Upgrades,

I'm a guy who LOVES to buy and play around with technology. I think most guys are.

It is strange that cell phones don't really do anything for me though. They don't really excite me like most things.

But I got a new one last night, a Nokia N95 8GB. I wanted it because it is the most similar to my now old one, just a lot more feature packed.

Old versus new

Slightly off topic: I have to say, there are three things I don't understand about people and cell phones:

1. Why do people feel the need to have everything touchscreen based? the thought of having to tap tap tap my way though a menu or a text message doesn't thrill me one bit. Add to that the fact that my brother has had 3 or 4 touchscreen phones that have crapped out on him in just as many months and the whole thing seems like a shit idea so far.

I don't get it. I must be getting old.

2. I also don't get qwerty keyboards. Okay, I get it...but I don't want one. I touched pretty much every phone from every company while looking for a new phone and all these so called convenient slide out keyboards felt terrible. I know the whole "well, you get used to it" thing is true...but that's the thing. I don't want to. T9 on a regular numeric pad is all I require to send a text message, especially when said pad feels as good as this one.

Again, I guess I'm just archaic.

3. Why do people think every device needs to be so slim and compact until you can hardly see it? I don't get it.

The N95 is what a lot of people would consider "big" in that it is a chunky unit. You know what, though? I like that. To me that feels more substantial, less cheaply made and stronger in general.

The same thing happened when I got my Zune at first. Everyone was all "why is it so big?" and I couldn't understand it.

I'd rather have a large beautiful screen (as the N95 does) than a small and ridiculously compact device.

I think it's like a 2 year old phone, but I knew I wanted another Nokia because I love their menu/OS (whatever you want to call it) and build quality, also I didn't want any of the things I mentioned above.

It's an awesome phone so far with a shit ton more features than my other one. 3G, GPS, Wi fi, 5 megapixel camera, 8 gigs to store shit, another camera on the front for video calls and blah blah blah.

It has been fun to mess around with and the camera really is awesome. It's like a fully featured digital camera with a lot of options unlike my other one which was just take a picture or video.

The only thing I don't care for is that it is a two way slider, so you can slide out the little multimedia panel from the top to watch videos and listen to music and shit, actually the only reason I don't care for it is because I'll never use it, that's all.

I also had to switch from Telus to Rogers to get this phone, and I was weary at first, but I'm glad I did because I get FAR better service out here than I did with Telus or anyone else in this house gets with their Telus phones.

Three year contracts are kind of moronic, but like I said, I hardly ever feel the need to get a new phone anyway, so this will probably do me.

By then the only choice I'll have is touchscreen mini phones with cramped QWERTY keyboards.

And I'll get a Nokia.

ps. My ringtone by default (?) is Johann Sebastian Bach.

RESPECT.

Getting Away from it.

So camp out 09 was a pretty good time.

Wolf Lake is nice and the lots we had were good for fishing from the shore and so on.

Of course, the only people who really read this are the ones who were there, so I am not really gonna share all the photos here. I'll put them on facebook tomorrow instead.

I still don't understand how anyone can sleep in a tent past 6 AM. I was up every 15 minutes either in pain or very cold, then would fall asleep for a few minutes and go through it all again...then just get up when it's light out enough or someone else is up.

That's always what camping is like for me though. Not about sleep.

It was good to just be goofy and enjoy existing for a bit and I am glad everyone who said they would go ended up going. It was nice seeing Ryan and Geoff again, considering I don't see either of them with any real consistency.

Good times guys.

PS, this will pretty much forever make me giggle:



Youtube pretty much raped the quality of it, but that's to be expected.

I also have a few other good videos, the one of Geoff in the water retrieving his hook is a laugh as well as Trevor providing the soundtrack to Ryan's wood chopping. I would upload them, but it takes forever and they end up looking like shit anyway.

I will provide them to anyone who wants 'em though.

I love you guys.

Mind = blown.

District 9 is INCREDIBLE

So incredible I broke out the ITALICS just then.

Fuck the haters.

Seriously, I'm not sure how anyone could feel otherwise. This movie blew my expectations away.

And it just has to be said how amazing it is that this film, with a 30 million dollar budget (considered "shoe string" these days) has better acting, settings action and CGI than anything else I've seen this summer.

I've never before watched a movie with so much CG, and come away feeling like it didn't.

It is the strangest thing. Some would argue the quality isn't on par with Transformers or something, but the point I'm trying to make is that it feels like it is, and so much more.

Perhaps because it's 500 times more engaging than that film so I didn't have to sit there going "ooooh, that's pretty" while being bored to tears.

Instead, it was simply believable.

It was also quite bloody, humorous, intense AND has a great message.

But it doesn't beat you over the head with said message.

Awesome.

WOO YEAH

So my pal Trevor and I went for a nice ride tonight.

Strangely, it was our first time out together, but it was good shit for sure.

We headed to Seba beach aka wild west redneck town and then through various twisties past lakes and mines and such.

GS Meets Goldwing

Maverick aka T-Bone



Mandatory duo shot. Man we are awesome.

Not much else to say other than I'm starting to realize there isn't many other ways I'd rather spend the evenings. I love being out there. With friends is even more awesome.

Ryan and Geoff need to get bikes next summer. Also Tracy.

PS. Trevor is a SPEED DEMON.

PPS. other assorted photos may be thrown up on shitbook just for fun.

YUP

WELL.

camping trip coming up I guess. 2 nights seems like enough these days. Long enough to be glad to get away, but not long enough to get annoyed at sleeping in a damn tent or being surrounded by you assholes.

in honour, here are some classic photos in what I like to call, an ode to debacles and good times:











Here's to setting tents up in the dark (or me watching them do it), coloured fires, vampire wine drinking, fishing, masked lunatics, first person middle finger shots (I have at least one of these for every year), guitar playing and dropping all our beverages.

BRING IT ON.

PS.

Alright. SIR.

I enjoy the small things in life and always have.

One thing that makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside EVERYTIME is when another motorcycle initiates/returns the biker wave.

I'm no veteran, and although it is ridiculously written, this is all mostly true from my limited experience. Just not entirely. I think it depends on the rider and the mood they are in.

For the record, I'll usually do the big two fingers out wave to just about any other bike coming toward me and usually get a "reply" 80% of the time. I don't care what they are on or how they are dressed up. It's the BROTHERHOOD, man.

Most of the time they do it first which is even cooler.

Harley riders appear to have a stick shoved up their ass though, which led me to this funny list from some other site:

Top Ten Reasons Why Harley Riders Don't Wave Back

1. They're afraid it will invalidate their factory warranty.
2. Leather and studs make it too hard to raise their arm.
3. They refuse to wave to anyone whose bike is already paid for.
4. They won't let go of handlebars because they might vibrate off.
5. The rushing wind could blow the scabs off their new tattoos.
6. They're angry over the second mortgage needed to pay for the new Harley.
7. They just discovered the fine print in their owner's manual revealing that The Motor Company is partially owned by rice-burner manufacturers.
8. They can't tell if other riders are actually waving or just reaching up to cover their ears, like everyone else.
9. If they wave back, they risk being impaled on their spiked helmet.
10. They're upset that after spending $30,000, they still don't own a bike that's as comfortable as a Goldwing.

and just for the hell of it:

Top Ten Reasons Why Goldwing Riders Don't Wave Back

1. They aren't sure whether the other rider is waving or making an obscene gesture.
2. They risk getting frostbite if they take their hand off the heated grip.
3. They have arthritis and it is difficult to raise their arm.
4. The reflection from the etched windshield was momentarily blinding.
5. The on-board espresso machine had just finished.
6. They were asleep when other rider waved.
7. They were involved in a three-way conference call with their stock broker and accessories dealer.
8. They were distracted by an oddly shaped blip on their radar screen.
9. They were simultaneously adjusting the air suspension, seat height, programmable CD player, seat temperature and satellite navigation system.
10. They couldn't find the "auto wave-back" button on their dashboard.

Hey Trevor, HEY!?

There was a sportbike one but this is already a retarded enough post that I won't include it.

I usually just mumble "child rapist" if they don't wave back and carry on my way.

AHHH, YES, THE SMALL THINGS.

whatever.

Trevor and I (and some Doug guy) saw G.I. Joe tonight and I feel like I should write something about it.

First off, I knew it wouldn't be great. I knew that since the day I found out they were making a film. As it got closer to being released it got more and more obvious. Seriously, who makes a trailer featuring a Kid Rock song? did people ever actually listen to that jackass?

I know I ranted not long ago about Transformers 2 and that type of movie, but I have to admit, I felt like I had to see this because G.I Joe was a big part of my life as a kid. I love the toys and the cartoons.

The movie as a whole is bad. I don't think anyone can argue that.

The Good:



- A live action Baroness! (BONER CITY)

- Snake eyes is as badass as one would hope.

The bad:

- unnecessary flashbacks/character origins/love stories.

- Accelerator suits. Fuck off.

- just general sloppy editing that makes the film quite a mess.

- One of the most miscast movies I've ever seen. Dennis Quaid is an idiot and Marlon Wayans and Channing Tatum (I think that is his name) have NO place as actors. Good grief, the black dude is too "typical black dude" and the white dude shows about as much emotion as a wooden plank, even when he's yelling. Hard to watch.

If I wanted to go off into fanboy rants (I don't) I would say that the film needed more Cobra Commander with his classic blue hood and less of this "doctor" nonsense. He got cooler near the end and Joseph Gordon-Levitt nailed the voice, but since it is the "rise of Cobra" I guess I have to wait for a shitty sequel to see him be truly evil?

LAME

400th post extravaganza!

Not really though, just more random thoughts.

A while back I made a post about how I realized again how awesome an album Relationship of Command by At the Drive-in is.

You can take all that and pretty much apply it to "The ugly Organ" by Cursive as well. A few nights ago while listening to my Zune at work it came on and I just remembered how well done it is.



I could gush about it for some time, but what's the point. All I'll say is that I highly recommend it. And listening to it from beginning to end in one sitting if possible.

Lately, random bike rides have become even more of a great way to clear my head. I've spent quite a bit of time between here and south on 770 past the Genesse power plant. That is a beautiful ride.

Also, it never really bothered me before but it sort of does now. What is with people who ride in nothing but shorts, a T shirt and some sandals? to me that is an absolutely absurd thought.

I know, I know, people can make their own choices, but I would never ride without a jacket on. Even in the scorching heat, it's not so bad when you are riding. I'm not saying dress up in leathers head to toe, but at least cover your sweet flesh with SOMETHING.

It's always older dudes I see on Harleys and cruisers too, which is odd considering how the sport bike guys are supposed to be the irresponsible ones.

While I'm at it, how could anyone NOT want to wear a full faced helmet? If I'm going ass over handle bars or something, I sure as fuck want to protect my face and jaw just as much as my head.

Personal taste/comfort versus the risk, I suppose. I understand it completely, actually, so the question mark up there is more rhetorical than anything. You get my point, though.

In other news, I am not shaving until my parents/I get to move back into our house. My dad and I refer to it as a refugee beard.

I am well aware of my inability to grow a real beard, and that it is going to look so disgusting, but that's cool. Nobody thinks I'll pull it off, and they might be right, but as soon as some cash bets get involved, I might stay resolute.

Anyway, I'll understand if none of you want to be seen in public with me.

That's it for me kids.

follow up

So, things have been getting better. We've had guys at the house pretty steady since the day after the fire and so the house is pretty much cleaned out now.

They box up all the stuff we want to keep and apparently clean it and check to see if it works. They have some sort of ozone room which can suck out toxins/smoke or whatever.

They took my Wii and my Xbox 360 before I could grab them, which kind of pisses me off because 1. I am sure they are fine
and
2. Who the fuck knows when I will get them back.

We also found a house to rent which is basically in the same subdivision. I could drive to our house in about 30 seconds, so that is cool I guess, especially for my parents who really wanted to be as close as possible.

I have very mixed feelings about this house, though. I spent last night here with my sister, and the night before cleaning it up as best we could.

I know part of it is that I just don't want to live in some random house because it won't feel like home, but another part is that I just have this uneasy feeling and also that this house appears to have been renovated by a gang of mentally retarded children with power tools.

I am not a picky person and a lot of what I've noticed might be trivial to some people, but seriously.

stupidity on parade:

You can quite literally see down into the laundry room when the light is on.

"oh god I must have measured wrong somewhere, let's just build a cabinet over the vent anyway and make it a halfer. durr"

I'm no builder, but I have never seen such shoddy installation of baseboards/carpet in all my years. I hope to god this owner did this himself with a hammer and some nails, because if he paid to get this done he got ripped right the fuck off. It is a lot worse than this in some places.

That's Bush league!

Throw in some water damage in the basement bathroom to make it even more complete.

Other things:

- Mouse shit. I realize the house hasn't been lived in for some time and it's "a country house" and therefore almost impossible to keep the fuckers out and from what I've seen there aren't any mice in here at the present so hopefully they came and went, but still, who the fuck wants to live in it? these people didn't even try to clean it. I think they said they would get someone to do it and to their defense, I don't think they were even trying to rent it at the time, but come on.

- Who the fuck puts light switches to bathrooms and some bedrooms on the OUTSIDE of the room?

- Why is every single power outlet looser than Paris Hilton?

And plenty more.

There are some good things, and like I said (or meant to say) some of these things can be fixed quite easily or aren't really that big a deal, but shit man, if I owned a house I'd be doing things to it a lot better than this.

These people want to sell this thing for around 430K and that is absurd as fuck.

Some cool things:

This was around 6 AM when I got up. It was soothing to watch.

- There is a router plugged in and working in the laundry room and I am currently tapped into it and that is why this post exists.

- The showers look like they are space capsules.

Overall I probably sound like a whiny complaining bitch, but I'm not really like that. I will sleep anywhere, and am glad to have my own space. With time I will probably get more used to it and so on, but I'm just glad we are renting and don't have to stay here forever.