Author: Dan Dickinson

If you're depressed and have ADD and you know it, download these (and clap your hands)

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

If you’re in need of a song that’s less than two minutes in length and guaranteed to put you in a good mood, here it is: “Quito” by The Mountain Goats.

Ah shit, I’m feeling generous. Here’s another: “Half-Empty Halls” by The Evaporators.

You’re welcome.

.:.

Nellie’s away for the night, and part of tomorrow. I lazed around for a bit, did some errands, went to the Nike store (as I was paying I realized Jason Spezza was standing next to me, buying a stack of stuff as tall as my wife), went for a run, ordered some pizza, watched JFK (just ’cause), cleaned up and am now listening to music at a volume that seems to frighten the cats.

.:.

I needed a drink last night after work, so we met up with CBGB and a friend at The Auld Spot. The veggie burger was extra tasty, the beer was cold, the waitress was hot and the conversation was lively. It was just what I needed to ease into the weekend.

.:.

As of today I am 5/7 of the way through my MBA.

Aweso.

.:.

Two cool bits of news courtesy of the two best Toronto-centric blogs: Torontoist points to the new and improved driving directions on Google Maps (which is very helpful if you’ve ever tried plotting a scenic route) as well as a neat little mashup called Taxiwiz that predicts your Toronto cab fare. BlogTO, on the other hand, discusses the recent decision that permits street vendors to sell more than hot dogs.

.:.

Finally, I leave you with this hilarious little comic my friend Dino sent me.

Vegetarian Zombies

[tags]mountain goats, evaporators, nike store, jason spezza, auld spot, fun with fractions, torontoist, blogto, taxiwiz, google maps, vegetarian zombies[/tags]

From treadmills to tzatziki

Dan DickinsonLeave a comment

S’been a long day. Up at 6, run, work until 8, dinner at C’est What and home around 9. Ran about 2.5 miles this morning, so that’s getting better already. May go again tomorrow, or I may take a break until Saturday…not sure yet. That falafel ain’t gonna burn itself though.

.:.

I think I took on more work today, and I have to accelerate my MBA “side-project” work plan (interim paper’s due Aug 1), but on the plus side I have a few vacation days coming up in a few weeks and Nellie’s away this weekend. Not that I don’t want her around, of course, but I can get a lot of stuff done when I’m on my own schedule. Besides, we introverts need alone time to recharge every now and then.

.:.

Nellie picked up a new adaptor and wide-angle lens for our camera today. That’ll be terribly exciting for us when we’re actually on vacation some day.

[tags]c’est what, fatblogging[/tags]

Spiderpig

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More progress from a daily-life standpoint: I actually got to the gym this morning. The plan was to go yesterday morning, but the Monday Night Downstairs Dance Party ™ made that impossible. I didn’t know how much energy I’d have at 6AM, especially since I played ball for two hours last night, and even more especially since I haven’t run in months, but I kept it light (just 1.5 miles). I was worried about the pain in my knee at first, but it turned out to only be bruised from last night (must’ve gone knee-on-knee with someone and not noticed at the time) and not a strain. I’ll go again tomorrow morning; gotta work myself back up to at least 3mi/5km if I’m to lose any weight at all.

The tricky part is cooling down before I have to strap myself into a suit and walk out into the Toronto summer. Yech.

Movies, exercise…I’m almost starting to feel normal again.

.:.

The ending of this trailer for The Simpsons Movie made me howl. H-O-W-L.

[tags]exercise, fatblogging, simpsons movie[/tags]

Some of us work, Bluto

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Last night the people downstairs decided to have an incredibly loud party. Until 1:30 AM. We managed to remain nice while still getting them to keep it doown. The worst part of all: the godawful shitty house music they were playing.

Needless to say we had difficulty getting up this morning. There’d better not be any noise tonight; I’m getting up at 6 to go for a run.

.:.

The weather for this week’s round of basketball was much nicer than the last time we played. We only had a few people out, but it was good fun.

[tags]animal house, basketball[/tags]

In which I join the club. The pudgy, pudgy club.

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Let the banners fly and the champagne flow: we actually went to see a movie today! Gasp wheeze snort! Yup, a real live honest-to-Hollywood movie, our first in a theatre since seeing 300 in way back in March. We saw Knocked Up (imdb | rotten tomatoes), which was pretty good.

It just feels good to be back in the game.

.:.

The least surprising thing I’ve heard this week: George Bush has commuted Scooter Libby’s jail term.

US President George W Bush has intervened to prevent Lewis Libby, a convicted former vice-presidential aide, from serving a prison term. President Bush described as “excessive” the 30-month sentence Libby was facing for obstructing an inquiry into the leaking of a CIA agent’s name.

Do you ever wonder if Bush does this stuff just to fuck with Tony Snow?

.:.

I have decided to join the fatblogging club. I’m no good at self-motivation so I figure telling the world that I’m about 40 pounds overweight and then living in fear of the mockery will help things along.

See, the last time I was a normal weight — about 190 pounds — was back in 2001. Back then I was single and didn’t eat regular meals (as I do now that I’m married), didn’t eat as a social occasion (as I do now that I have a foodie friend or two), exercised a lot more, didn’t work nearly as much and didn’t have an MBA on my plate. I figure I have to reverse/correct at least a few of those trends, and soon — I’d like to buy a new suit in a couple of months. So, to recap:

  • I’m currently about 233 (which puts me just below “obese” on the BMI scale)
  • I should be about 194 (to get my BMI back into the “normal” range)

Clearly I won’t cover 39 pounds in two months short of some creative surgery, so I’ll aim for 214 (the halfway mark) by Sep 1. I’ll give weekly updates. I await your praise/scorn.

[tags]knocked up, scooter libby, fatblogging[/tags]

Happy Canada Day!

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What a nice weekend so far. Yesterday Nellie and I slept in a bit, then got up and went back to our old neighbourhood to have some breakfast at Eggstasy and buy some new a/v-related furniture (stands for my side & rear channel speakers, and a new TV/component stand) at Bay Bloor. It was a beautiful day, and one of the first we’ve had in a long time to just spend at our leisure. We ran a few more errands, chilled at home for a bit and went to Fieramosca for dinner with Nellie’s mom and her boyfriend. When we got home the full moon and the wind created an amazing effect on the lake, so we sat outside (despite the cold wind) before heading to bed.

Slept in once again this morning before finding some brunch at the Irish Embassy — I was craving fish and chips, of all things — and saying goodbye to Nellie’s mom. Since then we’ve been trying to muster the energy to finish putting together the TV stand and set it all up, but have been unsuccessful so far.

.:.

According to Gothamist, the Copacabana is closing. This truly is the end of an era in Manhatt…wait a second. The fucking Copacabana is still open?

[tags]canada day, eggstasy, bay bloor radio, irish embassy, toronto, copacabana[/tags]

The best defense against ribs

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Normally after I write an exam I’d just come home and crash, but today I had things to do. I dropped my stuff and went up to the office; I wanted to get moved into my desk so I could hit the ground running Tuesday morning. I shared a brownie with T-Bone, caught up on some email, waited for Nellie so I could show her my new floor and then headed home. On the way I bumped into two of my classmates on Bloor; they’re hanging around the city for the weekend.  Now I’m home, catching up on a bunch of stuff, waiting for Nellie and her mom (who’s visiting) to make pizza. Tomorrow, when I have more energy we’ll visit the Distillery District.

.:.

If I lived in London today, I’d buy one of these t-shirts.

.:.

Thank goodness the Toronto Ribfest has moved out to Centennial Park (wherever the hell that is). I don’t think I could bear to have it just around the corner on Front Street this year.

[tags]keep calm and carry on, london bomb, toronto ribfest[/tags]