Archive for April, 2004
I could have used this tonight.
By Karen | Friday, April 30th, 2004 | No Comments »
Black & Decker Lids Off Jar Opener
Why must I be such a wimp? Why are my hands so small? Why does Kurt close all the jars so damn tightly?!
Took me 10 minutes of trying with a rubber band on the lid; 5 mins of heating the lid up under hot water; a total of 10 minutes burning my palms trying to open the lid. Next time I will only eat spaghetti when someone is home to be a jar opener.
Windy-Peg.
By Karen | Wednesday, April 28th, 2004 | No Comments »
Holy cow is it ever windy here!! As powerfully muscled and tall as I am (don’t laugh), I am getting blown about by the enormous invisible mouth that is shooting +30km winds all over the city. It’s especially bad on Donald & Graham and Donald & Stradbrook (respectively, the corner where I make a bus connection and the intersection I walk across to get home). To make it worse, today was supposed to be a wonderful 17 degrees, but instead it was rainy and cold and it could possibly snow overnight. I miss Vancouver!
I used to think that Vancouver was pretty windy, but compared to Winnipeg winds, Vancouver winds are like someone whispering in your ear. And it seems that most of the windstorms that occurred in Vancouver were early in the morning or late at night. Maybe I just wasn’t paying enough attention to them. Here, they are so strong that I fear for my life. Not that the wind will kill me; more like the wind will push me 1 foot too far into the path of an oncoming vehicle.
Oh, I saw this really funny postcard today (this is my rendition of it, don’t want to be slapped with a copyright lawsuit now do I?):
Whoever designed this card is pretty clever, b/c they’re getting paid almost a buck for every card they sell, and it’s just a blank white card with one line of text. There’s another card, with the caption “Winnipeg at night.” Guess what that looks like.
I love this city and the people–a reminder to the Pegger blog audience that feels I’m berating your city. Though I must say, sometimes Winnipeg in the winter does look like that postcard…
Shaw-enabled. Yippee!
By Karen | Monday, April 26th, 2004 | No Comments »
Shaw is fantabulous compared to MTS. Always connected, no need to install PPoE, and the number of port scanners and attacks are minimal. Maybe because I’m new on the block, but I am quite enjoying the peace and virusless-ness of our computer.
Went to a lovely birthday dinner for Jared yesterday at the Hamilton household. His fill of creamed corn and all the steak and chicken you can stuff into your belly. I took pictures of the occasion but silly me, there was no film in my camera!! And I work at Don’s Photo, what an embarrassment. Afterwards, Kurt’s mom took out some old photos of the family and showed them to us. There was one of Kurt’s dad and uncle as boys one Halloween…so cute, awww. Also got read Kurt’s grades in elementary school. One of his teachers wrote him a letter telling him what a good student he was. Double awwww.
Getting distracted by MSN conversations…GOGA is being referenced…ttyl!
Kurt’s Birthday BBQ Bonanza — May 1st, 7pm
By Karen | Monday, April 26th, 2004 | No Comments »
(I’m posting this on my blog to all you Kurt-fans that I didn’t have emails for…hopefully you see this post!)
Kurt’s turning a quarter of a century old next Monday, so we’re having a BBQ potluck this Saturday at our place. We’ll supply the Filipino BBQ, Tasty Burgers, and other yummy grilled meats. You supply yourselves and anything/anyone else you’d like to bring. (Kurt likes: salad with Craisins, cakes & pies, Paige Davis, and…um…oh yeah…alcohol!)
Please let us know if you can make it. The fun starts at 7pm!
RSVP: 474-1437 or kclement@sfu.ca
PS #1: I didn’t have everyone’s email so someone please forward this invite to Melanie, Heather, Jina, and anyone else you know who’d like to catch up with Kurt. Thanks!
First ever ‘alcohol potluck’.
By Karen | Saturday, April 24th, 2004 | No Comments »
Last night was an AIESEC potluck, since Jonny and Andrea (Toronto), Danielle (Kenya), and Colin (Poland) were all going away for the year. But instead of bringing food for dinner, you bring something to contribute to the liver deterioration of the group. Kurt and I were the bad ones who brought a 26oz tequila. Took pictures, will post them after they’re developed, mwahaha.
It was at Diana’s house all the way in St. Vital, so me, Kurt and Nicole took a cab over. We mused on Diana’s last name (Cristostomo) and the un-Filipinoness of it. And her parents not being against an alcohol potluck…?! Maybe she’s pretending to be Filipino. We wondered if we’d see any items in the house that classify your family as True Pinoy:
-rice cooker
-fake flowers, or better yet, those fake glossy japanese blossom bonsai trees (do you know what I mean?)
-”The Last Supper” over the dining table
-Santo Nino or Fatima figurines
So it was nice to walk in Diana’s home and see all of the above. Actually, her family has TWO Last Supper pieces: one giant portrait at the head of the table, and a wood etching on the wall above the window. And this amazing shelf of Santo Nino (in a seashell? never saw that kind) and Fatimas in the formal dining room.
Another comment about the house–why do you need two TVs in the same room? Especially they are 60″ and “32″? Their “little TV” is already 5 inches larger than ours! I was in awe of their A/V setup. Though with their international satellite (they get lots of Asian channels, cool!), surround sound, and DVD hookups, they had overlooked having a CD player installed. Whoops…I guess no Dirty Dancing 2 soundtrack for me and Heather and M.Raquid.
Back to the alcohol. I cannot believe how much the group ingested in 6 hours. I was probably the only one sober by 3am, as I was the only one not willing to mix rye, tequila, bacardi coolers, and cream-based liqueurs in the same stomach. There was plenty of rowdy basketball (the cops asked us to stop, sorry) and several rounds of this drinking game called John Cashmo. Ask Jonny how to play it, he invented it.
There was also some interesting girl-on-girl-action, or GOGA as it was called last night, that involved some pretty sloshed AIESEC girls and their mouths (tongues?). Actually, they probably would have done it sober, who knows. The incident was caught on videotape I think…couldn’t tell as the entire population of guys were crowded around the girls and encouraging more GOGA behaviour. We tried to start an alumni grind train to relive our former 11-person Western Regional Conference 2001 dirtyness, but there was only the four of us doing half-assed booty shaking. It was a pretty pathetic attempt. Anyway, it was a great time, and it was nice to see everyone sloshed as one happy AIESEC family before the four guests of honour went away.
Now for a nap, I’m still feeling a little light-headed…
Randomness.
By Karen | Thursday, April 22nd, 2004 | No Comments »
Got this in an email from Jordie and thought some of you blog readers might enjoy. Especially those of you who harbour anti-Bush sentiments.
Instructions:
1. Go to www.google.com.
2. Type “Weapons of mass destruction” (but don’t hit enter!)
3. Hit the “I’m Feeling lucky” button.
4. Read the “error message” carefully.
——————–
G-Unit sighting?
Kurt and I went to the Pancake House before watching Kill Bill Vol. 2. For you Peggers, it’s the one at Polo Park at the Clarion Hotel. There was this really loud looking G-Unit RV parked in the hotel’s cul-de-sac, and a slew of teeny boppers (mostly guys!) waiting for a peek of anyone famous. I guess the 50 Cent concert was happening that night at the Arena a few blocks away, and that the Clarion was Fitty’s choice. If I were wearing all that bling, I would’ve stayed someplace a little more … prestigious. He must like his pancakes.
————
Try out my test email!
According to Blogger and Google, I am special enough to be a beta tester for their upcoming web-based email service. It’s like hotmail, with a more intuitive interface and searching capability. the 1 GB free storage capacity is pretty sweet too. But I need people to email me if I’m gonna be trying this out. So email me! Funny stuff, letters, whatever. Just don’t give my email to spammers. Anyhoo, it’s horcubee (at) gmail (dot) com. Replace the (at) and (dot) with — you guessed it! — @ and a ..
———-
Another quiz: Who is your celebrity chef match?
Emeril Lagasse
Bam! When it comes to whipping up something in the kitchen, you’re rarely afraid to kick it up a notch. That’s why your celebrity chef match is Emeril Lagasse, the king of notch-kicking. While some may be a little intimidated by cooking and recipes, you tend to have fun in the kitchen (and in life), throwing caution (and sometimes even recipes) to the wind. After all, it’s only food.
To you, the most important thing is to have a good time, which is why you probably enjoy sharing your culinary enthusiasm with friends and family. When you do entertain, you have a knack for throwing a little heart into everything you prepare — and there’s no better ingredient in the world.
Expert chefs know the key to cooking is to make the most of every experience. For the secret to soaking up life, click here now!
Post-quiz analysis: Pooh. I wanted to be matched to Christine Cushing. She’s so great, I think I’m a little obsessed. Got her free Milk calendar in my kitchen (did you get one in the mail?) and always tune in whenever I come home early enough from work. Pfft. Emeril.
Conversations on internet.
By Karen | Wednesday, April 21st, 2004 | No Comments »
(on hold for 20 minutes, then–)
MTS — Hello this is K___, how may I help you?
K — Hi, is your server down?
MTS — …No…Why?
K — I can’t connect.
MTS — Okay. What’s the error message?
K — Server timeout.
MTS — …Restart your computer and unplug your modem’s power cord.
K — …(while complying, about 5 minutes)… Do I plug it back in after I log in?
MTS — Plug it in after you’re up and running.
K — Okay, it’s back on.
MTS – Give it a few minutes to sync back up to your computer and until the lights turn green.
K — (confused, since all the lights were already green and now only 3 are on. 3 mins pass.) Okay… Well, the PWR, DSL and ENET lights are green. Can I connect now?
MTS — Go for it.
K — (connects successfully) I’m connected.
MTS — Great. (about to end call)
K — SOOOOO… This has been happening a LOT over the past week and a half. Could you tell me what the possible causes are?
MTS — Sometimes your modem and the software on your computer don’t sync properly.
K — …Is there any way for me to minimize this behaviour in the future?
MTS — Whenever it happens, unplug your modem and restart your computer.
K — … … … So there’s nothing else I can do to prevent this from happening? I’ve restarted several times before without unplugging, and it works for a bit, but then it stops again.
MTS — No, you have to physically unplug the cord.
K — Well, that’s very inconvenient. This has been occurring frequently–
MTS – OHHHHH wait, what is your modem’s model number? It’s on the underside of your modem.
K — (checks modem) 5360.
MTS — There’s actually a patch for that modem on our website. If you go to www.mts.ca and go to Technical Support, you should be able to download the firmware upload (blah blah blah blah blah)…
K — Right. Thanks. Bye.
MTS — Thank you for calling MTS. Have a great day.
———-Soon after————–
IRIS — Thank you for calling Shaw, how may I help you?
K — Hi, I’m looking to switch to you from MTS Internet…(blah blah questions and installation scheduling ensues)
Last night’s dream.
By Karen | Saturday, April 17th, 2004 | No Comments »
recurring?
i’ve dreamt this at least once before
haven’t i
i think to myself
i’m a superhero
i can fly
standing in a house with hardwood floors
it starts to rain
except it’s not rain
the drops of water are rippling the floor
tiny zings
superman thinks the bad guys are coming
i take my handheld device that lets me fly
in left hand, zoom out the window
as the rumbling continues and grows louder
zooming over the landscape trying to catch the tornadoes
they’ll carry me to safety i know it
tornadoes always out of reach
i look behind and the house has gone
nuclear explosion has started and is reaching out to me
desparately trying to catch a tornado
but my device is not helping me go faster
zooming through a village now
the buildings are low but still a hindrance
flying in between not over them
i wonder why
the nuclear cloud is getting closer
it will get me
oh no
i reach a plain
a city plain
deserted except for a car and a tornado that stands still
got to reach it
it’s my safety
get to the car and the tornado is 4ft tall
like taz from looney tunes
plastic toy rotating like a tornado
oops i’ve been tricked
guy in the car is on my side though
yay
out of the blue
a guy in black
appears from behind
with a gun
shoots the good guy that stepped out of the car
he was defenseless
they’re aliens
guy in black, new one out of the car
they’re closing in…
repeat?
what’s going on
part 1 all over again
as if i could make changes
it’s all the same
when the guy gets shot
realized i had done this before
regret that i didn’t warn him
to get his gun from inside the car
to protect himself
but the aliens are different
the guy in black was taken down
the guy in the backseat of the car is on my side
able to warn him about the alien that was going to assume
his identity
yay
superheroes go to a nearby inn
my friends from looney tunes
are the superheroes
they do silly antics
making us laugh…
in a remote place
dirt road
trees but not a forest
more a marsh
colours are like sepia
brown and muddy
sky is gray
overcast
may have been raining
road is muddy
everything flooded
with kurt and his dad
kurt’s mum told us the car can’t fit
it’s too flooded
didn’t explain further
she left for the flooded place
where the others are
his dad behind the wheel
refuses to get left behind
we drive down the dirt road
kinda looks like falcon lake’s road
getting to the flooded place
wow it’s flooded
to our left
mounds of dirt are like islands
where the others are sitting on top and chatting
kurt’s mom and sister are there
just beyond the gated wall that encloses
the flooded place
if the car tried to go there
the water would be over our heads
we continue down the dirt road
bob has a plan
gotta turn the car around
we get to the end of the road
cannot continue
brown muddy flooded lake to the left
green marsh to the right
where to turn
instead we zoom
like maniacs
in the car backwards
to the flooded place
cannot join
i think of driving the car underwater
maybe we can survive…
I must have real bad luck.
By Karen | Friday, April 16th, 2004 | No Comments »
a) Lindy Hop attempt at Empire cancelled for the 2nd time, this time due to a last-minute venue change for the salsa dancers. Last month it was a Friday-ly salsa dance contest.
b) Computer messes up every time I get an opportunity to update the salsa explosion website.
c) Couldn’t open the jar of homemade spaghetti sauce when I was rushing to have dinner tonight. Took me 15 minutes of heating the jar lid under warm water and banging the edges of the lid with a butter knife.
d) Can’t install Microsoft-related products without something else going wrong with Internet Explorer.
e) Got a computer virus at work, and my IT administrator tells me that since 2001, less than 50 people worldwide have been infected by it.
f) I don’t knock on wood.
Anyhow, the lindyhoppers are going to Buffalo Bill’s tonight and I’m very looking forward to hanging out with Jordan and Christine at Santa Cruz tonight. Gotta get ready now…just needed to rant for a bit.
loveyalots,
kare
Can’t stop…like I haven’t post in a week! Oh wait…that’s right…
By Karen | Wednesday, April 14th, 2004 | No Comments »
Found more online quizzes, this time from perusing Justin’s blog and then exploring. This one is directly from Justin’s blog, entitled “How does your brain work?” :
http://www.mindmedia.com/brainworks/first-paragraph.jsp
Here are my results…
My Brain Usage Profile:
Auditory : 50%
Visual : 50%
Left : 47%
Right : 52%Karen, you are one of those rare individuals who are perfectly “balanced” in both your hemispheric tendencies and your sensory learning preferences. However, there is both good news and bad news.
A problem with hemispheric balance is that you will tend to feel more conflict than someone who has a clearly established dominance. At times the conflict will be between what you feel and what you think but will also involve how you attack problems and how you perceive information. Details which will seem important to the right hemis- phere will be discounted by the left and vice versa, which can present a hindrance to learning efficiently.
In the same vein, you may have a problem with organization. You might organize your time and/or space only to feel the need to reorganize five to ten weeks later.
On the positive side, you bring resources to problem-solving that others may not have. You can perceive the “big picture” and the essential details simultaneously and maintain the cognitive perspective required. You possess sufficient verbal skills to translate your intuition into a form which can be understood by others while still being able to access ideas and concepts which do not lend themselves to language.
Your balanced nature might lead you to second-guess yourself in artistic endeavors, losing some of the fluidity, spontaneity and creativity that otherwise would be yours.
With your balanced sensory styles, you process data alternately, at times visually and other times auditorially. This usage of separate memories may cause you to require more time to integrate information or re-access it. When presented with situations which force purely visual or purely auditory learning, increased anxiety is likely and your learning efficiency will decrease.
Your greatest benefit is that you can succeed in multiple fields due to the great plasticity and flexibility you possess.
Post-Quiz Review: Sounds about right; I pretty much learn by doing (audio + visual + kinetic). Probably explains why I can I can’t watch an aerobics video and immediately follow along. I have “Kathy Smith’s Salsa Workout” and I still can’t do that damn box step…argh.
Next test: If you want to know what drives your subconscious mind, take the Inkblot Test, by Tickle (formerly Emode, for you quiz addicts).
Karen, your subconscious mind is driven most by Reserve.
You approach the world with your guard intact because unconsciously, and perhaps consciously, you want to maintain an element of control in your relationships with people. You tend to hold your private experiences just out of reach of others. You’re not one to immediately show all your cards, to let people into who you really are until you’re ready.
Unfortunately, that sometimes means you also hide things from yourself. You may find that your desire to remain guarded backfires, affecting your self-awareness. Why are you like this? It’s possible that you act in this manner because of a deeply-rooted fear of being exposed, or of truly expressing yourself. To protect yourself from this fear, you act in the opposite manner — you are guarded.
There is a certain respect that comes with resistance, an unconscious understanding that the human psyche is very vulnerable. We all feel we have a lot to hide, and you are not one to be intrusive or thoughtless about how you approach sensitive topics with others. Therefore you inspire a sense of safety in others when they are around you. Your psyche is very deep, very rich, and the more you can let yourself know (both the good and the bad), the more you will be able to appreciate who you really are.
Though your unconscious mind is driven most strongly by Reserve, there is much more to who you are at your core.
Post-Quiz Review: See, what did I tell you?! I may seem friendly and open about myself, but I’m usually very guarded! Pfft!