vacation..... part 3hree

oh yes, i've been remiss in posting, and replying to comments. blame it on work. because it's truth. anyway....

part 3hree: the u.s. border and seattle. photos wherever they fell. no movies this round. and for the hell of it, i'll try and keep this one short(er) even though i know i'll fail miserably. (just look at how many words i used to say i wouldn't use so many words! i mean come on.... i haven't gotten anywhere yet, and you're already running out of coffee break.)

day 8ight: saw us sitting at the border. in line. for a while. the security has gone up since the last time i drove across the border. i was almost surprised when no one pulled out a glove and an invitation to a private room. they did however ask what i was carrying across. what kind of answer are they expecting? does that really work? drugs? weed? crack? illegal mexicans? i mean nothing - just some groceries sir.

i kept my mouth shut and managed to resist any response similar to the one above. the truth is, how do you quickly cover what you're carrying across the border for a long road-trip vacation? luggage, clothes, food, couple cameras, mp3 player...... ummm.... handed over the passports. waited while they checked them. suffered the mandatory photo of vehicle plates and passengers. and was glad when i was able to get the hell out. like most people - for whatever reason - i get slightly nervous around police. even when i've done nothing. to be around border guards with guns downright gives me the willies. hauled ass out of peace arch and headed down the i-5 to seattle.

didn't stop until i got to seattle. the mega i-5 antiques mall didn't catch my interest (ok... i missed the turnoff) and the costco didn't thrill me either. it had already been long, and there were two spots i wanted to hit before they closed.

• half price books
• hardwick's hardware store

ok.... so what you may ask. to be honest, i don't think we have anything quite like half price books in my area. a clearinghouse for new books that have gone through their initial release and now have massive quantities languishing on a clearance table. and used books. it's mostly the volume i think. they had books by authors i've been searching for and been unable to find used. bruce sterling, neal stephenson, orson scott card, william gibson and others. anywhere i can find a hardcover book for a dollar - or an out of print 30 year old woodworking book for a $1.50 is cool by me. we left with a box full of $120 worth of books and headed to hardwick's. headed down to seatac for a cheap(er) hotel, and had dinner at the rainforest cafe. the foods ok, the prices are always higher than i remember, and the decor is sort of cornball.... but it's become tradition on our trips now (sanfran, vegas, seattle.)

day 9ine: now, there is that corny old saying "i left my heart in san francisco" - which i'll admit i did when i finally had a chance to get there. mmmmmm..... ghirardelli's. well.... i can say i lost 2 years of my life in seattle.

we headed down to seattle centre on the i-5. where i come from, the exits on our major freeway system (all one road through the city) are on the right. same with the entrance. so there's lots of congestion as people are trying to get on and off in the same 2km (1 mile) stretch. so i kept to the middle lane knowing the exit i needed could be on either side. ok... on the left. worked around a large delivery truck in my way, cut over into the lane i needed, and realized.....
i had less than 3 car lengths to come to a complete stop from 60 mph (90 km/h for the rest of the world). you know.... i was suddenly glad i had spent all that money to have the brakes completely redone. because i managed to keep control, and come to a stop with at least half an inch to spare. although i freaked out the guy in the lane beside me because i drifted a little bit. after the guy in front of me cleaned up his shorts, he pulled back into traffic and left.

we managed to make it to seattle centre in one piece - no thanks to me. home of the space needle, the science centre, emp (experience music project) and the science fiction museum and hall of fame. any guesses what we went to visit? (didn't go up the space needle, have something similar at home. didn't go to the science center - they had the dead sea scrolls which would have been interesting, but the body works 3 exhibit had moved.... to vancouver! so i missed it in both places due to an out of date website. in my defense, their signage still showed it as being there.)

emp and sci-fi land. $27ish a person for the 2. the only thing that really made me mad was you couldn't take photos. after having gone through both, i can understand - there is a huge amount of original, one of a kind items - a flood of tourists snapping photos would cause serious damage. and oddly enough.... they sell a book of the emp. (to clarify - these are housed in the same physical building.) oh yes... the building.

it is a fairly controversial building, designed by Frank O. Gehry. The outside is interesting - the inside possibly ugly. let's say steel ribs with mesh/concrete layered over top. the outside of the building is a metal skin that is attached but sits above the framework. here's what i'm talking about....

exterior shots of the emp

interior shots of the emp

interesting stuff. history of the guitar from the first "standard" style spanish guitar about 800 years ago through the development of the electric and electric base. history of hip hop - and i'll admit while i still may not like it a lot, i appreciate where it came from and why. history of music in seattle. jimi hendrix (well, not really jimi - they left him where he belongs). all of the permanant exhibits. we skipped the special exhibit 'doubleTake: from monet to ;ichtenstein' and the 'disney: the music behind the magic' which wasn't set up at the time.

lunch was at revolutions bar and grill. it was excellent. i had the fish tacos - had never seen them on a menu and to be frank i had a horrible image of my childhood. in my childhood, a typical lunch was a box of el molino taco shells, some salsa, some shredded cheese, some lettuce, and a can of tuna. let's just say these were better then my childhood lunch. if i remember, they were "beach style". i think it was the guacamole that really made them. here's a gratuitous food photo:
post lunch we hit the science fiction museum and hall of fame. let me tell you, unless you really like sci-fi, you'll be bored to tears. they have a huge amount of books on display, movies that were inspired by them - the impact of history on sci-fi and vice versa. the original manuscript by neal stephenson for the baroque trilogy (about 2-1/2 feet high). original costumes & weapons - everything from star trek, to firefly, aliens (the queen, and the power loader used in the last scene), battlestar galectica (the original), history time lines, a massive section on war of the worlds, star wars...... geek heaven. hours of geek heaven. here's the link to their list of galleries. what i did learn is my philip k. dick library is sorely lacking. and that the rest is in decent shape.

what can i say... if you're into sci-fi you have a pretty good idea of what you'll find. if you hate sci-fi you don't want to hear about it. so i'll leave you with a couple photos.....

(yup, you guessed it....)

we left right at closing, managing to snag a copy of firefly (the complete series) on dvd.... only to find out yesterday walmart carries it for about $20 cheaper than what i paid. still.... it's a great series. think of it as a space western - lots of outer planet/frontier style to it. a fabulous series by joss whedon that got canceled for no good reason after winning many awards. if you've seen the movie serenity - it's the completion of the series. it's fantastic.

day 10en: was the day we were leaving. but we couldn't leave seattle without hitting pike place market. i've been forced to watch the corporate training videos that are based on the pike place fish market (where they throw the fish around and involve their customers. it's all about selling the business to the employees - and getting them involved. they always seem to show it to the employees instead of the management though..... anyway).

pike's place (back of the building)

pikes place (front street)

"the" pike's place fish market

monkfish on display. (this is a great gag.... they
wait until someone steps near to get a close look, and
then pull on a string to make it jump and twitch)

this is an incredible market. a must. a convoluted maze of 4 or more stories in an old water front building. across the street is the first starbuck's. if you like 'bucks, i recommend the pike place blend - you can't buy it anywhere else. i only bought a pound - and i gave it to my brother as a housewarming gift. damn.... it was really nice. anyway... pike place.

"the" first starbucks... i thought some
of the people were on pilgrimage and kept waiting
for them to drop to their knees. "we're not worthy"
would have been pretty accurate.

it is a nice store - they've never renovated it so it has the feel
of an old store, lot of wood counters - very little chrome and shiny.

fresh flowers as far as the eye can see. fresh seafood. magic shop. antiques. books. crafts. soap. musical instruments, tea, spices, fresh roast nuts..... you name it, it's there.... 3 floors of permanent stores, and the upper floor of market stalls. crazy place. lots of fun. good restaurant. we ate lunch at lowell's - a 3 floor restaurant and bar overlooking the port of seattle - since 1957.



and after lunch, we were back into the car, and on the road... headed home.

so sayeth i.

and now i'll quit, because this has become much too long to read, and taken about 3 hours more than i meant.

the road home is short. well... not literally, but it was pretty uneventful driving on major highways. but that is for another day.

resumes..... (or stab myself in the eye with my pen)

my boring blogging of recent holidays will continue shortly, but tonight i spent over 4 hours going through a couple inches (literally) of hundreds of resumes for 2 job positions. joe, my friend, my heart goes out to you. i can't believe you do this shit for a living. by the end of it i wanted to stab myself in the eyes. but it did inspire this post.

some were interesting. there was one from someone who is brilliant. literal genius. mensa member. and almost impossible to read. not illegible, just made you work at it. the guy either has a sense of humour beyond the reach of the average man, or possibly doesn't understand why with such credentials formatting would be important.

trust me, it is. so i've put together a list of things you should think about. here are some things i think you should consider. i being someone who has to read through a crap load of resumes and is not a human resources person. ergo has other job duties that need to be done. yes, some of these may be "small" things, but trust me - when i hit resume number 150, it's enough to hit the automatic NO pile.

where i work, the manager, supervisor, and usually at least one person who works in the area is involved in the interview along with our human resources representative. all of these people (except oddly enough the hr person) goes through the resumes. in my case this is likely because information technology is an area that is.... well.... fairly technical. i can only assume that the hr person feels they are best qualified to concentrate on personal or general areas regarding potential candidates.

just in case you happen to be wondering how my mind works on these things: the last stack of resumes i went through, were sorted into:

• yes. definite short list.
• maybe. will re-review.
• meh. your resume didn't breathe enough of a spark to register.
• bwa-ha-ha-ha. your resume registered all right. for the wrong reasons.

this time is was "yes" and "meh". maybe i'm getting cynical. maybe i'm betting a better feel for the process. maybe i just prefer to spend my weekends with my family instead of plowing through whatever it was you sent in.

so.... here's my tips. in no order of preference or offense.

• don't fax the resume. they're fuzzy and harder to read than everyone else's. if you can't mail it (on decent quality paper) they likely have an e-mail address. our human resources department faithfully prints off your document, and attaches your submitting e-mail as the first page.
• if submitting by e-mail, keep in mind i may be seeing that e-mail as the first page. that includes your file titles, and e-mail address. as well as any stupid ass e-mail sig that you have. so "suckup.doc" is not a good cover letter file name. "jesus saves, allah forgives, cthulhu thinks you'd make a nice sandwich." probably not the best thing to have at the bottom of your mail. and for the hell of it, use a decent sounding e-mail address.
  
• if i'm hiring, say, a screwdriver turner - and you've got 20 years experience as a network administrator - why would you think i'd really consider you? you obviously a) are burnt out b) are totally useless/were just fired and are desperate c) are looking to fast track into the company and move up quickly. newsflash: i don't want to have to replace you again in 6 months, so i'm not going to interview you in the first place. don't make me waste paper and time on your resume.
• why would you list a web browser as software you're experienced on? i mean, hello?! sure.... they can cause issues and need to be configured, but seriously...
  
• does noting you are "a member of a visible minority." really work? first of all, your name probably indicates that already. secondly, so what? if you're not qualified, i'm not interested. if you are qualified, you just irritated me enough to drop your resume into the shredder.
• use consistent formatting. same bullets. same indentation. the same font. at the same size.
  
• read your resume out loud. spell check does not catch really stupid mistakes that are spelled correctly. for instance 'or' when you meant 'of'. it will also help you catch poor grammar, and other such things. if you can't say it easily - there's a problem.
• if you use the phrase "attention to detail" you better have done the two points listed above. or i laugh as i shred your resume.
• don't talk about yourself in the third person on your resume. maybe it's just personal, but i had more third person narrative style resumes this round than i've ever seen. i hated all of you.
• watch your bolding. AND YOUR ALL CAPITALS. if you bold much more than the job title in your cover letter, it makes it harder to read. DITTO ALL CAPS. AND IF YOU WANT TO GET ATTENTION THIS IS THE WRONG WAY TO DO IT. most people will read the cover letter, and general profile sections. it's the best way to get a quick feel. doing the above to make a point in one of the sections most people read will irritate. well, irritate me anyway. I CAN GET AWAY WITH IT HERE BECAUSE IT'S MY BLOG.
• bold however can be acceptable as part of a format (ie: section header, company/job title, etc.)
• make our resume easy to navigate. if i want to see your work experience, don't make me hunt for it - make sure it's easy to find.
  
• spend some time on a cover letter. many people will not look at the resume if the cover letter is either bad, or doesn't exist. it's your chance to sell yourself, and make a summary of pertinent information related to the job. do it. customize it.
• one of my favourites.... "full list of courses and training will be made available on request." if you can't be bothered, neither can i. buh-bye.
• using acronyms and obscure terms is bad. what your company refers to as a 'blidget' may be a 'gizmo' where i work. give some explanation so i know the context. no one knows everything - even within the same field. don't expect me to know (or look up) some title or technical "thing" you assume i should know. i may not. and i'm the guy who's hiring. well, probably not you. not unless you take the time to translate them into a frame of reference i will understand.
• remember sounding confident, and sounding cocky is a really fine line.
• and last but not least.... keep in mind that applying for every position may not be the best strategy. for the two we had posted, i think i had 20+ duplicate resumes. for very different jobs. some of which i remember seeing from the last position i was involved in hiring for. you're starting to look desperate. and you haven't been qualified for anything i've seen you apply for. now you look unqualified/overqualified and desperate.
  

somewhere i have a draft post i started in regards to interviewing. it's from the last two positions i was involved in hiring. i think it'll be time to dust it off after these next two.

time to call it a night. and to review the short list in the morning.

----
image: stolen from http://www.e-resume.net/
no affiliation or endorsement. (but if your resume sucks, or you lack people and writing skills they may be worth a look. just remember.... you still have to survive the interview.)

the vacation...... part 2wo

long. probably close to the length of day 1ne.
(let me know if these need to be shorter and i'll go day by day instead).

part 2wo: vancouver to the border. photos all over the place. two short videos hosted at youtube.com (i linked rather than bog your browser with loading video on top of the too many photos.)

day 6ix: so, umm... where was i? oh yes, picked up the car and rolled into vancouver around noon.

and to be honest, it was new westminster, south-east of the whole "greater vancouver" area. we managed to find our way through the street systems and arrive unscathed at our friends place, where we visited for a couple of hours and made plans for the next day.

interested in our friend? he's better known as "litotes" in his blog. feel free to stop on by and watch how his mental state unravels. truly frightening at times.

at his suggestion, we sought lodging at a location recommended by someone he knows. the dutch dog. a quaint european styled bed and breakfast located in a historic house. selling point?
A formal dining room features a full, gourmet breakfast daily, served by your Host, Rose Nadon, herself a graduate of the famous Dubrulle Culinary Art and Hotel Institute.

let me tell you, sleeping in a king size ‘heavenly bed’ series pillow top, and eating a gourmet breakfast cooked by a classically trained french chef was one of the highlights of the trip. and the price was extremely reasonable. if this sounds like i'm endorsing this place, you're right. i am. highly. she was fabulous. the place was fabulous. the food was fabulous.

anyway... after setting up 'home' in the dutch dog we headed out to see the capilano suspension bridge. this is in essence, a bridge that goes nowhere. "vancouver's oldest tourist attraction, originally built in 1889, stretches 450 feet (137m) across and 230 feet (70m) above capilano River." why? it seemed pretty cool. they have a haida, first nations cultural living exhibit, some great history displays, the bridge, largest private collection of totem poles, and the treetop adventure walk "seven suspension bridges through the evergreens taking you up to 100 feet (30m) above the forest floor." plus in all the times we've been to van, we'd never been there.




the bridge is long, and high, and moves. there were a fair number of people who came with others, and refused to cross. it was quite the view of the canyon from the bridge.



if you're interested in how bad the motion is, i shot some short video - the quality isn't great, but you get a good idea. (click here to view) and remember, i am not moving. your medication just wore off.

the treetop adventure walk was pretty good as well, though not as long or as high as i had hoped. still a lot of fun. there are a couple places in north america that have 'canopy' walks, which is what i was hoping for, but not really expecting.




day 7even: the next day we met with our friend and his 4 1/2 year old and headed out to stanley park for the day. we spent most of our time at the aquarium and managed to catch the show for the beluga whales, and the dolphins. there's some beautiful salt water fish in the exhibits here. however the one i really wanted to see, the jellyfish exhibit was closed for a major remodel.

want to see the dolphin do a trick?
click here

how could i forget the lovable sea otter?

a trip around stanley park also brought us to the display of totem poles. not to mention the reams of tourists posing. busloads of them. i think i got more photos of people posing than i managed to get of the totem poles.

on the way home, we stopped and spent some time at the beach and the sea wall near stanley park. let me know if you see anything strange with the one building in the area (yes, it's real).





the trip home also took us by the famous "la casa gelato". home of over 508 flavours of gelato, including garlic, pear/blue-cheese/gorgonzola, fig, pumpkin/walnut, apple pie, and more than you could think possible. samples to help you decide are free and plentiful. the pear/blue-cheese/gorgonzola was good, but a little more than i was looking for that afternoon so i went with the fig in the end. great gelato.

the day wound down with dinner and long hours of visiting. we headed back to the b&b for the night.

day 8ight: we got up, packed, loaded the car and then ate a fabulous breakfast. it may have topped the breakfast of the first day.

we hit the highway taking the 99 down to the border at peace arch. the border crossing was fairly smooth. although i am a little disappointed. after seeing this sign, i expected everything to be accessible just beyond the border. who knew the country was that big? we managed to find the pointy thing on the right side, but the rest... no where near this sign. bastards. i curse your false advertising.


the border agent's primary questions were the standard. where you from. where are you headed. purpose of your visit. what are you bringing across. apparently sneaking this last question in catches large numbers of people. drugs. doh! i mean... come on, does that really work?

i was well behaved and bit my tongue to refrain from making stupid comments that would land me in trouble. although i had to laugh as we left the place....

while the interrogation was quick, we lost too much time waiting in the line up for any kind of hump that day. of course, this may have been advertised falsely as well.

and so ends the saga of terrible long prose, many many photos (i thinned, really) and bad video footage. i'll cover the gourmet breakfasts in another post if anyone is interested.

if anyone needs me.....

....i'll be having a coffee :)

the vacation.... (short & medium version)

in consideration of grant, who is currently working too hard to keep up with his blog list (and i freely admit i haven't been able to catch up on all your blogs since i went on holidays either.)

the short version:

• took some time off work
• used 3 days to get ready for the trip
• drove to vancouver
• drove to seattle
• drove home
• had 5 more days off
• relaxed. got sick
• back to work.

the medium version:

• took some time off work.
• used 3 days to get ready for the trip.
• dropped the young'un off at the grandparents. yes.... they knew it was going to be about 10 days.
  
• drove to vancouver to see a couple friends out there, since it's been about 4 years since i've seen them. got caught up on some stuff, and met their son (again, but 4 years makes a lot of difference). went to see the capilano suspension bridge, spent the day at stanley park - mostly at the vancouver aquarium. had a lovely dinner.
  
• only spent a couple days in vancouver, then we headed on down to seattle. dropped into hardwick's hardware, half price books, seattle centre (which has the space needle, science center, emp, and sci-fi musuem/hall of fame) and pike place market.
• drove home.
  
• had 5 more days off.
• relaxed. got sick.
• back to work.

long version follows:

the vacation...... part 1ne

the long version, with photos.

part 1ne: home to vancouver. photos are at the end.

summary: 9 days. 3,000 km (1 864 miles for some of you). 5 hotels. 1 b&b. 4 mediocre continental breakfasts. 1 decent continental breakfast. 2 superb breakfasts. many on the run fast food meals. 2 overpriced restaurant meals. 6 safeway lunches. 2 digital cameras. 820 assorted photos & videos.

so, here we go. imagine finally booking time off work, after 9 grueling months of grindstone, overtime, nightmare projects, and some of what they hired you to do..... you now have 16 days of complete freedom (including weekends of course).

day 1ne: so the car goes in and gets a pretty thorough once over before heading out since it's a road trip. i believe i whined about some of this in a previous post so a summary: 4 new tires, complete brake job, new water pump, some rad work, alignment, new alternator, and a couple misc. things. $2000 later, we're good to go. kal-tire is where i had the work done (with the exception of buying the tires). remember this. it's important later.

day 2wo/3hree: not much happens. spend some time with the young'un. figure out what needs to go on said road trip. prep and pack. drop off the young'un with the in-laws and spend some time visiting.

day 4our: head out on the road. get an early start. right after physio for the old shoulder. everything runs late, as the office screwed up the booking. eventually get out and hit the road - only losing a couple of hours. no big deal, as we're not really in a hurry. there's some stuff we want to see, but we've got lots of time. so we opt to go fairly scenic in our drive to vancouver and take the no 1 highway west through the roger's pass, and then to the 3a down through the okanagan valley in b.c. (not to be confused with the okonogan area of washington.)

travel tip: if you're not in a hurry, and are looking at spending some time in small town antique stores and the like, DO NOT travel on a monday. you would be amazed how many small towns still close down on sunday/monday.

the no 1 highway, being the major east/west highway across canada isn't exactly the most meandering of highways, but it still has some fabulous scenery. you start driving west across the praries, and move into the foothills, finally entering the rocky mountains. somewhere in the midsts of hours of mountain driving, you cross into bc (which is pretty much mostly mountains.)

turning off the no 1 highway and heading south down the 3a brings you onto a secondary highway that is even more scenic, with a twisting road that follows the mountain shoulder, minimal guardrails, and a dramatic view that falls hundreds of feet into the valley below you. lakes and rivers seem to have no end amidst the pine and aspen forests. it's hard to drive some of these hairpin turns and look at the scenery - and yet somehow it's hard not too. (and lest you think we're insane up here, the guardrails are on the sharp turns. we're not stupid, eh.) while the scenery is fabulous on these twisty mountain roads, there are few places to pull over to take photos since there are often no shoulders. rest areas are often hours apart, and the best you can do is an emergency pullout area not much bigger than your car. photos "on the road" through the mountains are not many due to these issues (and having driven this area many times previously).

bc has a somewhat unique structure for most of their towns. because most towns are located in valleys, they tend to be long and thin - often following the highway for a time, but sometimes only being a couple of blocks deep. this of course depends on the size of the valley and town.

the first day was mostly driving due to a late start, and the fact that small towns still close on mondays. it saw us through banff, into kootenay national park, yoho national park, through golden, into glacier national park, mt. revelstoke national park, revelstoke, sicamous, by the spiral tunnels, and onto the 3a into the okanogan valley, mara lake, enderby, armstrong (where they make armstrong cheese - tours available), spallumcheen, vernon, oyama, and finally into winfield where we spent the night at a super 8 motel.

ah yes, winfield - i remember staying there on vacation as a kid with the family once, 20 some years ago. dad had gotten tired of towing the tent trailer through the mountains, so they booked a motel with a kitchenette for the week. it advertised a pool. so imagine our surprise when we arrived, and they had filled the pool just the month before. i looked for the motel as we drove into the town, and was pleased to see it just freshly bulldozed, bulldozer still on-site.

guess i forgot to mention bc is not just mountains, trees, rivers and lakes. for the most part, the rest of it is a national park if there's no city or town nearby. and if you think the names here are funny, you should try a map of newfoundland. i'll also mention the okanagan area is known for it's fruit orchards, wineries, and ogopogo (the elusive relative of the loch ness monster said to inhabit the waters of okanagan lake.)

day 5ive: as the day dawned, i had my first complimentary continental breakfast from a super 8 motel, and pondered what i had done to deserve stale bagels and weak coffee for the price i paid. actually, to be honest - there wasn't a super 8 we stayed at that the room wasn't clean, and the service wasn't good to exceptional. the breakfasts over the week varied from location to location, but on the whole were "reasonable" for muffin, danish, cereal, bagel with coffee/tea/juice style breakfasts. we ate 'em because they were included for free - and i would likely have grabbed a bagel from safeway anyhow.

back into the car, and on the road into kelowna where things were open (being tuesday, and a pretty major town). picked up a couple items, and spent too much time - so back on the road to try and hit vancouver by end of day. through peachland, summerland (home of summerland syrup/fruit products - tours available during the summer season), pentiction, the hope slide, kalmeden, olalla, keremeos, hedley (had to go through hedley, one of my favourite bands named themselves after this town), princeton, hope, and into the 'greater vancouver area' chilliwack and abbotsford.

and somewhere between abbotsford and fort langley, as we left a rest stop - a radiator hose developed a leak. at night. in the dark. on a major highway with nothing around. imagine as i watch the light come on, and the engine temperature rise toward the red. stop on the shoulder, and see antifreeze steaming off my engine into the cool night. but luck was with us as we had 6 litres of premixed antifreeze. i opened the empty radiator and refilled it. topped up the reservoir.

and off we went, driving with flasher on. rigs and semis flashing lights and honking at us as we speed down the highway waiting for the luck to run out. radiator light goes on again. temperature starts to climb. look for enough shoulder to pull over on. refill everything again. cross our fingers and pull back into the night traffic - driving with emergency lights on.

what's that? an exit? shit - missed it. have to keep an eye out for the next one. ok.... there it is. and into langley we head, managing to pull in at a service station before we red-line. refill everything with water to get to a mechanic. find a phone. book a motel in the area. try to find a mechanic in the area.

would you believe kal-tire had a location 6 blocks from the service station? would you believe when we pulled in at 8:50pm, someone was just locking up as they were headed home? they re-opened the store to book the car in for the next morning. took the keys. got all the pertinent information. and then he drove us to our hotel. late night dinner at denny's - and it was good.

day 6ix: the morning dawns with the realization that we have a half dead car in the shop. so we call about an hour after they opened. they've already been in touch with the location i had do the work, and have diagnosed the issue. it's in the works to be repaired - and they're just waiting on the part. should be an hour or so. grab the lamest breakfast of our stay from the travelodge we're in, and call a cab.

this was the most interesting cab i've ridden in. the driver shows up, and heads inside where he proceeds to ignore us (his fare) and grab a cup, and paw through the complimentary guest breakfast. he then realizes we're standing by the cab waiting, and heads back out. he opens the back door, and gets into the front of his cab, reaches over, and hits the meter. we pile our luggage in through the one open door, get in and close the door. he takes off - headed to the back of the hotel, where he meanders through the parking lot, and around the block to get headed to our destination. he proceeds to meander the longest way of traveling between the two locations, with a punjabi radio station blaring at top volume for the trip. we finally arrive. he pulls up. we all sit there. i finally get tired of waiting - and open the door. he reaches over and turn the meter off. we hand him money, which he drops into his pocket with no change forthcoming. we exit, hauling our own luggage out. as he pulls out and leaves, we realize he never signaled. ever. and i have no idea of his cab company's name. guess i won't be complaining.

after a short wait, the car is deemed ready. a bill for a new radiator cap and small hose is presented. i pay $27 and we're back on the road. labour covered under warranty. 193 locations across canada. tough to go wrong with that kind of service.

we hit new westminster where our friend lives right about noon.

to be continued....

rest stop on the no 1 highway, probably
somewhere in the yoho national park.

odd rock formations on
the side of the highway

rock formation on the side of the
highway at the spiral tunnels

i wanted to buy some new antiques,
but like most small towns, they
were closed since it was monday

rogers pass, park information centre

rogers pass

my vote for ugliest hotel in the rockies
(i don't think i've ever gotten the name of
this place in all the times i've driven by it.)

train sheds. built to keep the
tracks clear during avalanche season.

calm, quiet, peaceful mara lake

calm, quiet, peaceful mara lake

(all images copyright 2006 - any use by an party other than myself must be approved. if you want to use them, please make your request in the comments section. don't be a dink and steal it, ask nicely.)

a short delay....

for those of you wondering about how my first day back was.....
(i wouldn't want my reader dying of suspense now, would i?)

i have been able to put off my return to work an additional two days.

of course, i had to do it by coming down with the world's worst cold.

it always seems that when you're under stress, and finally get some time off to relax, invariably you wind up sick. seems that a vacation that is a "road trip" and relax do not really belong in the same sentence.

ah well..... tomorrow is another day.
unfortunately, a work day..... but still better than unemployed.

--
p.s. doug asked a good question last post that will become a full post shortly. however..... the vacation with some accompanying photos will be dealt with first :)

calm before the storm.....

i sit here, the night before i return to work after two weeks holidays, and i wonder......

what the hell am i thinking?

of course i don't want to go back.

deep breath. no need for a panic attack tonight. it's pointless. the bastards can't touch me until i walk through the doors tomorrow.

so outa here....

rejoice. rejoice i say.

on thursday evening i walked out of the door at work, having left my crackberry (blackberry for those that have not been cursed with one) on my desk and went home.

it's holiday time. 2 weeks. headed off to vancouver. huzzah.

of course, it started with having to replace the alternator on the car (bad voltage regulator - had some funny stuff happening). and then the tires were pretty worn. ok, bald. and something was leaking radiator fluid. and the brakes should probably be checked. and the oil is due to be changed. and the main belt needs to be replaced. what's that? brakes? front and back pads? and calipers? and drums? and rotors? and cylinder on the rear right side?

sigh.... i probably could have bought a new(er) car for what i put into mine this year. but i still have the feeling any car at that price would still require another thou of work at least.

hmmmmm....... so the car is in good shape, but after $2K+ i can't actually afford to go to vancouver.

bwa ha ha ha ha.... fuck it. i'm going anyway! and hitting seattle too. and i'm putting it all on plastic, just like the car repairs.

so.... look for me in about 2 weeks time. (not that i post frequently as it is at the moment.) i will have intermittent computer access at best. if at all.

and if you're nice (err... if i'm not totally lazy) i may even have some photos.

humility & respect....

a broken man made whole again.... ok. so maybe patched, and partially mended.

i'm learning both (humilty and respect). it's amazing how much you do everyday that requires both hands. and there's an equally large number of things made easier by two hands. having only one usable arm is a bit of a challenge - even with the other strapped firmly into place, the hand can be used to occasionally cheat (holding, grasping, typing). but even that minimal use causes the injury to flare - so you learn to avoid it.

i'm glad i taught myself to mouse left handed years ago. but i'm quite out of practice with my 'hunt & peck' typing. i started to keep a list of things that were difficult, but the list was one of them. take it for granted if it involves the bathroom. from top to bottom. hair. teeth. you can guess the rest.

there's also those things that are impossible. like washing the back of your hand using only that hand. and sleeping well. actually, as you toss and turn because it's impossible to get comfortable, and any move makes your shoulder and then entire arm scream in pain - make that sleeping. period. things got better once my doctor gave me a prescription. to be honest, he didn't seem impressed with the treating doctor telling me to take a couple advil either.

things that were heard too often:

• what is the sound of one hand clapping?
• are you going to sue?
• what did you do? (ya, like it was intentional.... try 'what happened?' instead)

this became a sort of retrospect post - as i couldn't bring myself to type any more than i had to. on late tuesday afternoon, i had a follow up doctor's appointment - where a medical professional assured me my arm was still attached.

"will i be able to play the banjo?" i asked. "well, yes... of course" was the doctor's reply. "great! i've never been able to play before!" says i.

you get the picture. no additional damage past the normal soft tissue damage (muscle, tendon, ligament, nerve). No fractures, breaks, or other really bad things to worry about.

so the sling is off. no cast. some physiotherapy prescribed. the range of motion continues to improve, and the pain gets a little better each day. once physiotherapy starts, that should improve vastly.

and life begins to get back to normal.

sort of.

mommeeeeeeeeee!

i hurt myself. well, fuck - remember when i said i was waiting for that mystical "third"? because well all know shit happens in threes? well, fuck me - guess what......

this, is your shoulder....


and this, is your shoulder when you slip on the wet floor at work, fall like an ungainly swan doing an olympic dive in cement shoes, use your right arm to absorb the entire impact generated by your fall, and then stand up and realize......

fuck.... i can't move my arm. at all. and it hurts. A LOT.
you guessed it - dislocated my shoulder and spent the day at the hospital. morphine was my friend. now i sit here in an immobilization sling for the next 4-6 weeks.

should make work and holidays interesting. the workers comp paperwork sure was :P i ain't going in to work tomorrow.

grrrrrrr. can i go home yet?!

crap....

could be worse i guess. could be alpha.

"Unfortunately, you cannot post a comment on a non-beta blog or claim a mobile blog using your Google Account. These features are coming soon."

so, you'll see me posting as anonymous :P
at least until they fix it.

**Update** this is it for a while - i think I'll live with this and see if i care to make any changes. yes... it's a boring standard template.... but i got most of my colours back to something i prefer.

i mean, you do come for the content, right?!?

excerpts....

long. or at least, rambling and longish.

(not really fond of the blue - will be making colour and graphic adjustments as time permits. anyway... on to the real stuff.)

half inch drywall isn't as hard to go through as i thought it might be. that being said, it still hurts when you're not so out of it mentally. i wouldn't recommend it. although i will admit to it feeling good, and seeming extremely reasonable at the time. i'm lucky there wasn't a 2x4 or something solid behind the section i hit. ice sure helped an hour later.

some excerpts from my head, from yesterday.

won't it be dull, when we rid ourselves of all these demons haunting us, to keep us company. won't it be odd, to be happy like we always thought we're supposed to feel, but never seem to be.

- barenaked ladies, war on drugs

to say that the past few days has been emotional would be erroneous. at the least it would be an understatement. devastating. tragedy. incomprehensible. these are words that begin to approach the reality of live over the last short period.

---

although i'm not into gardening - the botanical gardens are my favourite place in the zoo. perhaps it is because it is a gentle reminder that life can survive and flourish, even in the most extreme conditions. and in such diversity. maybe it's just because the flowers and butterflies are pretty.

---

i work in i.t., but that is no who i am. so the question really is 'who am i?' which is really a bit of a challenge - because i've never really been able to answer that. or find a mentor. my life has been a quest to discover myself - with no guidance. and limited assistance. and no real plan. no wonder i'm a mess.

---

why have i let so many preconceived notions populate my head? why do i secretly fear what people will think when i claim not to? why do i still feel such a need for approval from an external source?

---

declarations:

• i am not my job
• my job does not own me
• my job is just that - a job. i will not let it own me, or my emotions. if they want to pay me and not use what i've produced - so be it. they are idiots.
  
• only life and death matters will be treated as such

on and on, does anybody know what we are living for?
whatever happens, we leave it all to chance
another heartache, another failed romance
on and on, does anybody know what we are living for

the show must go on.... the show must go on....
outside the dawn is breaking, on the stage that holds our final destiny
the show must go on.... the show must go on....

-the show must go on, moulin rouge (originally by queen)

warning.....

just a quick warning.... i switched over to the new blogger beta.

i know... not sure what i was thinking. but just in case things are goofy, you'll know why (i mean other than the fact that i'm involved.) not sure if haloscan will work with the new templates - so i'm waiting to find out - because i couldn't figure it out myself. ditto blogroll. never mind, figured it out.

on an amusing side note.... i checked my google.mail and found the following message waiting:
10 signs that it’s time to look for a new job
(or 10 signs you need to light the building on fire and leave)

oddly enough, i would check off less than i thought.

perhaps i better re-read that tomorrow.

fuqit....

i took monday off. from everywhere. everbody. and everyone.

i'll post tomorrow.

the day, she is long.....

so, after spending the last several days contemplating life, and what's important, and thinking i seriously have to change the way i approach work - my brain apparently fucked up and stopped working.

spend yesterday working with a group of guys to get a couple 50" plasma screens installed for some new digital display signage. had to be in place today for the building grand opening. spent an additional 7 hours of overtime designing content to put up, because no one had bothered providing any information.

went and looked today - all looked good. corrected a couple of minor issues various people requested. and then.... was asked to completely replace it. guess someone higher up the chain didn't like things.

told them no. sorry, i needed this yesterday - i have a funeral i'm leaving for shortly. i can pick this back up on monday. walked away. felt pretty good.

until the higher ups phoned the department head, and manager. so.... the solution in the end was to turn it off. 11 people involved over a 7 hour period yesterday, and an addition 7 hours. and nothing to show for it.

but did i lose it? no... i kept my cool.

until someone asked if i was having a bad day. but still, i was fine....

unless you count embedding my coffee cup in the wall. and kicking my office wall. and punching several holes in the wall in the main area my office is in. and then breaking down in tears in front of my entire staff. then i left to go bury my uncle.

monday should be interesting.

if i show up. then tuesday should be interesting.

(if you're lucky, i'll take photos of what's left of the wall)

lost....

grief lives quietly in my heart.

9:15 pm phone call: tony has taken a turn for the worse
9:30 pm phone call: tony has passed away

my uncle, who was battling cancer (liver, lungs, kidney, orange size tumour in his brain) lost that battle on the weekend, after going through radiation, and starting his chemotherapy treatment.

my aunt, who received a bone marrow transplant to deal with a blood/bone cancer, is coming up on her "100th day". at day 100, they will be able to tell if the transplant took. if it did not, there's nothing else they can do (as a rejection indicates any other attempt will be rejected)

i apologize to those who have left comments over the last week for not replying, and that my posting has been erratic lately. there has been a huge amount going on in both personal and work aspects of my life, and i have been struggling both to find time, and to be able to open myself enough to share anything.

good luck, bad luck...

luck is a funny thing. and i hate to tempt it. and i hate to complain about good luck.

but i found it funny. i had a goodbye lunch to go to a while ago for an employee that is leaving my department.

these always wind up being a big pile of money at the end on the table. it's impossible to get change, and somehow there always seems to be someone who takes advantage of it and doesn't pony up. or cover the tip.

so.... before i left, i wanted to break my $20. there's always a pile of $20's on the table, because everyone hits the bank machine on the way over. (i guess that's why they're sometimes referred to as yuppy food stamps.)

off i go to get a coffee. a nice even dollar. break the $20, leave me change for a tip. thought a little advance planning was a good thing.

and would you believe... today was the day the cashier decided to smile and wave me through. gave me a free coffee.

which left me right where i started. only slightly more bemused.

it turned out alright though.... this time management requested separate bills for everyone.

tagged....

ok, i've been tagged. twice actually, but since this is the easiest one, i'll do it first.
tagged by grant - hey buddy, let me know if this qualifies or if i have to set my hair on fire.

So here's a modified meme. Grab the nearest book, whatever it is, go to page 123, find the 4th sentence, and then type in the next five sentences.

And if you're gong to attempt to clear up a big backlog of e-mails staged in "in", you'll actually discover it's more efficient to process the last-in first because of all the discussion threads that accumulate on top of one another.

One Item at a Time
You may find you have a tendency, while processing your in-basket, to pick something up, not know exactly what you want to do about it, and then let your eyes wander onto another item farther down the stack and get engaged with it. That item may be more attractive to your psyche because you know right away what to do with it - and you dont' feel like thinking about what's in your hand. This is dangerous territory.

from Getting things Done, by David Allen

yay!

sometimes dilbert echoes my life so closely, it's frightening....

fer fuck sake....

argh. took lunch for the first time in two weeks.
blogged for the first time in two weeks.

and then wound up putting in two hours of overtime.

so much for getting my shit together.

sigh....

i just realized how long it's been since i've posted anything. and it's not that i have had nothing to say, it's just.... well.... i guess i haven't been able to figure out what, or how to say it. hopefully this doesn't just sound whiny - which was part of the concern.

someone asked the other day (after noticing a long absence) how i was. to use the words of an ex-boss of mine "couldn't be better."

to be honest, that was a sign to run. to be afraid. very, very afraid. no stopping, go like a bat out of hell, clear the area. warning: you are at ground zero.

so.... here's the truth. cf. charlie fox. or for those of you who are less timid: cluster fuck. some may be thinking life or work? shit. would you believe both?

work is work. there's not too much i can say that anyone wouldn't. short staffed. in the middle of interviews. heading into the busiest time of year. true nightmare time. just trust me, you don't want to read about all the crap at work. and that is exactly what most of that is: crap.

the tragedy, is i am still struggling to separate myself from work. to leave it there while i go home for the day. so to deal with it, i'm reading:

• power over stress, kenford nedd
• getting things done, david allen
• how to enjoy your life and your job, dale carnegie

i actually went to the presentation by kenford nedd - who was a fabulous speaker. but i've also learned when you're tired - you don't retain anything (well, maybe water, and part of that piece of pie for lunch, and maybe the beer. anyway....). the getting things done was suggested by someone who found it helpful to get work out of their head - as it's primary tenet is to write it down so you aren't spending time concentrating on not forgetting it. ok... i'm guessing, as in 2 weeks i've had enough time to get 14 pages in.

life is the problem. well... not the problem, becuase i'm pretty sure the solution to life is worse. however, it is challenging. and amusing.

first, the amusing: we had talked on the weekend about the kid being able to unlock and open the door with minor assistance. i figured the first time it happened unassisted we'd deal with it - until then not a problem. so..... the next day, nancy hears a noise while she is in the kitchen, and goes to see what it is. matthew gets up from his nap, comes downstairs, opens the door, and runs out to the car. i'm not sure where he wanted to go - but after nap is errand time, so i assume he was just getting a jump on it. the good news is he realized no one was behind him, so he turned around and came back to see if mom was coming. the problem is now fixed. matthew will be 18 before he gets out of the house on his own again ;)

the cluster fuck: i have a favourite aunt in winnipeg. she has worked at a hospital doing type matching for 20 years. works hard. saves people. cares. is a wonderful woman. this would be my favourite aunt and uncle on my side. found out she wasn't doing well - was ill. a while later, i had to phone to get an 'update' to pass on to someone who was on vacation, and got the full details of what was happening. C. yup, the big C. Cancer. and no candy ass cancer either. all out, fuck your life over, bone and blood. i can't remember the name - i think i sort of glazed over at one point. so - she has gone through radiation, and a bone marrow transplant. when i phoned she was at the lowest point of the entire treatment. words could not express how upset i was. and it's time to get another update - because additional information has not been passed on by anyone in my family. (that's something else i can't believe - that i have to ask to find out, because no one can be bothered to pass the information on. not even through e-mail. for fuck's sake, what's with that anyway?!)

the second cluster fuck: favourite uncle on my wife's side. italian. loud. boisterous. we once tried to kill him by accidentally refilling the sugar bowl with salt. (the only people i know who keep a container of sugar and salt on the counter in a matching set. in case you wonder why - it's the amount of baking that goes on.) let's just say tony likes his espresso sweet. really sweet. oh dear god, the look on his face. i can't imagine how bad that must have tasted. he was coughing and spitting and swearing for hours. did i mention loud?

anyway... he was having some kidney pain, so off to emergency figuring it was kidney stones. 4 days worth of tests later, they determined he had tumors in the kidney, liver, and lungs. an mri scan then occurs - because at this point, they're still not sure what it is. so, my question is this: how do you have a tumor the size of an orange in your head, without having any indication it's there? no pain. no headaches. no nausea, vomiting, dizziness. the only indication a partially paralyzed vocal cord that makes him sound like he escaped from a godfather movie. and the man admits he doesn't use most of his brain anyway. always the drama queen.

the good news, it's a treatable form - not small cell cancer. and the steroids seem to be helping with the lungs/liver/kidneys. so today is day 6 of his initial 10 day radiation treatment aimed at his thick fricken' skull. and then we wait and see as the rest of the treatment occurs.

so, that's it in a nutshell.... unless you cound my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary coming up, which we are deeply involved in the planning and execution of.

strange times, and strained times.

(anyone wishing to offer a prayer, or keep them in their thoughts will not be turned away. in fact, it would be most welcome.)

sigh....

something in the water....

i think i finally have some proof that it's true. they claim it's something to kill the algae, but i'm pretty sure it's in the drinking water too. what else could explain some of the stuff that goes on?

the past couple of days, it's been car related. i think north america has a love affair with their vehicle that is no longer healthy. and i don't just mean in the back seat either. great... now i've got the lyric "now i'm waiting for the end of time" stuck in my head along with all of the other crap.

i once remember reading a story about (i believe) mercedes, when they were looking at releasing their vehicles in north america. one of the first questions they were asked was "but where are the cup holders?" think about that. they design their vehicles, and use their vehicles, to drive. point a to point b. get there in safety, style, and comfort. not to mention class. they thought of eating or drinking in the car never even crossed their minds. either that, or they realized in advance that

• a hot cup of coffee
• newton's laws of motion (object at rest tend to stay at rest)
• and the thought of said cup of coffee not matching the velocity of a car going from zero to autobahn in a space you could park a smart car fortwo in

would create a lawsuit that made mcdonalds look like a joke.

anyway... i digress.

what i've noticed of late, is that people seem to think they are really truly alone in their car. and not only are they alone (and probably lonely, sad and pathetic - hang in there, the proof is coming) the seem to think that no one can see them as they sit in their little glass bubble. let's face it - it's a fishbowl on wheels.

so, there seem to be some pretty standard infractions you notice. such as:

1. singing at the top of your lungs. you look like an idiot, but you're having fun, don't care, and not hurting anyone (unless you have the windows rolled down).
2. those who pick their teeth. ok, i'll admit i've done this one. i spend a lot of time in my car - and eat as i drive due to time limitations. sometimes you just have to.
   
3. the cell phone talkers - well, they scare me. come on y'all - most of you can't walk and chew gum, program the time on your vcr, or concentrate on the road and your conversation about pink bubble gum lip gloss and it's benefits in your desperate plot to attract a mate.
4. the nose picker. not a scratch. not rubbing. but drilling for oil, buried to the second knuckle and still working it deeper. i know it's alberta, but i'm almost positive there's no oil up there. come to think of it, i'm pretty much positive there isn't anything up in your cranium.
5. the masturbator. i've only ever heard of this one, but it was from my sister so i actually give it credit. she was riding a city bus, and was higher up than the guy in the pick up. she made it sound like he was trying to choke a midget garter snake to death that had somehow gotten into his pants, and was losing. ever wonder about that two car pile-up blocking traffic in front of you? ok... so it's probably just some stupid idiot. probably.

the latest one i saw, was a squeezer. i thought she might be a picker until she leaned in close to the mirror, and gave 'er on the side of her nose with both hands. yup, i was stopped on the side o'squeezin. but was that all? no..... pull down the cheeks for a clearer look by sliding the palms of her hands over them. then onto the chin - pull those cheeks sideways for a nice clear look. and then onto the forehead.

at that point the light turned green before i could finish contemplating going back to taking the bus. mostly because i remember horror stories from okami and joe about some of their bus rides. and i have dark fleeting horrible memories from the years i spent on public transport.

time to turn up the iPod, and sing off key as loudly as i can while i finish my trip to work. at least i don't have my finger embedded up my nose.

a little amusement...... (updated info)

warning: volume defaults to maximum.

sorry for anyone experiencing difficulties.

i've had some people who can't view this as an embedded link here - and i don't know why. this is a link provided by the originator's website - it's a quicktime movie. i also tried linking to break.com where they had it as an embedded windows media link. break.com also has a flash version.

all i can recommend is trying the original website: www.eepybird.com
or the alternate i can provide is at http://www.break.com/movies/pepsimentos.html

alternately you can download the whole video here.

is it worth it? i think so. i've watched it about 30 times now. (these two appeared on the tonight show, and with letterman. their site has had over 3 million hits. it's great crazy fun.)

it may be a video codec issue - in which case all i can recommend is update your quicktime, windows media player, or flash player. they're all free anyway.......

V....

warning: testicles. if that has put you off at all, you should leave now. if my wife is teaching you how to knit, you may want to skip this post. we all know you're going to keep reading anyway, so the hell with it. let's get going.

"there's nothing like having an elderly, accented, european man cup your testicles with ice cold hands first thing in the morning."

scratch that. that's how i was going to start this post. let's just say the big V ain't victory.

i've since learned having the same elderly, accented european man gripping your testicles in his hands while wielding a scalpel is far, far more frightening. let's just say we got close enough i know he's czechoslovakian, old school.

now, this is supposed to be a simple, pain free surgical procedure using the latest in modern technology. it's less invasive than the female option. it's 20 minutes. plus waiting time of course.... you can't go to a doctor's office and not expect to add on at least 30 minutes of waiting time. if they're covering for their colleague who is on vacation, you can add another hour to that. just trust me on that one.

anyway. 20 minutes. simple. it's so simple, it's done in the office. what could possibly go wrong? i wish i was jewish just so i could say "oy vey" if it's good enough for einstein, it's good enough for me.

i'm going to back up a bit and start at the beginning. or at least a little bit before the actual day of. this experience also had the added benefit of bonding with my boss. there was concern over the day's absence. doctor appointment i explained. the whole day? yes, elective surgery. is it serious? ah crap - it'll just be easier to explain it than this shit. vasectomy. sit down, do i have a story for you.....

you have got to be kidding me. sit down. for a personal story. fuck. if you're thinking this does not bode well, you may be right. the first story, was of his brother's vasectomy and.... resultant third child a year later. the second story was a directly personal recount of his suffering at the hands of the same doctor. let's just say i think the doc overcompensated for the problem with my boss' sibling. (i mean, come on - you're still fertile for up to 3 months. i'm figuring a classic case of stupidity if it really was "a year" later). but i digress.

so.... there i am, pants off, underwear at the knees, fabric draped over the groin, nuts to the wind. that's when he realizes after he's gloved up he forgot something and needs the receptionist. thank god she's a nurse. so, the electrode is now placed under my butt. electrode? for what!? ah, cauterization. of what!? ah, the vasa deferentia.

here it is in a nut shell (if you'll pardon the pun). find the tube that carries the sperm. using local anesthetic, freeze that area. incision. grab the little tube and clamp it on both sides - remove a section in the middle. cauterize the ends so no little swimmers ever have a chance of crossing the english channel. stuff everything back in. a single stitch in both incisions. done. what is referred to as a no scalpel vasectomy (nsv). of course, that doesn't include the incision to get there.....

nope, doesn't sound too bad at all. unless the freezing doesn't take on one side. i didn't know you could sweat so much laying there doing nothing. and yes gents, make sure you ask for extra if you're a wuss. i didn't pass out, but i did feel it all. all of it. he used extra anesthetic on the left side. i didn't even have to request it. not all people respond to local anesthetic the same. my dentist curses me because he has to use twice the normal dose. now why that didn't cross my mind to pass on to this guy, i couldn't tell you.

so the post has been interesting. they suggest a jock strap. (i know they are technically called an athletic supporter, but try buying one by asking for that. you get a blank look until you say 'you know, a jock strap?') i highly recommend it. in fact, i would suggest if you're even thinking of getting your nuts nipped you buy one before you go in. i had a hell of a time as it's between sports seasons, and your local pharmacy doesn't sell them: they are not a medical item.

and ice. lots of ice.

but here is the problem. i was fine the first 3 days. even went out for dinner and a movie since matthew was that the grandparents. the bruising didn't hit until day 4. blue balls my ass - black and blue and purple. the swelling started day 5. i broke down when i couldn't walk and kept crushing myself trying to get out of the car day 8 - so off to find an athletic supporter.

the poor guy at sport check who helped me out looked like he was going to pass out because i was walking so funny. i now own the best jock strap on the market. oh my dear god i can't tell you how much it helped.

so the swelling is mostly gone - no more grapefruits in the crotch. the incisions are healing decently now (better with the swelling gone).

and i will never, ever utter the phrase "i'd give my left nut..." ever, ever again.

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if you really want more information:
wikipedia (general information)
pictorial essay on my-vasectomy.com through description and documentation of a NSV. it's not quite the same as what i went through, but pretty close. (no - it's not my vasectomy. no one needs to see that.)

digital.....

for a while now, i've been keeping an eye out for a cheap digital camera. having majored in photography, every once in a while i have the urge to carry one around again kick in- usually for no good reason. but there are times it would be handy at work, and i don't really want deprive my better half of the camera the day the young'un does something intensely cute.

i lucked out. a co-worker had one they don't use since their hubby won a newer canon at a golf tournament. they find it more user friendly. i got a nice little sony cybershot dsc-p52 3.2 megapixel camera for $40, including a decent memory card. (good little camera, nice features, and if it gets damaged or stolen, not the end of the world.)

here's a tip for everyone. maybe even a moral. when you sell any used electronic device that stores data - make sure you wipe said data off. completely. i know, i know.... common sense, right? ok, maybe not a "moral", but a warning. a reminder.

i've read stories of used blackberry's being sold on e-bay, complete with corporate rolodexes and sensitive e-mail. i also heard about a guy who bought a used laptop and had nothing but trouble with it. he couldn't get a response from the guy he bought it from - but all of the original owner's data (including photos) were still on it. a website was born. along with a lawsuit shortly after. i guess he finally got a response.

in my case, i got free porn. it was on the original small memory card they throw in for free as a joke with every digital camera. i guess they missed checking that one. i didn't ask for details, i just formatted it. and gave her a hard time. oh look... stadium in summer, stadium in winter, pair of boobs. i got part of the story - guess it was a hell of a party.

i didn't really want to know any more than that.

ah, yes - the digital age.

let's hear it for civilization. or whatever passes for it here in our end of the world.

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photo credits:

• sony's website for the marketing shot of their camera
• me, for the young'un doing something intensely cute, on said new sony camera. think of it as a daddy blog moment.
  

state of mind...

i am in a state.
state of mind in which i understand.
understand the desire.
desire. need. craving.
craving to destroy.
destroy mindlessly.
mindlessly. without thought. or compassion.
concern. care. emotion.
to start the world on fire.
and sit amonst the flames.
and be consumed.

there is a darkness in myself,
of which even i am frightened.












shirt design: (c) headspace design
buy the shirt: http://www.primal-screen.com/