24 posts tagged “random”

It's the end of an era....

That video was probably one of the first music videos I remember from when I was a wee laddie. And of course, the song is like one of the hugest hits of the '80s.

On the upside, it says they might be pursuing politics..... >_>

Why?!?!

I am totally behind in blogging. I got lots of pics to sort out from my trip to California.

But for some reason, whenever I sit down to blog, I decide I'd rather just do something else.... What is it about this place that just kind of demotivates me? It's like I just don't feel like putting in the effort these days. I guess I'm becoming more Canadian than American... har har har!

Well, maybe this weekend, I will get on it....

But I do have some pics from hiking in my Vibrams that I want to post about.... So it's coming.... Just be patient....

A mixture of random stuff today...

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So, I think in one of my early posts I addressed this topic. But it's this idea of "place" and belonging somewhere, and having this sense of place... Where does it come from? I'm back down in the States for a little while, specifically in the Bay Area again. It definitely feels familiar, and not just because I've lived here for a number of years. But things make sense in a way that they really don't, living up in Canada. I even get some of it when I drive down to Seattle, but it's little things, like road signs being in MPH. There are lots of little experiences here in California which just make sense to me. It could be that people are way more independent here, which you really don't see in Canada.

In a way, it is probably tied very closely to psychology. It's the same thing as feeling "at home" or "connected" to something. You probably don't have any physical connections to where you live, no chains or ropes to hold you back. So it's all mostly mental... It's also probably a huge reason why some people never leave where they live.

I've never been someone who felt such a strong tie to where they're from, but yet coming back here, even after over a year of living abroad, I find that I identify even more strongly with this place than I originally thought I would. It never really came up until I left California for the northern climes and I think it's plain, as the clear blue California sky, that I don't belong anywhere else but here.

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Somewhat in the same vein as the last topic, we saw District 9 yesterday. It's a really really good movie. It was way more intense than I thought it would be, with all the people exploding and stuff... I'm really glad they didn't turn it into a political discussion of alien rights and crap like that, cuz that would've just ruined the whole movie.

The only thing I thought was a little hokey was how they left it open for sequels. Why do they do that? I mean, I know why they do that, but why do it? I mean, why not just tie up the movie in the way that it should without leaving stupid hints that additional possible things could happen if only they could secure more funding for more filming.

Anyway, go watch it if you haven't seen it yet. I found it thoroughly entertaining, and while it's probably not an Oscar-worthy flick (at least not the kind of movies that win Oscars these days), it's certainly one of the best movies of this year.

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DTV is great!

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Free healthcare has been in the news a lot lately. It is one of the worst ideas ever. It's the kind of thing only a naive college student wants, without considering how damaging it would be to the economy and more importantly, the QUALITY OF MEDICAL CARE! Do those people even realize why Canada can provide free medical care? Most Canadians who actually want quality care can just pay a bit more money, drive across the border, and get real treatment from a doctor in the United States. The free healthcare you get in Canada is basically on the level of the free clinics you get in college, i.e. it sucks balls. I have a personal anecdote of a Canadian doctor prescribing green tea for treating cancer, only after telling an elderly person that they are supposed to get cancer, due to their age. What the fuck kind of medical care is that?!?! I'll tell you what kind, the free kind.

If the U.S. proceeds with the whole free healthcare thing, get ready for even longer lines at hospitals, and the worst part, get worse quality of care. Doctors who want to actually make a living, will just leave the U.S. and go to other job markets where they can get paid for their time. The hardcore leftists expect people to provide free services out of the goodness of their hearts. It's a very noble thing, no question. If people really worked that way, then the whole free healthcare thing would've already happened. But the reality is that people don't operate like that, and I think we're seeing the natural progression of the medical healthcare industry.

How about, instead of funding free healthcare, most Americans should get off their fat asses and stop eating fast food and start exercising? How about that? Prevent the major health problems on your own, instead of always depending on the government to fix things.

The elderly person from my anecdote is doing fine today, after receiving treatment which they paid for, from an American doctor.

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Well... At any rate, it's good to be back in the States.

Well.... It's after midnight again, and I don't really feel like going to work tomorrow.... hahahahaha

But I've been having this song stuck in my head for the past few days... "You Can Do Magic" by America....

Which then led me back to Alan Parsons Project....

Gawd.... Is there a medical condition which forces music from the late '70s/early '80s to be stuck in your head constantly? Cuz I think I have that.... Maybe they can medicate me so I don't have to keep hearing "Do do do do do dit, do do do do do.... Do do do do do dit, do do do do do ... Dit!" in my head all day... And knowing Canada, the remedy for hearing '70s rock tunes is probably a "controversial medicine" which is administered via a giant glass bong.....

It's not that it's bad music or anything.... I like it on a certain level. But when it's in my head all day long, and the stuff isn't even on my iPod.... It's hard to think of music to get it out of my head, and ... "I can read your mind.... I can read your mind...." OMG!... There it is again!!!

Anyway, I think that I will end up going to work, but I don't have to like it. Hahahahaha! I wonder if I can find a way to sneak out for a bit... I might have to cancel some meetings or something. We'll see....

For now, at least I got some tunes to keep me company....

Yep. It's past midnight... And I gotta get in for a meeting at 9 a.m. tomorrow. I've taken a real lacksidasical position about work these days. But I dunno... I suppose if I found it more stimulating or if it contributed towards my personal growth more... Maybe I'd be super stoked to go in to the same boring cubicle all day long. But, it's like after a while, you end up starting to find ways to amuse yourself, and it usually involves petty acts of civil disobedience.... Like, showing up late and leaving early.... I mean, seriously... There are probably people doing this kind of thing in offices all over the globe. People just being totally unfulfilled by their work and not really doing anything about it, and they're stuck at a dead end job for like 20 years, and have basically given up. That's usually the time for me to consider alternative avenues of employment. Usually when I start doing stupid crap like this, it means that I need to move on. And I say it's cyclical because, well, it seems so common in companies that there's usually a shining moment in time when you just realize how futile it is to keep doing whatever it is you're doing. And you either end up becoming a manager or something (at a company you don't like....), or you quit and find something else to do. So yeah... I guess I just wrote a sentence which implied what I was going to be trying to do, and no, I'm not getting a promotion... ;)

This was a rather strange stream of consciousness topic to get on to, but I suppose it was the most immediate thing on my mind for the past few months. It doesn't help either that the economy has been in the poo hole... But the Obamians seem to be saying that things are gonna pick up, and so pick up they shall.... I guess... I just hope I can reap some of the benefits, cuz really, there's nuthin' good that can come of my current situation.... Well, I shouldn't say "nuthin'" but the negatives are starting to out-weigh the positives.

So yeah.... It's time....

If Canadian car odometers measure in kilometers, why do they still refer to it as "mileage"?

My guess: Envy!

It is a fundamental fact of life, up here in BC... Canadians like to wait in line.

Maybe it's different in Eastern Canada... Perhaps the New Yorkers rub off on the folks in Toronto. But definitely out here in Vancouver, Canadians love to wait. It's something that you have to learn to love, if you're going to try and live here.

In the States, you get raised with independence, and you learn to aggressively seek out the things you want in your life. It is not that way here... You get taught to wait your turn. Wait for things to happen to you. The only kind of aggressive behavior is just being passive aggressive, which is really just waiting for things to happen and being angry about having to wait.

Look at the highways for example. People line up for miles in 2 lanes, barely driving over 50 mph. Nobody is willing to motivate themselves to move any faster than anyone else on the road. I think people actually enjoy it.

It's almost like a nationwide pandemic, this lack of motivation. People here are just used to waiting in line. I think it's why I get frustrated at the office. Nobody wants to take an aggressive stance on trying to beat the competition. That would require effort, and exerting effort is the last thing on a Canadian's list. At least, that's how it seems.

Now, I could be totally wrong about it. But everything I've experienced up here, after a year of living in Canada, is pointing at this fact. If anything, I get punished for trying to move ahead, me with my American bravado. It's like people are telling me to just stop, that they're happy to be a mediocrity at best. It's all very frustratingly disappointing.

Call me an over-achiever, but I didn't get into business to win 7th place... And the fact that people up here seem very apathetic about success is really nothing to be proud of...

I watched a program the other day called "The Rick Mercer Report". Yeah, yeah.... It was kinda quiet that day and I just put on the tv for a bit of "background noise".

Anyway, it's like some prime time comedy show or something. But I just find the "comedy" (if that's what you want to call it) up here in Canada is pretty much about as unfunny as you can get. This guy, Rick Mercer, is probably near the pinnacle of Canadian comedians, which is to say that he's less funny than those lame jokes you learn as a kid. Why did the chicken cross the road? So he could get the hell away from Canadian comedy shows....

Anyway, the part I watched was some segment with this Rick Mercer dude and that singer, Feist. And it basically is this guy who probably looks like every other douchebag white dude in Canada, acting like a total giant douchebag moron. It's not funny.... Like, at all.... Here's an example. He got up on stage with Feist and intentionally tripped over something as a comedy bit. Oh god, it's so fucking funny you fucking fuck face fucker that I fucking laughed my fucking ass fucking off... fuck.... !... I switched channels pretty soon after that....

Then on like Friday or Saturday nights, they have televised stand-up comedians. I put it on sometimes. And really, I know people are laughing, but fucking fuck.... I just can't laugh at that shit. It's like, what is the opposite of laughing? That's what I do when these guys tell jokes. It's like they're so not funny that it goes into some comedic deficit that you just can't recover from. All they ever really talk about is smoking marijuana and how dumb or fat Americans are.... Fucking snoozefest! But then, what's even weirder, is that there are people watching it and laughing their asses off. Like, are you kidding me? You guys found that funny? Getting shot in the face would actually be more funny...

A buddy of mine said that comedy is cultural. I suppose that's true. But I think that it also implies that one should be cultured in order to make things seem funny. Well, the comedians up here got a long way to go.... I wish them luck.

...or become a director at a large company.

There. I said it.

Why do people write "Cheers" at the end of an email, when we are clearly not at a bar nor having drinks?