Month: January 2007

"We just f***in' got it done."

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Highlight of my day: Canada winning gold for the third straight year at the World Junior Hockey Championships. Montreal Canadiens prospect Carey Price was named to the all-star team, named best goaltender and named tournament MVP. Forward Jonathan Toews, also named to the all-star team, was so excited that he dropped the F-bomb live on TSN immediately afterward.

.:.

Today — day 5 of vegetarianism — was the day I discovered the veggie burger at Harvey’s isn’t bad. Good to know that I can still get a decent junk food fix if need be.

In recent days I’ve realized that a lot of the food I find the most satisfying has little to do with meat. For example, we’re about to get some dinner at C’est What before we go to the movies, and I can still have the yummy antijitos and yam frites.

[tags]canada, wjc, vegetarianism, veggie burger, harvey’s, c’est what[/tags]

Where The Truth Lies

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We watched Where The Truth Lies (imdb | rotten tomatoes) last night, last year’s TIFF entry by Atom Egoyan. It was good, but I wouldn’t call it great. Overall the acting was good (though Alison Lohman seems to have studied at the Keanu Reeves School of Facial Expression Diversity), but that wasn’t enough. When the primary actor has to spend an entire scene explaining to the camera what happened rather than just showing it to us, I feel less like I’ve watched a film than a university lecture.

[tags]where the truth lies[/tags]

S'warm

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It’s eleven freaking degrees outside. This is ridiculous.

It’s not just today either. It’s the second time this week — the first week of January — that Toronto’s had temperatures around ten degrees (Monday’s high was 9.2 degrees), I can only remember two days so far this winter that actually felt cold, and 2006 was the lowest year for Toronto snowfall on record.

I’m not really a fan of winter, but…when it’s not around I kind of miss it. Or at least worry about where it’s disappeared to…

[UPDATE] This crazy weather seems to be hard on the wildlife too.

[tags]toronto, warm weather, snowfall[/tags]

Guide dogs, polar bears and cats…oh my!

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I watched most of the world junior semifinal hockey game between Canada and the US today (thanks, TSN broadband!), and watched overtime and most of the shootout in the TV room with a bunch of colleagues. It took the 7th round of a shootout for Canada to finally complete the comeback win. It just kept going on and on; I actually yelled at the TV once, “Do they not realize I have a 1:00 meeting?!??!” before Jonathan Toews finally put it away and Carey Price (Canadiens draft pick; natch) stopped the final American shooter.

I went from nearly having a heart attack to running down the street for a meeting.

.:.

Pat Robertson has either gone senile or just hasn’t gotten enough press lately. To wit, he’s claiming that God spoke to him about some terrorist attacks. I don’t believe there is a God, but if there was, he sure as shit wouldn’t waste time talking to Pat Robertson.

.:.

Nellie talks about all the donations made in our names this year (in lieu of xmas gifts, as per our request). There’s some great stuff on there: animal protection, environmental concerns, anti-poverty, education…good stuff, all. Makes us feel warm and fuzzy.
[tags]hockey, world junior championship, pat robertson, terrorist attacks, charitable donations[/tags]

Hello, bigoted pot? This is retarded kettle calling. You are black.

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The best part about this CNN story regarding the imminent gay marriage ban in Massachusetts: the colossal irony of the accompanying picture.

[EDIT: I suppose it could be an opponent of the gay marriage ban carrying this sign, which would kill both the irony and my witty subject line. Therefore, I choose to stick with my original interpretation: the man holding the sign is a weenie.]

.:.

The Economist’s Free Exchange blog has yet another thought-provoking post, this time about the decline of violence in recent decades and the 20th century overall (despite what the news might suggest). Being the Economist’s blog, the topic is tied back to factors like wealth and trade, and to the question of whether economic prosperity reduces violence; my opinion is that it does, but the writer himself points out one of the most common arguments against such an opinion:

“Increasing trade has made it harder to go to war without at least temporarily doing violence to one’s own economy. Of course, I believe this argument was once advanced as a reason that World War I was impossible.”

By the way…cat-burning? I couldn’t have lived in the 16th century.

[tags]gay marriage ban, massachusetts, economist, free exchange blog, decline in violence, cat-burning[/tags]

That's reassuring

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The National Post has declared our nearly-completed condo building to be “the most beautiful new tower in the city”. That’s nice to hear. It was a little nerve-wracking, wondering if our tower would end up being considered a blight on the skyline.

.:.

From an old issue of The Onion which somehow showed up in my feed reader today:

WASHINGTON, DC—Telephone logs recorded by the National Security Agency and obtained by Congress as part of an ongoing investigation suggest that the vice president may have used the Oval Office intercom system to address President Bush at crucial moments, giving categorical directives in a voice the president believed to be that of God.

$5 says this is one of those Onion articles that ends up being true down the road.

[tags]national post, most beautiful new tower, toronto, onion, bush, cheney, intercom[/tags]

"Geysers of Old Faithful: Nostrils of Satan"

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Today is day of 1 of being a vegetarian. Last week’s Farewell To Meat tour was a tasty, if overindulgent, last hurrah. Anyway, we’ll see how long I last sans meat.

.:.

My first run in two weeks (during which I ate huge amounts of bad food): un peu difficile. I was out of shape, my shoulder hurt ’cause I slept on it funny and my right eye’s been watering all day. And I had to pee. It was one of those runs you just cut off at 1.5 miles ’cause you know you’re gonna pull something or take a header onto the console.

.:.

WFMU’s top ten Orwellian moments of 2006. Scary.

.:.

Also scary (if true) is this news release from Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility:

“Grand Canyon National Park is not permitted to give an official estimate of the geologic age of its principal feature, due to pressure from Bush administration appointees.”

[Hat tip: Dino]

[tags]vegetarianism, treadmill, orwellian moments, peer, grand canyon[/tags]