Archive for General
March 5, 2008 at 11:56 pm · Filed under General
- I love stereotypes and am truly curious as to what truth, if any, lies beneath them. My personal stereotype which has been honed through years of driving in the city: Poor people jaywalk. Am I the only one who thinks so?
- I’m an convinced that caffeine will be the next big Thing That Will Kill You. It is an abused drug, the same as all the others.
- I find politics infuriatingly frustrating. The only government I could really get behind is one whose sole mission is to create transparency. Seriously, how hard can it be to create a relational database of every penny the government spends and allow read access to the world? If the government can make it law that I must pay tax, why can I not make it law that they be held accountable for how they spend it? It’s my money dammit! They’ve done nothing for me to earn it.
- My wife is a nurse yet I have almost no respect for the medical community. I am yet to have a positive experience in my life involving doctors, hospitals or medicine. I have only ever met one doctor whom I respect, and she’s now retired from practicing medicing (to pursue missions work if I’m not mistaken). My wife is my sole health care provider (luckily she’s brilliant).
- If I could, I would banish all psychics, mystics, spiritualists, “ghost whisperers”, and such to a far away island where they can only spread their bullshit amongst themselves and can no longer leech off of sad and needy people.
- I have little faith in homeopathic medicine, but a strong belief the in the power of the human mind. As such, I believe that if a person truly believes in the medicinal qualities of homeopathic medicine, that they can actuate self healing. I am aware of the irony that such a belief could lead to me being banished to a far away island if I ever get my way…
- I am convinced I will get cancer, and as such, feel little need to take measures to avoid it.
- If I could only eat one thing for the rest of my life it would be cheeseburgers from McDonalds.
- I am equally appalled by people who only like top forty music and people who like absolutely no top forty music. To the former: broaden your horizons. To that latter: quit being such a desperate scenester; Justin Timberlake is awesome.
- I am deathly afraid of animals that can fly, and insects which can fly and sting.
- I’m almost completely blind in one eye and am extremely self-conscious of it. I constantly have to remind myself that other people find it uncomfortable if I never make eye contact.
- I can’t stand it when people know things I don’t. I could honestly choke people who keep secrets or play mind games.
- Yes, it does annoy me that every single person I meet feels the need to comment on how tall I am. Yes, my head does hit the door frame if I don’t duck.
- I make snap judgments of every single person I meet, and I’m really good at it. I can only think of a few times I’ve ever been wrong. This habit ties in strongly with my love of stereotypes.
- Whenever I speak with a person who has an accent, I will often take on their accent at some point in the conversation. I do not do so on purpose, and feel like a complete dumbass whenever I catch myself.
March 3, 2008 at 8:51 pm · Filed under General
There are a lot of things that I would like to write in this blog that I simply cannot. I’m not given the option to treat this as an online diary, where I can be myself; where I can be honest and to the point. I can’t complain about the things that anger me, I avoid politics, and I aim not to polarize myself. This is leaving me to ask the question “why bother?”
This was easier when I was anonymous and I didn’t tell anyone that I was blogging. It served as a great outlet during some tumultuous times and looking back, the things I wrote are really interesting (to me). I wrote honestly about so many things which I may have otherwise forgotten about. Especially when I was leaving my last job. At the time it felt sudden, but as I read old posts I really saw how unhappy I was there - and how inevitable my departure actually was.
My currently life doesn’t afford me the ability to write like that. Even if I were to post using a pseudonym, I would constantly have to fear being “discovered.” Losing my job, ruining my reputation, or affecting future opportunities would be a steep price to pay to cleanse my palate and spew forth with all of the spite and vitriol which I now bottle up.
So I’m at a loss. How do I define the balance between self-indulgence and self-perseverance? When is it okay to just let go and let my opinions be known, and when should I just shut the hell up?
I remain in limbo with a number of unpublished drafts asking myself that very question.
January 2, 2008 at 10:20 pm · Filed under General
Stuff. I’m practically drowning in it. Everywhere I look, I see piles of it. I don’t really understand my need to hoard. I gather stuff and protect it as if my life depends on it. Every drawer is full, every closet, and every shelf, full. My life is full and frankly, I’ve had enough.
One room at a time. One drawer at a time. One closet at a time, I am simplifying. Everything I keep must pass the tests I’ve contrived:
- Do I use this often?
- Is it still useful?
- Would I notice if it were gone?
- Is it valuable?
- Do I need this?
No? Well then see you later. I’ve torn through the bonus room (that’s what we call the room on top of the garage for lack of a better descriptor) leaving furniture and clutter in my wake. I’ve attacked my closet and rid myself of over half of my clothing. I will continue this trend until I have nothing left except for that which I need. If you’re looking to horn in on some of my stuff, now is the time - Keith is having a fire sale and everything must go.
It’s like setting myself free from a prison I never knew I was trapped in.
December 22, 2007 at 1:29 pm · Filed under Faye, General, Work
Man am I sick and tired. Literally. I’ve been pushing myself as hard as I can - at home and at work - and today is the first day where I can take a break, sit back, and take a deep breath (through my mouth, as my nose is plugged tight) and reflect.
Retrospectively, I cannot believe that the last year happened in only 12 months. Surely time must be be playing a cruel joke on me. I cannot wrap my mind around how many ways my life has changed.
Work has been a rollercoaster of triumph and success, hardship and stress, opportunity and advancement, frustration and failure, and ultimately, learning and advancement. I’m blessed in so many ways; the opportunities I’ve been given, the trusts I’ve earned, the people I work with. Sometimes it’s so easy to get lost in the day to day stresses and tasks; I’m truly thankful to the people who have helped me step back and see the big picture, and just how lucky I am.
Home is an ever evolving insanity. Can I really have a daughter? Have I really been married for over four years? When did I become a home owner? It’s all so incredibly surreal. Faye is the best, worst thing that could ever happen to me. It’s amazing how she can be so incredibly stressful and scary, how I worry about her like I’ve never worried about anything, ever. I would do anything for her, I would give anything to protect her. It’s a scary time in your life when you realize that, for the first time ever, you care about something far more than yourself. Suddenly, there’s just nothing more important to me than my family. It’s a tragedy that the thing in my life that bring me the most happiness are the same things that fill me with fear and dread that I might lose them. It’s incredible to love my wife and baby above myself. I cannot possibly deserve either of them, but I am so thankful that they’re mine.
And it’s Christmas. I have two weeks to sit back, relax, and try and sort all of this out. It’s been such an incredible year, but if next year is anything like it my head will probably explode. This last year has been like no other in my life. I suppose I shouldn’t fear change, but if change would do me a favour and slow down just a tad, it would probably help me to maintain my sanity.
That’s all for now, Merry Christmas, God bless, and chances are - if you’re reading this - I love you (but not like that).
October 2, 2007 at 9:02 pm · Filed under General
Gads!
I have gained 20lbs since last I weighed myself. I’m finding it convenient to blame Faye, but in truth work, laziness, and ignorance have all played a prevalent role in this debacle. Knowing that I’ve secretly gained 20lbs has set me off on a mission - to weigh less than 230lbs by Christmas.
Current weight: 252lbs
I’ve got a long way to go.
September 20, 2007 at 6:22 pm · Filed under General
Things I need to post on in the very near future:
- Grant’s Wedding
It came, it went, I survived, I rocked.
- Work
If work continues at this rate I may end up accidentally going back in time.
- Firefox
I’m tired of people saying it’s better. It’s not. Firefox sucks too.
- Guitar Hero II
There is nothing better than this and I can actually play guitar.
I’d have written against all of these already, but their sum total has required so much time that I’m yet to have the opportunity. By compiling this list I ensure that I won’t forget.
August 18, 2007 at 9:37 am · Filed under General
Alas, the old HP has finally given up the ghost and is moving on to the PC equivalent of Valhalla. Around a month ago the computer was accidentally jarred and as a result the power cord only worked intermittently. I was able to completely (and I mean completely) disassemble the old girl and reattach the little power dealy to the motherboard, but it took an entire day and the better part of my sanity. Even then my reassembly left something to be desired, as I needed IT support (which I borrowed from work) to get it working again. Not to mention that there were an alarming number of screws remaining upon the completion of my reassembly. Last weekend my sister-in-law ever so gently nudged the poor old HP (totally not her fault) and once again the power cord was jarred and power became intermittent. I can not travel that path again.
Luckily, my buddy Scott recently bought a Dell which he highly recommended and, as it happens, the fine folks at Dell have decided that a back to school sale is in order. The timing of these events is far too fortuitous to be a mere coincidence, so I have laid caution to the wind and thrown a pile of money towards a brand new super fancy Dell Inspiron (the green one)!
It’s chock full of gigabytes and megahertz, and it has super fancy new Windows Vista (which is almost exactly like Windows XP, but prettier… ooh, and they renamed a bunch of stuff). I’m really excited. I do have one minor pang of regret because I opted for the Dell Complete Care plan ($299). I did so because I work with three former Dell support employees, all of whom claim that said plan is extremely liberal and it doesn’t matter how your system is broken, they’ll just replace it. With a newborn (who will inevitably become a toddler) and a wife (who likes to drop expensive electronics with a stunning regularity) I couldn’t not waste my money, especially not after losing the beloved HP to such a simple accident so recently.
Now begins the waiting game. The system is already delayed because of the stunning popularity of pretty colors (yes really), so it could be close to a month before it arrives. This grates upon my patience, but ideally the end result will be “super cool” or at least “ultra mega ok”.
July 17, 2007 at 7:52 pm · Filed under General
At the ripe age of 26, I played hockey for the first time. I won’t pretend that it was pretty, or even respectable, but I was there; I laced up and I played. Sitting in the change room prior to - watching the other guys to see how they put on their equipment while trying desperately not to be “that guy” in the change room - I briefly wondered whether or not this was a wise course of action.
For a deceptively brutish and violent game the mere act of “suiting up” proved far more difficult than I first imaged. It was no help that I was missing a small, but important piece of equipment - a garter to keep my socks up. I realized my predicament when I saw Justin putting his on.
“What’s that?” I inquired.
“A garter,” he replied.
“What do you need that for?”
“To hold my socks up.”
For some reason it had never occurred to me before that moment that hockey players are all out on the ice wearing shorts and long socks. Without a device to keep my socks aloft, I was doomed to flash some thighthroughout the course of the night. It wasn’t a good look. Unfortunately it was potentially the least embarrassing aspect of my appearance that night.
I can’t skate. Well, hardly at all anyways. I suppose if I were to venture to Africa, construct and cool a rink, and challenge a few of the locals to a race, that I could beat most of them. Unless we had to stop and turn around. I can’t do that, so it’s more of a slow circle. I can’t skate backwards either, so I should probably rule that out too.
I must admit though, there was something absolutely fantastic about it. Something distinctly natural about skating around and chasing the puck. Watching hockey is nothing compared to playing it; finally having the opportunity to comprehend the skill and finesse required to do something so simple as pass the puck. I’m going back for more. It would seem that I’ve got a fever, and the only prescription is more hockey.
I have never been more Canadian. Not even that time I ate an entire package of bacon.
June 17, 2007 at 8:43 pm · Filed under General
Father`s day - a day which up until now I had shunned completely - has set upon me for the first time, and I`m feeling pretty sick to my guts. Not because of the overbearing weight of being a new father, or the anticipation for a new self-centric day on the calendar. No, this is more of the bug-esque sick. Perhaps it`s Karma paying me back for all of the times I ignored my Dad on Father`s Day. I honestly cannot remember ever buying my Dad much of anything, maybe a card but I doubt even that. Faye stepped up to the challenge though; delivering a new shirt and the fifth season of Scrubs. Her timing couldn`t be much better, I had just finished the last episode of the first season of Arrested Development last night.
I had wanted to do some yardwork and perhaps chop the tops off of my fence posts this weekend, but bad weather & poor health have confined me to doing not much of anything. I watched the US Open which was pretty brutal, I tried falling asleep for a while, but even a nap couldn`t save me from the tedium of a sub-par golf tournament. I`m not certain who finds watching Tiger Woods shoot 2 over par exciting, but I`m fairly certain it`s not me.
At least wife was out to take care of me, a yummy dinner (Enchiladas) and my favorite homemade cake (spice) made for a decent evening. Faye`s been cranky, but my Mom insists it`s only so that I remember that I`m a father on Father`s Day. I stand by saying that I`d have been fine without the reminder.
May 12, 2007 at 5:50 pm · Filed under General
Currently on my plate:
- Build a fence.
We’ve got the post holes dug out, a friend came by with his bobcat and took care of that post haste (HA!). The only downside is that he kinda tore up my lawn a bit. I’ll have to fill the ruts with topsoil and grass seed.
- Take care of a baby.
Faye’s been really good lately, and a noticible amount less work. She’s pretty content (most of the time), but I still can’t just leave her - not even for a second. It really hampers one’s productivity.
- Work through what can only be described as an “insane” growth period.
To say I’m busy at work would be a crazy understatement. I think that I could work from now until eternity and only scratch the surface. I had to get a Blackberry today so that I can be available to work around the clock. Yes, really.
- Maintain a happy marriage.
Wife is great, but I’m starting to worry that she’ll kill me the next time I have to work late. Seriously. I fear for my life.
- Clean my house.
How does a baby that only weighs 9lbs. and cannot move on her own create so much mess? It’s baffling.
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