RIP Sarah Martin

I got the sad news this afternoon that a good friend died rather unexpectedly. I believe she was only 34.

Sarah and I worked together for 2+ years at a major computer training centre. She became a good friend, a trusted ear, and someone who was a lot of fun to hang with and work with.

Time with Sarah was rarely without drama and she dealt with a lot of personal demons, but after we wound up leaving the company she seemed to find herself and commit to getting things together. She was facing a surgery last week and was looking to get past that challenge.

I don't have all the details about what happened in the surgery and afterwards, and I suppose they're irrelevant at this point. But in any case it was a life cut far too short. I regret that I lost track of her over the last 18 months and that this news was the first I'd had in all that time.

You'll be missed, Sarah...and damned near impossible to replace.

Ad luceum, ad astra per aspera, Sarah...amicus verus est rara avis.

We're what???

We're 3-0?

3-0???

Holy crap...the Monday boys managed to pull off a very rough win last night, to put us on top of our pool, with two games remaining in the round-robin before the Final game.

I say it was a rough win because the officiating was a bit suspect. They two guys on the ice were really good at calling the offsides and the two-line passes. But they missed a LOT, and I do mean a LOT, of body contact, stick work, and general goonery. This led to the physical side of things getting somewhat out of hand, particularly in the 3rd period. Granted, it worked well for us, because we managed to get a man advantage because of a penalty with 40 seconds remaining and we blew one past their goalie with 18.4 left. (Boy was he pissed!)

So...a 5-4 win for us against a very physical team, and arguably one of the better ones, despite their lower standing.

I can only hope I do as well on Thursdays.

Trini Tag

QUOTE:

1. Thank the person that tagged you.
2. List 5 random/strange/weird things about you.
3. Tag 5 other people.

1. Thanks, dtrini.

2. I have to think of ones I can share with people....

• I often sit on the floor to tie my shoes. I've never been able to touch my toes, so I find it easier to sit than to bend down.
• (from dtrini...another reason why we get along so well) I can be outgoing but I get lonely in a crowd. Very easy to find myself on the periphery of things without even trying.
• I have no aptitude for poker.
• I can draw, but I have never been able to draw people. Architecture, scenery...no problem. Give me a face to draw and it will look like something Picasso or Man Ray came up with.
• My ankles crack. The crack when I walk, and (according to Penny) even when I sleep. This caused great consternation when being assigned a patrolling task on an exercise back in my Army days.

I dunno if I'll tag anyone specifically, but if Joe, Ed, Frank/Ava want to tackle it, they can go right ahead.

Ch-ch-ch-chilly M-m-m-m-monday!

Holy crap, is it COLD.

There were brass monkeys outside the subway entrance begging for fleece this morning. What happened to our nice spring-like weather?? Ah well, we're that much closer to Spring Equinox, and that ain't a bad thing at all.

Saw a few interesting news snippets this morning.

• Apparently there was a small earthquake in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. We didn't feel a thing here.
• In Egypt, a recent excavation at a popular market in Cairo uncovered a huge Sun Temple apparently dating back to Ramses II. The entire market will have to be relocated for a fuller excavation to be completed. (add that to the recent Tomb discovery in the Valley of The Kings and a very early necropolis found in Rome and its been an amazing year for Archaeology and antiquities.)
• A horse (and the constable on top) from the Toronto Police Mounted Unit was seriously injured in a hit & run accident late last week. The horse had to be put down at the site. The Horse (a Belgian cross named Brigadier) was already famous for this typically Canadian stunt captured on film.
• George Michael was arrested again...strangely enough it wasn't for trying to get his freak on in a bathroom.

Over the weekend, DW and I watched a mini-series called Revelations. It was a completely random selection because we hadn't seen or heard of this particular release. We just grabbed the first of the two DVDs (in case it was a dud) but we're now clamouring for the next one.

Susie the Wonder Saturn decided that last night was the perfect time to offer alternator troubles. This happened while on my way to pick Penny up after work. The interior lights were toast as was the bulk of the electrical system, along with most exterior lighting (thank Biff for white car) but we managed to coax it home (an exciting time, to be sure....also precluding us fropm making a stop to pick up parts 4-6 of Revelations.) Unfortunately, this little issue has left us one car short for critical things like kid drop-off and pick-up for evening events.

At some point I'll have to blog about some of the model stuff I'm doing and the rather nasty experiences I seem to be having with Krylon and the embarassing measurement discovery I made last night. *sigh*

Technorati Tag: Life

Friday's....whatever

I thought about posting a lengthy lament about the Men's elimination from the hockey rounds in Turin, but I think Bob McKenzie at TSN put it best: "you can beef all you want about who should have been there and who shouldn't have been there, but the fact is, the guys who were there needed to get the job done and they didn't."

So...now we have something to shoot for in 2010. Hopefully we can avoid the ignominy of being the only nation to host Olympic games and NOT win a single gold. (none in 1976 and none in 1988)

Had the final regular game in the Whitby league last night. DW and The Girl actually stopped by to watch because it was at a reasonable time for a change. We put on a good show, but wound up on the bad side of a 5-4 loss. This was the same team we played against during the infamous 'finger incident'. A better effort from us to be sure, but a few bounces just didn't go our way. Playoffs start next week.

That's about all for the moment. Penny and I have the usual domestic madness this weekend to look forward to. Our collective "honey, do" list was agetting a tad lengthy so we'll try to give it a trim. Fortunately, Saturday night is a little get-together with Big Guy (from work) and his wife and the wonderful Irish pub near the multi-plex. Normally we'd go for the gusto, but since both Penny and I are trying to 'cast smaller shadows', we'll have to approach the menu choices with a little restraint. I am happy to note, however, that we're both down about 7lbs each in the last 2 weeks. About 15 to go for me...

Mumblings

**UPDATE: Canada beat the Czech Republic 3-2 in Men's Olympic Hockey. *whew* Canada plays either Russia or Sweden in the next round, starting tomorrow.**

Strange days, indeed.

Our women won Gold in hockey (no surprise) but they didn't play the US in the final (major surprise).

The Men's team is an inexplicable 2-2 so far and they face a must-win against the Czechs. A loss to Finland I can fathom. But Switzerland??? That's like Sweden losing to Belaurus in 2002.

My Monday team is now 2-0 in the playoffs, having knocked off the 2nd place team last night 5-3 in a rather chippy affair. I'm still not sure how we did that.

The Psycho cat decided that Penny's head would be a great place to sleep last night. Not next to it, mind you, *on* it.

I fully expect to see birds flying backwards today and I won't be surprised in the least.

So what's weird with your day??

Avro CF-105 Arrow - RIP

I'm a little ashamed that I forgot about this anniversary.

On this day in 1959, the Avro Arrow project was cancelled by the Diefenbaker government.

It remains one of the saddest days in Canadian Aerospace history and the subject of much speculation, even after the better part of 50 yrs.

Both my grandfathers worked for Avro on the Arrow project, and they both managed to remain in the Aerospace industry, with my paternal grandfather working as a production supervisor for Garrett Manufacturing, and my maternal Grandfather eventually finding his way to deHavilland (now Bombardier) where he worked as a designer on a number of projects, including the Turbo Beaver, Dash 7, and the naval equivalent of the Arrow, the HMCS Bras d'Or (he designed the hull and superstructure)

I'll leave the speculations on the aftermath of the Arrow project to the conspiracy theorists, but it's still sad to know how we really let an amazing home-grown project get run over by politics and undue influence.

I'm looking forward to the replica flight if/when it happens...

Holy CRAP, it's COLD!

Man, I dunno who turned down the thermostat, but it is some kind of nasty out there.

I guess I shouldn't really bitch because its not like we're up to our asses in snow, but this Arctic blast is a real shocker. DW and I had some of the usual domestic running around to do but we were shivering all the way through it. Curses were sent out to rain down on the heads of the builders of our kitchen cabinets. We figured we could stay warm by doing some sorting of the cupboards and maybe finding some kind of solution to our landmine Tupperware cabinet. After measuring everything carefully, we were highly pissed to discover that there were absolutely no after-market inserts which would fit the 3 cabinets we wanted to sort out. We did, however, manage to restore order to the kitchen pantry (no small task, I assure you) and we'll do a bit more sorting out of the basement pantry. I have to add a couple of quick shelves inbetween the studs so we can put the jars of preserves up there and get them out of the way.

On the entertainment front, we watched Wallace & Grommit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Absolutely brilliant movie and funny as hell. As with any British-origin flick, there's lots of subtle humour and little lines and sight-gags thrown in there that not everyone will get the first time, particularly the kids. I was amazed that it was still done as a stop-motion film. The quality of animation was beyond incredible and it was smooth and flowing.

We also picked up a new xBox game for us, Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow. Once again, my wife totally kicks ass as a stealthy super agent.

Speaking of electronics, we snagged a new Video card for Penny's computer, and hopefully that will allow the Wondertwins to play some more games on it. They have a few which won't load nicely.

I managed to get a little more work done on a couple of models. I *think* I've managed to figure out the subtleties of stretching truck frames. I admit to a little disappointment at my experiment using Krylon. Some of the paint went on just fine, but other parts seem to have crackled. Not sure what caused that, but I'll get out the wet/dry sandpaper and see what I can do to repair it.

(Sorry I've been AWOL lately, gang.)

Technorati Tag: Life

For Penny...Valentine Hearts

The heart that beats is mine, but it beats because of you.

One single day could never replace or encompass how I have felt every day since we met.

Life means more, feels better, feels richer and the heart beats stronger all because of you.

I love you madly and forever...

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ah yes, the great "romantic holiday"

Hopefully you're with the one you love today. Or, in some cases, that you'll love the one you're with. *grin*

Catching Up

(This post originally drafted on Sunday, 12 Feb)

I'm sitting here, comfortable and snow-less, being really glad I'm not in NYC today.

DW and I had a good weekend. She did have to work for part of it, so our time together was somewhat limited. However, we attended a surprise 40th birthday party for the husband of her friend 'Al'. Okay, the fact that he's 40 wasn't a surprise. The party was. He was definitely surprised and seemed almost bashful about the whole thing; he's not the kind of guy to draw attention to himself, I suspect.

We didn't know many people there, but we managed to avoid being completely on the outside. Many of the party-goers were fellow parents from the private school where Al sends her kids. So there's a certain....'social strata' among some of them. Al always does her parties well, and this one was no exception with amazing food and enough booze to put most of Parliament into a major stupor. (I should mention that Al and her hubby are definitely not part of the 'nose in the air' clique...more reason to like them.)

Celebrity highlight of the night was the arrival of a certain member of a local professional hockey team. This particular player hails from south-east Europe and is, regrettably, one of the more popular targets for the armchair critics. He's a bit of an aloof sort, bordering on anti-social. But I suppose that comes with the territory. He is, apparently, also one of these school parents so perhaps that explains the attitude. So there's my brush with celebrity.

We arrived home tired, but happy.

Sunday was dedicated to that most mind-numbing of domestic chores: laundry. DW was working, so I rolled up my sleeves and tackled it. I came into this relationship with higher-than-normal mileage, but nicely equipped with all the domestic options (some more activated than others, I admit) and laundry is one of them. I'm not befuddled by the washer or dryer and I have yet to mix a red sock in with my whites to create a load of "pinks". Hell, I can even iron! So I ran at least 6 loads through and did some tidying up around the Shagwell-Stone Manor. I even managed to do a little shopping and get out to the minor hockey practice.

We did manage to find a little time to relax and enjoy some of the finer things...like playing Splinter Cell on the XBOX upstairs. Penny totally kicks ass at that game...

Methinks that's all for the weekend report. Keep smilin'!

Technorati Tag: Life

Mail Call

One of the few things I have to look forward to in the ol' mail box is when my woodworking catalogs and magazines arrive.

Today was the Lee Valley catalog.

~drool~

This catalog is much like IKEA. There's lots of high-end things that a select few could afford or appreciate, but there are a few little neat-o odds & ends that appeal to the masses.

Lee Valley is definitely for the higher-end woodworker; a term I would never use to describe myself. But as they say its always nice to see how the other half lives. So I sit here, slowly leafing through the pages, mentally calculating how quickly I could spend a modest lottery winning.

*sigh* If only I had the coin...

Technorati Tag: [tagname]

*hack*

Yep. Still under the weather. Not critical enough to stay home, but definitely not in the mood to work.

Symptomatic relief is marginal at best.

Wonder what I should do about that?

Speaking of weather, winter returned with a vengeance. Okay, maybe light fluffy snow isn't exactly vengeful, but it was a rude reality check. I think we've all enjoyed the respite from snow, slush, salt and ice over the last few weeks. Personally, I'm hoping for a return to our above-seasonal-norm temperatures.

That kind of winter I can handle.

Technorati Tag: Life

Has it really been...

One Year?

365 Days?

An untold number of hours, minutes and seconds?

...since that moment when time stood still and we said "we would" and took those first steps together?

Let the time pass ever slower so I can savour each moment that much more.

I love you more now than ever.

Happy Anniversary, baby...

Technorati Tag: Love

*ugh*

I'm still feeling icky but at least its not worsening. Whatever this little bug is, it completely saps my will to work. I dunno yet if that's a bad thing or not.

Did my bestest in hockey last night against a very determined team, but we came out on the low side. I was completely wiped by the time the game ended.

Penny is still a bit under the weather, too.

*sigh* I got nothin' else.

Technorati Tag: Life

It all happened so fast

When I got home last night, I was fine.

By the time I woke up this morning, I needed Dristan. DW assures me that whatever 'this' is, it passes quickly. I hope so.

~sniffle~

Technorati Tag: Life

Not that I'm bragging...

There wasn't really much to write about on the professional front, but the day improved significantly after I left the office (a little early, I admit).

Penny and I are kidless tonight. She met me at the train station, brimming with excitement about the menu she planned and lovingly prepared - despite feeling somewhat under the weather.

Appetizers:
Shrimp with cocktail sauce
Brie, with apricot preserves baked in phyllo pastry

Entrée:
Sterling Silver Sirloin grilling steak, marinated in a zesty herb medley.

Dessert:
Strawberries, hand-dipped (Penny's hands) in milk chocolate.

à boire:
2005 'Slutnhussy Estates' Valpolicella (yes, it's ours...guess who is whom)

The atmosphere for the eveniing was provided especially by my DW who decided to show off more than just her culinary assets.

What can I say? (eat your hearts out...you know who you are) Sorry, was that bragging? *grin*

Technorati Tag: Love