· Update from the trenches. (April 2005 )

Catching up...

· Bhudda belly (March 2005 )

3 months, 30 pounds. Breaking away from 10 years of weight gain.

· Wow. Blast from the past. (March 2005 )

I'm not entirely sure how I got started looking at this, but I found old online journal entries from 1997. Which means I've been keeping an online journal for almost 8 years now. A few things I noted:I was just as stressed out about life then as I am now. The only difference is that the things I was stressed out about then seem pretty stupid and inconsequential to me now. Will I look back 8 years from now and think the same thing about my current objects of stress? I was much more open about my life then than I am now. Part of this is likely to do with the fact that I can't be open about my life without being open about Kirsten's life too My writing was more, urm, florid. This is probably due to the above mentioned point. As I close myself off content-wise, I've probably closed myself off a little style-wise too. Entries were generally much longer. Though, it's notable that as the years progress, my entries get shorter and shorter. I'll have to take a cruise through the directories on this website and others I can still access to see what other 'gems' I've forgotten about. I also came across this image of the last time I saw Aunt Mi:...

· Exhausted (February 2005 )

Sleepless nights; upcoming month or so.

· How to tell you're old... (February 2005 )

Here's a quick and easy litmus test for whether or not you're old. Do you spend days debating feature sets, 'bang for buck', and general benefits of buying: a) a new car b) computer equipment/electronics c) an over-the-range microwave If you answered c, congratulations - you're old!...

· I was a teenage Napoleon Dynamite (January 2005 )

My last night in BC, I went through some old photo albums with Mom. I was looking for a wedding photo of her and dad to put in our family table (we have a glass-topped table with a drawer underneath that we have a set of family photographs in). As I was leafing through the albums, I came across one that left me short of breath: yearly photos of me from 6 months to 21. The early photos are, obviously, very cute. I was a moderately attractive child. Then puberty hit. From 13 to 19, I was a complete and total adolescent trainwreck. Seriously - I even had hints of the really bad Pedro mustache. Things started looking up again at 20, but at 21 I had.... a mullet. I had forgotten about that, and I think at the time even refused to admit to myself that I did (I was growing my hair out, okay? It's hard not to have a mullet during the early growing stage). I was also still shockingly thin at 21, something which I have since (over)remedied. And no, I don't plan on scanning the photos. :)...

· Bon voyage, Aunt Mi (January 2005 )

Hermione McKay, 1918-2005 - may you be showing the afterlife some new tricks.

· Crazy life. (January 2005 )

Due to a myriad of good (high grades, reference letters submitted for funding proposal) and bad (too personal to divulge blogwise, but nothing you should worry about), I've been going through a rollercoaster of emotions lately. Universe, if you're listening, I'd really like to live in non-interesting times....

· :( (January 2005 )

I hope this week is just a "case of the Mondays" for 2005, and not indicative of how the rest of the year is going to go....

· Back in Edmonton (January 2005 )

There and back again, a tale by D James Harkness.

· It's happened. (December 2004 )

I knew it would happen some day. I tried to fight it for years, claiming I didn't have time for it... didn't want to do it... couldn't think of a good use for it... Then, last night, I joined the legion of the damned. $_REQUEST['deity'] help us all....

· A boatload of honest worries (December 2004 )

Warning: some self-pitying contained within, written freely and without editing. Do not read without grain of salt, and please do not email regarding it. (also, comments closed)...

· Bachelor weekend! (November 2004 )

Kirsten and the puppy have gone down to Calgary for the weekend to visit our friend Aida, leaving me home alone this weekend... I wish I could say I was planning lots of fun bachelor-type things to do, but it turns out I have this big stack of books to read, a shower to reinstall, a sink drain to fix, some moulding to put up, and a couple of websites to work on. (That being said, I plan to spend the night tonight eating McDonald's and watching Battlestar Galactica... and maybe even play some Doom. Oh, life is good.)...

· Update on the tasklist... (November 2004 )

An exhaustive list of what I did this weekend.

· I need to find my center (November 2004 )

I need to find my center again. Any ideas where I left it?...

· It's our anniversary, baby! (October 2004 )

Everyone needs to stop what they're doing right now and email Kirsten right now to congratulate her on putting up with me for the last 6 years. Today, we celebrate our 6th year together. To learn all about how it started (as if you haven't heard the story 15 times already), go here....

· Congratulations are in order! (October 2004 )

I got a call last night from my sister, Susan. Her long-time boyfriend, Michael, proposed to her on Wednesday at the top of a hike they were on. She called me last night after my classes to break the good news. Congratulations to both of them!...

· (September 2004 )

You know, some days I just feel like giving the hell up....

· The Dharkness (September 2004 )

Foxboro Splendour.

· Garage Sale (August 2004 )

Something you may not know about Kirsten and I is that we're pretty avid garage salers. That is, we often go to the garage sales around our neighbourhood, not that we hold garage sales ourselves. I'm not entirely sure what the appeal of the garage sale is for us; certainly, it's a good place to find some nifty stuff for really cheap. In the past, I've found some great stuff -- some Star Wars action figures and ships for a couple of bucks, which sit in my office (nothing like flying an X-Wing around the office to get the creative juices flowing); a nice regulation dart board with a cabinet, a huge Lego monorail... The problem, of course, is that to find the good garage sale finds, you have to go to a lot of crappy garage sales. And we've definitely been to more than a few of them in our time. The biggest problem seems to be that people want too much for their garage sale items. Kirsten makes an excellent point in this regard: "This is stuff that you don't want any more, and that you're likely going to give or throw away. Why are you asking $100 for it?" Another problem that we run across is the kids-stuff-only garage sale. I understand the need for it -- your kid has totally outgrown the 50 cute little outfits that you bought for him or her, and you need to get rid of them so you have room to buy 50 more cute little outfits. For new parents, it's also a great place to get those 50 cute little outfits for your own kid. It's an industry based on recycling and reuse, refuelled by first-time parents that don't know any better than to buy brand new clothes from the store. But it's a headache for the rest of us. These sales need signs, dammit! Which brings me on to the next topic on the garage sale: signage. We've, for the most part, experienced good signage of the garage sale (perhaps the best of which was found this weekend, a sign which said, "Hey Sexy! Come to our garage sale!"). But we've also come across some extremely cryptic signage too. Signs on the left-hand side of the street pointing to garage sales that are on the right-hand side... signs that point you down a random street, but offer no house address... and most infuriatingly, signs that do offer an address, but are so small that you can't read them as you drive by. But for every 10 or so crappy garage sales you go to, there's 1 really good one. Last weekend, we went to a garage sale where the people got it. We picked up a dart board and two Star Wars board games (for my office collection) for under $20; a few weeks ago, someone was holding a garage sale to get rid of the extra antiques from their antique store and Kirsten picked up some old cheese and butter boxes. So, for those of you who recently bought houses... start heading to some garage sales. It's fun, a cheap way to entertain yourself, and, occassionally, a good way to find some neat stuff for cheap....

· The state of the Darren (August 2004 )

The current state of the Darren.

· What should I do? (August 2004 )

I admit it. I'm a writer.

· Ugh. (August 2004 )

Worst. Weekend. Ever.

· Pictures of the new 'do (June 2004 )

Just threw up a picture of the new 'do here. Likely my ugly mug will show up in the rotation on the page here too... don't say I didn't warn you....

· Oh, and... (June 2004 )

It's gone... it's all gone...

· I'm old! (June 2004 )

Happy birthday to me.....

· Birthday gift ideas revisited (June 2004 )

Kirsten suggested that I should repost my list of birthday gift suggestions, so here it is: * Barbeque * 17" or 19" LCD monitor * MP3 player * Full metric and SAE ratchet set * Table saw * Canon Close-up Lens 250D (52 mm) & Conversion Lens Adapter LA-DC52C * ATI 9200 or 9600 video card Books: * Shadow Puppets (Orson Scott Card) * Hey Nostradamous (Douglas Coupland) * (good) Graphic novels. Movies (DVD or VHS): * Being John Malkovich & Adaptation * Bubba Ho-Tep * FOTR and TTT extended versions DVDs * The Royal Tenenbaums * Family Guy Seasons 1, 2 and 3 * Futurama V1 and V2...

· Hmm. (June 2004 )

Hmm... interesting...

· Darren's Birthday Wishlist (June 2004 )

Birthday gift ideas, should you want them.

· The weekend (May 2004 )

What We Did This Weekend.

· Just a reminder... (May 2004 )

Just a reminder that it's only 25 days or so to Darranukah XXX. If you've been invited for the festivities on the 19th of June, book your tickets and buy your presents... the party is on (We got the deck and patio rebuilt this weekend - pictures to come - and should have the railing in place for the party!)...

· Shmooey (May 2004 )

I get shmooey. Those who disdain affection, avert your eyes!

· *yaaaaaaaaaaaawn* (April 2004 )

It's done. Life on pause.

· It hurts to type this. (April 2004 )

ow.

· d'oh! (April 2004 )

Life gets busy.

· Advance Notice (April 2004 )

In the "I'm telling you this now, so you have no excuse not to know" department.

· New life (April 2004 )

Moving forward? Or just moving?

· Updates (April 2004 )

Updates on the book, the cat, and life in general.

· Some good news... (April 2004 )

In good news.....

· Argh. ()

My day, thus far.

· It's Cheer Darren Up Day! (April 2004 )

Seriously, help cheer me up.

· Weaker than a kitten. (April 2004 )

In fact, a kitten could kick my ass right now.

· As weak as a kitten. (April 2004 )

boogada boogada

· On actual writing... (April 2004 )

This one is not a joke. :)

· Birthday greetings! (March 2004 )

My little sister's turning 24 today! God, I feel old now. For which, I must write embarrassing stories of her youth as vengeance... :)

· Good news and bad news (March 2004 )

Good news and bad news from the Harkness-Uszkalo household.

· toothache (March 2004 )

Sore tooth today. Ugh.

· A little breathing room (March 2004 )

Quick update.

· running silent again (February 2004 )

Going into silent running.

· Root Canal Tip #32 (February 2004 )

Tips for a healthy root canal!

· What I did last night. (February 2004 )

Update on the dentist, and a quick summary of what I did after the dentist.

· eep. (February 2004 )

Have to go to the dentist today... :(

· busy. (February 2004 )

gah!

· Natural light (February 2004 )

Light! yay!

· A great revelation... (February 2004 )

Wherein I have a eureka moment as a revelation into the current state of my life pops into my head.

· And now, for a dog-related post. (January 2004 )

Where I talk about the dog. Skip down for non-pet related entries. :)

· Addendum (January 2004 )

But I also need to say...

· and what a year it was. ()

2003, a year in review.

· ZZzzzzzzzzz (December 2003 )

So. Tired.

· Happy Birthday! (December 2003 )

Go Kirsten, it's your birthday...

· ANd now for something completely different. (December 2003 )

Wherein I ruminate upon my lunch.

· There's a birthday coming up! (December 2003 )

All about a birthday...

· *snip* (December 2003 )

So, um, I don't have long hair any more....

· made it back alive... (November 2003 )

We made it back alive from Saskatoon, and don't have too many interesting stories to tell (it was a research trip, after all!). Though I do have to take a moment and complain about the service we got at the bed & breakfast I'd booked for us. We rolled into Saskatoon around 11pm - 5 minutes or so earlier than we'd told the innkeeper we'd arrive, in fact. We rang the bell, as instructed....... and nobody came. So I rang it again. Again, nobody came. Finally I knocked. Nobody came. As I knocked loudly... finally the innkeeper came. We were near-frozen - it was -20ish out. The innkeeper complained that we should have just opened the door. Regardless, we got ourselves inside and took off our boots. As we were taking our boots off, she started asking us if we were staying all 4 nights, and could we pay her now. We told her that we didn't have the money to pay her right away (she only took cash, or paypal, which we don't have set up). She complained, but said it would be fine. When we finally got up to the room, we discovered that the bed was smaller than we were told (we were supposed to get a queen-size, and instead we had a double), it was in not-so-great condition, and there was no shower. Also, there was no key for the room. Kirsten went down to ask her if she could give us a key and transfer us to a room with a shower. She told us that there were no rooms with showers, and that she had already looked up some hotels in the area for another guest, and would we like her to call them for us? So we spent the next half hour, from 11:30 to midnight calling hotels in the area, with the innkeeper hovering over us making sure that we didn't steal anything out of the room. I'm surprised we weren't searched! At one point, her dog wandered over and started sniffing at Kirsten's shoulder. As soon as Kirsten started scratching him under the chin, the innkeeper swooped over and hustled the dog into another room, saying "We don't let him play with the guests". We booked a room at a nearby hotel, gave her cash for the night's stay, then went to bed. About ten minutes later, the innkeeper came up, knocked on the door, and told me bluntly that I needed to move my car out of the driveway and park it on the street. We slept moderately ok, due to the tiredness of driving for 6 hours - but didn't sleep great. We woke up the next morning, expecting a knock on the door for breakfast. Not only was there no knock on the door, she'd brought our breakfast up early and just left it in front of the door to get cold. We left that morning, never seeing the innkeeper - or anyone else, for that matter. I've stayed in a couple bed & breakfasts in the past, and they were great - if this was my first experience, I'd never stay in one again....

· she's a geek-girl (November 2003 )

Every once in awhile, I get all misty-eyed at how far along the geek path K has come. When we first met, she barely used her computer for anything other than writing essays, and had only been on the internet once or twice. She didn't even have an email address! Now, she's an email ninja, knows a heck of a lot about the Internet, and even has her own website (albeit, a page for her English 101 class). But last night she showed her geek merit once again. I brought home a new fish and a new frog (she loooooooooooves those aquatic frogs, and I gave my last frog away to her brother when I moved up here) because the black moor we had (Frodo, the miracle fish) died shortly before we moved. She named the frog Neo and the fish Trinity. *sniff* I'm so proud....

· Gone, she's gone... (November 2003 )

It's little ol' me by myself until Sunday... Kirsten's on her way right now to Baltimore, Maryland for the Attending to Women conference until Sunday. She's also taken the digital camera with her, so I won't get to show you kids the photos of the window install until she gets back....

· and furthermore... (November 2003 )

We just booked off time to head to Saskatchewan Nov 21-24. We're driving out of town Thursday night, and staying at a nice little bed & breakfast near the University of Saskatchewan. Kirsten's heading there, as one of the resident profs has a plethora of manuscripts that are helpful to her research. I'm of course tagging along as the technical aide and driver. (And to visit Saskatoon again, the place I was born). Though it means a long, boring drive to Saskatoon (think snow-covered flat land and straight roads), it'll be a heck of a lot of fun....

· But on the bright side... ()

... someone did card me at the liquor store yesterday. (of course, she also looked a second time and said "Oh, never mind.")...

· also (October 2003 )

I've had the strangest urges lately... two of the top contenders are:Opening an art gallery in Edmonton, and stocking it full of paintings, sculpture and photography I find interesting. Locales have ranged from my own home to a warehouse bay. At this point, it's totally not feasible without an external cash source, but it's definitely something I'd consider doing if someone else came up with the capital. I already have a couple artists I know who would get first dibs on exhibits. Saving $5,000, selling just about everything I own and travelling the world for a couple of years. I'd want to travel to all of the non-standard places (Malaysia/Thailand/Indonesia, Brazil/Chile/Peru, Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet republic, China), getting deep into the culture so I can learn about them. Laptop (upgraded to have new hard drive and CD burner - or maybe a portable drive) and digital camera would be in tow, so I could keep a record of our travels. Of course, I do say our travels, because K would be right there with me. Part of the journey would be a couple of months in London, so she could do her research on original manuscripts. The likelihood of either of the above urges being fulfilled is truly zero-to-none... but they're the urges I've been feeling nonetheless....

· exhausted. ()

Someone send me some extra energy..... I'm just EXHAUSTED today....

· exhausted. ()

Someone send me some extra energy..... I'm just EXHAUSTED today....

· It's that time of year again... (October 2003 )

Happy Anniversary! It's our fifth anniversary this year - and what a year it's turning out to be. (for those of you who missed it, I put up a special page a couple years ago with the story of how we met). Kirsten - we've gone through a lot over the last 5 years, both good and bad. Our strength has been challenged, but we've always prevailed. As we walk together into this new year together (and into a new phase in both our lives) know that I love and cherish you, will give you strength when you are weak, and will always be your biggest fan. You have carried me through the rough times, put up with the stupid mistakes I've made, and helped make me be the person I am today. I love you, Kirsten. I always will. Folks - do me a favour, and thank kirsten for me through email. You can wish her a happy anniversary by emailing her at circe [at] ufies.org...

· lichen planus (October 2003 )

lichen planus - basically (since all the online definitions I can find are full of medic-speak), it's an inherited, non-contagious auto-immune disorder that affects the skin. In a nutshell, the body's immune cells start attacking the skin cells, and small lesions start forming. There's no known cure, and no known cause. It takes 1-2 years for the lesions to disappear, until the next time it recurs. In other words, it's a big mystery that doesn't go away. What they do know is that it can be made worse by stress and high blood pressure, as well as allergic reactions to medication. With everything that's been happening around here, I'll give you a couple of guesses as to which of the above was a factor in my case... At its worst, it can look like this. At the moment, it looks more like this on my legs. My dad's had lichen planus since he was 14, but I had never had a problem with it until a few weeks ago....

· 100ish things about me ()

Since I can't concentrate due to exhaustion anyways......

· house warming (not yet) (October 2003 )

For those who may be wondering... we're not planning a housewarming for a little while. We have a lot of work to do in order to make the place look better - and we'd rather wait until we're happy with it. :) In other news, the photoblog won't be updated for a little while... my computer still isn't hooked up to the network (and probably won't be for a couple of weeks), so I can't manipulate/resize photos for the web....

· slightly more... (October 2003 )

So, as you can tell, I'm back online now - though not fully. Until we get the basement sorted out (read: less full of junk, sawdust and contractors), we only have Kirsten's laptop hooked up to the 'net on a little table in the upstairs spare bedroom. It's actually kind of nice having this small station here, with the cablemodem flashing merrily beside me, and a lamp on the left lighting up the birch tree outside. I was rudely introduced to the filth that is cablemodem traffic this afternoon. I'd hooked Kirsten's laptop up to the 'net, then ran downstairs for 5 minutes to talk to her. When I got back, Norton Antivirus had a HUGE message up about a virus found on the system, which it stalled to awaite my decision on what to do. It turns out the laptop was the victim of the OPAServ worm. 5 minutes. I'm pretty sure I'm clean now, but I have Process Explorer and TCPView running, just in case. When I first hooked it up, I did so without thinking; it's normally nicely firewalled away from potential problems. As a result, I didn't even think of putting a firewall on this thing. There's one now: Sygate. Ugh. Another thing on top of an already full pile....

· in the new place... (October 2003 )

In the new place. Exhausted. Long story to follow when not exhausted....

· So now we know how... (October 2003 )

Let's face it, our cats are fat. Since Heidegger moved into our apartment, Zelda has been growing larger and larger; Heidegger's been trying to keep up with the weight gain, but his multiple episodes of sickness/wounds have helped curb the weight gain. A few months ago, we cut down the amount of food we give them on a daily basis, in the hopes that they wouldn't gain weight quite as quickly. Of course, they continued to be the lovable porkers we were getting used to. In the days leading up to our big move (tomorrow! eek!), we finally discovered why our cats are getting so fat. It turns out that several people in our apartment building have been giving them treats when our cats have been hanging around outside the apartment. Laurie, the girl downstairs, has been giving them tuna, and Devon and Chelina (across the hall neighbours) have been giving them scraps of chicken and what-not over the past few months. I guess you could say that mystery is solved. It brings to light one of the things I'm going to miss most about our apartment building - the people that live there. Just about everyone there (aside from the crazy guy above us, who averages 3 baths a day, at random intervals) is extremely friendly, and we all know each other (if not by name, then by sight). There's a nice community feeling there. The preparations for the move are going really well, though our apartment is EXTREMELY claustrophobic right now. Thankfully, we have a few people to help us on the 15th and 16th to move everything over, and Kirsten's Dad is coming up to help us to remove part of the patio and an unwanted subfloor in the basement for the foundation guys to do their work on Monday. Our realtor's being kind of a jerk at the moment, though, so hopefully there are no major delays on his part tomorrow (long story, but we're really unimpressed with him, due to some roadblocks we've hit in the process). More later....

· The Big News (October 2003 )

Ok, so I've got the go-ahead to release details on the big news. We bought a house. As can be expected, there's quite a story behind it......

· Looks like we're back... ()

Looks like we've come out the other side of the server switch relatively unscathed. Big news to be revealed here within the next day or two....

· eep (again) (September 2003 )

16 days....

· now with less eek (September 2003 )

The newer, but more exciting piece of news is almost ready for public release.......

· recap ()

I know I've said this before... but Kirsten is the bestest girl in the whole wide world. (just needed to get that out)...

· 8O (September 2003 )

eek....

· Also, people suck. ()

In news from the homefront, someone broke into Kirsten's car early yesterday morning and stole the brand new CD player I had installed as a surprise for her. People suck....

· Oh, and... (September 2003 )

I don't think I've asked this before... If there are any readers from New Orleans / Savannah, Georgia area. We're dying for some Pralines and Southern BBQ. I doubt you can get the BBQ here in time before it spoiled... but if you'd like to send some Pralines our way, drop me a line. :)...

· so much going on... ()

There's so much going on right now that I want to talk about, but can't. Which is annoying, because it's all relatively exciting news. :) The newest bit of news is only known by a couple of people, outside of Kirsten and myself. One day soon, I hope, I can spill it all here. We spent most of the weekend running around. When we weren't running around, we were at home watching the first two seasons on The Family Guy on DVD. My god, I forgot how funny that show is -- even after 3 hours, it doesn't get stale. Any show that can actually get the line "Damn you and your estrogenical tyrrany" out of a baby's mouth naturally is worthy of my respect and praise. I honestly think it's probably more biting and funny than the Simpsons - especially the last couple seasons of the Simpsons. It was cancelled by Fox last year, however. Maybe there'll be a rebirth, since the DVDs are going like hotcakes....

· this and that (September 2003 )

I've got some more photos for you kids sitting on the camera right now... I'll try and get them off there tonight. I haven't been taking nearly as many photos as I should; I don't know why exactly. I guess there just hasn't been that much around me to take photos of (that I haven't taken a hundred times already) I need some more ideas, some "assignments" to shoot, that sort of thing... it basically boils down to 'I need to get off my ass and do it already'. Not that it's going to be easy over the next couple of months - I'm going to be stretched pretty thin with work, a staticred redesign that's been on the back burner for a month, and the Secret Project. Ah yes, the Secret Project. Things are going well with it, and I'm on my way to starting it soon. I've got a plan, Stan, and I don't mean to be coy, Roy, but I'll tell you all about it as soon as I can. In the meantime, check out this site for some nice photography....

· today's bike ride... ()

And on the bikeride into work today? Snow. Not much of it, mind you - just a rogue flake or two hitting me in the face as I sped to work... but it was enough! Kirsten was very sad last night as we watched the news and she heard there was snow in the mountains already - 5cm worth. So long summer....

· Summer, she is gone. (September 2003 )

On my bikeride into work this morning, I came to the distinct conclusion that summer in Edmonton is no more. If you look over to the right there, at the "Edmonton Weather" box, you'll notice that we're in the single digits, temperature-wise. This morning when I left home it was a little under 6 degrees - now, it's a little under 5!...

· Happy Birthday! (September 2003 )

Birthday wishes go out to my almost-brother-in-law Delmar - happy birthday, dude!...

· good vibes... (September 2003 )

Everyone send Kirsten some good vibes RIGHT NOW... she's just meeting her new batch of students for the year. Also, and this is belated news, she received a tuition scholarship this year. Congratulations, baby!...

· oh! (September 2003 )

Oh yes, I almost forgot... today I became a Public Library User. My car's really been acting up lately, and it has everything to do with this little sensor on the gearshift, that tells the ignition it's ok to start the car (it's an inhibitor switch). Basically, for whatever reason, the sensor isn't getting into the right position, so the car won't start. So I wandered down to the library today, paid $12 for an annual membership, and picked up the Chilton guide so I can fix it. (Turns out it's a relatively easy fix, but it's on the underside of the car) I have a few things to get used to (the odd mix of people milling around the library and the dewey decimal system -- always a shock after the great Library of Congress system used at most reputable universities), but they have some great benefits as well -- like an extrememly large collection of movies. That I can take out for free. For a week....

· writing... ()

Life is about to get extraordinarily busy for me in the next few weeks. Update: Can't actually talk about it yet... not until t's are crossed and i's dotted. Hence, the cryptic nature of this post. (but there is a hint in there)...

· 10 year inventory. (August 2003 )

Michael has taken stock of the last 10 years in his life What have I gained and lost in the last 10 years? 1 incredibly talented, beautiful woman who has not only put up with every stupid thing I've done for almost 5 years (found her in 1998; we hit our 5th anniversary on October 27th), but still loves me despite myself. 2 cats, Zelda (2001, at 3 yrs old) and Heidegger (2003 at 2 1/2 years old). 6 jobs: Wilway Lumber, Internet Direct, WorldGate Inc, Netmaster / Merilus, Matrikon, Sandcastle, GE 3 cars ('87 Hyundai Stellar, '89 Honda Civic Si, '90 Nissan Sentra) 2 apartments, 2 residences at university 1 Bachelor's Degree (English/History) 3 cities and 2 provinces 30 lbs and 4 inches Large bodies of knowledge accrued Lots of love from the cats and the Kirsten...

· My first house... (August 2003 )

Ernie asks if we remember the first house we grew up in... I remember bits and pieces of it. It was a dark, washed-out yellow rancher in Abbotsford on Merlin Drive. When we (me, my mom and my dad) first moved to Abbotsford, we lived in a townhome, which I remember nothing about (being only 1). Shortly after, we moved to the house on Merlin. What I remember about the house is that it was nice inside, but small; it was a single-story two bedroom house backing onto a ravine. Memories from that house are scattered; I remember zipping around on my Big Wheel, getting my first bike, jumping on a trampoline filled with water at a friend's house, the ravine in behind the house, and my babysitter, Beverly Stone (mom worked until I was 5). I also remember having an imaginary friend, Harvey, and hearing what to me at the time was surely the voice of God (which I assume today to have been a sonic boom). We moved out of the house on Merlin Drive when mom became pregnant with my sister Susan. We'd visit it from time to time, and moan about how the new owners had let the yard overgrow... which they did - you couldn't see the house for all the shrubs and trees that had grown in front of it. Do you remember your first home?...

· The Shocking Truth!, or, How the Head of Marketing Screwed Us Over (August 2003 )

I've been getting a LOT of traffic on my site from my former employer lately. They've been hitting the site off and on throughout the last seven months since I left, searching for god only knows what. I assume they want to find me badmouthing them somehow, in a way that they can then use against me litigiously......

· Five Questions... (August 2003 )

There's this meme that's hit most of the blogs out there... I saw it first on Heather's site, and then on many, many others... Chrissie has sent me five interview questions, so here are the answers.1. If you gave up on the geek life, what would you do? That's a good question... there's a few directions I'd go:Teacher. Always wanted to, and got turned away from the path. Perhaps when K is comfortable in a tenure-track position, I'll go back and get it. Dad. K and I talked about this quite some time ago; if we have kids, there's a really good chance I'll become a stay-at-home dad. We'll see. Writer. I'm not great at it, but I'd love to be able to start writing more fiction. Building supply sales. I honestly miss it some times (then I remember the crappy pay and bosses, and I don't miss it quite so much). But I do still miss being around that environment. I could never do it for a Home Depot or other big box store - only a mom & pop shop, which are getting more and more scarce these days. Construction. I'm probably too old. 'nuff said. 2. What's your dream vacation? Take a couple of years off, and go everywhere. Japan, China, Thailand, Australia, Nepal, Europe, Africa, Egypt and South America. And anywhere else I've forgotten. 3. What do you and K do on the weekend (when you're not conquering mountains!)? The answer is likely very boring to people who are not us. But here it is anyway. :) Saturday - wake up whenever we get up - head to the Strathcona Farmer's Market for eggs and organic veggies - around noon, head to Lahore Sweets for South/East Indian buffet. I eat as much Tandoori Chicken as I humanly can, and Kirsten finishes up with Galub Jamun and Masala Tea. - head to any garage sales that are in our sights. I love garage sales, and I don't know why. But we do manage to find some neat stuff from time to time. - Various chores and running around. Sunday - wake up before 10 am - BLUEBERRY WAFFLES! (I can't believe I forgot about the waffles. Bad Darren!) - head to the Callingwood Farmer's Market for veggies and fruit. It's much smaller than the Strathcona Market, but there's less people too. - putter around, not doing much - sometimes head for a bikeride - watch the Sunday Night Lineup from 8pm to 11pm (Futurama, King of the Hill, Simpsons, Malcolm in the Middle, etc) 4. Who's your favourite actor and why? Can't say that I really have a favourite actor. I have actors whose movies I always seem to enjoy... Kevin Spacey, Molly Parker, Bill Murray, Steve Martin, John Candy and Mike Meyers to name a few. 5. Okay, I have to do it. Most embarrassing moment? Heh. There's too many. I'm really quite clumsy, and not very good at talking... so I tend to get myself into embarrassing situations from time to time. K can attest to this -- it's so prevalent that she's called it my 'anti-slick gene'. If I trip over a sock on the floor... the anti-slick gene. When I look at her lovingly, after she asks, "Honey, would you trade me for $2 million?" and I say - in the sweetest of tones - "Yup!"... anti-slick gene. You get the idea. The most recent, however, involved online life; K and I were googling ourselves and I found a whole bunch of old usenet posts from 1996, when I was lonely & lookin' for love.... Who wants to carry on the meme? Leave your name and I'll ask you some questions. If you have a website, post your answers there... if not, post them in the comments....

· I'm a little excited. (August 2003 )

So I'm a little excited. Some time in the next 4-6 weeks, a battery for my new IBM sublaptop. I bought the battery (guaranteed to hold a charge) for a penny off Ebay. It cost me roughly 931% of the total purchase price (in US dollars, no less) to ship it here. I've been wanting a laptop for quite some time, despite the fact that K already owns one. As soon as I find a small distribution (and maybe an old PCMCIA network adaptor), I'm going to pop Linux on the puppy, and have a nice little thing to keep notes, writings and etc on. I got it when I lucked out at a garage sale a few weeks ago; someone was selling his sister's old roommate's best friend's laptop, which had been sitting around for god-knows-how-long. I picked it up for $10 as-is. I fired it up when I got home... and it booted (well, sort of. I had to reset the BIOS settings, as the CMOS battery was gone too). Once I diddled a bit, it loaded DOSHELL... so it's definitely been around for awhile. :)...

· randomosity (August 2003 )

I like geese. I remember an 8 year old me playing at Mill Lake, and chasing the ducks and geese - trying, desperately trying, to win them over with my nuggets of bread, thinking maybe if I gave them enough, they'd be my pets, my private avionic companions. They always ran away when the bread was gone. It was different then. The air was more clear; today, the closest I get to that air is when Kirsten and I are hiking in the Kananaskis; but even the air there seems tainted by pollution. There was less rain, and the sun somehow wasn't so hot when it touched your skin. Clouds were whiter and fluffier, and the sky was a richer blue. Mom would keep the ends of the bread for me and my sister from every loaf she bought. We'd never eat those crusty pieces anyway, being the picky kids we were (and Susan, being only two, didn't have a great fondness for bread yet). She'd save it up, and we'd drive down to the park to feed the ducks (though there were more geese than ducks, really, but we didn't discriminate). Susan and I would scramble down from the parking lot, near-empty bags of bread swaying wildly, clutched in our hands, while we ran haphazardly in the direction of the lake. Sometimes we'd park right by the boat launch, where most of the ducks (geese mostly) 'lived'. Sometimes we'd park at the shopping mall, and take a trail through the woods to get to our destination. Most times, we'd leave the car at the far end of the park, wandering by the outdoor pool and playground before feeding the ducks. I'd run up to the 'hidden' trail in the trees alongside the paved sidewalk, pretending I was a great explorer, or divert our little group to the playground, where I'd brave the rope bridge. When we finally got to the lake, I'd set my bag down and rip a somewhat-too-large piece of bread, then start running towards the ducks *honk*. The ducks would run away *honk*, I'd toss the bread over my head, landing a few feet in front of me, and the ducks *honkhonk* would rush back. Chaos reigned as the ducks fought over the scrap of bread, and a duck tide would come in and out as I gave them bread. Mom would rip up smaller pieces of bread for Susan, and she'd toddle towards the ducks, drop the piece of bread in front of her, and happily squeal when the ducks came rushing to her feet. I'd eventually run out of bread, then start stealing pieces of Susan's bread to keep feeding the ducks. We'd keep feeding them until all the bread was gone. We'd sit and watch the other families, or maybe head back to the playground, then go home again for some dinner. Within a few years, we stopped feeding the ducks at Mill Lake. I'd taken up fishing with my dad on the weekends, and had a bike (and was old enough to bike a further distance than down the street, still in full view of my parents). I still went down to Mill Lake - be it to fish, or float around in my inflatable boat (carried sherpa-like on my back the entire hour-long walk from our subdivision to the lake) - but I never fed the ducks again. It was different then. More pictures coming tonight... I promise. There's actually a bunch sitting on the hard drive that Kirsten took at the Callingwood Farmer's Market last Sunday, and some on the camera from this morning....

· Places I've been... (August 2003 )

Inspired by Pam's list, here's a list of places I've been: Canada British Columbia Vancouver, Penticton, Kelowna, Penticton, Osoyoos, Trail, Vernon, Nelson, Prince George, Victoria, Parksville, Nanaimo, Texada, Gibsons (the place the Beachcombers was filmed), Powell River, Dawson Creek, Fort St. John, Chemainus, Thetis Island, Golden, Blue River, Barriere, Ladysmith. Alberta: Calgary, Banff, Hinton, Jasper, Red Deer, Drumheller, Canmore (and region), Medicine Hat, Lethbridge, Ponoka, Onoway, Airdrie, Beiseker, Leduc, Stony Plain, St Albert, Olds Saskatchewan: Saskatoon, Moosejaw, Regina Manitoba: Dauphin, Grandview, Minitonas Ontario: Toronto, Ottawa, Niagara Quebec Quebec City (and outying areas) Outside of Canada: Hawaii Honolulu/Waikiki Washington State Seattle, Bellingham, Tacoma, Vancouver Oregon: Portland, Gold Beach, Sand Dunes, Lincoln Beach (home of a Ripley's Believe it or Not museum, and a huge water wheel) California: Santa Rosa, Sacremento, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Monterey, Carmel, San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Anaheim, San Diego Florida: Miami, Miami Beach, Orlando (Kissimee) Illinois: Chicago O'Hare International Airport South Carolina: Beaufort Georgia: Savannah That's it... never made it over the continent, though I'd really love to one of these days....

· OK kids... get out your circle of paper and your safety scissors... ()

OK folks, I turn to you. I need a project. Any type of creative project, really, but web/writing/photo is preferred. So fire away with your best suggestion. If there's lots, I'll rig up some kind of poll or something....

· kirsten's mom's up ()

Kirsten's mom is up for the week, so there's likely not to be much updating this week from yours truly. ;)...

· update... (August 2003 )

Dentist appointment went fine... MAK Dental in Edmonton is a great establishment. The dentist went out of her way to be accomodating and friendly, and make the experience a positive one overall. They didn't have TVs in the roof, or fancy equipment that *bings*.... instead they had a competent, compassionate dentist who listened to their patient, and did everything she could to make her patient comfortable. Little stuff like that really counts for me. I had to have a temporary filling replaced on one of my upper incisors; not exactly the place you want a deep filling to be. A year and a half ago, that tooth had a large chip taken out of it, and my dentist in Abbotsford had put a temporary filling in there (he wasn't sure if the root was going to have problems; it looked healthy at the time, so he just covered it up with a medicated filling). I've known the filling was coming apart for awhile, but it didn't actually start bugging me until last Friday. After about an hour in the chair, I was the proud owner of a newly filled tooth. The dentist warned me that it might be sore and sensitive for the next couple of days, and that if it was sore in a couple of weeks I might need a root canal (but she didn't think that would happen); but I'm feeling no pain and had no trouble eating some sherbert this evening after dinner. So it looks like it'll be clear sailing (touch wood) from here. And the best part was that the visit wasn't even that expensive -- under $150 for what amounted to a substantial filling....

· *nervous* ()

Nervous today... I have to head to the dentist at 2:30 to get a filling replaced (it was a temporary filling put in by my dentist in Abbotsford, and was supposed to be replaced a year ago). What makes it worse, of course, is that I don't have dental coverage until 6 months from now. :( Hopefully, I can work some sort of deal out with the dentist though, or at least get them to not charge so much. :)...

· Insomniac (August 2003 )

Having a hell of a time getting to sleep tonight, as the timestamp down there will show you... So I played around with this, which is part of some upgrades to the site I have been wanting to make for awhile... There's not much there now, but take a gander. (Yes, I know it has issues in Mozilla... it'll be fixed)...

· breakfast... (July 2003 )

So, K and I went out for breakfast Sunday morning. We were having a decently good time at the ol' Alberts until I looked over to my right. Right there, sitting at the table next to me, was one Mr. Amin Rawji, boss-man of one of my former employers, and the man who ultimately cut my time short there. K and I cut our morning breakfast short, after speaking (a little louder than we possibly needed to) of Amanda and Anders' successes, and how well they've been doing since leaving the company. I didn't bother to say 'hello', since I'm a nice guy, and didn't want to make an uncomfortable scene in front of his parents... but thought of several very witty things to say and do about 10 minutes after the fact. Likewise, he didn't make any signs of recognition, nor meet my eye when I walked back to our table to leave a tip. Needless to say, breakfast left a sour taste in my mouth... and I don't think it was from the pancakes....

· Good and happy thoughts (July 2003 )

Good thoughts and nothin' but go out to our friend Mark, a/k/a frogbert, who's going through a particularly rough time right now....

· for my own use... ()

rewrite - a little URL redirecting script I wrote up this morning....

· Coney the wonder cat. (July 2003 )

We just retrieved Heidegger, our exceedingly intelligent cat from under the couch in our across-the-alley neighbour's house. It seems he followed one of their cats in through the cat-flap, got inside, and immediately got lost. He spent most of the day inside their house (at least 8 hours), and was totally petrified when I found him. So thanks to Paul, our across-the-alley neighbour for hearing his tags jingle when he came home from work, and seeing him dart into their living room, then suggesting that he might be under the couch (since that's where his other cats hid when they first got there). Bratty cat....

· And a Dad update (July 2003 )

Since I'm doing updates, it only makes sense to do an update on Dad's condition as well. He's nearly back to his old self, though he does have a new addition since coming out of the hospital. He goes back in for more surgery in 4-6 weeks, and will be out of commission for another 4-6 weeks after that. He's relatively upbeat, despite everything that's happened to him in the last month, and should get through it all with relatively few problems. Essentially what happened (without getting into details), is that he went in for an operation a few weeks ago; though the operation went well, the amount of energy his body put into healing the area caused all sorts of other problems (that were just waiting to happen, but were kept in check by the body) to occur. So, two weeks after the initial operation, all hell broke loose, body-wise, and he was taken into emergency. Some tests were taken, and they were relatively certain what caused the problems to occur. The upcoming operation will solve the last of these....

· status report ()

I need caffeine. That is all....

· Sick kitty Update (July 2003 )

An update on Heidegger's condition......

· sick kitty (July 2003 )

We've got ourselves a sick kitty at home this week. Heidegger get his butt whipped a little while ago by the neighbour cat for going in their yard, and some of the wounds have turned serious. :( Good vibes sent Heidegger's way are greatly appreciated. Pic included above to help you focus. :)...

· perhaps... (July 2003 )

Perhaps today wasn't the best day to bike into work. *drip*...

· happy news (June 2003 )

I just learned that the Author's Press has acquired my publisher, Glasshaus, and is asking all former authors to contact them regarding owed royalties, etc. Since I never received a cent from the publication of Practical Intranet Development, it'll be nice to actually see some payment come. In other happy news, Dad's being released from the hospital today, and will have a home nurse for the next week, while he waits for an exploratory surgery to figure out what the heck happened. I've talked to him on the phone twice, and he did sound better last night than he did the night before....

· Good vibes for Dad (June 2003 )

My sister called tonight to tell me that Dad was admitted to the hospital on Monday. Everyone says he's going to be fine - even him (I called the hospital and got to talk to him), but I'm still a little worried (and a little angry that nobody called me before tonight). Do me a favour. If you have a Laughing Buddha statue, or know of one nearby, give its belly a rub for me & my pop. Any other forms of positive vibe generation are greatfully accepted as well....

· a mistake... ()

I'm beginning to think it was a mistake to wear wool socks to work today... *sweat*...

· and in other news... (June 2003 )

I had a great time celebrating the birthday last night... We took a small group of friends -- Dan, Pam & Igor, Aida, Christie, and David -- out for dinner last night, to the Mongolia Express. We followed that up with dessert & drinks at home. And, of course, presents! ;) Pam & Igor gave me a hiking stick for my right hand -- and Aida gave me one for my left! David gave me a knobbly massage thing, for Kirsten to use on my neck to reduce tension, and Dan gave me those topo maps I was talking about a few entries ago, along with Be Expert with Map & Compass. Christie gave me a very nice oriental picture and frame, that will sit nicely in the Christie shrine in our apartment. Thanks to everyone who came out for the celebration, and thanks again for the great gifts.. ;)...

· A word from Anders... (June 2003 )

Just got this over the ICQ airwaves...There was a guy named Darren... Spaceman made out of clay... And when his spaceship's ready, he'll probably fly away... Darren Darren Darren, you are made out of clay.... Darren Darren Darren, you fell from space that way......

· Birthday greetings! ()

Birthday greetings also go out to Suzanne of Synaptic Impulse, and Darren Naldrett, wherever you are....

· darranukah, t minus 2 days (June 2003 )

If any of y'all are looking for ideas for birthday presents......

· crappy week. (June 2003 )

Thank God it's Friday. I think I can honestly say this has been the worst week I've experienced in a long time. It started off by being tired as hell (hiking hangover). On Tuesday, the bike Kirsten brought back for me from Abbotsford was stolen. Yesterday, the 'backup' bike, which we got at a garage sale a month ago, was also stolen, from the same location (this time, they left the lock dangling from the bike rack). This morning, I come into work, and I can't get into my new network account (they changed it all over last night... all my email, etc is tied to that account). I can still get into my old network account (hence being able to post here), but I can't do much else. On the bright side, I was able to get webmessenger set up, so I now have Jabber & ICQ access. It's still pretty buggy (as the developers are the first to admit), and I'm going to have to try and hack it to fix some things (such as every contact on the list being displayed as "Online", rather than telling me who they *are*), but so far it seems pretty nifty. You can try to get through to me at my work ICQ# (if you have it :) )...

· grr. (June 2003 )

The biking into work every day plan has had a minor setback... some jerk went and stole my bike today while I was in the office. Luckily, we have a spare, and my folks had the serial number at home. I've lodged a report with the local constabulary, and hopefully my bike will show up in the not too distant future. The officer I was talking to mentioned that most people stealing bikes only use them to get from point A to B, then ditch them. With any luck, someone will find my bike and turn it in. With any luck. :(...

· Public Service Announcement (June 2003 )

Only 7 shopping days left until Darranukah! This public service announcement brought to you by Darren Likes Presents, Inc....

· Gone! (June 2003 )

K and I will be bushing it for the weekend... we're heading to Banff and the Kananaskis country to do some hiking. Our home base will be in Calgary, but it'll pretty much solely be for late evenings and sleep. :) We're really looking forward to it; we had to miss hiking season last year. I'll be taking along my trusty little HiMatic and snapping shots of whatever we run across. If there's any good photos, I'll post 'em here. See you Monday!...

· legs of steel. belly of jello. ()

Yesterday, I made a monumental decision.... From now on, for the rest of the summer, I'm biking all the way into work. I'm taking this route, which is just under 6 kilometers each way. One of the nice things about the route is I go over the High Level bridge, which is a kilometer long itself, but has a great view of the river valley (it also avoids a HELLISHLY LARGE hill (for those of you in Abbotsford... it's steeper and longer than the hill coming up South Fraser Way to Alan's apartment)). Though it gives a great view, it also seems to be extremely windy over the bridge. Both mornings I've been biking against the wind, which has definitely slowed me down. The funny thing about all this is that it's faster for me to bike all the way into work than it is to bike to the university and take public transit downtown. It's also, thanks to morning traffic, just as fast as if I'd driven in. Yesterday it took me 30 minutes to get in to the office... today it was 20, which means I'm going an average of about 18km/h. Not too shabby, eh? ;)...

· Newly Digital (June 2003 )

A meditation on my first experiences with computers, modems, and the Internet.

· of cats. (June 2003 )

Our cats, Zelda and Heidegger, are very, very cute cats. That is, until one of them decides, "Wouldn't it be great to dive under this shed while Dad's trying to bring us inside? And then wouldn't it be even more fun to look at him and meow, then move *just* out of his grasp when he tries to get me?" "Oh yeah. That sounds like fun!" In the end, after trying to coax Zelda out gently with treats, I resorted to a hose to move her into a corner from where I could grab her....

· "Becoming" Anders Svensson (May 2003 )

Today was my first day at the new job....

· just a reminder... (May 2003 )

Just as a reminder, there are only 35 days to Darranukah, June 18th. Anyone who can make it up to Edmonton for either the weekend before, or after the 18th is more than welcome to join in the celebrations!...

· new glasses! (May 2003 )

Got myself some new glasses on the weekend, and they just showed up today... they're made by Prodesign Denmark, and they're niftykeen. There's a few more new things in my life as well since the last time I talked here....

· I am such a geek. (May 2003 )

This morning I woke up from a dream where I was programming a website's dynamic content, retrieving it from a database, detecting what kind of data it was, and formatting it appropriately. (it worked very well, btw)...

· away... (May 2003 )

Gone to Calgary for the weekend... back Sunday night. For you Calgarians, if you want to get together, email me. :)...

· man its quiet in here (April 2003 )

The kid who mows the lawn just stared mowing again. Without thinking about it, i went SHHHHHHH under my breath. It didn't work, but , usually it is quiet in here now. You all may already know, but D and I are no longer mindless cable watching automotons. ok, so it was cut off, rather than a valient anti-consumer act, but man is it nice, Its like my whole life is quiet and peaceful all the sudden. and i am living with this hot guy and the summer has come. all at once I've stopped to smell the roses amd there are lovely. I'd encourage you all to take a break from the televsion beast. I haven't enjoyed my evenings so much in a long time ps can someone tape Buffy for me? K kirsten c. uszkalo, blog pirate...

· the bestest girl ever.` (April 2003 )

I have the best girl ever... I came home early from work today to a little pile of presents... Kirsten was out today, and bought me a new keyboard (a wireless ergo keyboard from Logitech with a wireless mouse too), which I've been desperately needing since we've had a liquid accident on the last two keyboards I've owned. The other really cool thing she got me was one of those USB storage devices... it's a little 128MB hard drive small enough to fit on your keychain.... VERY cool. :) I love my Kirsten....

· I have the courage of a 5 year old girl. (April 2003 )

So, a little more elaboration on the whole ear piercing thing... Kirsten's been bugging me for well over a year to get my ears pierced. Quite honestly, it's been almost a daily, if not weekly thing hearing about how good I'd look with pierced ears, how it'd be sexy, etc. I'd never seen it myself, especially considering I have an strong, strong phobia of any type of needle (to the point of having to take sedatives for any major kind of dentist trip). For some reason yesterday, however, I finally broke down and let her take me to the mall to get them done. I was still extremely nervous about the idea of someone stabbing my ear (not only once, but twice) with sharp pointy metal, but I thought to myself, "Kirsten loves me, and wants me to pierce my ears, so I'll do this because I love her too, and it'll make her happy." We entered the mall and walked over to the shop to get my ears pierced. That was my 'no turning back' point, since there was a 5 year old girl sitting in the chair waiting to get her ears pierced. Much statement of "If a 5 year old girl can do it, so can you." followed. :) Ten minues and two *kachink*s later, I had pierced ears. Honestly, there's surprisingly little pain involved. It stung for a minute or two, then pretty much felt weird but not painful for the rest of the day. I slept fine on them last night, without any pain. As soon as I can replace the studs (3 or 4 weeks), I'm going to be getting some sterling silver celtic-style hoops to put in there (if I'm going to have pierced ears, I might as well have something *interesting* in there). I also broke the webcam out of its box this morning to take some pictures, since I don't have a digital camera. :( (If anyone wants to start a "Get Darren a Digital Camera" foundation, please be my guest.) The left ear... The right ear... Also, here's our new cat, Heidegger (since he was just sitting on the office chair beside me)....

· so, uh... (April 2003 )

So, uh, I got my ears pierced today. That is all....

· 2002 Personal Tax Generator (April 2003 )

Tax - Calculators - 2002 Personal Tax Definitely need this for the upcoming months....

· the job entry ()

I rarely talk about the workplace here in this blog, wherever that workplace may be, pretty much out of respect for the people I work with... But tonight, I make an exception, with the new job....

· *yaaaaaaaawn* (March 2003 )

I've just spent the last 7 hours creating a project management web app, so I can keep track of my hours with the new company. At the moment, I can create multiple projects, then attach notes and time worked on each of them. I can also search for projects by name, client, description and client, and create reports based on client name and a date range. If anyone's curious enough to want to take a look at it (and give me suggestions for change), drop me a note and I'll tell you the login....

· thanks guys! (March 2003 )

Boy howdy did all that mojo help! The second interview was quick and to the point. I was offered a three month contract leading to fulltime with the company at a nice wage, and they want me to start tomorrow. Thanks to everyone that has given me encouragement over the last couple of months, has written reference letters to me, or have just been a good source of positive energy. Yay you, and yay me!...

· needed. (March 2003 )

Super-mecha-awesome mojo needed for tomorrow at 11:30am MST. Second interview with the super-great design firm!...

· evening wrap=up (March 2003 )

Back from the ANM speech... it was not my finest moment. :) I learnt today that speech does not just come naturally out of my mouth, and will do much, much more preparatory work if I ever decide to do that again. It wasn't so bad near the end, when things turned to more of a question and answer period... but the first part was just short of disaster. Thank god the people there were kind folk, and had much encouragement to give me afterwards. If I do osmethink like this again, it will be more of a seminar-type thing, where the discussion is actively directed by the audience. The earlier part of the day went much smoother. The interview with the agency seemed to go quite well. The person I was supposed to interview with stayed home sick today, and instead had the entire company sit down with me for the interview. The atmosphere there was casual and comfortable. I felt quite at home with the people there, and really enjoyed talking with them. With any luck, they'll have felt the same way, and I'll hear back from them soon....

· Need the mojos! (March 2003 )

I need a tonne of good mojo from you guys tomorrow, as there's a lot going on: At 1:30pm MST, I have an interview with a design firm in town. I got in contact with them about a week ago, and through a good patch of luck, a position had just opened. To my benefit, I already have experience working with their work... and I know how to improve it. At least, I hope that's to my benefit. :) My plan is to come out of there with an actual offer on the table. I think, quite frankly, they might just want the action figure. :) I've also decided that if this doesn't come through, I'm heading back to a life of building supplies (in one way or another), and becoming a carpenter's helper or drywaller until the market is a little better for us webfolk. Then, at 5:45pm MST, I am giving a talk to the Alberta New Media Association. Here's details. It's been awhile since I've talked to a group of people, so it'll be an interesting experience. I'm just finishing up the outline today....

· live nude web developers! (March 2003 )

I confirmed my first talk last night, for the Alberta New Media Association's monthly meeting. Read all about it here....

· update (March 2003 )

Although life's been quiet for the most part, I received some very bad news this morning: My life as an author is temporarily back on hold. Up until today, I was in talks with Glasshaus about writing a second book - a book on using and configuring Apache, geared towards your average web developing professional. With my editor, I'd worked out a detailed spec for all the chapters and their contents, and was gearing up to write 4 of the 8 chapters. This morning, I received an email from my editor, telling me that Glasshaus and its parent company have shut their doors. Unfortunately, this means no royalty cheques for yours truly and - more importantly, no second book. :( At the moment, I have bigger fish to fry... if I can't find web work by the end of the month, then it's back to a life of service industry for me (though I may try to look for a carpentry apprentice/helper job). Hopefully, my contest will be successful. ;)...

· weirdness. (March 2003 )

In the last 2 days, I've been invited to speak at two events; one here in Edmonton, and another in Ottawa. I've accepted the invitation here, and speak next week... and I'm waiting to hear back from Ottawa to see if they'll sponsor my hotel and airfare. If so, I'll be speaking there in July. My life gets super-weird sometimes. ;)...

· just for fun... (March 2003 )

Just for fun, and to hopefully drum up a little more attention I'm running a contest... Sadly, the contest is only open to design firms in Edmonton... ;)...

· busy day today... (March 2003 )

Today turned out to be a relatively busy day... Just before Christmas, Kirsten and I picked up a Norfolk Pine... the idea being that we could use it for a Christmas tree, and when Christmas was over, it'd provide extra oxygen around the house... Since Christmas, it's been sitting in a spot by our front window, next to the heat register... the location has been anything but good for it, and it's not as healthy as it maybe should be. It seemed to be really warm on the bottom half of the plant from the heater, and really cold on the top half of the plant from the drafty window. Today, we decided that it was maybe time to move it and place it osomewhere more conducive to growing healthily. This basically spurred on a bunch of furniture moving, picture moving as a result of the furniture moving, and etc... we laid out the living room a little differently, as with the bedroom as well. The results are a fantastically cozy living room and bedroom... I'm very happy with the feeling of the two rooms now; they were great before, but they're even more comfortable now. For those who have actually seen the house: the 'entertainment unit' (an old wardrobe) is now in the corner by the living room window, at an angle. We pulled a table out from a hiding spot beside the couch, and placed it by our brown chair. In the bedroom, we moved the glass wardrobe from against the wall into the corner as well, moved the dresser where the wardrobe was, and put the blue chair by the closet. And that, in a nutshell, was our extremely exciting day. :)...

· I'm still alive... (March 2003 )

I'm still alive, contrary to popular reports. I've been kept so busy over the last few days partying at the swankest clubs, criss-crossing the continent on a book tour, and signing body-parts, that I just haven't had time to post......

· Today, I had an interesting experience. (February 2003 )

I dodged a Scam Bullet today. Yesterday, I was contacted by an unnamed 'career advising firm', who wanted to get together for an 'informational session.' Thinking they were a recruiter I had sent a resume into over the past couple of weeks, I figured what the heck and set up an appointment for today. So I go in. Their office is located on the 10th floor, in the conspicuously labelled "Suite 1000". There were no markings in the lobby.. just a shared reception area. "Greg" comes out, walks me to my office, and I basically spend a half hour or so listening to how my resume sucks, and is currently sitting in the shredder, how they don't work with HR departments or managers, but the CEOs and Presidents of companies... boasts of a 97% 'success' rate... how they've been operating since 1947... how 80% of jobs aren't advertised, and 42% of jobs are created positions, etc... I'm told that this company is very selective about who they work with, and how I'll be 'coached' along by a career advisor to find a better job... And, finally, by the end of the meeting, I'm told that there will be a small fee, that he'll get "Sharon" to get down as far as she can -- but he won't discuss how much the fee is. He tells me that he wants me to fill out a couple forms to match my skills up to available positions, and that he'll schedule another meeting with my spouse. I won't lie - I was tempted to talk to them some more, find out what the fee was, etc. The scam is a good one, for sure. Before I did, however, I took "Greg"'s advice and started researching the company. What I found shocked the hell out of me -- Google Groups is filled with nothing but stories of how people were scammed by this company. At this point -- lesson learned. I'll not be talking with them again - or any 'career advisor' for that matter....

· I'm thinking... (February 2003 )

I'm thinking of applying for this position. Those who know me well - do you think I should?...

· hee hee... (February 2003 )

I had a package delivered today to do with the secret project I mentioned awhile back... and it looks great. I'm hoping I'll be able to tell you guys about it soon... I've been anxious about this since December....

· happy valentine's day (February 2003 )

happy valentine's day (in case you missed it)...

· arrgh1 (February 2003 )

Didn't actually make it to the show... about halfway there, I started to feel nauseous, so we headed home. Of course, within an hour of getting home I was feeling fine again, but was too late to head there. ;P Maybe we'll try to get there again tomorrow....

· oh, and (January 2003 )

... I made shortbread tonight. yum!...

· a new mantra ()

today is better than yesterday...

· need the mojo (January 2003 )

alright... I need some good mojo sent my way at these two times: Tuesday at 11am MST. Thursday at 2pm MST. I've got some meetings set up for those two times that hopefully will put a quick end to this bout of unemployment. Which is good, because I need a new keyboard. :)...

· I'm away for the weekend... (January 2003 )

Kirsten and I were invited to stay in Calgary for the weekend by a friend of ours, so here we are... we'll be back on Sunday. ;) Until then, entertain yourself around the site, and go visit this site, sent to me by the lovely Miss Amanda....

· i see you Paul. (January 2003 )

Paul, I know you're here. Site: asgo57w9y323k.ab.hsia.telus.net URL: /archives/2003/01/22/08_38_09.html Referer: "http://www.staticred.net/speakeasy/" Date: [22/Jan/2003:19:12:39-0800] Since you're paying so much attention to this site (many, many pages loaded since the 19th - details inside), you can answer some questions:...

· since you all asked... ()

I've had a few of you ask over the past few days, so here's an update....

· Japanese proverb (January 2003 )

This kind of hit the mark, after my last two three days: "Fall seven times, stand up eight."...

· I have the bestest girl ever. ()

I had a really, really crappy day yesterday. Crappy in that "stabbed in the back, even though you saw it coming, but it still fucking hurts" kind of way. Without getting into any more details, let me just say that what I learned yesterday made me feel sick to my stomach. I ended up coming home early and cuddled up next to Kirsten, who was napping in bed. She licked my wounds, patched me up as much as she could, then took me out for dinner at the Mongolie Express (a great restaurant on 77th ave and 103st. Go and support the guy), which has grown to be our restaurant of choice when we head out (which we almost never do). After dinner, we went to London Drugs to get some batteries for my new camera. She waited patiently while the guy there (a huge photo buff) looked my camera over, cleaned it out, told me its history, showed me things like how the auto-exposure and depth of field preview worked, and answered questions I had about it. It's the kind of service I truly appreciate in a salesperson, and why I'm going back to that London Drugs for anything I need photographically. And then, something happened that made me extremely happy. I asked the guy if he had any lenses that would work on the camera, as this London Drugs does a small bit of business in used equipment... and he did! He brought out a 135mm telephoto lens in great condition. I'd thought to myself that I would wait, take a roll of film on the camera, and then consider lenses, until Kirsten asked, "Do you want it, baby?" The salesguy gave us a quote of $35 (down from the $79 price tag on it, which was still a bargain) and it was a done deal. I'm now the proud owner of a Soligar 135mm. All I need now is a flash, and I'm set! I popped some film into it, and I've got about 10 pictures on there already of things (and people!) around the house. I've also got the roll from my dad's Pentax in beign developed right now... I'll scan them in tonight and post the good ones (if any)....

· cryptic entry #73 ()

He's not going to win. No fucking way. It just, at the end of the day, makes me sad. feel free to ask me through email if you want to know the story behind this. I may or may not reply. :)...

· man... this province! (January 2003 )

Would you believe that in a two day period, it went from -0.8C in the morning to -20C here in Edmonton?...

· you're probably wondering... ()

You're probably wondering to yourself, "Why's Darren so obsessed about utilities for forcing ownership of files under Windows 2000?" Well, let me tell you why......

· would you believe... (January 2003 )

... I've been doing an online journal/blog for over 3 years? here's proof: the oldest journal entry on staticred (originally on nasty.cx/lifer)...

· resolutions (January 2003 )

Everyone is doing it, so I guess I should too... here's a very short list of resolutions for the new year.Write more. I have had some great opportunities to write over the last 10 months. A friend of mine stepped in shortly after being laid off from my job at Merilus and offered me a monthly contract to write for CramSession, an IT Resource. Before taking on that task, and writing 9 articles for them, I knew I could write, but didn't necessarily enjoy it all the time. This really changed with Cramsession. The secret project I've mentioned before has also made me realize that this is something I can actually do. And it's rekindled something that's been dormant in me for almost 5 years: creative writing. I want to bring a couple of stories I put aside back from the dead. I'm even considering self-publishing one of them. So, expect more writing and (hopefully) publication from me in the new year. More photography. I was starting to get discouraged about the way my photos have been turning out lately. I borrowed my father's SLR, and have been trying to learn the ins and outs of working with a manual camera. And it hasn't always worked out; photos have been overexposed, underexposed, blurred, etc. It's been incredibly discouraging. But discovering today that one of my photos was chosen by CBC Radio 3 - a group of designers I truly admire - has reinvigorated me. The best thing about it was that the photo they chose was taken on my cheap-o Minolta Hi-matic. I can't seem to get the same quality of photos out of the (much higher quality) Pentax. So, my resolution is to keep working on the photography, and try to better my skills there. Increase my freelance work. 'nuff said, really. I think it's time I spread my wings and took a little step out into the wilderness. I have very few contacts in this part of the world; I need to get out and meet people, so I can have more. :) See? Pretty short. But that can only work to my favour in sticking to them....

· back in the trenches.. ()

Happy New Year everybody! I'm back in Edmonton, having survived Christmas Eve and New Years flights between here and Abbotsford. It was nice getting back to BC and visiting with my family, Kirsten's family and a few friends (when we had time to squeeze them in)....

· a belated entry... (December 2002 )

This was originally supposed to be posted on Monday night, but due to server outage, couldn't make it You know, I was watching CBC tonight, and I realized why I love this country of ours. It's unusual for a Canadian to utter the words "I love this country of ours", but tonight was a special case. I was watching a new journal (The National, I think), and they were doing a feature on how families in Cape Breton are trying to save the Gaelic language. What struck me about this was how natural it seemed to me for these people to want to save the Gaelic culture in that region, and how sad I felt that it might be lost. Now, it is definitely not unusual for a Canadian to compare his country with our southern neighbour, the US of A. Who am I to go against my very national nature? Something like this just wouldn't happen in the US. One of the US's greatest strengths and greatest weaknesses is that it assimilates all cultures within it. Canadians' national identities are those of their ancestors. For example, if someone asks me what nationality I am, I often say "scottish". And, indeed, I strongly identify with the Scots and the Brits (both of whom contain my ancestors). If you were to ask Kirsten, she'd likely say Ukranian; and, indeed, she strongly identifies with the Ukranian culture. If you ask a US citizen - even one who has only been in the country a decade or so - you often get "I'm American", or "I'm _________-American". There's a seeming loss of culture there; a loss of nationality. But I digress. I was struck with the power culture has within Canada, and the level of respect we give to the multitude of cultures we house within our borders; we're truly a nation of nations. Definitely, it has given us some level of grief in our short history - Quebec, for example. The Metis, for another - and we haven't always followed the right path - as shown by the Japanese internment, the head tax on Chinese labourers, and the incident with the Komagata Maru. But, overall, it's something that has worked in our favour in creating a truly compassionate, wise country....

· oh... (December 2002 )

...and I never did find that bag of frozen peas. But, since I cleaned the house yesterday, and swept today, I think I must have put it back in the freezer and forgot. At least, I hope that's the case... because if not, I'm a dead man. :)...

· busy day from hell ()

I have a busy day from hell tomorrow, as I prepare to head out to Abbotsford for Christmas... I need to Pick up 4 links of Marchyshyn's sausage Finish modifications to Super Secret Project Do a last sweep of the house before leaving, so we don't come home to a messy apartment Pack. Ensure all remaining gifts are stowed safely. It'd suck to forget someone's prezzie. Go to the Chiropracter (5:45) It's times like this where I wish I could slow down time. I guess, instead, I'll just head to bed 'early' tonight, and stay up late tomorrow night....

· life update (December 2002 )

somewhere around this house, there's a half-frozen bag of peas that's melting... melting... melting... I hope I find it soon....

· :( (December 2002 )

Having a bad day. Again. Someone cheer me up, before I take out a city block....

· some niceness (December 2002 )

After having a couple of really crappy, stressy, sleep-deprived days, it was nice to see a Christmas card from karen and michael in the mail yesterday afternoon for Kirsten and I. Thanks guys! You & Alexander make one damned cute family. ;)...

· on a happier note (December 2002 )

I had an incredible start to my day today, with some great news that I can't share here yet. What I can say is that it put a great big smile on my face, and has helped boost my personal morale level to where it should be. I'll let you guys know more details when I can give them to you....

· things i haven't talked about (December 2002 )

A few things that have happened over the last few days that I haven't talked about....

· happy birthday! (November 2002 )

Birthday wishes go out to my psuedo-sister-in-law Natalie, who turns the ripe old age of     today. Send birthday wishes to iambe@userfriendly.org....

· things I've learned (November 2002 )

Some things I learned over the last few days: According to a quick test, I have around 15% body fat. Normal range for my age/weight/height is 12-20%. Yay not being obese. According to the same quick test, I have some pretty major problems with my neck. Nothing new there, but now I have 'scientific proof' and an appointment with a chiropracter for Tuesday for some tests and (hopefully) initial treatment. No matter how much facts, reports, experience and common sense you give someone to explain why a feature they want isn't such a good idea, if they don't care, they just don't care....

· arr! (November 2002 )

Grr! Aarrgh! Meh! Graggg! Roar! Mrrrrfl! This moment of frustration and anger brought to you by WorkTM. Nobody does it like WorkTM....

· Congratulations! (November 2002 )

Congratulations go out to Dave "Oorgo" Herrick and his wife Amber for the birth of their son, Xavier Douglas!...

· a little belated... (November 2002 )

I was out of town all weekend, so couldn't get this up before... Happy (belated) Birthday, Alan! Alan turned another year on Sunday... Wish him a belated happy birthday!....

· wishlist... (November 2002 )

Christmas is coming up fast, and I know that there are many of you out there with tonnes of money to spend this year.... ;) So, here's a wishlist of things I'd love (in the same spirit as Alan's list)....

· reminder... (November 2002 )

Just a reminder that I'm going to be heading down to Calgary next Saturday (the 16th). Kirsten and I should be arriving around 5-6, and we'll already be meeting with Karen & Michael (hey you guys, drop me an email so we know when and where to meet you). Kirsten's heading to help our friend Aida celebrate her birthday after that, and yours truly is "not invited!" (it's a girls' night out... no boys allowed) so.... I'll have a few hours to kill. :)...

· I'm a member! (November 2002 )

I just signed up to be a member of the Alberta New Media Association - it's my first professional association membership! (I'll let you know in the coming months if it's worth it. ;) )...

· life in the office... ()

Life in the office update: The air circulation in our building has cut out, warming the place up significantly. It's 4*C outside our window, and probably close to 15*C inside. This is sub-optimal. Also, there's something seriously wrong with my left shoe. My heel is in agony. That is all....

· friday five ()

1. Were you raised in a particular religious faith? I was raised Anglican Catholic... baptised in 1975 at St. John's Anglican Church in Vancouver, and confirmed in 1989(?) at St. Matthew's Anglican Church in Abbotsford. For the Yankees in the audience, Anglican is Episcopalean. For the Brits, the Church of England. ;) 2. Do you still practice that faith? Why or why not? I no longer practice that, or any faith beyond agnosticism. A test at belief.net told me I was 100% Unitarian Universalist, 93% Liberal Quaker and 93% Neo-Pagan. I prefer to stay a dog's breakfast of beliefs. One fo these days, though, I'd like to check out a Unitarian church. 3. What do you think happens after death? There's just no way to know. Besides, what happens after death isn't nearly as important as what happens before it. 4. What is your favourite religious ritual (participating in or just observing)? My favourite ritual when I was an Anglican was always the Peace. About halfway through the service, the Peace was held -- this consisted of people wandering about, wishing good will to each other and heartily shaking hands. "Peace be with you" "And also with you" The warmth and positive feeling of that ceremony was something tangible and real in an otherwise sedate, heavy service. 5. Do you believe people are basically good? I think people are basically everything. Everyone has the capacity for great good and great evil - the balance lies in the way people ultimately want to feel....

· so... (October 2002 )

So, I got a call from my grandmother last night.......

· so thats it 'eh ()

disgruntled blog pirate" href="http://nasty.cx/">kirsten c uszkalo >disgruntled blog pirate striking again....

· In cowgary... (October 2002 )

PUBLIC NOTICE: I'll be in Calgary the night of Nov 16th. If you want to get together, drop me a line....

· Too long... (October 2002 )

I've been with a PhD candidate for too long.... I have to add a list of publications to a prototype website I'm working on, and I actually sat down and seriously thought about what style of citation I should be using....

· ok, 'fess up... (October 2002 )

Who forwarded my name to the 'Jail & Bail' fundraiser? :)...

· she did it! (October 2002 )

I'm proud to announce that Kirsten is now a full PhD candidate, having passed her oral exam. :) Send your congratulations to circe@ufies.org!...

· Congratulations in order... (October 2002 )

We just got word last night that Kirsten has passed the written exams, and is moving on to the oral portion of her candidacy exams!...

· newsbreak (October 2002 )

It's snowing....

· such beauty... (October 2002 )

Last night, I spent a little over a half hour shivering in the cold, watching the Northern Lights. I've never seen them 'live' before, so I had no idea they were as full of life as they are. Although they weren't as strong as if I were farther north, they still danced and filled the sky with a green-blue glow. The lights danced from one edge of the horizon to another -- one of the lights above our apartment danced for about 5 minutes like a curtain in a slight breeze. I tell ya, I miss the mountains of BC, but last night almost made up for it....

· exam week! (September 2002 )

Kirsten's running through her exams this week - be a good fella and email your good wishes to circe@ufies.org!...

· friday five (September 2002 )

the friday five 1. What are your favorite ways to relax and unwind? I wish I could remember. Honestly, I do. ;) 2. What do you do the moment you get home from work/school/errands? Make dinner & watch a little idiot box. 3. What are your favorite aromatherapeutic smells? Frankincense (no myrrh). For Christmas last year, I gave Kirsten a censor and some frankincense. The ancients thought that frankincense was the closest to how Heaven smelled. It's also unique in that it only exists in one part of the world: Somalia & the Arab coast surrounding it. 4. Do you feel more relaxed with a group of friends or hanging out by yourself? I'm most relaxed by myself, or with Kirsten. Large groups of people bother me, so I tend to stay away from them. 5. What is something that you feel is relaxing but most people don't? Listening to some extremely energetic, loud music. For awhile, speed metal was one of the few things that could calm me right down. Weird, eh?...

· today (September 2002 )

Happy birthday Del!...

· This is entry #1010. (September 2002 )

This is the 1,010th entry in my little hole in the cybersphere. I suppose something interesting should go in here, eh? Hrm. Well, I made a few neat graphics at work today. And stuff. Hrm. I, uhm, also started contacting old contacts in town to try and pick up some after-hours design work too. You know, in honour of the occassion and everything. So, ya. If you'd like to help me celebrate, send me a design contract. Or a book. Or a nifty card or something. Cos, y'know, it'd be nice....

· :) (September 2002 )

hee hee hee......

· an email from God ()

It occured to me today that i have an email checking issue. now i check my email about half as often as my dearest does, but that still equals quite a bit o checking. why i wonder? i have leaped at the only possible conclusion that i am somehow expecting an email from God. you may think that that is absurd/wierd/creepy/sad etc. and yup, i'd have to agree. the constant reading on prophecy/mysticism/heresy/witchcraft might have something to do with it too. i had the most disturbing dream about eucharistic devotion the other night. thank you very much Walker-Bynum! so yeah. i figure i must be waiting for some sign, some message which will make sense out of this kooky existance of mine. so, if God emails you first- can you forward me a copy? kirsten c uszkalo» blog pirate....

· in the name of Ping... (August 2002 )

In the next day or so, I move from my cubicle of loneliness and despair, to sharing an office with the other creative person in the company. It's under less than stellar circumstances (the person who was sharing her office was let go, to the shock and dismay of all), but I think it'll be the start of a powerful creative force growing in the building... a force that will one day take over the world. Or, you know, until we get bored, see something shiny and get distracted....

· back to school... (August 2002 )

Sounds like Wim is considering finishing his degree -- dude, you couldn't make a better choice, especially if work's footing the bill. One of my other friends was finding the job search difficult without a degree, and was kicking himself for not getting one when he was younger....

· more personal stuff. (August 2002 )

For those of you who wanted a status update on this entry....

· thinking outloud for exams ()

does the author have to be angry, does she have to buck the system, to work entirely outside or established order in order to be radical? kirsten c uszkalo» disgruntled blog pirate....

· odd thought ()

kirsten c uszkalo» disgruntled blog pirate....

· Cryptic note #25. ()

With regards to cryptic note #23: What makes you think we're talking about you?...

· feeling better... ()

Feeling better today, but busier than a flea in a circus this morning. Until I have a little more free time, here's something goofy. (Oh ya, there's a new article on Screaming Midget)...

· private sadness - feel free to ignore the following (August 2002 )

Hey kids. Darren is feeling too heart-broken, frustrated and sad to write to you all for a while. . . kirsten c uszkalo » disgruntled blog pirate....

· I love this place... (August 2002 )

You've got to love an office where you leave your desk for five minutes, and a chocolate bar appears when you come back! Big thanks to Paul, who I discovered put it there. ;)...

· I guess... ()

I guess since Kirsten has become the Infamous Blog Pirate, I no longer have to refer to her as "K" here... ;) So, everyone, welcome Kirsten to the blog. Maybe one day she'll have her own login, even. :)...

· kirsten rambling again ()

as you may or may not know, i 've had a series of cranium explosions as of late, preparing for my comps. these grevious injuries have been tough and made our lives here a little stressy. . . kirsten c uszkalo » not-as-disgruntled blog pirate....

· a rock and a hard place. (August 2002 )

fairly personal entry about a friend, so I'm taking off comments. Feel free to skip this one by folks. I'll be back to regular Darren tomorrow....

· note to self (August 2002 )

Turn off the "Always logged in" status in Movable Type at home... ;)...

· Friday five (August 2002 )

The Friday Five: Do you have a car? I'm the proud owner of a 1990 Nissan Sentra. It ain't pretty, and it ain't powerful, but it gets me around without using much gas. And, seeing the new gas stations being built here are including an extra space for a $1 to be put, that's probably a good thing. Do you drive very often? Not nearly as much as I used to, now that I've moved up to Edmonton. Pretty much everywhere I go on a daily basis I go on foot. Edmonton's nice that way. What's your dream car? Something like this: (1949 chopped and tubbed Merc Coupe) Have you ever received a ticket? Once, in '92, for doing 65 in a 60 zone. I nearly got another about a year ago, but managed to wiggle out of it by telling the cop that I'd been driving for 13 hours from Edmonton (I had... of course, I'd also stopped in Chilliwack for 3 hours, and watched a movie there) Have you ever been in an accident? I've been involved in two accidents: one as a driver, and the other as a passenger. The accident as a driver was pretty innocent and there was no damage (not even a scratch) to the other car - I basically tapped someone's rear bumper as they were starting to go forward. The accident I was a passenger in was much, much worse, and happened about 4-5 years ago. If you look in the picture I've linked to, you'll notice the unmistakable impression of a Ford F350. Alan, Brian and I were sitting at a stoplight in Abbotsford, waiting for the light to turn. The next thing we knew, we were sitting in the middle of the intersection, and Alan was laying in the back seat. The kid that hit us (he was driving his uncle's Big Ford Truck) was looking over his shoulder as he was coming up behind us, to see if he could whiz by us and blow the light. As he was doing 60-70kph at the time (did I mention we were stopped?), he misjudged the distance between him and us, and plowed directly into Alan's poor little Mazda 323. On the bright side, I have a very solid basis when I tell someone I feel like I've been hit by a Ford F350....

· get that good mojo flowin' (August 2002 )

Alan is coming up here tomorrow to catch an interview with the company I work for... Although things are going to go 100% smashingly, he could still use some of that good old-fashioned mojo sent his way about 1pm Mountain. Send all good wishes to alan@ufies.org....

· so tired... (August 2002 )

Had a nice long weekend. Much of it was spent lazing around the house, while Monday was Heritage Day in Edmonton. We celebrated the Swedish by going to a sale at Ikea. We hadn't actually planned on buying anything; however, we've (I've) been wanting a new desk for the apartment for the last little while. As it turned out, the As-Is department had an Anton desk for over 50% off. In beech, the colour of the rest of our furniture. After a LOT of "Hmm... I don't know... maybe...", we decided to pick it (and two new office chairs - one at 50% off) up and take it home. After talking for awhile about where to put the new desk (those few of you who have been to our apartment know it's already topped out, furniture-wise), I started to take the package apart, so I could build the desk. And that's when I discovered there were no instructions. At all. Several hours later, I had the little beastie together, with all the parts in the right place. One confusing feature was, of course, that they included plastic screws for one of the drawers, but not the other, which used regular screws. Go figure. We still don't exactly know what to do with it, but at least it's put together now. :)...

· The Friday Five (August 2002 )

Once again, here's the Friday Five. 1. What is your lineage? Where are your ancestors from? On my Mom's side, my heritage is long-standing British (Pryke and Spurling). On my Dad's side, it gets a little more interesting, because I don't exactly know.. For the most part, my heritage on my Dad's side is lowland Scottish. However, there's a good part of my Dad's upbringing that I know nothing about, because he never talks about his family. As a result, I don't know who my Dad's father was, nor his heritage. Funnily, I identify most strongly with my Scottish side. I don't know if this is because I'm half Scottish, or just because I happen to think things like Bagpipes and Kilts are cool, but them's the facts. 2. Of those countries, which would you most like to visit? Scotland, hands down. I want to see the lochs and hills of Scotland, and I want to sit on Hadrian's Wall (what was Hadrian thinking? "I know, I'll put a 2' high wall across the entire country... the Scots will NEVER figure out how to get over that!"). 3. Which would you least like to visit? Why? Of the two, I'd least like to visit England, at least the urban areas. Sure, it'd be cool, but it's also ruddy expensive and filthy from what I hear. 4. Do you do anything during the year to celebrate or recognize your heritage? Not really. I always try to observe Robby Burns Day, but usually don't. Something nice that happens here in Edmonton is the Edmonton Heritage Festival, which is a 3 day festival of all the ethnic groups in the Edmonton area set up at Hawreluk Park (just down the road from where we live). There's usually a tonne of booths set up with cuisine from the various groups and cultural activities as well. 5. Who were the first ancestors to move to your present country (parents, grandparents, etc)? On my Mom's side, it would have been my Great Grandfather (her maternal grandfather) who first emigrated to Canada. On my father's side, I really don't know; It goes beyond my Great-Grandmother at any rate, who was born in Canada in the early 1900s....

· don't mind the black toque... (July 2002 )

Anyone know where I can get a set of lockpicks in Edmonton? Now, before you start wondering if I'm thinking of supplementing my income with some late-night wanderings, fear not -- we simply locked ourselves out of our filing cabinet, which is about 40 years old and has no key. (oops)...

· I want something, but I don't know what (July 2002 )

I've been sitting on the edge of something for the last little while, but I don't know what......

· I'm outta here (July 2002 )

Gone for the weekend kids... I'll be making special cameo appearances in select Abbotsford locations. Back Monday!...

· The Friday Five ()

The Friday Five: 1. Where were you born? University Hospital, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in the year of our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-four. (Ed's note: I originally typed nineteen hundred and forty-seven, which is not anywhere near corred) 2. If you still live there, where would you rather move to? If you don't live there, do you want to move back? Why or why not? I no longer live there - we moved when I was 6 months old or so to Abbotsford. I've been back a couple times, but from my teenage impressions of the place, I don't know if I'd want to move back... I'd have to visit it again, through adult eyes. 3. Where in the world do you feel the safest? Funnily enough, out on a trail in the mountains is where I feel safest. I must have habitant blood in my or something. 4. Do you feel you are well-travelled? I've been a few places around North America, but I don't feel the least bit well traveled. I desperately want to take The Tour, and I want to head into Asia Major at some point too. Next summer, K and I are tentatilvely planning a driving trip to either Alaska or the East Coast. Neither of us have been to Alaska, but she's also never driven across the country before either. 5. Where is the most interesting place you've been? Hmm... Edmonton is a pretty interesting place, with all the festivals throughout the summer - especially the Fringe festival in August. But I'd have to say one of the more interesting places I've been lately was Savannah, Georgia. There's a real charm to the city, and a quality of the absurd I really enjoyed....

· 10 things... (July 2002 )

10 bands/artists you've seen live Erm.... Sarah McLachlan (2x), Tori Amos, Ashley McIsaac (2x), Sparkmaker, Cub, Gob, Spirit of the West and some Sweet Papa Lowdown 9 things you're looking forward to Seeing Kirsten on Friday night, Our friend Nancy's wedding, seeing K's folks, Possible change of path at work, writing my next article, getting some design work actually done, driving my car around (it's done!), sleeping in, sleeping. 8 things you wear every day 3 silver rings (one celtic band on my left ring finger, a tiger's eye that used to belong to K's dad on my right ring finger, an amber pinky ring on my left hand K bought for me in Banff), a garnet pinky ring on my right hand, two necklaces (both gifts from K, one is an ankh, the other is a thick silver chain), glasses, and sandals. 7 things that annoy you Rude LRT passengers, rude pedestrians, rude drivers, rude salespeople, rude clerks, rude receptionists and just rude people in general. 6 things you touch daily Kirsten, my mouse, my keyboard, the button to open the LRT doors, my identity badge, a Coke and my catnik Zelda. 5 things you do every day Walk to the LRT, ride the LRT, check email, surf shameful amounts, work 4 people you spend the most time with Kirsten, Zelda... there aren't any more. 3 movies you could watch again and again Hackers, Ferris Beuller's Day Off, Lord of the Rings. 2 favourite songs of the moment DJ Z-Trip's remix of Rush's Tom Sawyer, Can't get you out of my head by Kylie Minogue (I know.. it's pitiful) 1 person you could spend the rest of your life with Easy. Kirsten. stolen shamelessly from Chrissie...

· and.. ()

And, I'm tired, blah....

· In other news... (July 2002 )

Turns out it's my grad class's 10 year anniversary this weekend, a weekend that I just so happen to be in Abbotsford....

· What a morning! ()

Update: Just heard back from the mechanic, and I have to replace a tire (which I expected) and some bulbs over the license plate. Yay me. I knew it was going to be a bad day last night about 1am. Today was the day I had planned on taking my car into the mechanics, for its out of province inspection. In Alberta, this means a complicated, obfuscatory procedure: You first have to insure your car, then get a temporary permit so you can drive your car to the mechanics for an out of province inspection. Once that is complete, you can then register your car, which allows you to keep your insurance. I had the perfect plan......

· Weekend Notes (July 2002 )

As I'm sitting here awaiting my time to go home, I thought I might jot down a few words about the weekend....

· here's the news... (July 2002 )

I'm taking over the reins of Cramsession's Web Guru Voodoo, a weekly newsletter for web geeks. I start July 27th, and publish on a biweekly basis until September, when I take over the reins in full. I've been writing for Cramsession since March (see articles above), so this is a nice progression. ;)...

· personality... ()

According to this personality test (and others based on Kiersey-Meyers I've taken in the past), I'm an INFP (Introverted, iNtuitive, Feeling, Perception) - making me a Healer or Idealist in Carl Jung's personality types... For K, here's guidelines for getting along with me, and a strengths and weaknesses (Many of which K will attest to experiencing first-hand. ;) )...

· keep an eye here... (July 2002 )

I've got some big news coming in a day or so... keep your eyes right here for more information......

· notes ()

Interesting night last night. It turns out our new caretaker (brother of the fantastic caretaker we had before) of our apartment is learning accupressure, and he needed some guinea pigs for his final project. Well, since I suffer from chronic neck & shoulder pain, and K gets sore knees from time to time, we jumped on the opportunity. After a couple of postponements, we finally went in for our first session last night. It felt a little odd, like getting a massage but slightly different. He focussed in on a few power points on my shoulders, base of the skull, and eye sockets, which I tell you, I sure felt. After the first session, I felt great for about 30 minutes until the neck pain slowly eased its way back into my life. The shoulder pain I was experiencing is almost completely gone. He also did some very odd stretches with my arms that felt really good. Our next session is in about 2 weeks, and I'm looking forward to it, now that I know what to expect. In other news, my Mom has finally learned how to get online, email and start surfing. So a big wave to her, and feel free to drop her an email....

· Attention! (July 2002 )

Attention all Greater Vancouver People! May I have your attention please...K will be invading your fine region this Saturday afternoon! Kindly have all gifts prepared and ready for delivery by Saturday morning to avoid all unpleasantness.... K's heading back to Ab