suspense pick up The Strain. The only thing disappointing about this story is that The Strain is the first book of a trilogy and the next one won’t be out until next year some time, and the third out in 2011.

Again, if you haven't watched this movie, check it out.

That's it for now, later.

Long Time No Blog

It’s been awhile I know but last week I was on vacation (a much needed one) and with a awesome weather we had last week I spent the majority of time outside, I think I checked my email twice all week. I went boating, swimming, to the beach, to Treego, and went golfing. I drank everyday and also worked my ass off.

Worked? Well not work, work but Monday Dad, my brother and I poured concrete for a well house. I did a fair amount of gardening throughout the week and Tuesday and Thursday consisted of fun filled hay days where we put in about 1100 bales of hay on Tuesday and approximately 1500 on Thursday. Let me tell you there’s nothing like being in a 35-45 degree stuffy ol’ hay mow lifting hundreds of bales weighing anywhere’s from 50 lbs to 75 lbs. I’ve been haying before but I don’t think I have sweat so much in all my life.

Why didn’t I write yesterday? Well I just got too busy and forgot about it last night when I was home.

That’s it for now, hopefully tomorrow or tonight I can write something more compelling.

A Tad Too Late: A House Buying Tale

So the wife and I have been hungrily looking for a house for the past seven months and as each day passes my frustration grows. Three years ago, about a year after we started renting a place, we would look at MLS listings and look at houses for sale just for the hell of it, with no real intention on buying. Mainly because I didn't think I could get approved for a mortgage that would buy anything more than a cardboard box.

Looking at listings then I remember seeing reasonably priced houses. There was a three bedroom 1 1/2 bath house with 3 acres for $90 000. It was a nice little bungalow with an attached garage too and me thinking that I wouldn't get approved let it go.

Another house we were looking at again a 3-bdrm bungalow with 3 acres, new kitchen, siding, and whole lot of other updates for $95 000. Again, we let that go by.

Well a few months ago talking with my banker I found out that I was approved for more than I thought. However, it is impossible to find a reasonably priced house these days. The houses mentioned above today would probably go for $140 000 or more. And this is out in the woods.

There is a house close to the area for sale for $139 000; 1 bedroom, 700 sqft house. ARE FUCKING INSANE!!! My parents bought a 1200 sqft 3 bedroom home with 100 acres for $ 30 000, mind you that was almost twenty years ago and the house was 100 years old but still, it's hard to find a reasonably priced building lot any more. People are spending $30 000 for 1/2 an acre.

Any house that I've gone to see under $100 000 needs around $50 000 to bring it up to par and it's ridiculous. You can get a pre-fab home some where's between 100 000 - 120 000 if only I could find land that didn't cost an arm and a leg.

Well folks that's my rant for the day

Another Nightmare pic

Things

So I picked up Guilermo Del Toro's book The Strain last night and so far I love it. It's the first book of a trilogy check out the site HERE

I also got back into weight training last night and I'm feeling quite sore today, usually day 2 after a wookout is suppose the worst so I should feel real good tomorrow. Yesterday was Chest & Triceps and today will be Back & biceps. Tommorrow is shoulders & legs and then I take a day off of weight training. I'll continue to run and do abs everyday though.

So as you may or may not know they are remaking A Nightmare on Elm Street and to the right is the movie poster.

That's it for know,

Later

WOW

Can't get over THIS KID

Amazing!!!!

So the weekend that past

Can't remember if I have mentioned it before and too lazy to read previous posts, but I am working on a novel. 3 actually. Whether or not they pan out and if I can finish them and be happy with them remains to be seen.

I started the first one about 8 months ago and got about 6-7 chapters in and then hit a wall. Any time I go back to read it I see stuff that needs to be rewrote and I get frustrated. However, I had the wife go through it and she really liked what I had.

The other two I started around the same time with one being just a concept and an opening intro while with the other one I just started the third chpater.

So I got the wife to read what I have over the weekend and was happy with what she had thought. Obviously it's not going to be a quick process but I'm looking for ward to see what I'll be able to do with it.

If I get the courage to, I might post what the books are about, but until then you'll have to settle that that's what I've been spending quite a bit of time on.

Well that's it for me

Later

Another Oddservation

Bringing back the odd observations...

On my way to work today I saw the oddest thing I might have ever seen driving across the harbour bridge. Driving along almost then all of a sudden I saw a seagull walking looking quite scared. I took a second look and the bird's wing was upside down and half tore off. The way the he was looking back and forth seemed like he had no idea where his wing was.

I realized he was probably scared because he couldn't fly away from roaring traffic and being stuck half way across the bridge he had no choice but to walk the rest of it.

I found this quite humorous. Not because I'm into animal cruelty (because I'm not) but because it reminded me of something you'd see out a cartoon.

So there's today's oddservation.

Be back later to talk about something that took place over the weekend.

Later

New Me

I know, I know..it's been awhile since I've actually posted something. The truth is I've been having a hard time find time, and when I do find the time I have no clue what to write about.

Today I do.

Remember the rugby injury? Well I believe I am fully healed. Well at least 98% healed. So what does this mean to me other than full movements again?... EXERCISE!!!! That's right time to get back in shape.

I'm dieting now; meaning cutting back on carbs and sugar, absolutely no junkfood (until a craving makes me feel punchy), more greens, fruits, and at least 3L of water a day.

Right now the exercising consists of a 4-5K run, intense ab workout, pushups. Just doing this to my body use to this type of activity before I incorporate a lot of weights. Plus I want to be sure that I am in fact as healed as I feel.

That's all I have for ya now

Until next time here's a clip of George Carling dealing with a Heckler

Another Billy Jean cover

Ok so I clicked on the video response of the Billy Jean cover I listed yesterday and I found THIS

Pretty awesome...my evening will consist of learning to play this song.

Word of the Day #3 - July 9

Colloquial - col-lo-qui-al - [kuh-loh-kwee-uh l]

Def: 1- characteristic, of or appropriate to ordinary of familiar conversation rather conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal.
2- involving or using conversation

Synonyms: chatty, common, conversational, popular

Antonyms: correct, formal, standard

Used: It was sometimes hard to keep track of the conversation because of how colloquial the group was.

WORD of the Day #2 - July 9

Quarrelsome - quar-rel-some - [kwawr-uhl-suh m, kwor-]

Def: inclined to quarrel; argumentative; contentious

Synonyms: crabby, cross, irritated, touchy

Antonyms: agreeable, friendly, happy

Used: She has been quarrelsome all day

WORD of the DAY - July 9

Vivacious - vi-va-cious [vi-vey-shuh s]

Def: lively; animated

Synonyms: active, alert, breezy, merry, playful

Antonyms: boring, dull, unhappy

Used: He showed us a very vivacious dance.

Apologies

So my apologies. I forgot/didn't have time to post anything yesterday.

Today's I still don't have a whole lot to say other than I've been checking out people's acoustic covers of different songs and what an enjoyable/inspirational pastime.

Check these out

Billy Jean Cover

Cecilia Cover (Simon & Garfunkle)

All I have for now I'll try to get back with two WORD OF THE DAY as I didn't get any up yesterday

later

No TIme as of yet

No time for an update yet. Will find time for at least Word of the day...stay tuned

Ryan

WORD OF THE DAY - July 6

Scrupulous - scru - pu - lous [skroo-pyuh-luhs]

Definition: minutely careful, precise, or exact

Synonyms: conscientious, cautious, careful

Antonym: careless

Used: he gave such a scrupulous performace as he walked across the tight rope

Nothing to post as of yet! May change. Stay tuned for word of the day!

WORD OF THE DAY - July 3

Sagacious

Definition: having or showing an acute mental discernment and keen practical sense

Synonyms: acute, canny, clever, intelligent, knowledgeable, wise

Antonyms: careless, foolish, ignorant, stupid

Used: He won the case because he was a sagacious lawyer

Another Odd Observation or Oddservation if you will

Growing up as a kid I was disciplined when needed to be, I was spoken to when I was out of line and if I wanted something but the folks said “No” that was it, I’d ask “Why?” and get the “I don’t have to answer that” answer. I’m not going to say I had it rough because I didn’t. I have loving, caring parents who looked out for my best interests. They weren’t just caregivers, or shelter & food providers. They were and continue to this day to be inspiring teachers & mentors.

Today’s youth I’ve recently been noticing a lack of respect, and a lack of appreciation. I get this feeling like a lot kids feel that they’re owed for any gifts that they receive. Some where’s along the line they lost the value of “earned” dollars, they’ve lost a sense of hard work, and have seemed to forget the sacrifice parent’s make whenever their kids want this and that, and go here and there.

Growing up I had chores and I did them. I didn’t wait until it got too late so Mom and dad could pick up my slack. If I did, I wouldn’t be going to baseball that night, or I wouldn’t be going to my friend’s house.

I get frustrated to see these snot-nosed little bastards getting their way all of the time without even saying “Thank you”, or helping out around the house.

To the kids who read this (which I’m sure there are none), say “Thank You”, appreciate what you are given, if you ask for something and get a “No” do not pester until a “Yes” comes out. Don’t take your parents for granted. Listening to that advice might keep you from saying when you’re older “Wow, was I ever a dink to Mom & Dad when I was little.”

I’m not saying all kids are like that but I know quite a few that I’d like to line up and kick in ass. So this is where I ask parent’s, are you going to kick them in the ass or do I have to?

I guess it’s not entirely the kid’s fault us parents tend to give in easier which makes it harder for us to try and spit out a “NO”.

So let’s start a movement called PASNA = Parents Against Snot Nosed Adolescence

Logo coming soon...

That’s all for now

Ryan

WORD OF THE DAY

Resplendent

Definition: beautiful, bright, radiant

Synonyms: beautiful, beaming, brilliant, lustrous, shining

Antonyms: dull, gloomy, withering

Used: the resplandent sunflowers towered over everything in the garden.

WORD OF THE DAY

Magnanimous

Definition:
1. giving and kind
2. high minded; noble

Synonyms: considerate, generous, great, selfless, ungrudging

Antonyms: petty, selfish, stingy

Used: His magnanimous character showed brightly, when he gave all his free time at the animal shelter.

Canada D’Eh!!!

So tomorrow is Canada day. What am I doing? Not a whole hell of a lot I don’t think. I’ll just enjoy the day relaxing. Get out a couple of Canadian Flags, maybe pick up a case of Molson Canadian and relax.

So guess what I did last night? Well I had to stay in town while the Mrs. had a late dinner with some girls so I came back to the office to finish up some work when I finished my work, I went to my blog and why trying to find ways of getting more people to check out my blog and so what I did was join Twitter. I was thinking if I had some friends following me on twitter I’d be able to leave a little note saying “Hey, updated my blog check it out” then maybe I’d get more readers, which hopefully would add to some constructive criticism, add to ideas of what to include in my blog.

So that’s really all I have for now, I’ll be posting the word of the day here shortly and maybe later this evening I’ll be back on to do some writing.

Later,

Ryan

Idea

So being that my blog is called Uttering Thoughts I thought I'd share a thought I just had.

Starting tomorrow I will be posting twice daily. One post that is my rant, philosophies, idea, happenings etc. and the other post being a 'Word of the Day' that includs definitions, sentance examples and antonyms.

Lame? Maybe. Reason to be less lame? I won't be using elementary words, average words. In an attempt to improve my own vocabulary I will be using large, intelligent, sophisticated words, words that will better my speech, and better my writing.

Hope you enjoy.

Ryan

Odd Observation

It was a very productive weekend that completely transformed the back deck. On Saturday we got all but one (we ran out) of the patio stones laid down. We got the stairs back together, and the raised walkway that stretches across the back of the patio is complete. Sunday was fence day; we didn’t get started until late morning and while dad measured the cut the fence boards, I boarded up the second half of the first fence (first half was already done).Did even take an hour for that. Once that was finished we spent a couple of hours measuring and digging holes to put in our anchored fence posts for the other fence.

I started boarding up that fence and I ran out of screws after the third board. The Mrs. and a friend were going to town so I asked her to pick up some more. While I waited I pre cut all of the fence boards so I’d have those ready to go and I was done after an hour or so and then came a long wait for the screws. I wasn’t able to start finishing that fence until 4 but my bro showed up and we were able to finish before supper.

That was my weekend. In a constant sweat all weekend long, worked hard, played some b-ball, and did a little swimming.

So they odd observation...When I got to work today I parked at the back area of the parking lot and had to look twice at what I was seeing. I thought I missed a memo about it being crooked day or something because every car that there at the time (there were about 10 cars) were parked crooked. It wasn’t a slight crookedness either. A solid 20 degree angled difference from being straight. Also a lot of the wheels were cut hard and a couple even crossed over the other parking space.

Like I said it was a weird observation but I found it funny.

Until tomorrow

Later,

Ryan

Sheepisly Sheepish

So today is NHL Draft day. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about the NHL Entry Draft is a collective meeting in which the franchises of the NHL systematically select the rights to available amateur players who meet the eligibility requirements to play professional hockey in the NHL it means that every team gets to pick a young prospect for the future of their franchise. I don’t have time to write about how the whole draft is set up so if you'd like to get a better understanding leave a comment and I'll answer any questions you have.

The important thing to know is that the Toronto Maple Leafs have the 7^th overall pick and a desperately trying to get one of the first few overall picks to try and get the highly sought after John Tavares. This kid is incredible, some believe him to be even better than Sidney Crosby. Why? Well John T when he was broke Wayne Gretzky’s OHL scoring record. He is an absolute scoring machine and getting pucks in the net is something the TMLs need. I quite confident that Toronto will not get him though as the New York Islanders have the 1^st overall pick and there is no way in hell that they’re going to trade that pick to Toronto. But we’ll see tonight who they get.

The last I’d like to talk about is a couple of words that I have been seeing a lot or recently:

Sheepish & sheepishly

It might just be me but the a lot of the later fiction literature that I’ve read and am currently reading the writer’s have been using those words constantly and maybe I notice more now because I’m thinking about that word too much. “He turned away sheepishly”, “I felt sheepish saying”, “She looked up sheepishly”, “The sheep fell asleep feeling sheepishly sheepish”.

I don’t get it. I can’t get the attractiveness to constantly use those words why not use embarrassed, timid, guilty, foolish, ashamed, self-conscious, or abashed instead of sheepish. Change it up some writer’s!!! Take the $5 and buy a thesaurus!!!

And on that note have a great weekend.

Later,

Ryan

Habit Building

In my earlier post I mentioned I did some shooting last night and I'll try to remember to upload those tonight

So I'm trying to get into the habit of uploading images, art, poetry etc. so I thought I'd start with an image I did in Photoshop awhile ago featuring a buddy of mine. He's the front statue.

Ummmm...

Not much to say today...

Last night I continued to lay down the patio blocks, lots of fun. We are now putting them down for the second time, they weren’t in the right position the first time. Even though it’s been hurting the ribs and all, it’s a pretty good workout.

As you can see I’ve uploaded and image of a crest. That would my family crest that wish to put in ink form some where’s/some time on my body. I have to do some touching up though.

Last night I night did a little shooting (As in photography). Just took some shots of landscapes and I got a shot of a strange looking red bird that was at one of the bird feeders but it’s too far away to get a good look at it.

So that’s really all I have today.

“Until tomorrow I’ll just keep moving on” One of the Best Theme Songs Ever

Kim ol' Boy, We Need to Talk

So Last week I added a link to a CNN story about Kim Jong Il & North Korea doing some missile testing and I said they were being a little ballsy.

Yesterday they issued a warning to...THE WORLD!

Basically they said stay the hell out of our backyard (& waters) because we’re doing some “military training” which I believe is code for “OK boys let’s see if our gun can make it to Hawaii”.

Why Hawaii? Don’t know. Maybe they don’t want to go to big. Maybe they believe that firing a missile at Hawaii would be like stepping on America’s little toe.

So what does the US do in response? They beef up their military defence along Hawaii with anti missile ships. North Korea’s little bird is going to get shot right out of the sky.

Here's a story about what's going on

Something Quick

As I daze into the tranquil night sky
my mind wanders and dreams
how near, how far how I wish I could grab
an evening star
but then I’m back in reality
and like all dreams
this one is out of reach

I still have lots to learn
to me the world has much to teach
So again I bear my cross
and another dream I toss
so I can be stuck here another day

A Boring Daze

Kinda poetic title huh?

Not a whole lot going on today. Last night I laid some concrete patio stones (for the new pool deck) that weighed 85 lbs a piece. Arms got pretty tired after lift those for a couple of hours. Afterwards went in had a beer while looking over the pattern design for the stones (we got two different colours) and once I was done my beer I read some out of Christopher Moore’s Lamb, which is incredible by the way.

Before I sign off, I listened to a song today that really moved me for some reason. Anyways check out this link of Jeff Buckley singing If You See Her

Have a good one

R

Canoeing in the rain...

Well this past Saturday was the canoe trip that I’ve mentioned before and despite the rain that had me drenched, I had an awesome time. It was a warm rain too, so if it had of been cold I would probably have a different opinion.

As usual we had a first-timer get foolishly drunk and required help from drowning from a number of people. The shitty part for those who were helping is that doing that is going to sober you up pretty damn quick.

For me though I had a great day. I was in a canoe with two beautiful women and a cooler full of beer, we had plenty of food to share with everyone and once we had been landed for a couple of hours and the rain stopped, until early the next morning. Luckily it was plenty warm enough to camp out.

Back to the cooler full of beer...I BEAT MY RECORD! I didn’t however make my goal of 30, I got to 29. If I had of been able to count Saturday night I probably would have opened another one. Oh well, all in all it was a good run even though it did rain most of the day. However, because of the rain a few of us discussed a possible 2^nd trip sometime in the summer.

Well that’s all I have today
Later,

R

Quick note

North Korea getting a little ballsy?

CHECK IT OUT

Beer, My Friend and Yours

Last night a enjoyed a couple of Coors Light so in preparation for tomorrow’s canoe trip I am going to discuss my beer habits.

There are all kind of beer drinkers out there; social beer drinkers, excessive beer drinkers, the people who go to friends house and is afraid to ask for a rum & coke so settle for a beer. You also have the people who go with only one brand, you have the people who get the beer that’s giving away free shit, and then you have the people who go to the liquor store and end spending 15 minutes trying to find a beer to go with for that particular weekend.

I am a self proclaimed Hybrid Beer Drinker. I may go through a stint where I’ll only buy one brand. I may go into the store and the beer that’s giving away a free glass. But mostly I’m one of the ones who will end up do thirty laps trying to buy one case of beer.

Here are the different kinds of beer that I have bought in the past 3 months:

Ricards White
Sleeman’s
Miller Genuine Draft (MGD)
Alexander Keith’s Light
Coors Light
Budweiser
Moose Light
Guiness
Kilkenny
Pumphouse Blueberry Ale
Corona

The 3 that I buy the most however are MGD, Coors Light and Budweiser. I love my MGD but the pop-tops are a pain in the ass.

Sad...but a little much

NOTE: By no means am I trying, to insult, or be insensitive.

Last night I attended my brother in-law’s graduation. Firstly it was way too long, there were only 38 grads and it was still the better part of three hours...frig! But it being too long is not what I want to talk about today.

Last year there were two tragic accidents that killed two formers students from the community so last night at the graduation ceremony they awarded for the first time two new memorial scholarships. Once was nicely delivered while the other one, not so much.

The nicely delivered award was in memory of a young person who lost control of their car (wasn’t speeding and no alcohol involved) on their way home (in the afternoon) and was tragically killed. My heart goes out to this family.

The other award while still emotional was a little much. It involved a young person who was travelling with some friends and the driver who was intoxicated lost control and crash killing the young person from our community. This is a very horrible & sad story and I know this family and my heart goes out to this family as well, but last night seems to have left a bad taste in my mouth.

Last night they had this person’s sister talk about their sibling and give people insight to how they chose who received the award, to give people (who didn’t know this person) insight on who they were, how this person lived their life and to use the memorial as a celebration of their life. Although she did mention that she focused more on the tragedy, focused more on the individual who was responsible for the accident and how the investigation is still ongoing. She spoke to the grads saying that life is full of choices and responsibilities and mentioned that some of them will probably make bad choices and may even live in poverty (a little much I thought), or always in trouble etc, etc, etc. She was dwelling on the negativities that can be part of people’s lives. Yes people can make bad choices, yes people may not always be the most responsible but when you are directing your speech to 38 young adults waiting to get the rest of their lives started you can’t stand there and tell them that ‘life sucks and then you die’.

This sister should have used their sibling as an inspiration for quality of life, inspiration to be happy, acting courageous, honourable, hard working, passionate, and kind hearted. I knew the person killed and what I have just said spoke about them and who they were a lot more than speak about an investigation.

So to all the graduates of 2009 may you live life to fullest, dream big, fulfill those dreams, and enjoy your success.

Later

R

“If music be your breath of life, then play on”

We Don’t Want Your Stinkin’ Money!...

Is what the NHL is saying to Jim Balsillie. If you don’t know who that is Jim B. Is the CEO of Research in Motion the creators of Blackberry. Jim is worth billions of dollars and is in his third attempted to purchase a NHL team, but NHL commissioner Gary Bettman keeps rejecting him even though Jim is constantly waving his well padded wallet around. Why you ask? Because Jim B. is a proud Canadian and is devoted to bring a seventh NHL team to Canada. Gary is a proud American and is devoted to keep any team in the US whether it’s bankrupt or not.

Jim’s attempts:

1 – Jimmy tried to purchase the new Stanley Cup champions Pittsburgh Penguins a few years back but was rejected because there were rumours that he wanted to move them to Canada.

2- Jimmy tried to purchase the financially hurting Nashville Predators but was rejected because he made his intentions known (about moving the team to Hamilton, Ontario) and began selling season tickets to the people of Hamilton before the sale ever went through.

3 – Jimmy puts a $220 million conditional offer to purchase the “bankrupt” Phoenix Coyotes. Condition being that he’s allowed to move the team out of the F%$KING desert to a more suitable hockey market.

I said “bankrupt” because the team’s current owner filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after the league gave him a payout to help through this past season. After the NHL handed over something like $30 million to him to pay off some creditors the league felt that he was no longer in control of the team therefore he was in no position to file for bankruptcy or make a deal with Jim B.

The league has said that they will take the money to keep the team in Phoenix because they feel that the team can still exist there. Phoenix Coyotes use to be the Winnipeg Jets and this hockey team hasn’t made a profit since moving from Canada in 1996. But hey maybe the 14^th season in Phoenix, Arizona is the charm. Now why would the NHL ignore a billionaire wanting desperately to own a team and would pay any price to get one? Beats me. You’d think they would want what’s best for the league, and what’s best for the league is to consider allowing more team move to Canada (i.e. Atlanta Thrashers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Nashville Predators) because people are crazy about it, the thing I hate about summer is that there is no hockey to watch.

The NHL board of governors I feel needs to evaluate Gary Bettman’s position and track record. This man needs to get off his high horse and realize that moving the team from Winnipeg to Phoenix was a shitty idea, and leaving the team there is an even shittier idea. Wake up Gary! Canada is calling and willing to pay to see more hockey...

Or you can continue being ridiculously stupid and put a team in Las Vegas like you’ve always wanted.

There’s my rant for the day,

R

Oh and to support another team in Canada Balsillie put up a site called "make it seven"...

Show your support

4 more sleeps

Ahhhh...relaxing at its finest. Sitting back in a canoe, on a warm sunny day, surround by great people and a beer in hand. What more could you ask for?

A beer in both hands! Oh yeah!

Yep. This Saturday is our Canoe Trip, the 21^st Annual that is. Every year we get family and friends together, grab some canoes, fill em with beer and food and head down the river for a relaxing day of joke telling, song singing, food eating and most importantly beer drinking. Depending on how hard you want to work, from our usual starting point you could spend anywhere’s from 5 hours to 8 or 9 on the river. Once out of the river we meet up at my Uncle’s place for an evening of partying, swimming, more eating, more drinking, washers tourney, and guitar playing with more singing. The day of the canoe trip is always an incredible event, I’ve got goosebumps just mentioning it now.

For me and a couple others who go down the river with us it’s not just a day of everything I mentioned above but it’s the day where we consume a shitload of alcohol and try to reach certain goals pertaining to alcohol consumption. Last year I had set a new record of 25 beers. This year’s beer goal for me is 30, but I won’t just be taking beer with me because I have recently found a new love of Spiced Rum + Coke. So we’ll see how the day turns out and hopefully I can achieve my goal.

I know it’s lame to be talking about how my I am going to have to drink this weekend but that’s all I could think to write about. Until tomorrow, this is R saying,

You stay classy Internet machine!

Peacefully at Peace

I know, I know, another pause...

So I had a four day weekend and didn’t seem to find or take the time to update and to you my neglected blog I am truly sorry. Feel free to send a swift kick in the arse my way for failing to do what I said I would do.

Anyways, today I have a couple of minor things to talk about:

- So the Pittsburgh Penguins are the new Stanley Cup Champions after beating Detroit in game 7, 2-1. Too bad it wasn’t the Toronto Maple Leafs but oh well.

- Helped lay cement over the weekend and am extremely sore...definitely hard on the ol’ ribs n’ sternum.

- Watched Friday the 13^th remake last night and wasn’t expecting much, but to my surprise it was rather watchable. Predictable like a lot of “horror” flicks but still not too shabby.

And here’s what I’m here to say today:

I have always been one who’d enjoy a little background noise to put me to sleep. When we lived in out old place our bedroom was next to the kitchen so I’d always wait to turn on the dishwasher before I went to bed (the DW was on the wall next to our BR). The sound the water made was calming and hypnotic. So last night I had the pleasure of falling asleep to the rain patting the roof, window and wet ground and it was glorious until about 2:30 when the rain seem to stop and the pain in my ribs was almost unbearable last night.

Once I was able to settle down and catch my breath from my side. I heard the most beautiful sounds, much more than what the rain was doing, rolling over noticing it was my wife. Her breathing pattern was similar to a snore but it wasn’t an annoying crunching type. It was a soft, soothing constant beating of a sound and it left me feeling remarkably comfortable and at peace. I’d compare the experience to a baby falling asleep to the sound of their mother’s heartbeat.

So that’s my post for the day, see ya’ll tomorrow

R