Well, where do I start?
My beast is dead. He is in the shop again, and I am very upset. It is really hard to get around in a small prairie city when you have no transportation. It takes me 40 minutes to walk to work. The bus system here is a joke. And not a very funny one at that. It is the same thing that was wrong the last time. And this time it is not my fault, just a faulty part. But unfortunately, I chose to go the cheap route last time and got a used part, which means NO WARRANTY. So now I have to get another one, and it will cost me just as much money (if not more, since I will probably get a brand new part having learned my lesson about used parts).
I am crazy-busy at work. I just had my first story time today, and it went fine, except I forgot the last two lines to a song, and so I just made something up, and it didn't rhyme, and it didn't even have the correct number of syllables, but give me a break, people. I'm just barely clinging to sanity here.
I also had my first go at weeding the children's fiction collection. The whole children's section needs weeding badly. So I'm getting pages to pull books that haven't circulated in the last four years. Then I go through them. I have discovered that I am perhaps not a very good weeder. Books gain my sympathy way too easily. I'm only too willing to give them a second chance. I'm always thinking, "but you are a good book! Why has no one ever tried you out?? You poor thing. Let me take you home and we'll have a good cuddle in front of the fire with a cup of hot chocolate." It's hard to remember that they are all good books. That's why they were purchased in the first place. But some of them have to go. In the end, my discard pile was at least twice as high as the pile that was going back on the shelf. So that's something. I dunno. Do you think I'm being ruthless enough? It is so hard to condemn a book that is only six years old, is attractive, and interesting, but for some reason has never circulated. Not once. I think we need a foster books program. To give unwanted and unloved books a home. All they need is a chance to prove themselves, and you will find out what good books they can be.
Yes, I know, another post and no France. I promise, I will write about my trip to Europe, in exhaustive detail. If it takes me until Christmas, I shall prevail. But until then, think of me, wish me luck, and consider becoming a foster book parent.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Monday, August 28, 2006
I love Paris...
So, on to more about Paris. First I'd like to talk a little bit about where K and I stayed, because we really got lucky in that regard I think. You see, K and I did not make any plans about where we were going to stay, so we were kind of flying by the seat of our pants you might say. But K got there a few days ahead of me along with a few other friends who had been in Ethiopia with her, and one of them knew of a cheap hotel called L'hôtel de l'Espérance. So that's where they stayed, and also where we stayed for the first couple of days. And I think it is in a really good place. It's just off Rue Daguerre, which is a small street off of Avenue Du Général Leclerc in the south part of the city. Avenue Du Général Leclerc is a fairly busy street with lots of shops, including an Internet café and a French-language movie theatre. Rue Daguerre is a little side street with lots of small shops and cafés, including a laundromat. And it also has a market every day with tons of fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, bread and cheese. Plus, it is super close to a major metro stop: Denfert-Rochereau. In short, it is a fabulous location to explore the city from. We later moved to another hotel which was a few blocks further down Rue Daguerre. This was Hotel Télémaque, and it was pretty nice. It was only few more Euros than Hôtel de L'Espérance (about 54 Euros a night for a double bed and en suite shower and toilet), but it was cleaner and nicer, it was never full (probably because it was a bit more off the beaten path). Plus breakfast was included (nothing fancy, just a baguette with some butter and jam and your choice of hot chocolate or coffee, but still!). So, moral of the story, if you ever go to Paris, and you are looking for a cheap but decent place to stay, I highly recommend that hotel and that location.
Okay, on to our Paris trip. One of the first places we went to was Jardin du Luxembourg. It used to be some royal residence, but now the Palais du Luxembourg is the seat of the French senate, and the gardens are open to the public as a park. This beautiful and large public park was just north not too far from where we stayed. K and I walked there and had lunch a few times. It's got some beautiful fountains, and rows and rows of trees clipped into squares. It's tricky though, because some of the grass you can sit on, and some of the grass is forbidden as K found out (she was kicked off several lawns).
Jardin du Luxembourg
K liked these turtle fountains
Okay, on to our Paris trip. One of the first places we went to was Jardin du Luxembourg. It used to be some royal residence, but now the Palais du Luxembourg is the seat of the French senate, and the gardens are open to the public as a park. This beautiful and large public park was just north not too far from where we stayed. K and I walked there and had lunch a few times. It's got some beautiful fountains, and rows and rows of trees clipped into squares. It's tricky though, because some of the grass you can sit on, and some of the grass is forbidden as K found out (she was kicked off several lawns).
Jardin du Luxembourg
K liked these turtle fountains
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Today we're taking a break from France to answer a meme posted by Ash.
1. FIRST NAME? Violette
2. ARE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Actually, my real name is after someone, a character in a book, but if I told you which book, it would give away my real name. And then I'd have to kill you.
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? I honestly don't remember. Not to give you the impression that I never cry. I do, and I'm sure I have sometime in the past month, but I don't remember when or why.
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes, it's very loopy and neat and I get compliments on it all the time. But I worked hard to get it like that. When I was in elementary school, all the other girls had neat handwriting, and I was all jealous because mine was only marginally more legible than some of the boys.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Pastrami, black forest ham... lunch meat is good in general if it's on a sandwich with mayo, lettuce, tomatoe and cheese.
6. KIDS? Two cats.
7. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I totally would. Then I'd have someone to play supernintendo with.
8. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? Off and on since I was a kid. Right now my journal is my blog.
9. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Yes, I sometimes have quite the caustic wit.
10. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes.
11. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I don't know. Maybe, if I had someone with me who tried really hard to convince me. I'd probably like it once I did it.
12. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Right now it's Oatmeal Crisp the three berry flavour.
13. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Yes.
14. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Physically not so much, mentally I like to think so.
15. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? I love ice cream in general. I don't know if I have a favourite, though I tend to gravitate towards caramel and butterscoth flavours.
16. SHOE SIZE? 9
17. RED OR PINK? Red.
18. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? I have an annoying habit of not finishing what I start.
19. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Friends who don't live near me anymore.
20. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I really don't care.
21. WHAT COLOR OF PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING RIGHT NOW? Jean shorts, no shoes, just very dirty feet (from jumping on the trampoline).
22. WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE WRITER/BOOK/MOVIE (at the moment, anyway)? Okay, I definitely stress AT THE MOMENT: Writer: Libba Bray; Book: Rebel Angels; Movie: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. (I too like Holly Black, and Valiant is on my list of books to read, so maybe fav writer/book will change again soon. I loved Tithe. Such a gritty, urban faerie tale.)
23, WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The sound of the wind sighing through the trees outside my window.
24. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Violet (duh)
25. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SMELLS? Books, baking, rain
26. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU SPOKE ON THE PHONE WITH? Grandpa.
27. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? I'm not sure. Some combination of looks and personality. I don't think it's any one thing.
28. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Yes, Ash is a lovely person.
29. FAVORITE DRINK? Chocolate Milk or Iced Tea.
30. FAVORITE SPORT? I'm not really a sport person, but I'd have to pick the only sport that I have ever enjoyed playing and been good at: Inner Tube Water Polo.
31. HAIR COLOR? Brown.
32. EYE COLOR? Blue.
33. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes. But I'm annoyed with both my glasses and contact lenses right now and am saving up for eye surgery.
34. FAVORITE FOOD? Normally I would say pizza, but I'm kind of sick of it right now. I think maybe zucchini pie.
35. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDING? Happy endings. Scary movies always seem like a good idea at the time, but the aftermath (i.e. me not being able to sleep with the lights off for a week) is just too costly.
36. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. (I saw it twice: once in London and once back home in Saskatchewan. Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom in the same movie? That never gets old.)
37. COLOR OF SHIRT YOU ARE WEARING? Blue and white stripes
38. WINTER OR SUMMER? They both have their merits. Over all though, I think I prefer Summer. I hate driving in the winter.
39. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs, but it does depend on who's giving them out.
40. FAVORITE DESSERT? Ooh. Sex in a pan is good. I also like cheesecake.
41. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know, don't care.
42. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? See above.
43. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? Rebel Angels, by Libba Bray. It's really good YA lit for girls, about magic and set in Victorian England. Rebel Angels is the sequel, the first is called A Great and Terrible Beauty. They're good, and I just found out that they're supposed to be made into a movie. Is it just me or is there a lot of teen/children's fiction being made into movies? How to Eat Fried Worms is coming out like, this week or something. Come on people, let them read the books! They're always so much better anyway.
44. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? I don't have one.
45. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Wind in the trees, my cat talking to me.
46. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? I didn't watch TV last night.
47. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Beatles. I have never gotten the big deal about the Stones.
48. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Ummmm. I think that would be New Zealand.
49. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I have many special talents.
50. WHEN AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Swift Current, Saskatchewan, 1980.
1. FIRST NAME? Violette
2. ARE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Actually, my real name is after someone, a character in a book, but if I told you which book, it would give away my real name. And then I'd have to kill you.
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? I honestly don't remember. Not to give you the impression that I never cry. I do, and I'm sure I have sometime in the past month, but I don't remember when or why.
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes, it's very loopy and neat and I get compliments on it all the time. But I worked hard to get it like that. When I was in elementary school, all the other girls had neat handwriting, and I was all jealous because mine was only marginally more legible than some of the boys.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Pastrami, black forest ham... lunch meat is good in general if it's on a sandwich with mayo, lettuce, tomatoe and cheese.
6. KIDS? Two cats.
7. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I totally would. Then I'd have someone to play supernintendo with.
8. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? Off and on since I was a kid. Right now my journal is my blog.
9. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Yes, I sometimes have quite the caustic wit.
10. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes.
11. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I don't know. Maybe, if I had someone with me who tried really hard to convince me. I'd probably like it once I did it.
12. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Right now it's Oatmeal Crisp the three berry flavour.
13. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Yes.
14. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Physically not so much, mentally I like to think so.
15. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? I love ice cream in general. I don't know if I have a favourite, though I tend to gravitate towards caramel and butterscoth flavours.
16. SHOE SIZE? 9
17. RED OR PINK? Red.
18. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? I have an annoying habit of not finishing what I start.
19. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Friends who don't live near me anymore.
20. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I really don't care.
21. WHAT COLOR OF PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING RIGHT NOW? Jean shorts, no shoes, just very dirty feet (from jumping on the trampoline).
22. WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE WRITER/BOOK/MOVIE (at the moment, anyway)? Okay, I definitely stress AT THE MOMENT: Writer: Libba Bray; Book: Rebel Angels; Movie: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. (I too like Holly Black, and Valiant is on my list of books to read, so maybe fav writer/book will change again soon. I loved Tithe. Such a gritty, urban faerie tale.)
23, WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The sound of the wind sighing through the trees outside my window.
24. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Violet (duh)
25. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SMELLS? Books, baking, rain
26. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU SPOKE ON THE PHONE WITH? Grandpa.
27. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? I'm not sure. Some combination of looks and personality. I don't think it's any one thing.
28. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Yes, Ash is a lovely person.
29. FAVORITE DRINK? Chocolate Milk or Iced Tea.
30. FAVORITE SPORT? I'm not really a sport person, but I'd have to pick the only sport that I have ever enjoyed playing and been good at: Inner Tube Water Polo.
31. HAIR COLOR? Brown.
32. EYE COLOR? Blue.
33. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes. But I'm annoyed with both my glasses and contact lenses right now and am saving up for eye surgery.
34. FAVORITE FOOD? Normally I would say pizza, but I'm kind of sick of it right now. I think maybe zucchini pie.
35. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDING? Happy endings. Scary movies always seem like a good idea at the time, but the aftermath (i.e. me not being able to sleep with the lights off for a week) is just too costly.
36. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. (I saw it twice: once in London and once back home in Saskatchewan. Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom in the same movie? That never gets old.)
37. COLOR OF SHIRT YOU ARE WEARING? Blue and white stripes
38. WINTER OR SUMMER? They both have their merits. Over all though, I think I prefer Summer. I hate driving in the winter.
39. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs, but it does depend on who's giving them out.
40. FAVORITE DESSERT? Ooh. Sex in a pan is good. I also like cheesecake.
41. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Don't know, don't care.
42. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? See above.
43. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? Rebel Angels, by Libba Bray. It's really good YA lit for girls, about magic and set in Victorian England. Rebel Angels is the sequel, the first is called A Great and Terrible Beauty. They're good, and I just found out that they're supposed to be made into a movie. Is it just me or is there a lot of teen/children's fiction being made into movies? How to Eat Fried Worms is coming out like, this week or something. Come on people, let them read the books! They're always so much better anyway.
44. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? I don't have one.
45. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Wind in the trees, my cat talking to me.
46. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? I didn't watch TV last night.
47. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Beatles. I have never gotten the big deal about the Stones.
48. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Ummmm. I think that would be New Zealand.
49. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I have many special talents.
50. WHEN AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Swift Current, Saskatchewan, 1980.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Welcome to Paris
So Monday, June 5th, I arrived in France. I had told K that I would meet her at the hotel by 11 am that morning, but (as I have already said) my plane was late. Then it took forever (despite the extremely lax customs and immigration) to find my way out of the airport to the subway. Once there, I got on the wrong train, (not wrong exactly, went in the right direction, but did not go all the way to the stop I wanted) so I had to switch trains. Then I went one stop too far for the hotel and had to walk several extra blocks. With all my baggage. So needless to say, when I finally got to the hotel I just basically collapsed. The only significant thing that I got accomplished that day was a shower. Although K did manage to get me up to go for a little walk around that evening. Which actually turned into quite a big walk. We walked across the Seine to the Louvre and then back across again to the Eiffel Tower. My feet were complaining when we got back to the hotel around midnight (something which I was to get used to in the days ahead).
The Seine River (I don't know the people in the photo, they were just some random people who happened to get in my shot)
K on the Paris streets at night. We stopped for an ice cream sundae at a little café near here. You can see the Eiffel Tower in the background.
The Seine River (I don't know the people in the photo, they were just some random people who happened to get in my shot)
K on the Paris streets at night. We stopped for an ice cream sundae at a little café near here. You can see the Eiffel Tower in the background.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Where have you been?
Well, here is just a short post for those of you who have been waiting in agony for me to write something, anything, about my trip to Europe... I have once again been a bad little blogger. What can I say? I'm naturally lazy. I think I was a sloth in my previous life. And I'm afraid you will have to wait longer. Because I have NEWS.
I am now the new children's librarian at the library (the library that is in the place where I was working before, and therefore am still working). So. I just started the job this week. And I have discovered that children's librarians are very busy. It is difficult to find time to actually get any work done in between mopping up ferret feces, bandaging nasty skipping rope wounds, and rescuing endangered leopard frogs from deranged six year olds.
So, I think I will like the job (aside from the incidences mentioned above, but these things just come with the territory). I am not sure if this is what I want forever, but I think it is a very good thing for now. Just enough responsibility to make me feel terrified, but not enough to actually cause an anxiety attack.
I'll keep you posted on how it goes. SH (who was temporarily filling in for the children's librarian) has informed me that the other women who work at the library can be very clannish and difficult, especially the ones who've been there for 15 years or more. That they'd rather see you fall on your face than help you out. She said that my predecessor, who was children's librarian for 4 years, said that she went home crying every night for the first month she worked here. So that is concerning, but I have to say I am not all that surprised. I noticed that sort of atmosphere in my practicum in Edmonton. And someone suggested to me that it is just what happens when you have a group of women working together (there is only one guy on the library staff). So what do you think? When women work together, do we naturally all become bitchy? Why? What does that say about women and/or society?
Anyway, just something to ponder. À la prochaine mes amis!
I am now the new children's librarian at the library (the library that is in the place where I was working before, and therefore am still working). So. I just started the job this week. And I have discovered that children's librarians are very busy. It is difficult to find time to actually get any work done in between mopping up ferret feces, bandaging nasty skipping rope wounds, and rescuing endangered leopard frogs from deranged six year olds.
So, I think I will like the job (aside from the incidences mentioned above, but these things just come with the territory). I am not sure if this is what I want forever, but I think it is a very good thing for now. Just enough responsibility to make me feel terrified, but not enough to actually cause an anxiety attack.
I'll keep you posted on how it goes. SH (who was temporarily filling in for the children's librarian) has informed me that the other women who work at the library can be very clannish and difficult, especially the ones who've been there for 15 years or more. That they'd rather see you fall on your face than help you out. She said that my predecessor, who was children's librarian for 4 years, said that she went home crying every night for the first month she worked here. So that is concerning, but I have to say I am not all that surprised. I noticed that sort of atmosphere in my practicum in Edmonton. And someone suggested to me that it is just what happens when you have a group of women working together (there is only one guy on the library staff). So what do you think? When women work together, do we naturally all become bitchy? Why? What does that say about women and/or society?
Anyway, just something to ponder. À la prochaine mes amis!
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
I'm Baa-aack
That's right folks. I'm back in the country. Which is a feat more amazing than it sounds (more on this later). The trip was good, but exhausting. I think next time I do a trip like this one, I will make it shorter. The six weeks were great, but when you are always moving around, trying to book plane or bus tickets to the next city, trying to set up accomodation, etc. it gets to you after awhile. Not to mention the fact that by the time we got to London in week six, K and I kind of had an attitude like, "Oh, another church/castle/monument. Big whoop." We couldn't work up a lot of enthusiasm.
I will, hopefully, over the next few weeks be telling our story and showing some pictures. The pictures will be somewhat hit and miss because K lost her camera. We were at the Royal Show (an agricultural show in England, probably the biggest one there is) and her camera disappeared. It is quite likely that K set it down somewhere to taste something or try something on and then just forgot it. Or it could have been stolen. Either way, it's gone. So anyway, that's too bad, but we also had my camera so it wasn't a complete tragedy.
Now I would like to share with you the frustrating journey I had trying to get back to Canada (Beware this is a long story and will probably make you not want to fly):
First of all, K and I did not fly back together. She went on a trip to Ethiopia with one of her ag classes, and then just met me in Paris on her way back. Because her flight was being paid for by the university, she had to come back the way she went, so she had to fly back to Paris, and then fly from there to Canada. I did not have that problem, so I flew out of Heathrow. Now, I'm sure my travel agent knew what she was doing, but when I got to Heathrow I couldn't help noticing that there was an Air Canada flight direct from Heathrow to Calgary flying the same morning. I was not booked on that flight. Instead, I was booked to go from London to LA and then from LA to Calgary. A much longer flight with the added annoyance of having to go through US customs. But as I said, I'm sure there's a very good reason I was not on that flight.
So, I got on the plane at Heathrow, which unfortunately took off almost an hour late. This was a little bit upsetting for me, because my connection in LA was fairly tight (only about 2.5 hours between flights, now reduced to 1.5 hours) and we had to collect our bags and go through US customs in LA. I was flying United Airlines, and I can't say for sure that it was the airline's fault, but I flew them on the way to Paris as well and every single one of my flights took off an hour late. On the way there I had lots of time to make my connection in Chicago, so I didn't really care, but that is still a bad record. You'd think ONE flight could take off on time.
Anyway, I got to LA, and made it through customs all right, and there was still an hour before my plane was to take off. But I still had to re-check my baggage. It was tagged all the way through to Calgary, so I just had to place it on the baggage re-check conveyor belt. Except that no one was there and the belt was not running, and everyone's baggage was just sitting around, and I thought "Are my bags going to make it to the plane in time?" I was in terminal 6, and my plane took off from terminal 2. I considered hauling my bags to the correct terminal and checking them in there anyway, but just then an airport employee came up to me and said, "If you're making a connection just leave your bags there. They will transfer them to your plane." Okay lady, you obviously know what you're talking about, you work here, and the inner workings of airports are mysterious to me.
So I leave my bags, walk to terminal two, and get to my gate with time to spare. Yay! So we all get on the plane, the plane takes off and I am happy. Last flight. Then, about twenty minutes into the flight, the flight attendent announces that there is something wrong with the plane and we are going to turn around and go back to LA. NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
I have been to LAX many times, and it is like an old friend, but I was nonetheless extremely unhappy to hear that I would be seeing it again so soon. And before y'all freak out, the flight attendant added that we were going back because the windscreen had cracked, and while it did not pose an immediate safety problem, we couldn't fly all the way to Calgary with it like that. So back we went. Our flight was cancelled, and there were no more flights to Calgary that night. So they said that they would put us up in the Holiday Inn for the night. I got re-booked on a flight that left at 7:20 the next morning. So inconvenient, but not horrible. And, by the way, you can collect your baggage at Carrousel 2.
My bags were not there. I went back upstairs to the ticket counter. They said to go back downstairs to the baggage office. I went there. She asked if I'd been upstairs to the ticket counter (yes and they told me to come down here you twit!) No one seemed overly sympathetic or very eager to help. She said she'd check to see if they had my bags. They did not. She said that United had obviously not transferred them to this terminal yet. They were still somewhere in terminal 6. At this point I cursed the airport employee who had told me to leave my bags there. I KNEW I should've taken them with me. So they never made it onto my plane, indeed never even made it to the correct terminal, and if I had made it to Calgary, it would have been sans baggage. Well, if they were still in terminal 6, could she contact United there and see if they had them. "No, they won't know where they are."
So my bags are somewhere in LA airport. I know because I saw them. But no one else knows where they are. They are in some sort of limbo, neither here nor there. As I have said, the inner workings of airports are mysterious to me. But after this, every time I get off a flight and my baggage has actually made it with me, I will consider it a miracle. So, the lady at the baggage office thought that they would probably turn up in time for my flight tomorrow, and they would read the tags and realize that flight was cancelled and send them on the first flight to Calgary, which would be my flight. But there was nothing else I could do. I just had to get on my flight and HOPE that my bags showed up. So off I went to my lovely room at the Holiday Inn, sans jammies and toothbrush.
This story does have a happy ending though. I arrived in Calgary at 11:15 am the next morning (on time even!) and yes, my bags did show up. I really didn't expect them to at that point, so it was a nice surprise. And they both had RUSH! tags attached to them. So I'm glad that someone actually made an effort to get my bags to me as quickly as possible. But needless to say, I'm a bit sick of flying right now. I think I'll stay on the ground for a while.
And now I will leave you with a few observations about the French:
1) French customs is a joke. Maybe I am just used to the US (although the customs in the UK gave me quite a working over as well!) but I was shocked. We got to Paris, I handed the guy my passport and that little card they always make you fill out. And he stamped my passport and gave it back to me. He didn't say one word. He didn't even ask me how long I was staying. And K, who was coming from Ethiopia, got the same treatement. Stamp, boom, you're in. We don't care how long you're here or why you're here or anything. I think customs can be kind of over the top sometimes, but that was ridiculously lax.
2) The French like pink toilet paper. It was everywhere. And that's never made sense to me. It's toilet paper people. You wipe you ass and flush it down the toilet. Who cares what colour it is?
3) The stop signs in France say "Stop". Not "Arrêt". "Stop". I thought this was really weird since here in Canada the French are so protective of their language, and they would throw a fit if one of their stop signs said "STOP" instead of "Arrêt". But I guess in France they're a little bit more secure and so don't mind if their stop signs are in English.
4) The French are breeding an army that, in 18 years when they reach maturity, will take over the world. That's right people. We'll all be eating cheese and croissants and drinking wine. At least that is the conclusion K and I came to after being in Paris. There are pregnant women everywhere. We didn't keep count, but they were everywhere you looked. And when we were in London, which is a bigger city, we didn't see any. So it's just the French. Any other theories on why this might be?
Anyway, I'm glad to be back. I think I just go away so I can come back and appreciate Canada more than ever.
I will, hopefully, over the next few weeks be telling our story and showing some pictures. The pictures will be somewhat hit and miss because K lost her camera. We were at the Royal Show (an agricultural show in England, probably the biggest one there is) and her camera disappeared. It is quite likely that K set it down somewhere to taste something or try something on and then just forgot it. Or it could have been stolen. Either way, it's gone. So anyway, that's too bad, but we also had my camera so it wasn't a complete tragedy.
Now I would like to share with you the frustrating journey I had trying to get back to Canada (Beware this is a long story and will probably make you not want to fly):
First of all, K and I did not fly back together. She went on a trip to Ethiopia with one of her ag classes, and then just met me in Paris on her way back. Because her flight was being paid for by the university, she had to come back the way she went, so she had to fly back to Paris, and then fly from there to Canada. I did not have that problem, so I flew out of Heathrow. Now, I'm sure my travel agent knew what she was doing, but when I got to Heathrow I couldn't help noticing that there was an Air Canada flight direct from Heathrow to Calgary flying the same morning. I was not booked on that flight. Instead, I was booked to go from London to LA and then from LA to Calgary. A much longer flight with the added annoyance of having to go through US customs. But as I said, I'm sure there's a very good reason I was not on that flight.
So, I got on the plane at Heathrow, which unfortunately took off almost an hour late. This was a little bit upsetting for me, because my connection in LA was fairly tight (only about 2.5 hours between flights, now reduced to 1.5 hours) and we had to collect our bags and go through US customs in LA. I was flying United Airlines, and I can't say for sure that it was the airline's fault, but I flew them on the way to Paris as well and every single one of my flights took off an hour late. On the way there I had lots of time to make my connection in Chicago, so I didn't really care, but that is still a bad record. You'd think ONE flight could take off on time.
Anyway, I got to LA, and made it through customs all right, and there was still an hour before my plane was to take off. But I still had to re-check my baggage. It was tagged all the way through to Calgary, so I just had to place it on the baggage re-check conveyor belt. Except that no one was there and the belt was not running, and everyone's baggage was just sitting around, and I thought "Are my bags going to make it to the plane in time?" I was in terminal 6, and my plane took off from terminal 2. I considered hauling my bags to the correct terminal and checking them in there anyway, but just then an airport employee came up to me and said, "If you're making a connection just leave your bags there. They will transfer them to your plane." Okay lady, you obviously know what you're talking about, you work here, and the inner workings of airports are mysterious to me.
So I leave my bags, walk to terminal two, and get to my gate with time to spare. Yay! So we all get on the plane, the plane takes off and I am happy. Last flight. Then, about twenty minutes into the flight, the flight attendent announces that there is something wrong with the plane and we are going to turn around and go back to LA. NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
I have been to LAX many times, and it is like an old friend, but I was nonetheless extremely unhappy to hear that I would be seeing it again so soon. And before y'all freak out, the flight attendant added that we were going back because the windscreen had cracked, and while it did not pose an immediate safety problem, we couldn't fly all the way to Calgary with it like that. So back we went. Our flight was cancelled, and there were no more flights to Calgary that night. So they said that they would put us up in the Holiday Inn for the night. I got re-booked on a flight that left at 7:20 the next morning. So inconvenient, but not horrible. And, by the way, you can collect your baggage at Carrousel 2.
My bags were not there. I went back upstairs to the ticket counter. They said to go back downstairs to the baggage office. I went there. She asked if I'd been upstairs to the ticket counter (yes and they told me to come down here you twit!) No one seemed overly sympathetic or very eager to help. She said she'd check to see if they had my bags. They did not. She said that United had obviously not transferred them to this terminal yet. They were still somewhere in terminal 6. At this point I cursed the airport employee who had told me to leave my bags there. I KNEW I should've taken them with me. So they never made it onto my plane, indeed never even made it to the correct terminal, and if I had made it to Calgary, it would have been sans baggage. Well, if they were still in terminal 6, could she contact United there and see if they had them. "No, they won't know where they are."
So my bags are somewhere in LA airport. I know because I saw them. But no one else knows where they are. They are in some sort of limbo, neither here nor there. As I have said, the inner workings of airports are mysterious to me. But after this, every time I get off a flight and my baggage has actually made it with me, I will consider it a miracle. So, the lady at the baggage office thought that they would probably turn up in time for my flight tomorrow, and they would read the tags and realize that flight was cancelled and send them on the first flight to Calgary, which would be my flight. But there was nothing else I could do. I just had to get on my flight and HOPE that my bags showed up. So off I went to my lovely room at the Holiday Inn, sans jammies and toothbrush.
This story does have a happy ending though. I arrived in Calgary at 11:15 am the next morning (on time even!) and yes, my bags did show up. I really didn't expect them to at that point, so it was a nice surprise. And they both had RUSH! tags attached to them. So I'm glad that someone actually made an effort to get my bags to me as quickly as possible. But needless to say, I'm a bit sick of flying right now. I think I'll stay on the ground for a while.
And now I will leave you with a few observations about the French:
1) French customs is a joke. Maybe I am just used to the US (although the customs in the UK gave me quite a working over as well!) but I was shocked. We got to Paris, I handed the guy my passport and that little card they always make you fill out. And he stamped my passport and gave it back to me. He didn't say one word. He didn't even ask me how long I was staying. And K, who was coming from Ethiopia, got the same treatement. Stamp, boom, you're in. We don't care how long you're here or why you're here or anything. I think customs can be kind of over the top sometimes, but that was ridiculously lax.
2) The French like pink toilet paper. It was everywhere. And that's never made sense to me. It's toilet paper people. You wipe you ass and flush it down the toilet. Who cares what colour it is?
3) The stop signs in France say "Stop". Not "Arrêt". "Stop". I thought this was really weird since here in Canada the French are so protective of their language, and they would throw a fit if one of their stop signs said "STOP" instead of "Arrêt". But I guess in France they're a little bit more secure and so don't mind if their stop signs are in English.
4) The French are breeding an army that, in 18 years when they reach maturity, will take over the world. That's right people. We'll all be eating cheese and croissants and drinking wine. At least that is the conclusion K and I came to after being in Paris. There are pregnant women everywhere. We didn't keep count, but they were everywhere you looked. And when we were in London, which is a bigger city, we didn't see any. So it's just the French. Any other theories on why this might be?
Anyway, I'm glad to be back. I think I just go away so I can come back and appreciate Canada more than ever.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
X-Men: The Last Stand
I did not like this movie. Or, rather, I thought it was only okay.
Now to get down to the nitty gritty. I am about to give away details of the movie which may spoil your enjoyment of it, so I suggest you not read any farther if you have yet to see the movie.
1) Rogue. She was hardly in it. Rogue is and always has been my favourite X-man. And she wasn't even in the final battle scene! Why not? Because she was standing in line to get "cured".
2) They "cured" Magneto. That was how they stopped him. But the whole point of the movie, and why Magneto was mad, is that most mutants don't think that there is anything wrong with them. They don't need to be "cured". Now, you might say that they should at least make the cure available for people like Rogue, whose mutation is not extremely useful and in fact, only causes her pain. She can't touch anyone without sucking the life force out of them. So for her, the cure is probably a good thing. However, what made the mutants mad, is that the government was using the cure as a weapon. Not against all mutants mind you, but just outlaw mutants (like Magneto and his gang). But I don't think that is an acceptable use of it. Find other ways to contain criminal mutants, but using the cure on them as a weapon is a horrible violation of human rights. It's changing their fundamental nature, changing who they are. That would be like changing someone's eye colour, or hair colour, or something, permanently, just because they're a criminal. And I don't think you have a right to do that. And the X-Men didn't think using the cure as a weapon was good either. Beast resigned over it. BUT then they go and use the cure on Magneto. That, in my opinion, was the lowest thing they could've done. I couldn't believe it. I thought that would have been beneath the X-Men. They're supposed to be noble, you know? Not "the ends justify the means" kind of people.
3) In general I found the movie kind of lacked focus. For a movie that ended up claiming the lives of three X-Men, I thought it lacked a bit of punch.
Now, it wasn't a total loss. I liked a few things about it. For example, I thought the scene where Mystique got shot with a dart and got cured was very powerful. And then Magneto just abandoned her, despite how loyal she was to him.
I also like the part where Kitty is on her own trying to save the young boy mutant from Juggernaut. She can dash through walls and sink through floors and stuff. And despite the fact that she looks about twelve, I thought she did very well.
I also liked the scene where Wolverine told Jean he loved her and then knifed her in the stomach with his claws. That was a gooder. Although that was another thing that I thought was a bit fuzzy in the movie: the whole Jean Grey/Phoenix alternate personality stuff. I know that people who read the comics probably have a good grip on the concept, but I've never read the comics and so found it a bit hard to understand.
I also like the very last scene: Magneto, now just regular human, a very broken-looking, sad old man, is playing chess in the park. With a metal chess set. He is looking intently at the board, and stretches out a finger toward a piece. And the piece moves, very slightly. And then that's the end of the film. Oooohh. Looks like the cure isn't as permanent as they thought.
Anyway, go and see it, but don't expect to be blown away. I personally liked the second one much better. I think it's been the best out of the three.
Now to get down to the nitty gritty. I am about to give away details of the movie which may spoil your enjoyment of it, so I suggest you not read any farther if you have yet to see the movie.
1) Rogue. She was hardly in it. Rogue is and always has been my favourite X-man. And she wasn't even in the final battle scene! Why not? Because she was standing in line to get "cured".
2) They "cured" Magneto. That was how they stopped him. But the whole point of the movie, and why Magneto was mad, is that most mutants don't think that there is anything wrong with them. They don't need to be "cured". Now, you might say that they should at least make the cure available for people like Rogue, whose mutation is not extremely useful and in fact, only causes her pain. She can't touch anyone without sucking the life force out of them. So for her, the cure is probably a good thing. However, what made the mutants mad, is that the government was using the cure as a weapon. Not against all mutants mind you, but just outlaw mutants (like Magneto and his gang). But I don't think that is an acceptable use of it. Find other ways to contain criminal mutants, but using the cure on them as a weapon is a horrible violation of human rights. It's changing their fundamental nature, changing who they are. That would be like changing someone's eye colour, or hair colour, or something, permanently, just because they're a criminal. And I don't think you have a right to do that. And the X-Men didn't think using the cure as a weapon was good either. Beast resigned over it. BUT then they go and use the cure on Magneto. That, in my opinion, was the lowest thing they could've done. I couldn't believe it. I thought that would have been beneath the X-Men. They're supposed to be noble, you know? Not "the ends justify the means" kind of people.
3) In general I found the movie kind of lacked focus. For a movie that ended up claiming the lives of three X-Men, I thought it lacked a bit of punch.
Now, it wasn't a total loss. I liked a few things about it. For example, I thought the scene where Mystique got shot with a dart and got cured was very powerful. And then Magneto just abandoned her, despite how loyal she was to him.
I also like the part where Kitty is on her own trying to save the young boy mutant from Juggernaut. She can dash through walls and sink through floors and stuff. And despite the fact that she looks about twelve, I thought she did very well.
I also liked the scene where Wolverine told Jean he loved her and then knifed her in the stomach with his claws. That was a gooder. Although that was another thing that I thought was a bit fuzzy in the movie: the whole Jean Grey/Phoenix alternate personality stuff. I know that people who read the comics probably have a good grip on the concept, but I've never read the comics and so found it a bit hard to understand.
I also like the very last scene: Magneto, now just regular human, a very broken-looking, sad old man, is playing chess in the park. With a metal chess set. He is looking intently at the board, and stretches out a finger toward a piece. And the piece moves, very slightly. And then that's the end of the film. Oooohh. Looks like the cure isn't as permanent as they thought.
Anyway, go and see it, but don't expect to be blown away. I personally liked the second one much better. I think it's been the best out of the three.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Kitties!
Here is a picture of my darling furballs. Aren't they sweet? In this photo they have both stuffed themselves into the kitty bed, which was really only made for one kitty.
Sadly Sick
I am once again not feeling so good. Some sort of virus. I have been at home in bed for the past two days, and even now it feels like there are daggers in my throat every time I swallow. I have, for some reason, had a bad run this year. But I was due. I hadn't been really sick in a long time. It is bad timing too. I am trying to finish up as much work as I can at my job before I have to go, as well as plan a six week trip to Europe. I needed those two days. Oh well.
I finished another book on the weekend: Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception. This is the most recent installment in the Artemis Fowl series. I don't know if Eoin Colfer is done with it or not, but I have to say that I found this last one only lukewarm.
It seemed to me that Opal, the deranged evil genius pixie, was defeated a little too easily. The trick that finally got her was clever (I didn't see it coming in any case), but it just seemed to be over way too fast. Also, I kind of feel like Colfer has chickened out a bit on Artemis Fowl. As you will know from previous posts, Artemis was originally written as a 14-year-old evil genius in his own right, only relunctantly cooperating with the faeries when it served his own purposes. He was gradually warming up to them and beginning to trust them, but in this last one, I think Artemis totally lost his edge. He actually turned kind of harmless and has become a bit sentimental about the faerie folk. At the end of the novel he decides to reconcile his evil genius with his new-found conscience by becoming a sort of modern day Robin Hood: Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Bleccchh. I wasn't sure how I felt about the anti-hero, but now that he's been lost, I must admit that I would like him back. So, only 3 purple horsies out of 5 for this last one. Come on Mr. Colfer, I know you can do better than that.
I finished another book on the weekend: Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception. This is the most recent installment in the Artemis Fowl series. I don't know if Eoin Colfer is done with it or not, but I have to say that I found this last one only lukewarm.
It seemed to me that Opal, the deranged evil genius pixie, was defeated a little too easily. The trick that finally got her was clever (I didn't see it coming in any case), but it just seemed to be over way too fast. Also, I kind of feel like Colfer has chickened out a bit on Artemis Fowl. As you will know from previous posts, Artemis was originally written as a 14-year-old evil genius in his own right, only relunctantly cooperating with the faeries when it served his own purposes. He was gradually warming up to them and beginning to trust them, but in this last one, I think Artemis totally lost his edge. He actually turned kind of harmless and has become a bit sentimental about the faerie folk. At the end of the novel he decides to reconcile his evil genius with his new-found conscience by becoming a sort of modern day Robin Hood: Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Bleccchh. I wasn't sure how I felt about the anti-hero, but now that he's been lost, I must admit that I would like him back. So, only 3 purple horsies out of 5 for this last one. Come on Mr. Colfer, I know you can do better than that.
Monday, May 22, 2006
The Bartimaeus Trilogy: Highly Recommended
Warning: Spoiler Alert!
Please don't read any further if you have not read the trilogy, if you are planning on reading the trilogy, and if you'd actually like to enjoy the trilogy.
I've just finished the last in the series, Ptolemy's Gate.
I cried.
It was really good.
I think this series actually got better as it went along. This last one had a bit of a different tone to it than the other ones. Bartimaeus was less sarcastic, and the deeper side to his character was revealed. I was complaining in my previous post about what a little twerp Nathaniel was, but he actually pulled it out at the last and thoroughly redeemed himself. That is what is perhaps most amazing about this book. At the beginning, the three main characters hate eachother. But by the end, Kitty and Nathaniel are basically in love, and Bartimaeus has formed a special bond with both of the humans. I just didn't see how they were going to work it out before the end, but they did, and their characters seemed to evolve quite naturally.
The ending impressed me. Stroud could have made it into a happy ending. And I think Stroud has enough talent that he could've made a happy ending that didn't seem unnatural or forced. But he didn't. Like I said, I cried at the end. Sure, order is restored in the world, but the three characters, who had grown to love eachother, are parted forever. I mean, Stroud wasn't kidding when he said it was a trilogy. I honestly don't see how he can continue on with the series. You can't come back from the dead. Well, you can, but I've always thought that was a rather tacky way of continuing a series. In any case, although I felt the ending to the series was appropriate, I'm sad that there won't be more. I was really enjoying the world, and I felt like I was just barely brushing the surface. There is a lot of potential in that world, a lot of questions that were never fully explored.
In any case, I really enjoyed the series and I'm sad to come back to my own world where beings such as Bartimaeus only exist in books.
Please don't read any further if you have not read the trilogy, if you are planning on reading the trilogy, and if you'd actually like to enjoy the trilogy.
I've just finished the last in the series, Ptolemy's Gate.
I cried.
It was really good.
I think this series actually got better as it went along. This last one had a bit of a different tone to it than the other ones. Bartimaeus was less sarcastic, and the deeper side to his character was revealed. I was complaining in my previous post about what a little twerp Nathaniel was, but he actually pulled it out at the last and thoroughly redeemed himself. That is what is perhaps most amazing about this book. At the beginning, the three main characters hate eachother. But by the end, Kitty and Nathaniel are basically in love, and Bartimaeus has formed a special bond with both of the humans. I just didn't see how they were going to work it out before the end, but they did, and their characters seemed to evolve quite naturally.
The ending impressed me. Stroud could have made it into a happy ending. And I think Stroud has enough talent that he could've made a happy ending that didn't seem unnatural or forced. But he didn't. Like I said, I cried at the end. Sure, order is restored in the world, but the three characters, who had grown to love eachother, are parted forever. I mean, Stroud wasn't kidding when he said it was a trilogy. I honestly don't see how he can continue on with the series. You can't come back from the dead. Well, you can, but I've always thought that was a rather tacky way of continuing a series. In any case, although I felt the ending to the series was appropriate, I'm sad that there won't be more. I was really enjoying the world, and I felt like I was just barely brushing the surface. There is a lot of potential in that world, a lot of questions that were never fully explored.
In any case, I really enjoyed the series and I'm sad to come back to my own world where beings such as Bartimaeus only exist in books.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
The Anti-Hero
I have lately read a couple of books with interesting protagonists. They're interesting because you really don't like them.
Take the Artemis Fowl series: it's really a strange sort of series because the protagonist, Artemis, is a criminal. Now, I know that just because someone is a criminal, that doesn't make him a bad character. Vigilantes like Batman and Robin Hood abound in literature. Sure, technically they're on the wrong side of the law, but we know that they have good hearts and are totally honourable.
But Artemis has absolutely no scruples. He is extremely clever and devious, you have to admire that, but he is also extremely unlikable. I'm not used to reading books like this, and it felt weird. I sort of wanted him to win, but sort of didn't.
I have also just finished reading the second book in the Bartimaeus series. The protagonist in that series is Nathaniel. Nathaniel is an extremely talented young magician, but he is so self-centred and egotistical that you just want to smack him silly. His continual grasping for power (no matter what the cost to others) is absolutely disgusting. And it gets worse in the second book. In the first one he actually had some redeeming moments. So I'm eager to read the third one because at this point I don't know if the author can redeem Nathaniel or not. Maybe he'll just toss him over a cliff in the end.
So I'm not sure how I feel about the anti-hero. But it's a different reading experience anyway.
Take the Artemis Fowl series: it's really a strange sort of series because the protagonist, Artemis, is a criminal. Now, I know that just because someone is a criminal, that doesn't make him a bad character. Vigilantes like Batman and Robin Hood abound in literature. Sure, technically they're on the wrong side of the law, but we know that they have good hearts and are totally honourable.
But Artemis has absolutely no scruples. He is extremely clever and devious, you have to admire that, but he is also extremely unlikable. I'm not used to reading books like this, and it felt weird. I sort of wanted him to win, but sort of didn't.
I have also just finished reading the second book in the Bartimaeus series. The protagonist in that series is Nathaniel. Nathaniel is an extremely talented young magician, but he is so self-centred and egotistical that you just want to smack him silly. His continual grasping for power (no matter what the cost to others) is absolutely disgusting. And it gets worse in the second book. In the first one he actually had some redeeming moments. So I'm eager to read the third one because at this point I don't know if the author can redeem Nathaniel or not. Maybe he'll just toss him over a cliff in the end.
So I'm not sure how I feel about the anti-hero. But it's a different reading experience anyway.
Désastre! Part Deux
So I phoned a branch today. I had sent out a form for branches to fill in and this branch had failed to send her form in, and I wanted to know why. She said she hadn't realized she was supposed to fill it in and didn't know where it was. I was like, "Jesus Christ, don't you ever read your e-mail?!" I had just e-mailed them all about it last week and told them where it was and that I needed it to be filled in.
But I was quite polite about it, and after I hung up, I decided to check and make sure that I had actually sent the e-mail.
Oh.
Shit.
I had sent the e-mail. To every single branch but hers. Not only that, but every single time that I sent out a group e-mail to the branches for the entire 7.5 months I've been here, I have not sent it to her branch.
Why? Because way back, when I first started, I created an e-mail group called "branches" that I could just click when I wanted to e-mail everybody, instead of having to enter in twenty e-mail addresses one at a time. And for some reason, her e-mail did not get included.
Oops is an understatement.
No Freaking Wonder she always seems out of the loop.
........
In other news, Janet McNaughton has written a sequel to her science fiction novel The Secret Under My Skin called The Raintree Rebellion. This is for all my dear readers who took Anna's Children's Lit class and absolutely HATED The Secret Under My Skin. Well, I actually liked it, and I think I'll check out the sequel. It looks even more interesting than the first one. And that was my biggest complaint about the end of the first one: It was kind of a let down, and felt a bit incomplete. I didn't know there was a sequel coming!
But I was quite polite about it, and after I hung up, I decided to check and make sure that I had actually sent the e-mail.
Oh.
Shit.
I had sent the e-mail. To every single branch but hers. Not only that, but every single time that I sent out a group e-mail to the branches for the entire 7.5 months I've been here, I have not sent it to her branch.
Why? Because way back, when I first started, I created an e-mail group called "branches" that I could just click when I wanted to e-mail everybody, instead of having to enter in twenty e-mail addresses one at a time. And for some reason, her e-mail did not get included.
Oops is an understatement.
No Freaking Wonder she always seems out of the loop.
........
In other news, Janet McNaughton has written a sequel to her science fiction novel The Secret Under My Skin called The Raintree Rebellion. This is for all my dear readers who took Anna's Children's Lit class and absolutely HATED The Secret Under My Skin. Well, I actually liked it, and I think I'll check out the sequel. It looks even more interesting than the first one. And that was my biggest complaint about the end of the first one: It was kind of a let down, and felt a bit incomplete. I didn't know there was a sequel coming!
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Another piece of my childhood...
Does the name Jonathan Brandis sound familiar to anyone?
I just recently bought The Neverending Story II. I was 9 when it came out in theatres, and I remembered that I liked it. So I bought it kind of for nostalgia's sake. It is not as good as some of those other fabulous films of my childhood such as Willow or Labyrinth (my sister, my cousin and I were obsessed with the latter... except we always thought that David Bowie's pants were too tight).
Still, The Neverending Story II was pretty good, probably made better because every once in awhile I would see something and remember how it felt to see it as a nine-year-old. And I remembered the actor most of all. I was curious as to who it was, so I checked out the credits: Jonathan Brandis.
Hmmmmm. That name totally sounded familiar. So I checked him out online. Ah, yes. The Jonathan Brandis of Seaquest DSV fame, with those blue, blue eyes... blue enough to rival Jared Leto. I was thirteen when Seaquest debuted, and although I never watched it, I did buy all those Teen Magazines that gushed about all the cute stars of the day. So that's how I know Jonathan Brandis. His face was plastered all over the covers of the magazines I was reading. So whatever happened to our blue-eyed boy?
He's dead. Killed himself in 2003. 27 years old.
This may not come as a shock to anybody. Maybe I'm the only person in the whole world who did not know that Jonathan Brandis was dead. (Maybe I'm the only one who cares?) But it totally shocked me. And I feel a little bit like a part of my childhood is dead. I'll never watch The Neverending Story again without thinking about it.
I just recently bought The Neverending Story II. I was 9 when it came out in theatres, and I remembered that I liked it. So I bought it kind of for nostalgia's sake. It is not as good as some of those other fabulous films of my childhood such as Willow or Labyrinth (my sister, my cousin and I were obsessed with the latter... except we always thought that David Bowie's pants were too tight).
Still, The Neverending Story II was pretty good, probably made better because every once in awhile I would see something and remember how it felt to see it as a nine-year-old. And I remembered the actor most of all. I was curious as to who it was, so I checked out the credits: Jonathan Brandis.
Hmmmmm. That name totally sounded familiar. So I checked him out online. Ah, yes. The Jonathan Brandis of Seaquest DSV fame, with those blue, blue eyes... blue enough to rival Jared Leto. I was thirteen when Seaquest debuted, and although I never watched it, I did buy all those Teen Magazines that gushed about all the cute stars of the day. So that's how I know Jonathan Brandis. His face was plastered all over the covers of the magazines I was reading. So whatever happened to our blue-eyed boy?
He's dead. Killed himself in 2003. 27 years old.
This may not come as a shock to anybody. Maybe I'm the only person in the whole world who did not know that Jonathan Brandis was dead. (Maybe I'm the only one who cares?) But it totally shocked me. And I feel a little bit like a part of my childhood is dead. I'll never watch The Neverending Story again without thinking about it.
"and what i want to know is
how do you like your blueeyed boy
Mister Death"
Friday, May 12, 2006
Nice Feet
Yesterday I went to the spa.
Way back in February, as a thank you for doing the staff workshop, I got a gift certificate for a half-day package at the spa. So yesterday I finally went. The half-day package includes a manicure, a pedicure, lunch and a facial. I'd never had a pedicure or a facial before, and only one manicure before, so it was totally new to me.
I think next time I will skip the facial. It was okay, but they put some kind of mint exfoliant on my face that really burned, and then when I left my face just felt all yucky and greasy. Plus my forehead feels like it might break out now.
The manicure was okay, although I was yelled at for peeling off my cuticles. The pedicure was good, and I was told I had nice feet. I have always thought my feet were nice, but it is good to hear from someone else.
Too bad I don't know any foot fetishists.
Way back in February, as a thank you for doing the staff workshop, I got a gift certificate for a half-day package at the spa. So yesterday I finally went. The half-day package includes a manicure, a pedicure, lunch and a facial. I'd never had a pedicure or a facial before, and only one manicure before, so it was totally new to me.
I think next time I will skip the facial. It was okay, but they put some kind of mint exfoliant on my face that really burned, and then when I left my face just felt all yucky and greasy. Plus my forehead feels like it might break out now.
The manicure was okay, although I was yelled at for peeling off my cuticles. The pedicure was good, and I was told I had nice feet. I have always thought my feet were nice, but it is good to hear from someone else.
Too bad I don't know any foot fetishists.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Conflicted
Oh god oh god oh god.
I have just turned down a job. It was a good job. It paid well and it was what I wanted to do. But it wasn't in Saskatchewan. And I wanted to stay here.
Have I just made a huge mistake?
Why oh WHY is it so difficult? I feel like I'm being torn in two: What I love to do isn't corresponding very well with where I want to live.
I feel like I'm going to throw up.
I have just turned down a job. It was a good job. It paid well and it was what I wanted to do. But it wasn't in Saskatchewan. And I wanted to stay here.
Have I just made a huge mistake?
Why oh WHY is it so difficult? I feel like I'm being torn in two: What I love to do isn't corresponding very well with where I want to live.
I feel like I'm going to throw up.
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Home on the Range
Well here I am at home for the weekend. I come from a farm, near a small town. One of the things that is both annoying and wonderful about living in a small town is how everybody knows everyone else. This is bad if you don't want everyone knowing your business. Good luck keeping your affair with the Postman a secret. Even if neither of you tell anyone, Phyllis from next door will see him leaving by the back door at an odd hour and will inform everyone on Coffee Row the next day.
The good thing about everyone knowing you, is that in addition to taking a personal interest in your business, they take a personal interest in your welfare. If your neighbours find out you need help, then they pitch in, no questions asked.
Today, we had a fire in one of our fields. We do not know how it started, but suspect it may have been caused by a build-up of static charge on the sprayer. In any case, a fire started, and we immediately had several neighbours show up. It was one of those crazy "Get your torch and pitchfork" moments, except of course that torches wouldn't have helped much with a fire, so I guess it was more like, "Get your buckets and pitchfork". Anyway, we got the fire out, didn't even have to call 911.
So even though I sometimes think that living in a small town sucks, that is one aspect that is great. Finding that kind of altruism in the city is tough.
The good thing about everyone knowing you, is that in addition to taking a personal interest in your business, they take a personal interest in your welfare. If your neighbours find out you need help, then they pitch in, no questions asked.
Today, we had a fire in one of our fields. We do not know how it started, but suspect it may have been caused by a build-up of static charge on the sprayer. In any case, a fire started, and we immediately had several neighbours show up. It was one of those crazy "Get your torch and pitchfork" moments, except of course that torches wouldn't have helped much with a fire, so I guess it was more like, "Get your buckets and pitchfork". Anyway, we got the fire out, didn't even have to call 911.
So even though I sometimes think that living in a small town sucks, that is one aspect that is great. Finding that kind of altruism in the city is tough.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Spring has Sprung...
Today I walked out of my cave of an office out into the blinding sunlight just in time to witness a mass migration of Canada Geese. On my way home, I saw the first motorcycle of the season. I looked out my window when I got home just in time to witness another group of geese heading north as fast as they could flap their wings.
All of a sudden, it's spring.
And it's about time, dammit.
All of a sudden, it's spring.
And it's about time, dammit.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Paris, here I come!
Well, as they say, I'm blowing this popsicle stand!
My sister and I have decided to go on vacation to France and the UK. We're going in June and July. So, I'm wondering, does anyone have any good ideas about places to go, things to do, things to see, tours, good places to stay, eat, dance, drink, etc...
I've never been to Europe before, so I really don't have a clue what I'm doing.
So how about it? Any worldly travellers out there willing to share their knowledge??
My sister and I have decided to go on vacation to France and the UK. We're going in June and July. So, I'm wondering, does anyone have any good ideas about places to go, things to do, things to see, tours, good places to stay, eat, dance, drink, etc...
I've never been to Europe before, so I really don't have a clue what I'm doing.
So how about it? Any worldly travellers out there willing to share their knowledge??
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
It's just one controversy after another...
Well, my old Alma Mater has done it. The University of Saskatchewan's student newspaper, The Sheaf is now up to its ass in alligators. Why? Did they publish those ol' Muhammad cartoons? No, no no. That's old news. They've done one better and published a wonderfully new offensive cartoon entitled "Capitalist Piglet". The cartoon depicts a pig getting a blow job from Jesus. You can view the cartoon on this person's blog.
So anyway, they published this cartoon in The Sheaf and surprise, surprise, people were offended. The president of the University, Peter MacKinnon, sent an e-mail to everyone in the university saying that the cartoon had little value other than to shock or offend, and suggested that The Sheaf owed an apology to everyone.
Several people have gone one further and demanded that the newspaper be dismantled, that everyone on the Sheaf staff should be made to resign, and then John Gormley parks his ass on CTV news and suggests that the Sheaf owes monetary damages to all of the poor Christians it offended. (My loathing for John Gormley and every idiotic sentence that has ever fallen out of his big mouth knows no bounds.)
Obviously, I don't agree with the people calling for the resignation/termination/suing of the Sheaf staff. I can't believe how stupid people are. FREEDOM OF SPEECH people FREEDOM OF SPEECH. Without the Freedom to offend, Freedom of speech doesn't exist. You know what? I really hate listening to a lot of things out in the world right now. As I've said before, I think John Gormley would be improved 100% with a big fat piece of duct tape over that mouth of his. BUT no matter how much I don't like what I'm hearing, I will defend to the death the right of people to say it. So everyone who was offended by that cartoon, please get a life. You absolutely have the right to write in to the Sheaf and say what a horrible cartoon it was. And Peter MacKinnon absolutely had a right to send that e-mail out to everyone (although I will disrespect him forever now for doing it, the old prude.) But you don't have the right to sue people for it, and you don't have the right to censor people.
However, having said that, let us not forget the context in which the cartoon was published. The Sheaf, not so long ago, published an article explaining why they were not going to publish the Muhammad cartoons. The Sheaf says that republication of the cartoons merely detracts "from the serious and necessary debate that needs to take place around a myriad of issues that this clash uncovers". Fine. But then why publish this cartoon so shortly afterward? A lot of people are calling The Sheaf staff hypocrites, by refusing to publish one set of cartoons offensive to Muslims, and then going ahead and publishing another cartoon offensive to some Christians (and let's admit it, "Capitalist Piglet" is way worse than any of those Muhammad cartoons).
Under fire from all sides, The Sheaf is now saying that the cartoon was not meant to be included and was an editorial oversight. Ummmmmmm... I'm not buying it. Even if they did decide not to publish it at the last minute, the fact that it "accidently" made it into the final cut suggests that they were at least seriously considering it.
Here's what I think happened: The Sheaf decided not to print the Muhammad cartoons. Sure, the reasons they cite have merit, but let's be honest: they were really afraid that if they published them, someone would burn down the Sheaf office, or they'd get their butts kicked by the University Administration. Judging from Peter MacKinnon's reaction to the Capitalist Piglet cartoon, they were probably right about that last one. But, after that, they were feeling a bit ashamed (and damn straight they should be... should've published the Muhammad cartoons you spineless twits) and so said, "Hey look at this cartoon. It's really offensive and gross, but it's about Christians, so we won't get into trouble, but we'll look real macho and controversial." Except that they did get into trouble. Hence the backtracking, profuse apologies, and claims of editorial incompetence.
Another reason that I believe the Sheaf really was just thinking about shock value when they published the cartoon is the absolute lack of context for it. I don't believe that the cartoon is just totally gross with no point. I think it has something to say about Christianity compromising some of their principles to pander to a capitalist society. However, most people can't get past the offensive image to even see the point. That is a poorly thought out cartoon, because what's the point if people don't get it? You should have the right to be offensive, but for goodness sake, use the power wisely.
So although I think the people who are raising such a stink about the cartoon definitely need to relax, I do agree that the Sheaf has conducted itself poorly. 1) You should have been honest about your reasons for not publishing the Muhammad cartoons; 2) The Capitalist Piglet cartoon, while it did contain some authentic social commentary, was published without context or frame of reference, and nobody got the point.
So was it really worth it? Do you feel all rebellious and defiant now?
*Sigh*
So anyway, they published this cartoon in The Sheaf and surprise, surprise, people were offended. The president of the University, Peter MacKinnon, sent an e-mail to everyone in the university saying that the cartoon had little value other than to shock or offend, and suggested that The Sheaf owed an apology to everyone.
Several people have gone one further and demanded that the newspaper be dismantled, that everyone on the Sheaf staff should be made to resign, and then John Gormley parks his ass on CTV news and suggests that the Sheaf owes monetary damages to all of the poor Christians it offended. (My loathing for John Gormley and every idiotic sentence that has ever fallen out of his big mouth knows no bounds.)
Obviously, I don't agree with the people calling for the resignation/termination/suing of the Sheaf staff. I can't believe how stupid people are. FREEDOM OF SPEECH people FREEDOM OF SPEECH. Without the Freedom to offend, Freedom of speech doesn't exist. You know what? I really hate listening to a lot of things out in the world right now. As I've said before, I think John Gormley would be improved 100% with a big fat piece of duct tape over that mouth of his. BUT no matter how much I don't like what I'm hearing, I will defend to the death the right of people to say it. So everyone who was offended by that cartoon, please get a life. You absolutely have the right to write in to the Sheaf and say what a horrible cartoon it was. And Peter MacKinnon absolutely had a right to send that e-mail out to everyone (although I will disrespect him forever now for doing it, the old prude.) But you don't have the right to sue people for it, and you don't have the right to censor people.
However, having said that, let us not forget the context in which the cartoon was published. The Sheaf, not so long ago, published an article explaining why they were not going to publish the Muhammad cartoons. The Sheaf says that republication of the cartoons merely detracts "from the serious and necessary debate that needs to take place around a myriad of issues that this clash uncovers". Fine. But then why publish this cartoon so shortly afterward? A lot of people are calling The Sheaf staff hypocrites, by refusing to publish one set of cartoons offensive to Muslims, and then going ahead and publishing another cartoon offensive to some Christians (and let's admit it, "Capitalist Piglet" is way worse than any of those Muhammad cartoons).
Under fire from all sides, The Sheaf is now saying that the cartoon was not meant to be included and was an editorial oversight. Ummmmmmm... I'm not buying it. Even if they did decide not to publish it at the last minute, the fact that it "accidently" made it into the final cut suggests that they were at least seriously considering it.
Here's what I think happened: The Sheaf decided not to print the Muhammad cartoons. Sure, the reasons they cite have merit, but let's be honest: they were really afraid that if they published them, someone would burn down the Sheaf office, or they'd get their butts kicked by the University Administration. Judging from Peter MacKinnon's reaction to the Capitalist Piglet cartoon, they were probably right about that last one. But, after that, they were feeling a bit ashamed (and damn straight they should be... should've published the Muhammad cartoons you spineless twits) and so said, "Hey look at this cartoon. It's really offensive and gross, but it's about Christians, so we won't get into trouble, but we'll look real macho and controversial." Except that they did get into trouble. Hence the backtracking, profuse apologies, and claims of editorial incompetence.
Another reason that I believe the Sheaf really was just thinking about shock value when they published the cartoon is the absolute lack of context for it. I don't believe that the cartoon is just totally gross with no point. I think it has something to say about Christianity compromising some of their principles to pander to a capitalist society. However, most people can't get past the offensive image to even see the point. That is a poorly thought out cartoon, because what's the point if people don't get it? You should have the right to be offensive, but for goodness sake, use the power wisely.
So although I think the people who are raising such a stink about the cartoon definitely need to relax, I do agree that the Sheaf has conducted itself poorly. 1) You should have been honest about your reasons for not publishing the Muhammad cartoons; 2) The Capitalist Piglet cartoon, while it did contain some authentic social commentary, was published without context or frame of reference, and nobody got the point.
So was it really worth it? Do you feel all rebellious and defiant now?
*Sigh*
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Abortion rant
Some days I look at the world around me, and I am honestly frightened. Where are we going? Where will we be in a few years? Sometimes I feel like we're moving backwards. All those civil liberties that we fought for over the last century seem to be disappearing one by one. It's enough to make you cry.
Mississippi is about to pass a law banning abortions. "The measure would prohibit all abortions except in very rare cases when the life of the mother is in jeopardy. It does not allow exceptions for abortions in cases of rape or incest."
Oh. My. God. And don't think we're safe up here in Canada. South Dakota just passed a similar law. This trend seems to be creeping northward. Don't forget we just elected a conservative government with a socially conservative agenda.
Personally, if I had an unplanned pregnancy, I would not have an abortion. I'm done school, I have a job, and even if the guy didn't stick around, I have a really supportive family who would help me out. Unfortunately, there are many women out there who just don't have this option.
Often people will say they are for/against abortion based on when they think the fetus becomes a person. Is it the point where the egg is fertilized by the sperm? Is it when the baby starts to look like a baby? Or is it only after the baby is born? I personally believe that all of this theorizing is beside the point.
Let's say that the baby becomes a person as soon as the egg and sperm become one. Therefore, when you have an abortion, a person dies.
Theoretical scenario: Let's say that one day you get a phone call. A relative of yours, who you have never met or heard of, is dying in the hospital. The only way they can be saved is if you go to the hospital and become hooked up to them for nine months. They need to use your body for that time until they can get an organ transplant. You are their only hope. Without you they will surely die.
So, do you go? You might say that you have a moral obligation to go and help them out. After all, even though you have never met them before and have no feelings toward them, they are another human being.
But a legal obligation? I don't think so.
The point is that one person's rights shouldn't supercede the rights of another person. I am a person, and I have the right to do with my body as I wish. And if I do not wish to be a life support system for another person for nine months, than I should not have to be.
Women should not have the rights of their person violated simply because we are in the unique position of being the sex that gives birth. And do not give me the bullshit of, "You had sex. You took the risk, now face the consequences." Yes, you should be using birth control, but nothing's fool proof. Women should be able to have a sex life and not have to worry about "What if I get pregnant?"
Men do not have to worry about this. They never get pregnant, so they can have consequence-free sex (although I do realize that responsible guys don't look at it this way). They never have to be pregnant for nine months, throw up every morning, get stretch marks on their tummies and then go through the pain of giving birth.
Gee, I wonder how many women were consulted on that decision in Mississippi?
Mississippi is about to pass a law banning abortions. "The measure would prohibit all abortions except in very rare cases when the life of the mother is in jeopardy. It does not allow exceptions for abortions in cases of rape or incest."
Oh. My. God. And don't think we're safe up here in Canada. South Dakota just passed a similar law. This trend seems to be creeping northward. Don't forget we just elected a conservative government with a socially conservative agenda.
Personally, if I had an unplanned pregnancy, I would not have an abortion. I'm done school, I have a job, and even if the guy didn't stick around, I have a really supportive family who would help me out. Unfortunately, there are many women out there who just don't have this option.
Often people will say they are for/against abortion based on when they think the fetus becomes a person. Is it the point where the egg is fertilized by the sperm? Is it when the baby starts to look like a baby? Or is it only after the baby is born? I personally believe that all of this theorizing is beside the point.
Let's say that the baby becomes a person as soon as the egg and sperm become one. Therefore, when you have an abortion, a person dies.
Theoretical scenario: Let's say that one day you get a phone call. A relative of yours, who you have never met or heard of, is dying in the hospital. The only way they can be saved is if you go to the hospital and become hooked up to them for nine months. They need to use your body for that time until they can get an organ transplant. You are their only hope. Without you they will surely die.
So, do you go? You might say that you have a moral obligation to go and help them out. After all, even though you have never met them before and have no feelings toward them, they are another human being.
But a legal obligation? I don't think so.
The point is that one person's rights shouldn't supercede the rights of another person. I am a person, and I have the right to do with my body as I wish. And if I do not wish to be a life support system for another person for nine months, than I should not have to be.
Women should not have the rights of their person violated simply because we are in the unique position of being the sex that gives birth. And do not give me the bullshit of, "You had sex. You took the risk, now face the consequences." Yes, you should be using birth control, but nothing's fool proof. Women should be able to have a sex life and not have to worry about "What if I get pregnant?"
Men do not have to worry about this. They never get pregnant, so they can have consequence-free sex (although I do realize that responsible guys don't look at it this way). They never have to be pregnant for nine months, throw up every morning, get stretch marks on their tummies and then go through the pain of giving birth.
Gee, I wonder how many women were consulted on that decision in Mississippi?
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Help!
Well, I have just finished the staff workshop. I had to do FOUR presentations on searching online databases for the librarians. The past week has been exhausting. First of all, the workshop was moved up two weeks due to a grant deadline. Then I was sick all of last week. So I was scrambling to get my presentations ready. I worked on Friday, which was supposed to be a holiday. I worked twelve hours on Tuesday, and then on Wednesday, the first day of the workshop, I had to go back to work in between presentations to work on stuff for today.
And now I have an interview to go to on Monday.
Here is what I have to do for it: "A short presentation (approximately 10 to 15 minutes) on the development of possible children’s programs."
I am too tired to think of anything. Can any of my smart library friends help me out?
And now I have an interview to go to on Monday.
Here is what I have to do for it: "A short presentation (approximately 10 to 15 minutes) on the development of possible children’s programs."
I am too tired to think of anything. Can any of my smart library friends help me out?
Saturday, February 18, 2006
Aaaahh... Finally someone with some backbone
The Strand, a student newspaper from the University of Toronto, has jumped into the whole "Muhammad Cartoon" debate. However, they have not attempted to re-publish the original cartoons (which the student newspaper at the University of PEI already tried, only to have their newspapers yanked from the stands before they could be distributed), but have published a new cartoon featuring Jesus and Muhammad kissing in the "Tunnel of Tolerance". Awwwww. Isn't that sweet? And what nobler sentiment could we choose to portray than that of love and tolerance despite our differences? In a Yahoo News Article, The Strand's managing editor Nick Ragaz is quoted as saying "the cartoon was intended to provoke debate, dialogue, and thought, and should not be understood to promote violence or hate". Thank you. Exactly.
To view the cartoon and the accompanying editorial, you can visit The Strand online. Select the Editorial, "To print or not to print?". Definitely some food for thought.
To view the cartoon and the accompanying editorial, you can visit The Strand online. Select the Editorial, "To print or not to print?". Definitely some food for thought.
Monday, February 13, 2006
meme
I've been tagged by librarychik!
Four jobs I've had in my life:
This is a tough one for me since I listen to such a wide range of music. I also tend to have a "flavour of the month", but these are the albums/artists that stick out in my mind as being the most influential over the years.
Four jobs I've had in my life:
- Mapping a cemetery and transferring the records to computer (actually one of my favourite jobs ever... cemeteries are really nice places to spend a summer afternoon)
- Pumping gas and manning the till at a gas station/hardware store (my least favorite job ever)
- harvesting cut flowers for export in New Zealand
- library assistant at a medical research foundation
- Sherbrooke, Quebec (on a three-month exchange; my twin and her family were really nice)
- Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
- Tauranga, New Zealand (this was only for three months, but I had a job, so it wasn't just a vacation)
- Edmonton, Alberta
- Hotmail
- For Better or For Worse
- The Dilbert Blog
- Homestar Runner (I actually only go about once a week, since that's how often it's updated, but it's too good not to mention)
- Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos Islands
- The Cook Islands
- Vancouver, Whistler, Victoria, Vancouver Island (that was a marathon week, and I took the bus there from Saskatchewan. Longest car ride ever)
- Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec (this was for a 1.5 month French Immersion program, so technically I was supposed to be going to school and doing work, but considering the amount of goofing off that was accomplished, I think this counts as a vacation)
- PIZZA PIZZA PIZZA
- Thai Food, yum!
- Calamari at Alexander's in Saskabush
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- France
- The UK comes a close second to France
- Australia
- New Zealand
This is a tough one for me since I listen to such a wide range of music. I also tend to have a "flavour of the month", but these are the albums/artists that stick out in my mind as being the most influential over the years.
- The Mamas and the Papas, Greatest Hits (Dream a little Dream of Me)
- Classical Music (Beethoven (love Moonlight Sonata), Gustav Holst (The Planets Suite: Jupiter), Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite, and various others too numerous to mention)
- Aerosmith (I really like Pink, Jaded, Amazing, and Blind Man)
- New Kids on the Block (Yes, yes I know. But they were really important to me when I was eleven. My friends and I were kind of obsessed with them. I had all of their albums, my bedroom walls were papered in posters of them, I had t-shirts, books, videos, keychains, earrings, slippers, and the pièce de résistance: a Joe doll. Joe and Barbie actually made a very nice couple. Besides, whether you admit it or not, I think some of their songs were kind of catchy.)
- La bête bleue: The beast himself, a 1991 sky blue GMC Tracker
- A Honda Prelude, sun roof and CD player, it was Sooooo nice (it's what I drove in New Zealand, so the steering wheel was on the right and everything, and it handled so nicely on those curvy Kiwi roads...)
- That's it! I've never owned any other cars. Though I do enjoy driving my mom's Dodge Ram 2500 when I'm at home. That thing is a tank.
- I'm only tagging one person: Puddleglum. Maybe she'll get off her ass and write something. But I suppose she is writing her thesis. I am minorly sympathetic.
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Religious fundamentalists have no sense of humour...
Well, I'm sure everybody has heard by now about the cartoons of Muhammad published in a Danish newspaper that has caused Muslims to freak around the world. Normally, I'm not one to wade into these sorts of issues, and I know that others who are probably much more knowledgeable than me have already blogged about it here and here. However, I think this is getting out of hand, and as a librarian - who by definition should stand up for the rights of freedom of speech and freedom of the press - I feel I must have my say.
First of all, I know that the outrageous actions (i.e. burning of buildings) of a few Muslims do not represent the majority. But for those few I have these words: Get a sense of humour people!!! No one should take themselves or their religion that seriously. I understand that Muhammad is sacred and that it is against Muslim law to depict him at all, much less depict him as the cartoons did. However, if we want to continue to live in a free and democratic society, we must open ourselves to criticism, including any religious beliefs we might hold. And I'm not just talking about Muslims. Christians and Hindus and other religions must also be willing have open discussion about their religions take place. Sometimes, these discussions may be in questionable taste, sometimes people will get offended. But political correctness should never take precedence over freedom of speech. We must not let ourselves be intimidated. If we start tip-toeing around because we're afraid that we might OFFEND some psychopath who will subsequently blow us up, then what are we left with? Where do we draw the line? The truth is, we will always be offending someone.
Having said that, it is perfectly okay to be offended. But instead of trying to shut down discussion and dialogue through intimidation, a better thing to do would be to provide more information. Provide an alternate viewpoint, explain why these images offend you, draw a cartoon of Jesus, anything, but keep the dialogue going. Trying to stifle opposition through violence is totally wrong.
A University Professor (I believe he is from St. Mary's University in Newfoundland, but I can't really remember for sure) had the cartoons up on his office door. The university made him take them down. This to me says that the university was intimidated by the actions taken by some Muslims and simply caved in because they wanted to avoid the issue. I understand their caution, but I personally think they were being chicken shits. A University should set an example to us all as an open forum for the discussion of ideas: ALL ideas no matter who it offends or how politically incorrect it is. If we refuse to examine something because it is going to be a little uncomfortable, then maybe we should just give up. Let a dictator take over, we'll all move back into caves and cease thinking critically at all. Seriously that is how discouraged this whole thing has made me.
Personally, I support that Danish newspaper, and every other newspaper and blogger who have continued to publish those cartoons in the face of such violent opposition.
To those Muslims out there who thought it would be a good idea to burn down an embassy, and to all nuts, regardless of faith, who take their religion too seriously:
You're offended by something I say? Fine. Be offended. Tell me all about it. Tell the whole world about it. But don't try and tell me what I can and can't say.
First of all, I know that the outrageous actions (i.e. burning of buildings) of a few Muslims do not represent the majority. But for those few I have these words: Get a sense of humour people!!! No one should take themselves or their religion that seriously. I understand that Muhammad is sacred and that it is against Muslim law to depict him at all, much less depict him as the cartoons did. However, if we want to continue to live in a free and democratic society, we must open ourselves to criticism, including any religious beliefs we might hold. And I'm not just talking about Muslims. Christians and Hindus and other religions must also be willing have open discussion about their religions take place. Sometimes, these discussions may be in questionable taste, sometimes people will get offended. But political correctness should never take precedence over freedom of speech. We must not let ourselves be intimidated. If we start tip-toeing around because we're afraid that we might OFFEND some psychopath who will subsequently blow us up, then what are we left with? Where do we draw the line? The truth is, we will always be offending someone.
Having said that, it is perfectly okay to be offended. But instead of trying to shut down discussion and dialogue through intimidation, a better thing to do would be to provide more information. Provide an alternate viewpoint, explain why these images offend you, draw a cartoon of Jesus, anything, but keep the dialogue going. Trying to stifle opposition through violence is totally wrong.
A University Professor (I believe he is from St. Mary's University in Newfoundland, but I can't really remember for sure) had the cartoons up on his office door. The university made him take them down. This to me says that the university was intimidated by the actions taken by some Muslims and simply caved in because they wanted to avoid the issue. I understand their caution, but I personally think they were being chicken shits. A University should set an example to us all as an open forum for the discussion of ideas: ALL ideas no matter who it offends or how politically incorrect it is. If we refuse to examine something because it is going to be a little uncomfortable, then maybe we should just give up. Let a dictator take over, we'll all move back into caves and cease thinking critically at all. Seriously that is how discouraged this whole thing has made me.
Personally, I support that Danish newspaper, and every other newspaper and blogger who have continued to publish those cartoons in the face of such violent opposition.
To those Muslims out there who thought it would be a good idea to burn down an embassy, and to all nuts, regardless of faith, who take their religion too seriously:
You're offended by something I say? Fine. Be offended. Tell me all about it. Tell the whole world about it. But don't try and tell me what I can and can't say.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Complete and Utter Exhaustion
Wow! And I thought after university, I would never have another week like this one has been. Do you remember those weeks? The ones where you had work, and like, four assignments due, and you worked 18 hours a day and collapsed into bed, only to wake up with the realization that you had to do it all over again the next day?
Well, that has been what the last week has been like. My Tracker is STILL broken. It has taken Canadian Tire over a week to order in a part that is supposedly coming from Regina. Geez! How long could that take? Shall I drive to Regina myself and get it?? So, I have been getting rides in with one of my co-workers. Lucky for me, four of the people I work with live in this neighbourhood, and the one lives only about a block away. So I ride in with her to work. But she gets there an hour earlier than I usually do. So I'm used to leaving for work at 8:45 (or later, I've been bad for that lately) and now I leave for work at 7:45. I have never been a morning person, so this has been hard on me. Plus, I have been doing a lot of workshops, where I have to drive out to various towns (using the library vehicle), and some of them are at night. So I get to work at 8:00 am, and get home at 11:30 pm. How's that for a work day? And I didn't go into law school because I didn't want to work 14-hour days. HA!
I am banking some over-time, which I will get to take off later...that is if I didn't have so much work to do. We have just discovered that a grant we didn't think had to be used up until the end of March, has to be used up by the end of February, so we had to move our staff workshop (which is being paid for by this grant) up two weeks to the end of February. I am in charge of most of the sessions. I was counting on having those two extra weeks to work on my sessions, so now I have to fit that in right now with all of the public workshops I'm doing out at the branches.
Needless to say, I am right now so exhausted, I'm not even sure what my name is. And the next few weeks are just going to be more of the same. But I do have the night off tonight, so I will relax and think happy thoughts.
Well, that has been what the last week has been like. My Tracker is STILL broken. It has taken Canadian Tire over a week to order in a part that is supposedly coming from Regina. Geez! How long could that take? Shall I drive to Regina myself and get it?? So, I have been getting rides in with one of my co-workers. Lucky for me, four of the people I work with live in this neighbourhood, and the one lives only about a block away. So I ride in with her to work. But she gets there an hour earlier than I usually do. So I'm used to leaving for work at 8:45 (or later, I've been bad for that lately) and now I leave for work at 7:45. I have never been a morning person, so this has been hard on me. Plus, I have been doing a lot of workshops, where I have to drive out to various towns (using the library vehicle), and some of them are at night. So I get to work at 8:00 am, and get home at 11:30 pm. How's that for a work day? And I didn't go into law school because I didn't want to work 14-hour days. HA!
I am banking some over-time, which I will get to take off later...that is if I didn't have so much work to do. We have just discovered that a grant we didn't think had to be used up until the end of March, has to be used up by the end of February, so we had to move our staff workshop (which is being paid for by this grant) up two weeks to the end of February. I am in charge of most of the sessions. I was counting on having those two extra weeks to work on my sessions, so now I have to fit that in right now with all of the public workshops I'm doing out at the branches.
Needless to say, I am right now so exhausted, I'm not even sure what my name is. And the next few weeks are just going to be more of the same. But I do have the night off tonight, so I will relax and think happy thoughts.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
La bête bleue, part deux
AAAUUUGGGHHH! AAUUUGGGGHHH!! AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHH!!!
Apparently, when my fuel pump went, it also fried the computer in my car. Computers are even more expensive than fuel pumps. In total, I see this whole thing costing me close to $1400. I'm not even sure my car is worth much more than that. Even worse was finding out the reason that both my computer and fuel pump got fried was because the fuel filter got clogged. Why was it clogged? Apparently it just builds up over time, and most people (according to the Canadian Tire guy) get theirs changed every year or so. To change a fuel filter would cost about $60. Sixty Dollars. Sixty Dollars a year, versus $1400 dollars PLUS the fact that I do not have a vehicle and likely will not until MONDAY or TUESDAY. WHY don't people tell you these things??? I check the pressure in my tires, check the oil, the coolant, the windshield washer fluid. I get oil changes twice a year. I even check the air filter once in a while. WHY in GOD's name did no one tell me to change the fuel filter???
I guess there's no one to blame really but myself, but I have honestly never heard that fuel filters are one of the things that need to be changed on a regular basis. Does everyone else get their fuel filters changed and am I really out to lunch on this one???
In other news, I think they must be really desperate for librarians in this province. I went to a meeting today, and then on a tour of provincial library, and I was STRONGLY encouraged to apply for jobs both at provincial, and at another regional library. At provincial, they even went so far as to show me "my office" where I would work if I got the job.
The thing is, I am just not sure right now if I am ready for that kind of job. You know the kind of job I mean: you work in an office, your duties are administrative and managerial. Sure, you get paid more, but I'm just not ready for that. I'm not done playing around with web sites, and making up funny newsletters, and doing fun workshops and programs. For the time being, I am quite happy to leave the supervising and strategic planning for someone else. Perhaps I should add this to my cover letters from now on:
P.S. I just really want to play with puppets, okay?
Apparently, when my fuel pump went, it also fried the computer in my car. Computers are even more expensive than fuel pumps. In total, I see this whole thing costing me close to $1400. I'm not even sure my car is worth much more than that. Even worse was finding out the reason that both my computer and fuel pump got fried was because the fuel filter got clogged. Why was it clogged? Apparently it just builds up over time, and most people (according to the Canadian Tire guy) get theirs changed every year or so. To change a fuel filter would cost about $60. Sixty Dollars. Sixty Dollars a year, versus $1400 dollars PLUS the fact that I do not have a vehicle and likely will not until MONDAY or TUESDAY. WHY don't people tell you these things??? I check the pressure in my tires, check the oil, the coolant, the windshield washer fluid. I get oil changes twice a year. I even check the air filter once in a while. WHY in GOD's name did no one tell me to change the fuel filter???
I guess there's no one to blame really but myself, but I have honestly never heard that fuel filters are one of the things that need to be changed on a regular basis. Does everyone else get their fuel filters changed and am I really out to lunch on this one???
In other news, I think they must be really desperate for librarians in this province. I went to a meeting today, and then on a tour of provincial library, and I was STRONGLY encouraged to apply for jobs both at provincial, and at another regional library. At provincial, they even went so far as to show me "my office" where I would work if I got the job.
The thing is, I am just not sure right now if I am ready for that kind of job. You know the kind of job I mean: you work in an office, your duties are administrative and managerial. Sure, you get paid more, but I'm just not ready for that. I'm not done playing around with web sites, and making up funny newsletters, and doing fun workshops and programs. For the time being, I am quite happy to leave the supervising and strategic planning for someone else. Perhaps I should add this to my cover letters from now on:
P.S. I just really want to play with puppets, okay?
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
La bête bleue
My car just died on me. Driving down the street, it suddenly stalled and would not start again. I had it towed. Turns out it is the fuel pump, a very expensive part to replace. Very upsetting for me. Which brings me to one of the biggest disadvantages of living in a rural area: you need your car to get around. The public transit system sucks.
If I was living in Edmonton and this happened, I'd be like "Meh." I either walked or took the bus or the LRT to pretty much everywhere I needed to go. Here, it feels like my right arm has been cut off. I am not within walking distance of work, or a grocery store. There is bus service here, but it would probably be at least a 45-minute bus ride to get across town to work, where it is normally a 10-minute drive, max. Very frightening. But at least they know what's wrong now. And though I will be very poor afterwards, I hope to have my car back soon.
If I was living in Edmonton and this happened, I'd be like "Meh." I either walked or took the bus or the LRT to pretty much everywhere I needed to go. Here, it feels like my right arm has been cut off. I am not within walking distance of work, or a grocery store. There is bus service here, but it would probably be at least a 45-minute bus ride to get across town to work, where it is normally a 10-minute drive, max. Very frightening. But at least they know what's wrong now. And though I will be very poor afterwards, I hope to have my car back soon.
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Don't Forget...
Life, it's ever so strange
It's so full of change
Think that you've worked it out
then BANG
Right out of the blue
Something happens to you
To throw you off course
and then you
Breakdown
Yeah you breakdown
Well don't you breakdown
Listen to me
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you round and round
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared
don't hide your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget it's just a ride
Truth, we don't wanna hear
It's too much to take
Don't like to feel out of control
So we make our plans
Ten times a day
And when they don't go
our way we
Breakdown
Yeah we breakdown
Well don't you breakdown
Listen to me
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you round and round
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared
don't hide your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget it's just a ride
Slowly, oh so very slowly
except that
there's no getting off
So live it, just gotta go with it
coz this ride's never gonna stop
Breakdown
Don't you breakdown
No need to breakdown
No need at all
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you all around
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared now
dry your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget...
enjoy the ride
jem - "just a ride"
It's so full of change
Think that you've worked it out
then BANG
Right out of the blue
Something happens to you
To throw you off course
and then you
Breakdown
Yeah you breakdown
Well don't you breakdown
Listen to me
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you round and round
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared
don't hide your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget it's just a ride
Truth, we don't wanna hear
It's too much to take
Don't like to feel out of control
So we make our plans
Ten times a day
And when they don't go
our way we
Breakdown
Yeah we breakdown
Well don't you breakdown
Listen to me
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you round and round
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared
don't hide your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget it's just a ride
Slowly, oh so very slowly
except that
there's no getting off
So live it, just gotta go with it
coz this ride's never gonna stop
Breakdown
Don't you breakdown
No need to breakdown
No need at all
Because
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
no need to run, no need to hide
It'll take you all around
Sometimes you're up
sometimes you're down
It's just a ride, it's just a ride
don't be scared now
dry your eyes
It may feel so real inside
but don't forget...
enjoy the ride
jem - "just a ride"
Saturday, December 31, 2005
Star Wars and the end of a relationship
I have just broken up with EJ. I am extremely upset about it. Why is it that people always assume that the only good reason for a break-up is because the other person cheated or did something equally deplorable? The truth is that EJ is a great guy. And he did not do anything wrong. Call it what you will: mistaken identity, bad timing... I am myself a little uncertain as to the precise reasons. I know relationships are not easy, and that you have to work at them... but I don't believe they should be an everyday struggle. I had to ask myself if I was settling... and I realized that if you have to ask yourself that question, then you've probably already answered it.
I would also like to defend all of the dumpers out there. Why is it that people assume that when the dumpee has not done anything wrong, that the dumper must be some sort of sadistic, horrible person? (Okay, there are some sadistic, horrible dumpers out there, I do not defend them). However, I do not get my kicks from causing other people pain. And truthfully, I find that dumping someone is harder than getting dumped. I know that the relationship where I got dumped was short-lived (and the guy never really did stop dating his former girlfriend, so can we really call that a relationship?), but it still stung when he ditched me. But it's nowhere near how horrible I felt, feel, and will feel for a long time about telling my best friend that I didn't love him the way he needed to be loved. Being a dumper is about taking responsibility for your life and your relationship and saying, "This isn't working, and as painful as it will be, it will be better to be apart than it will be to stay together." Being a dumper is making a decision, a horrible painful decision that you know you may regret, and you know will certainly cause you and someone you care about pain...
But enough about possibly the worst New Year's Eve in history. I would now like to direct all of you to a site where you can download the latest installment in the Star Wars Saga:
Revelations, Episode 3.5(?) (It takes place after Revenge of the Sith, and before A New Hope)
This may be old news to some as it's been out since spring of this year, but for those of you who haven't yet indulged, I suggest you have a taste. What do I think of it? Well, it's hard to say. It was a very low budget production, all of the people involved were volunteers and no one got paid, so you obviously can't compare it to the original six. Still, I'd say the visuals are impressive for an amateur crew and the plot line definitely has potential, although I'd say that they didn't (or more accurately couldn't) explore either the characters or the plot to their fullest depth in the approximately 40-minute film. I don't want to give it away, but they find out that there was a secret sect of jedi within the jedi that hunted down failed paduans. Hello! Big news! But they don't really get to dwell on the magnitude of their discovery. The action scenes (after seeing the amazing antics of the Jedi in Episodes 2 and 3) are, how shall I say it... lacking, but I imagine they couldn't afford stunt doubles. :o)
In conclusion, see it and tell me what you all think.
I would also like to defend all of the dumpers out there. Why is it that people assume that when the dumpee has not done anything wrong, that the dumper must be some sort of sadistic, horrible person? (Okay, there are some sadistic, horrible dumpers out there, I do not defend them). However, I do not get my kicks from causing other people pain. And truthfully, I find that dumping someone is harder than getting dumped. I know that the relationship where I got dumped was short-lived (and the guy never really did stop dating his former girlfriend, so can we really call that a relationship?), but it still stung when he ditched me. But it's nowhere near how horrible I felt, feel, and will feel for a long time about telling my best friend that I didn't love him the way he needed to be loved. Being a dumper is about taking responsibility for your life and your relationship and saying, "This isn't working, and as painful as it will be, it will be better to be apart than it will be to stay together." Being a dumper is making a decision, a horrible painful decision that you know you may regret, and you know will certainly cause you and someone you care about pain...
But enough about possibly the worst New Year's Eve in history. I would now like to direct all of you to a site where you can download the latest installment in the Star Wars Saga:
Revelations, Episode 3.5(?) (It takes place after Revenge of the Sith, and before A New Hope)
This may be old news to some as it's been out since spring of this year, but for those of you who haven't yet indulged, I suggest you have a taste. What do I think of it? Well, it's hard to say. It was a very low budget production, all of the people involved were volunteers and no one got paid, so you obviously can't compare it to the original six. Still, I'd say the visuals are impressive for an amateur crew and the plot line definitely has potential, although I'd say that they didn't (or more accurately couldn't) explore either the characters or the plot to their fullest depth in the approximately 40-minute film. I don't want to give it away, but they find out that there was a secret sect of jedi within the jedi that hunted down failed paduans. Hello! Big news! But they don't really get to dwell on the magnitude of their discovery. The action scenes (after seeing the amazing antics of the Jedi in Episodes 2 and 3) are, how shall I say it... lacking, but I imagine they couldn't afford stunt doubles. :o)
In conclusion, see it and tell me what you all think.
Sunday, December 04, 2005
Désastre!
So I had to work yesterday (Saturday). I had to go to a Craft Fair in a very tiny town. The Library there was having a table display, so they had me out to do a display with my laptop and digital projector, to be able to show people how to use our OPAC and Online databases. I had done this once before, about a month ago in another small town that is only about 20 km away from this small town. The difference being that a month ago, M. went with me to provide technical support, that being the first time I was out. This time, I was on my own.
I was late. I thought I had left myself plenty of time to get there, but first of all, I realized I'd forgotten our screen. Can't have a digital display without a screen. So back I went. I was only a block away when I realized, but it still takes time to unlock the doors and disarm the security system and then do it all over again. But, I still thought I had plenty of time. Then I got on to some of those secondary highways, which never get plowed, and they were covered with snow and ice. Plus I had to drive through a provincial park, which is always infested with deer. So, by the time I get there, it is after 10 am. I was supposed to be there at 9:30 to set up, and then the fair started at 10. Ooops.
Then, I start getting everything set up. I get the projector, laptop and screen all set up. Turn it on, and ... nothing. The computer is not displaying with the digital projector. No problem. M. and I ran into this problem before, and we figured it out. I do all of the things that I think I'm supposed to do. Still nothing. I fiddle for half and hour and it still DOES NOT WORK. I am looking more incompetent by the minute. The librarian who has come with her fancy computer stuff and is supposed to be promoting E-Library Services cannot make the computer screen display with the digital projector. I finally give up. I take down the screen and projector and just have the laptop there.
Honestly, all is not lost. I still brought lots of display items, I have several people come up and say that they didn't know the library had DVDs. I have two door prize books, and that goes over well. I even have a couple of people come up and ask me to look for books online for them. I give away lots of bookmarks and fridge magnets. So not horrible, but I still can't help thinking that I have made a mess of the day. Then, a woman comes up who looks vaguely familiar. She starts asking me about Gateway. "Can I check the status of a loan through Gateway?" she asks. "No," I reply, "that's not an option right now. You'd have to do it through the InterLibrary Loan system. You should ask your librarian." As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I realize that her questions have been very knowledgeable. Much more knowledgeable than a member of the public. Could she be a librarian? I quickly try to cover my faux pas: "You know, you'd have to talk to M. at Headquarters". She nods, understanding. Oh God, if she knows what I mean by "M. at Headquarters", then she must be a librarian. I have just told a librarian to go ask a librarian. Brilliant. I feel terrible, although I only met all of the branch librarians at a workshop day two months ago and have not seen most of them since, but still I feel bad. When I leave I still do not remember who she is or which branch she works at. "Bye Violette [well, not Violette, but my real name]", she says. I smile and wave feeling like an idiot.
So that was my day. Can we say incompetence!?
Does anyone else have days like that?
I was late. I thought I had left myself plenty of time to get there, but first of all, I realized I'd forgotten our screen. Can't have a digital display without a screen. So back I went. I was only a block away when I realized, but it still takes time to unlock the doors and disarm the security system and then do it all over again. But, I still thought I had plenty of time. Then I got on to some of those secondary highways, which never get plowed, and they were covered with snow and ice. Plus I had to drive through a provincial park, which is always infested with deer. So, by the time I get there, it is after 10 am. I was supposed to be there at 9:30 to set up, and then the fair started at 10. Ooops.
Then, I start getting everything set up. I get the projector, laptop and screen all set up. Turn it on, and ... nothing. The computer is not displaying with the digital projector. No problem. M. and I ran into this problem before, and we figured it out. I do all of the things that I think I'm supposed to do. Still nothing. I fiddle for half and hour and it still DOES NOT WORK. I am looking more incompetent by the minute. The librarian who has come with her fancy computer stuff and is supposed to be promoting E-Library Services cannot make the computer screen display with the digital projector. I finally give up. I take down the screen and projector and just have the laptop there.
Honestly, all is not lost. I still brought lots of display items, I have several people come up and say that they didn't know the library had DVDs. I have two door prize books, and that goes over well. I even have a couple of people come up and ask me to look for books online for them. I give away lots of bookmarks and fridge magnets. So not horrible, but I still can't help thinking that I have made a mess of the day. Then, a woman comes up who looks vaguely familiar. She starts asking me about Gateway. "Can I check the status of a loan through Gateway?" she asks. "No," I reply, "that's not an option right now. You'd have to do it through the InterLibrary Loan system. You should ask your librarian." As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I realize that her questions have been very knowledgeable. Much more knowledgeable than a member of the public. Could she be a librarian? I quickly try to cover my faux pas: "You know, you'd have to talk to M. at Headquarters". She nods, understanding. Oh God, if she knows what I mean by "M. at Headquarters", then she must be a librarian. I have just told a librarian to go ask a librarian. Brilliant. I feel terrible, although I only met all of the branch librarians at a workshop day two months ago and have not seen most of them since, but still I feel bad. When I leave I still do not remember who she is or which branch she works at. "Bye Violette [well, not Violette, but my real name]", she says. I smile and wave feeling like an idiot.
So that was my day. Can we say incompetence!?
Does anyone else have days like that?
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Eldest
I have just finished reading the second book in the Inheritance Series, Eldest by Christopher Paolini. I had read the first book, Eragon, over the summer. I did actually enjoy it, though I found it a bit hard to get into at first for some reason.
The book is definitely worth reading, but it still has some rough edges. This is understandable since Christopher Paolini is only 22 years old, and started writing the trilogy when he was 15. He has definitely accomplished an amazing feat considering his age and the fact that this trilogy was his first major undertaking. I am actually quite jealous, since I am also a huge fantasy fan and have considered writing my own epic. Alas, due to laziness, or maybe because I've just been too busy with other things, I have only ever written about 3 chapters of my novel.
In any case, although I enjoyed Eldest, I could definitely tell that the writer was a little inexperienced. The story didn't flow as well as it should sometimes. Also, I think he tends to overexplain himself a little bit, like going into exhaustive detail about how the magic works. He needs to understand that, unless a technical point is important to the story, most readers will simply accept the magic. Unless there are glaring inconsistancies, it won't matter to them, because it's the story that matters. In addition, the way he goes about explaining technical details slows the story down a bit. He tends to have characters explain, rather than having the characters do something which will make the explanation obvious to the reader. I don't know how much sense I'm making here, but you're supposed to show them, not tell them, right?
This also brings me to the point that, in writing, less is more (usually). Basically, you need to create an atmosphere, and do some character development, but unless a point becomes critical to the plot later on, there's no sense including it just for the sake of including it. I think J.K. Rowling is a master at this. She tends to have incidents happen, or characters do things which appear incidental and unimportant in one book, and then become huge deals in another book. For example, in the first book, Harry talks to a snake at the zoo and lets it out of its cage. Just an example of his natural abilities as a wizard coming through you think. Then in the second book, it becomes a HUGE deal that he can talk to snakes. In fact the whole plot hinges on it. Another example: It is suddenly discovered that Ron's stupid rat Scabbers, who has been around since book one, is actually the wizard responsible for Harry's parents' deaths. Like, I really wonder how much J.K. Rowling had things all planned in advance, because it seems that nothing that happens in the earlier books is insignificant, no character is introduced simply for the sake of it. It seems to me that the best plots are like this: they do not meander (although they may appear to meander, these are the sneakiest plots) but every step, every action, every comment, is planned out to perfection. Now I know this definition of a good plot practically eliminates all 19th century literature, but I guess it depends on what kind of story you want to read. Fantasy, for the most part, relies upon magic, exciting adventure, discoveries, etc. and I think it needs to have fast-paced plot.
But, back to my review. Really, beyond my few criticisms, I was impressed. Yes, it's a traditional fantasy epic, fairly formulaic as we all know, and yet the book managed to surprise me a few times. So keep writing Mr. Paolini, and I'll look forward to the third book. 3.5 purple horsies out of five.
In other news, and speaking of J.K. Rowling, I will finally get to see the movie this weekend. To prepare for this momentous occasion, EJ and I have planned a little Harry Potter movie marathon. We're going to watch all three earlier movies before we see number four. That way we can compare directors, etc. and see if Daniel Radcliffe has learned to act yet. Although, I actually rewatched part of the first one, and he wasn't as bad as I remembered. Maybe it was only the second one... In any case, I am making some traditional British recipes in honour of the occasion: Treacle Tart and Toad in the Hole. I considered Spotted Dick, but it sounded icky. (What in God's name is shredded suet??)
The book is definitely worth reading, but it still has some rough edges. This is understandable since Christopher Paolini is only 22 years old, and started writing the trilogy when he was 15. He has definitely accomplished an amazing feat considering his age and the fact that this trilogy was his first major undertaking. I am actually quite jealous, since I am also a huge fantasy fan and have considered writing my own epic. Alas, due to laziness, or maybe because I've just been too busy with other things, I have only ever written about 3 chapters of my novel.
In any case, although I enjoyed Eldest, I could definitely tell that the writer was a little inexperienced. The story didn't flow as well as it should sometimes. Also, I think he tends to overexplain himself a little bit, like going into exhaustive detail about how the magic works. He needs to understand that, unless a technical point is important to the story, most readers will simply accept the magic. Unless there are glaring inconsistancies, it won't matter to them, because it's the story that matters. In addition, the way he goes about explaining technical details slows the story down a bit. He tends to have characters explain, rather than having the characters do something which will make the explanation obvious to the reader. I don't know how much sense I'm making here, but you're supposed to show them, not tell them, right?
This also brings me to the point that, in writing, less is more (usually). Basically, you need to create an atmosphere, and do some character development, but unless a point becomes critical to the plot later on, there's no sense including it just for the sake of including it. I think J.K. Rowling is a master at this. She tends to have incidents happen, or characters do things which appear incidental and unimportant in one book, and then become huge deals in another book. For example, in the first book, Harry talks to a snake at the zoo and lets it out of its cage. Just an example of his natural abilities as a wizard coming through you think. Then in the second book, it becomes a HUGE deal that he can talk to snakes. In fact the whole plot hinges on it. Another example: It is suddenly discovered that Ron's stupid rat Scabbers, who has been around since book one, is actually the wizard responsible for Harry's parents' deaths. Like, I really wonder how much J.K. Rowling had things all planned in advance, because it seems that nothing that happens in the earlier books is insignificant, no character is introduced simply for the sake of it. It seems to me that the best plots are like this: they do not meander (although they may appear to meander, these are the sneakiest plots) but every step, every action, every comment, is planned out to perfection. Now I know this definition of a good plot practically eliminates all 19th century literature, but I guess it depends on what kind of story you want to read. Fantasy, for the most part, relies upon magic, exciting adventure, discoveries, etc. and I think it needs to have fast-paced plot.
But, back to my review. Really, beyond my few criticisms, I was impressed. Yes, it's a traditional fantasy epic, fairly formulaic as we all know, and yet the book managed to surprise me a few times. So keep writing Mr. Paolini, and I'll look forward to the third book. 3.5 purple horsies out of five.
In other news, and speaking of J.K. Rowling, I will finally get to see the movie this weekend. To prepare for this momentous occasion, EJ and I have planned a little Harry Potter movie marathon. We're going to watch all three earlier movies before we see number four. That way we can compare directors, etc. and see if Daniel Radcliffe has learned to act yet. Although, I actually rewatched part of the first one, and he wasn't as bad as I remembered. Maybe it was only the second one... In any case, I am making some traditional British recipes in honour of the occasion: Treacle Tart and Toad in the Hole. I considered Spotted Dick, but it sounded icky. (What in God's name is shredded suet??)
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Potter Mania
That's right folks. Tomorrow night it happens: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is finally here. Rejoice!
Okay, I've always been a big fan of the books, but not so much the movies. I thought the first couple of movies were only pale imitations of the books. The third one, however, was a big improvement in my mind, and I have been looking forward to seeing the fourth one for a while. Especially after my summer read of Book #6 got me into it all over again. Despite my growing excitement, I thought I was past all of that pre-adolescent swooning that goes on over Daniel Radcliffe. I mean really, the kid (and kid he is by my reckoning) is 9 years younger than me! And to be quite honest, he's not my favorite actor. Personally, I've found him to be a little stiff and awkward, especially in the first two movies, although he is improving. It only makes it worse when he plays so often opposite Rupert Grint, who is a really fluid actor with great comic timing. However, that's not to say Dan won't get better and someday become a great actor. Besides the Harry Potter films, he isn't that experienced.
Ahh yes, but on to the point of my post. I had a Harry Potter dream last night. I was in the movie, and I was playing the part of Ron and Ginny's older sister. It was really funny, because for the life of me I couldn't remember my character's name (I of course didn't remember that it's because there is no such character). So there we were, me, Dan, Emma, Rupert, and whoever it is that plays Ginny, dashing around the set. And I couldn't remember the script. I was never where I was supposed to be, and I got all of my lines wrong. I remember thinking that I had better re-read the book since I couldn't seem to remember anything of what was supposed to happen! This made such a strong impression on my mind that when I woke up, I was all set to phone my sister and tell her to lend me her copy of the Goblet of Fire so I could re-read it. I then recalled that I had just re-read the entire thing this summer, and I could recall most of the details just fine.
But here's where it gets weird. We were all taking a break between takes, or whatever, (despite my dream I honestly have no clue what goes on during the filming of a movie). Emma was sympathetic and trying to explain to me where I was supposed to be. Then Dan came and sat down very close beside me, and then we started kissing!!!
Okay, this guy is only a year older than my cousin whose diapers I used to change. I have no excuse, except that Potter Mania has finally really gotten to me. The only cure I guess is to go and see the movie.
Despite my rather embarrassing dream, I'm still really excited. Yay Harry Potter!!!
Okay, I've always been a big fan of the books, but not so much the movies. I thought the first couple of movies were only pale imitations of the books. The third one, however, was a big improvement in my mind, and I have been looking forward to seeing the fourth one for a while. Especially after my summer read of Book #6 got me into it all over again. Despite my growing excitement, I thought I was past all of that pre-adolescent swooning that goes on over Daniel Radcliffe. I mean really, the kid (and kid he is by my reckoning) is 9 years younger than me! And to be quite honest, he's not my favorite actor. Personally, I've found him to be a little stiff and awkward, especially in the first two movies, although he is improving. It only makes it worse when he plays so often opposite Rupert Grint, who is a really fluid actor with great comic timing. However, that's not to say Dan won't get better and someday become a great actor. Besides the Harry Potter films, he isn't that experienced.
Ahh yes, but on to the point of my post. I had a Harry Potter dream last night. I was in the movie, and I was playing the part of Ron and Ginny's older sister. It was really funny, because for the life of me I couldn't remember my character's name (I of course didn't remember that it's because there is no such character). So there we were, me, Dan, Emma, Rupert, and whoever it is that plays Ginny, dashing around the set. And I couldn't remember the script. I was never where I was supposed to be, and I got all of my lines wrong. I remember thinking that I had better re-read the book since I couldn't seem to remember anything of what was supposed to happen! This made such a strong impression on my mind that when I woke up, I was all set to phone my sister and tell her to lend me her copy of the Goblet of Fire so I could re-read it. I then recalled that I had just re-read the entire thing this summer, and I could recall most of the details just fine.
But here's where it gets weird. We were all taking a break between takes, or whatever, (despite my dream I honestly have no clue what goes on during the filming of a movie). Emma was sympathetic and trying to explain to me where I was supposed to be. Then Dan came and sat down very close beside me, and then we started kissing!!!
Okay, this guy is only a year older than my cousin whose diapers I used to change. I have no excuse, except that Potter Mania has finally really gotten to me. The only cure I guess is to go and see the movie.
Despite my rather embarrassing dream, I'm still really excited. Yay Harry Potter!!!
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Sick as a Dog
Hmmm. I wonder where that expression came from? Are dogs really sick that often?
Anyway, I am quite ill. Some sort of flu I think. I took yesterday off work, but I was supposed to give a 5-minute presentation to the Regional Board today, so I hauled myself in to work at noon. I endured the 3-hour meeting where such lively subjects were discussed as whether the board should meet five times a year instead of four. Believe it or not, this was a fairly contentious issue. The good news is I got to take home the fruit plate leftovers. The bad news is that I now feel like I've been run over by a truck. I haven't thrown up since yesterday, but my chest hurts when I breathe in deeply. That's not a good sign, is it?
Well, enough of my misery. If you are looking for something to do at work (besides actual work I mean) and you are sick of solitaire, try one of these puzzles:
http://www.websudoku.com
It's like a crossword puzzle with numbers.
Anyway, I am quite ill. Some sort of flu I think. I took yesterday off work, but I was supposed to give a 5-minute presentation to the Regional Board today, so I hauled myself in to work at noon. I endured the 3-hour meeting where such lively subjects were discussed as whether the board should meet five times a year instead of four. Believe it or not, this was a fairly contentious issue. The good news is I got to take home the fruit plate leftovers. The bad news is that I now feel like I've been run over by a truck. I haven't thrown up since yesterday, but my chest hurts when I breathe in deeply. That's not a good sign, is it?
Well, enough of my misery. If you are looking for something to do at work (besides actual work I mean) and you are sick of solitaire, try one of these puzzles:
http://www.websudoku.com
It's like a crossword puzzle with numbers.
Thursday, October 27, 2005
Evil Thought for the Day
Some people are like slinkies:
They don't really have a use,
But they can still make you smile
When you push them down the stairs.
They don't really have a use,
But they can still make you smile
When you push them down the stairs.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Good Enough
I just got back from another wedding. I have been to four weddings this summer and fall. I guess I am just at that age. But, it's made me think a lot about commitment and the nature of relationships.
This latest wedding was really beautiful. The bride was gorgeous, the food was great, the decorations divine. And all the same, there were people, including the groomsmen, who were making bets on how long it would last. Why? Well, perhaps a short history of the (happy?) couple is in order.
The best man introduced S to L. They started dating, then got pretty serious. S wanted to have sex, even though L is catholic and had never even had a boyfriend before. But L said okay, as long as S was sure he loved her and was going to marry her someday. So then they moved in together. But, then it seemed like S got sick of L. He was annoyed with her, and was thinking of breaking up with her. In fact, S even told L he wanted to break up. But, L had nowhere to go, and so they continued to live together. Then, like two months later, they're engaged.
So, did S suddenly have a change of heart and realize that he loved L? Or are other factors at work? When a friend asked S if he loved L, S replied to the effect that she was a good cook and housekeeper (which she is, she takes care of everything). Now, was S just joking, or was there a little kernel of truth to that statement? Instead of suddenly realizing how much he loved L, it seems to me more likely that S: 1) Felt bad that he was about to dump a nice, good catholic girl that he'd pressured into having sex, and going to break his promise to her that he'd marry her someday. 2) Realized that L is basically a nice person, and a great cook and housekeeper. What's not to like?
Basically, I'm wondering if S really loves L, or if he just settled for "good enough"?
And really, what's the difference? I'm not one of those people who believes in soulmates. I think there's more than one person out there that we could end up with. You basically gotta find someone that you're mostly compatible with, and then work hard at the relationship. None of this "meet your soulmate and live happily ever after just cuz you're meant for eachother" stuff. But now I'm wondering, if you're like me, and believe that no relationship is ever perfect, then how do you know that you've found someone to share your life with, or if you're just settling for "good enough"?
This latest wedding was really beautiful. The bride was gorgeous, the food was great, the decorations divine. And all the same, there were people, including the groomsmen, who were making bets on how long it would last. Why? Well, perhaps a short history of the (happy?) couple is in order.
The best man introduced S to L. They started dating, then got pretty serious. S wanted to have sex, even though L is catholic and had never even had a boyfriend before. But L said okay, as long as S was sure he loved her and was going to marry her someday. So then they moved in together. But, then it seemed like S got sick of L. He was annoyed with her, and was thinking of breaking up with her. In fact, S even told L he wanted to break up. But, L had nowhere to go, and so they continued to live together. Then, like two months later, they're engaged.
So, did S suddenly have a change of heart and realize that he loved L? Or are other factors at work? When a friend asked S if he loved L, S replied to the effect that she was a good cook and housekeeper (which she is, she takes care of everything). Now, was S just joking, or was there a little kernel of truth to that statement? Instead of suddenly realizing how much he loved L, it seems to me more likely that S: 1) Felt bad that he was about to dump a nice, good catholic girl that he'd pressured into having sex, and going to break his promise to her that he'd marry her someday. 2) Realized that L is basically a nice person, and a great cook and housekeeper. What's not to like?
Basically, I'm wondering if S really loves L, or if he just settled for "good enough"?
And really, what's the difference? I'm not one of those people who believes in soulmates. I think there's more than one person out there that we could end up with. You basically gotta find someone that you're mostly compatible with, and then work hard at the relationship. None of this "meet your soulmate and live happily ever after just cuz you're meant for eachother" stuff. But now I'm wondering, if you're like me, and believe that no relationship is ever perfect, then how do you know that you've found someone to share your life with, or if you're just settling for "good enough"?
Monday, October 17, 2005
The Great Escape
I am feeling somewhat murderous toward my kitty tonight. She managed to open the screen door and leap off of my balcony to the ground below, all while I wasn't looking. And my other kitty, George, was surprisingly oblivious to it all and missed his chance to escape with her. I then spent the next half hour tramping through the trees, bushes and parking lot looking for my cat. How embarrassing. I must have looked like an idiot tramping around, looking under cars, and calling "Kitty, Kitty, Food Time". The worst thing is that I caught sight of her a few times and she ran away. Now Avery is my kitty and she loves me as much as I love her, but something happens when she goes outside: she becomes a feral thing that won't even come at the promise of food. I finally snagged her, puffy tail and all, as she dashed around a corner and brought her back to the apartment where I'm sure she told George all about it. George is now in a very crummy mood, and I suspect that he is cursing his own inattention to the screen door. Escape was within his grasp, and he let it slip away.
Ah well, Georgie, better luck next time. Although there won't be a next time if I can help it. As of now, all balcony privileges have been suspended.
As a side note, isn't it interesting about librarians and cats? Almost all of my co-workers have cats. JS has two kitties (she had three, but one died last year at the age of 22), and CG has five cats and one dog. It would be interesting to do a survey and see just what percentage of librarians actually have cats.
Ah well, Georgie, better luck next time. Although there won't be a next time if I can help it. As of now, all balcony privileges have been suspended.
As a side note, isn't it interesting about librarians and cats? Almost all of my co-workers have cats. JS has two kitties (she had three, but one died last year at the age of 22), and CG has five cats and one dog. It would be interesting to do a survey and see just what percentage of librarians actually have cats.
Friday, October 14, 2005
What have I been up to?
Well. I've been at my new job all of 2 weeks. So what do I think? Actually, I think I might be enjoying myself. All of the people are really nice, and I'm enjoying what I'm doing. And yes, it's a fairly small town, quite a change from Edmonton, but really, still very nice. I could probably stay here and be quite happy.
On the home front, my cats are perhaps not quite so happy. I should not have let them out of the house while they were staying at the farm, but I couldn't resist their longing looks at the door. And now that they are back in a city apartment, they are not happy that am not letting them out. So, I thought I would try George with a leash. I know, I know. A cat on a leash? But Georgie has so many other doggie traits that I thought perhaps he would walk on a leash as well. And? Nope. Definitely not. Hates the leash. Tries to eat the leash, rolls on the floor until he's all wrapped up in the leash, and basically makes a general disply of displeasure. I have also realized that I'm probably in the worst apartment for owning two cats. I'm the middle apartment on the second floor, so I have people above, below, and to either side. My cats sometimes get up to a game of tag in the middle of the night. When I was in the basement suite and my only neightbour was the utility room, this was not a big deal, except for when it made me lose sleep. But now I have to worry about the people below me. I don't know how loud two cats running around on your ceiling sounds like, but I'm terrified of getting kicked out like the piano-playing freak who lives above me.
Oh yes, did I mention him? First night I'm here, he starts banging on the piano at one in the morning. And when I say banging, I'm speaking literally. He was not playing a song. It sounded like a 2 year old was on the piano. And I'm thinking, "I better not go up there and tell him to shut up, because anybody who plays nonsense on a piano at one in the morning in an apartment building is either very drunk or very crazy or perhaps both." I talked to the landlords in the morning, and they indicated to me that they'd had problems with this guy before. He's apparently going to be kicked out. Hasn't happened yet, although there have been no more late night serenades.
And now, a word from Avery:
,de\\\n
She thinks my laptop makes a great butt warmer.
On the home front, my cats are perhaps not quite so happy. I should not have let them out of the house while they were staying at the farm, but I couldn't resist their longing looks at the door. And now that they are back in a city apartment, they are not happy that am not letting them out. So, I thought I would try George with a leash. I know, I know. A cat on a leash? But Georgie has so many other doggie traits that I thought perhaps he would walk on a leash as well. And? Nope. Definitely not. Hates the leash. Tries to eat the leash, rolls on the floor until he's all wrapped up in the leash, and basically makes a general disply of displeasure. I have also realized that I'm probably in the worst apartment for owning two cats. I'm the middle apartment on the second floor, so I have people above, below, and to either side. My cats sometimes get up to a game of tag in the middle of the night. When I was in the basement suite and my only neightbour was the utility room, this was not a big deal, except for when it made me lose sleep. But now I have to worry about the people below me. I don't know how loud two cats running around on your ceiling sounds like, but I'm terrified of getting kicked out like the piano-playing freak who lives above me.
Oh yes, did I mention him? First night I'm here, he starts banging on the piano at one in the morning. And when I say banging, I'm speaking literally. He was not playing a song. It sounded like a 2 year old was on the piano. And I'm thinking, "I better not go up there and tell him to shut up, because anybody who plays nonsense on a piano at one in the morning in an apartment building is either very drunk or very crazy or perhaps both." I talked to the landlords in the morning, and they indicated to me that they'd had problems with this guy before. He's apparently going to be kicked out. Hasn't happened yet, although there have been no more late night serenades.
And now, a word from Avery:
,de\\\n
She thinks my laptop makes a great butt warmer.
Sunday, October 02, 2005
She's Baaaa-aaaaack
Heh, heh. I know I've been a bad little blogger, but I'm hoping to resurrect my blog again in the coming months. I am starting my new job tomorrow, and I just finished unloading the moving truck at 9pm last night. Nothing's unpacked, nothing's put away, and I can't believe I have to be at work tomorrow morning at 9am. I am currently TV-less, Internet-less (I'm at my parents using their computer right now), and I don't even have a good book to read. Stress levels are high. I will probably end up ordering pizza every night this week to make up for it.
Anyway, my job is an internship at a regional library. I am supposed to be in charge to marketing their online services. I have never been in charge of anything, or marketed anything, so this should prove interesting. I'll probably have a bunch of "violette-stuffed-up-again-at-work" stories to tell.
Anyway, my job is an internship at a regional library. I am supposed to be in charge to marketing their online services. I have never been in charge of anything, or marketed anything, so this should prove interesting. I'll probably have a bunch of "violette-stuffed-up-again-at-work" stories to tell.
Saturday, August 06, 2005
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Spoiler Alert!
Warning: If you have not yet read the 6th Harry Potter book, go no further!
So, I've finally finished it. Wow. What a shocker! And I'm not necessarily talking about Dumbledore's death, although that was pretty sad. What was most shocking to me was Snape's betrayal. Yes, I know he is a really nasty man, and he was a former death eater...J.K. Rowling has set it up so that we really hate him, and we want him to be bad so that we can feel justified in hating him. I'm sure that Harry finally feels justified in his intense dislike. Yet it almost feels like a cop-out on Rowling's part. I thought Snape was an interesting character simply because it says a couple of things about people: First of all, no matter what somebody has done in the past, they can change. It's difficult, but it can be done. And secondly, sometimes someone you dislike and don't get along with can be on your side, and you have to learn to work with them. Just because Snape was nasty doesn't mean he would for sure turn out to be evil.
I thought it was simply too easy for Snape to just turn out to be evil, so therefore I didn't believe it. Even in the beginning when he made the unbreakable vow, I thought "Hmmm. How's he going to get out of this one?". It never occurred to me that he wouldn't. Even now I find myself doubting Snape's true allegiance. Maybe he had to kill Dumbledore because of the unbreakable vow...maybe he knew Dumbledore was dying anyway...maybe he thinks he can do a better job than Dumbledore in taking down Voldemort...
And yet, he killed Dumbledore. Dumbledore who was his champion all along. And, as we've heard before, you cannot use one of the unforgivable curses if you don't mean it. Therefore he must have meant it. And also the expression of hatred as he did it...
Yes, I believe I must accept that Snape is evil. He is lost to us forever.
As for the rest of the book, I called Harry and Ginny and Ron and Hermione a long time ago. I wonder if Harry will get back together with Ginny at the end of next book? I also thought it was a bit shocking and scary that they are not going back to school next year. And I thought it was a bit silly that Harry's going to allow Ron and Hermione to come with him, but not Ginny. I think Ginny's as competent as those two, and Harry loves Ron and Hermione just as much. And really, as ma soeur so thoughtfully pointed out, Dumbledore's always said that the only thing Harry has that Voldemort doesn't is love. By running away from his love with Ginny and trying to separate and protect himself from it, I think he's throwing away his only weapon.
Finally, I thought the ending was pretty cool with the mystery about R.A.B. and the horcruxes. Who is R.A.B.? Did he or she destroy the horcrux? Do they know where and what the others are? Will R.A.B. help Harry? Pretty good cliffhanger. Why oh why must I wait another two years to read about it??
Warning: If you have not yet read the 6th Harry Potter book, go no further!
So, I've finally finished it. Wow. What a shocker! And I'm not necessarily talking about Dumbledore's death, although that was pretty sad. What was most shocking to me was Snape's betrayal. Yes, I know he is a really nasty man, and he was a former death eater...J.K. Rowling has set it up so that we really hate him, and we want him to be bad so that we can feel justified in hating him. I'm sure that Harry finally feels justified in his intense dislike. Yet it almost feels like a cop-out on Rowling's part. I thought Snape was an interesting character simply because it says a couple of things about people: First of all, no matter what somebody has done in the past, they can change. It's difficult, but it can be done. And secondly, sometimes someone you dislike and don't get along with can be on your side, and you have to learn to work with them. Just because Snape was nasty doesn't mean he would for sure turn out to be evil.
I thought it was simply too easy for Snape to just turn out to be evil, so therefore I didn't believe it. Even in the beginning when he made the unbreakable vow, I thought "Hmmm. How's he going to get out of this one?". It never occurred to me that he wouldn't. Even now I find myself doubting Snape's true allegiance. Maybe he had to kill Dumbledore because of the unbreakable vow...maybe he knew Dumbledore was dying anyway...maybe he thinks he can do a better job than Dumbledore in taking down Voldemort...
And yet, he killed Dumbledore. Dumbledore who was his champion all along. And, as we've heard before, you cannot use one of the unforgivable curses if you don't mean it. Therefore he must have meant it. And also the expression of hatred as he did it...
Yes, I believe I must accept that Snape is evil. He is lost to us forever.
As for the rest of the book, I called Harry and Ginny and Ron and Hermione a long time ago. I wonder if Harry will get back together with Ginny at the end of next book? I also thought it was a bit shocking and scary that they are not going back to school next year. And I thought it was a bit silly that Harry's going to allow Ron and Hermione to come with him, but not Ginny. I think Ginny's as competent as those two, and Harry loves Ron and Hermione just as much. And really, as ma soeur so thoughtfully pointed out, Dumbledore's always said that the only thing Harry has that Voldemort doesn't is love. By running away from his love with Ginny and trying to separate and protect himself from it, I think he's throwing away his only weapon.
Finally, I thought the ending was pretty cool with the mystery about R.A.B. and the horcruxes. Who is R.A.B.? Did he or she destroy the horcrux? Do they know where and what the others are? Will R.A.B. help Harry? Pretty good cliffhanger. Why oh why must I wait another two years to read about it??
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Summer Reading and Movie Watching
Ha ha! I'm back (sort of). I'm in NB with EJ right now. Next Sunday we'll be back in Edmonton for Miss SB's B-day party. Then I'm off again.
So what have I been doing you ask? Well, camping a little, but mostly EJ and I ended up hanging out at my parents (PA had mosquitoes the size of sparrows, and the Cypress Hills, while relatively bug free, was uncooperative in the weather department).
Mostly though, I've been reading, and watching a few movies. So here's what I thought.
First of all, I picked up The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (I'm really into teen lit right now). I was curious to read the book before I saw the movie. And I wasn't expecting much, I'm more of a fantasy fan, but I actually got hooked on the series and went out and got the next two. I thought the girls were really realistic, and their personalities were complex. And then I saw the movie, and it was pretty good too (althought they totally changed the story with Lena and Kostos, but you have to expect these kinds of things). Four purple horsies out of five.
I also read the first book in the Bartimaeus Trilogy, The Amulet of Samarkand. According to the teens in my Teen Fantasy program at the library in February, it is the best book in the whole world. It was quite good and told in an interesting way. The story is told from the alternating points of view of a djinni named Bartimaeus and his master Nathaniel. The setting is sort of an alternate-universe modern day London. They have cars and electricity, but there are also djinn and other spirits flying about all over the place making magic happen. Once again, I think I'll have to give this Four purple horsies. The next book in the series, The Golem's Eye, is out in hardcover.
I am currently reading Eragon which is a story about dragonriders (kind of like Anne McCaffrey, but different in a lot of ways). It's pretty good, but I'm afraid I got distracted by The Travelling Pants and Harry Potter. I'll let you know my final rating when I finish.
Next on my list of things to read is the latest Harry Potter installment. Yes, I bit the bullet and paid (or rather had EJ pay) the fourty dollars for the damn thing. And I tried to read it, and then discovered to my chagrin, that I couldn't remember what had happened in the previous book. Not wanting to miss any nuance, I have made the painful decision to re-read books 4 and 5 before I start on this one. So I borrowed them from EJ's cousin and have already gotten halfway through number 4. I keep forgetting how funny J.K. Rowling can be. Her description of the Quidditch World Cup was a riot! Please, please don't disappoint me for book six... Ooooh, yeah. During one of our trips to the theatre, EJ and I saw the preview for the upcoming movie, and it sent shivers down my spine. Can't wait!
Okay. I think that's all of my reading. Now to the movies (minus The Travelling Pants which I already mentioned).
First of all, we saw The Fantastic Four. EJ loves all these comic book movies, so he was really looking forward to it. The movie was decent. It was watchable, and I was not bored, and the special effects were good. And yet... and yet... I think there was something lacking some sort of je ne sais quoi that would have made this movie really good instead of just okay. Still, three purple horsies out of five. Good for a night's entertainment.
Next we saw The Wedding Crashers. I really like Owen Wilson anyway, and the movie didn't disappoint. It was actually a bit raunchier than I was expecting with quite a few 'boob shots', but I don't think it was in bad taste. Good for a few laughs. Three and a half purple horsies out of five.
Then EJ and I saw Batman Begins and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in one day. Don't say it, I know, we're obviously movie geeks with nothing better to do with our time. Anyway, Batman Begins: Good movie! I enjoyed it much more than I have the last couple of installments in the Batman Series. Goes back to the beginning where you see how he learns how to fight and where he gets his fancy gadgets, etc. The only thing that bothered me was that Katie Holmes (Batman's love interest) is supposed to be a DA, and to me she still looks sixteen years old. Has anyone else noticed this? Or am I just getting old? Four and a half purple horsies out of five.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: I am a little torn on this one. The beginning is great, with the description of Charlie's family, and showing all the children that win the golden tickets. The visuals are actually quite wonderfully done. But the thing I take issue with is Willie Wonka. Now I know Willie Wonka is eccentric, maybe even a little weird, but here he is portrayed as downright nutters. Now, coming from Tim Burton, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. And I usually love Johnny Depp. But for some reason this portrayal of Willie Wonka did not sit quite right with me. He was always weird in the book, but he totally knew what was going on and was not crazy. They also invented a little background story about Willie Wonka's dad (played by Christopher Lee) to explain his craziness, but I thought the whole thing was rather unnecessary. Anyway, besides that, the movie was good. I loved the Oompa Loompas, especially their song about Augustus Gloop. I give it three out of five purple horsies with a caution to go expecting weirdness.
Oh my goodness. What a monster post!
So what have I been doing you ask? Well, camping a little, but mostly EJ and I ended up hanging out at my parents (PA had mosquitoes the size of sparrows, and the Cypress Hills, while relatively bug free, was uncooperative in the weather department).
Mostly though, I've been reading, and watching a few movies. So here's what I thought.
First of all, I picked up The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (I'm really into teen lit right now). I was curious to read the book before I saw the movie. And I wasn't expecting much, I'm more of a fantasy fan, but I actually got hooked on the series and went out and got the next two. I thought the girls were really realistic, and their personalities were complex. And then I saw the movie, and it was pretty good too (althought they totally changed the story with Lena and Kostos, but you have to expect these kinds of things). Four purple horsies out of five.
I also read the first book in the Bartimaeus Trilogy, The Amulet of Samarkand. According to the teens in my Teen Fantasy program at the library in February, it is the best book in the whole world. It was quite good and told in an interesting way. The story is told from the alternating points of view of a djinni named Bartimaeus and his master Nathaniel. The setting is sort of an alternate-universe modern day London. They have cars and electricity, but there are also djinn and other spirits flying about all over the place making magic happen. Once again, I think I'll have to give this Four purple horsies. The next book in the series, The Golem's Eye, is out in hardcover.
I am currently reading Eragon which is a story about dragonriders (kind of like Anne McCaffrey, but different in a lot of ways). It's pretty good, but I'm afraid I got distracted by The Travelling Pants and Harry Potter. I'll let you know my final rating when I finish.
Next on my list of things to read is the latest Harry Potter installment. Yes, I bit the bullet and paid (or rather had EJ pay) the fourty dollars for the damn thing. And I tried to read it, and then discovered to my chagrin, that I couldn't remember what had happened in the previous book. Not wanting to miss any nuance, I have made the painful decision to re-read books 4 and 5 before I start on this one. So I borrowed them from EJ's cousin and have already gotten halfway through number 4. I keep forgetting how funny J.K. Rowling can be. Her description of the Quidditch World Cup was a riot! Please, please don't disappoint me for book six... Ooooh, yeah. During one of our trips to the theatre, EJ and I saw the preview for the upcoming movie, and it sent shivers down my spine. Can't wait!
Okay. I think that's all of my reading. Now to the movies (minus The Travelling Pants which I already mentioned).
First of all, we saw The Fantastic Four. EJ loves all these comic book movies, so he was really looking forward to it. The movie was decent. It was watchable, and I was not bored, and the special effects were good. And yet... and yet... I think there was something lacking some sort of je ne sais quoi that would have made this movie really good instead of just okay. Still, three purple horsies out of five. Good for a night's entertainment.
Next we saw The Wedding Crashers. I really like Owen Wilson anyway, and the movie didn't disappoint. It was actually a bit raunchier than I was expecting with quite a few 'boob shots', but I don't think it was in bad taste. Good for a few laughs. Three and a half purple horsies out of five.
Then EJ and I saw Batman Begins and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in one day. Don't say it, I know, we're obviously movie geeks with nothing better to do with our time. Anyway, Batman Begins: Good movie! I enjoyed it much more than I have the last couple of installments in the Batman Series. Goes back to the beginning where you see how he learns how to fight and where he gets his fancy gadgets, etc. The only thing that bothered me was that Katie Holmes (Batman's love interest) is supposed to be a DA, and to me she still looks sixteen years old. Has anyone else noticed this? Or am I just getting old? Four and a half purple horsies out of five.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: I am a little torn on this one. The beginning is great, with the description of Charlie's family, and showing all the children that win the golden tickets. The visuals are actually quite wonderfully done. But the thing I take issue with is Willie Wonka. Now I know Willie Wonka is eccentric, maybe even a little weird, but here he is portrayed as downright nutters. Now, coming from Tim Burton, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. And I usually love Johnny Depp. But for some reason this portrayal of Willie Wonka did not sit quite right with me. He was always weird in the book, but he totally knew what was going on and was not crazy. They also invented a little background story about Willie Wonka's dad (played by Christopher Lee) to explain his craziness, but I thought the whole thing was rather unnecessary. Anyway, besides that, the movie was good. I loved the Oompa Loompas, especially their song about Augustus Gloop. I give it three out of five purple horsies with a caution to go expecting weirdness.
Oh my goodness. What a monster post!
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
What's a bunnyhug?
Okay. One last post before EJ and I head off into the great unknown wilderness (otherwise known as 'the lake').
What makes a culture develop differently? What makes us 'Canadian' as opposed to 'American'? Or, what makes an Albertan different from a Saskatchewanian?
These two provinces, side by side on the map, often lumped together with Manitoba under the category "the prairies"...There's so much traffic between the two provinces. For every two born-Albertans, I'll bet there's at least one transplanted Saskatchewanian residing in that province.
Yet there is one defining difference between Alberta and Saskatchewan: Hoodies vs. Bunnyhugs. For those of you not from either Saskatchewan or Alberta, a 'hoodie' or 'bunnyhug' are those sweaters that come with an attached hood, and often (but not always) have a pouch pocket on the front. How these two provinces came to know this one article of clothing by a different name, I cannot begin to speculate. Not only do we call the article by a different name, but most of us are completely unware that the other name exists. Go into an Edmonton shop and ask for a bunnyhug and see what kind of response you get. Most likely it will be a blank stare. I mean, even when a Brit asks for chips, we are aware that what he's really asking for is fries.
We think, "Oh, of course we're a little different from those Newfies, and we're a lot different than the Québecois," but there never seems to be much difference between us Western provinces. Yet here it is, proof that however small, there does exist a cultural difference between us.
Personally, I think there is the potential for a great sociological study here. Is it a pure border thing? Those on the east side call it a bunnyhug and those on the west call it a hoodie? Or is a gradual fading, with those close to the border knowing both words?
Yesiree, I believe I've just found a perfect thesis for some graduate student.
What makes a culture develop differently? What makes us 'Canadian' as opposed to 'American'? Or, what makes an Albertan different from a Saskatchewanian?
These two provinces, side by side on the map, often lumped together with Manitoba under the category "the prairies"...There's so much traffic between the two provinces. For every two born-Albertans, I'll bet there's at least one transplanted Saskatchewanian residing in that province.
Yet there is one defining difference between Alberta and Saskatchewan: Hoodies vs. Bunnyhugs. For those of you not from either Saskatchewan or Alberta, a 'hoodie' or 'bunnyhug' are those sweaters that come with an attached hood, and often (but not always) have a pouch pocket on the front. How these two provinces came to know this one article of clothing by a different name, I cannot begin to speculate. Not only do we call the article by a different name, but most of us are completely unware that the other name exists. Go into an Edmonton shop and ask for a bunnyhug and see what kind of response you get. Most likely it will be a blank stare. I mean, even when a Brit asks for chips, we are aware that what he's really asking for is fries.
We think, "Oh, of course we're a little different from those Newfies, and we're a lot different than the Québecois," but there never seems to be much difference between us Western provinces. Yet here it is, proof that however small, there does exist a cultural difference between us.
Personally, I think there is the potential for a great sociological study here. Is it a pure border thing? Those on the east side call it a bunnyhug and those on the west call it a hoodie? Or is a gradual fading, with those close to the border knowing both words?
Yesiree, I believe I've just found a perfect thesis for some graduate student.
Friday, July 01, 2005
Don't be jealous...
But I'm going on vacation. For three weeks. I am going camping with my bf and I won't be back until July 24th. So I'll be able to fill everybody in on how it went. I may even have pictures.
My kitties are going on a little vacation of their own. They will be staying with their Auntie K while I'm gone. So I hope they don't freak out and eat her plants.
Ciao for now!
My kitties are going on a little vacation of their own. They will be staying with their Auntie K while I'm gone. So I hope they don't freak out and eat her plants.
Ciao for now!
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