Some people should just shut up

I mourned the recent loss of another Canadian soldier in Afghanistan this weekend (a reservist, no less), but I fumed at some of the remarks which sprung, unbidden from people who really should have just kept their traps shut.

I won't speak ill of the dead since there's no documented evidence of what he is alleged to have said. However, anyone who has seen documentaries like 'Letters Home' will know that soldiers serving far away will have some pretty far ranging thoughts and emotions running through their hearts...some of which might be misconstrued upon reading.

'nuff said there.

However, I will point out a few things - as I did with that so-called "Draft Dodger" guy who ran to Canada from his US Army unit.

• Service in the military is volunteer.
• Its "military." What the heck do you think you might actually be doing??
• The days of recruiters lying to people are long since past.
• Reserve augmentation on Operational deployments (in the CF) voluntary
• Having said that, you get integrated right in....there's no distinction made just because you are a reservist...no 'lesser jobs' because you usually do the gig part-time.
• You should know this particularly if it is your second tour on Operations

So...to the father of the late soldier's girlfriend: please shut up. Your allegations do more to sully the boy's memory than they do anything else. Sure, you're hurt and you're looking for someone to blame. Tell you what: why not blame the guys on the other side of the firefight? Why not blame the international community for failing a nation so badly it fell into anarchy and fundamentalism? Don't blame the military here unless they really missed the ball on his ability to get the job done.

If nothing else, at least he had the balls to stand up and be counted when it really mattered. All you're doing is spewing a lot of shit.

Edit: an article posted to the Toronto Star's website this evening had some words from his father. While he didn't have to directly refute the claims made by the girlfriend's father, his words were enough to put the claims into serious doubt. Nice to see some sanity for a change.

Soccer Hating Rationale #659

I nearly snarfed my coffee when I read this little tidbit from the French coach after their loss to Italy.

"I don't know what Materazzi said to Zidane," France coach Raymond Domenech said. "But it's a shame. It's sad. He (Materazzi) did a lot of acting and for such a big man, a gust of wind made him fall over. It's regrettable."

Apparently "Zidane" means "Wind", in French.

...must be a synonym, or something.

Draw your own conclusions here.



I think the French Encyclopaedia will have to update the entry of "Zidane, Zinedane" to reflect a few cross-references, including: Bertuzzi, Todd; Myers, Brett; Ismail, Raghib...

Football Daze

Greetings from the second quarter of the Argos-Blue Bombers game!

Penny, the Wondertwins and I are here in the sun in Sect 109B enjoying a good East Division tilt.

As birthdays go (well, non-me birthdays, that is) its been pretty good so far. The kids and I ran out to the nearby mall to grab birthday gifts for their mother while she was working this morning. She managed to get off early enough that we wouldn't be completely scrambling for the train to get into town.

So the sun is shining. The family is here. The Argos are still winning

Life, I think, is pretty good.

(Edit: Argos managed to lose this one, unfortunately. 4 turnovers will do that to you...as will failure to cover Milt Stegall effectively)

Happy Birthday, baby...

For my bride...beautiful as ever.

You truly are getting better and better.

I love you like mad and I could not imagine my life being as amazing and incredible as it is with anyone else but you.

- Your NNLMM

For my American Friends

Happy 4th of July!

The Lord of the Moss: The Return of the (Sawdust) King

Yes indeed, folks. I am back.

I decided to include a small blog vacation along with my work vacation to
help with the recharge of the brain.

What did I do? Well. I did, like...stuff. Mostly to do with the
generation of sawdust in the garage, but a few other domestic chores were
tackled as well. I did, much to my surprise, no plastering. I'm not sure
if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

However, here are some of the highlights. Casa Stone/Shagwell now has:

- A new Garage Door Opener (to replace the one which only opened when it
really felt like it)
- A new BBQ. Its huge. Totally Kick-ass. Has a side burner. Has a
store-away cover. (Insert Tim Allen-like bark/howl of manliness here)
- New Citronella lanterns. Bought months ago but finally installed.
- A new pegboard storage unit. Great overall design but I do have some
thoughts on how to make it better. Suffice it to say I need a little more
practice in making strong lap joints. (as evidenced when the front panel
came crashing down onto the garage floor.)
-A new (not-quite-finished) rolling work cart. Of course, I have to
dismantle the old, somewhat rickety one before it goes into place. I just
have to finish installing the top and building the drawers on the new
beastie.

Penny and I managed to slip away to the summer home of a long-time friend
of her family. We made a great day trip up to some of the
not-so-congested cottage country North-East of us. It really was a great
trip and the people were very welcoming. (thanks baby *g*)

And with that, I hit the "send" button and go off in search of lunch.
give me a few days to get caught up on everyone's blogs. I'm WAY behind
in my reading.

Tagged By Kal

1. Which curse word do you use the most?
I definitely find the F-word to be very handy in a variety of forms and uses. (particularly when wrestling with a nasty carpentry issue, or as a precursor to some percussive maintenance)

2. Do you own an iPod?
Nope. I have a MiniDisc player which does quite nicely.

3. What time is your alarm clock set for?
Depends on what time I need to be out the door. The earliest is 6:15, if I'm biking...otherwise, it's set for around 6:45 so Penny and I can get up and get the kidlets moving.

4. How many suitcases do you own?
2 of my own. Collectively we have lots. Unlike Kal, my DW has no fears of spousal flight.

5. Do you wear flip flops even when it's cold?
Nope. Warm weather only. (Socks, Kal? *DORK ALERT! DORK ALERT*)

6. Would you rather take the picture or be in the picture?
Taking it, but only because I have a pet peeve about having feet cut off. Panoramas not required.

7. What was the last movie you watched?
das Boot and The Longest Day

8. Do you or any of your friends have children?
Unlike Kal, I remember my online friends too. Yes, I have 2 step-children and a number of my friends (even the online ones) have children.

9. Has anyone ever called you lazy?
Yeah, and sometimes its deserved. Other times people just mistake my laid-back "just in time" approach as laziness. Fools. ;-)

10. Do you ever take medication to help you sleep?
Only when I am absolutely desperate to get to sleep.

11. Which CD is currently in your CD player?
Can't remember the last time I stuck a music CD in a player.

12. Do you prefer regular or chocolate milk?
Chocolate, for sure. I'll drink regular (2%) but it has to be ice cold.

13. Has anyone told you a secret this week?
Kal did, and I'm gonna burn him with it. Just gotta find that address for Wifeypooh...

14. When was the last time someone hit on you?
Does the regular flirtation with my Wife count? Strangely enough I've become pretty oblivious to that kind of thing since DW and I got together. So it could have happened more recently with someone else but I'm not likely to notice.

15. Can you whistle?
Yep

16. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?
DW. She called to tell me that work has glitched the kids bennies yet again.

17. Do you think people talk about you behind your back?
I'd say it's guaranteed. I used to care. Now...not so much. I know Kal does. :P

18. Did you watch cartoons as a child?
I sure did. Although with only 2 channels in rural Ontario where I grew up, we didn't have a lot of options.

19. Do you add your own questions to Memes when Kal is too lazy to do so?
Yes...yes I do!

20. Are you shy around the opposite sex?
Good question. Sometimes I can be; other times, no. Depends on the situation, I suppose.

21. Which movie(s) do you know every line to?
Full Metal Jacket.

22. Do you own any band t-shirts?
Yes. I have a well-loved RUSH tee from their Toronto concert years ago.

23. What is your favorite salad dressing?
Depends on the salad. However, I'd have to be at gunpoint before I willingly put Blue Cheese on anything.

24. Who was the last person to make you mad?
Probably someone at work.

25. Do you do your own dishes?
I load the dishwasher. Does that count?

26. Ever cry in public?
Only during my street corner Onion Slicing/3 Card Monte act.

27. Are you on a desktop computer or a laptop?
I'm currently ON a chair, typing at a laptop.

28. Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos?
I'd toy with the idea of another tattoo. Not so keen piercings, despite Penny's insistence.

29. Would you ever date someone covered in tattoos?
I'd say that 3 ink jobs is my limit for good taste. 3 small ones. No 3 large "hey this one covers my entire back" ones.

30. What did you do before this?
Flamed Kal

31. When is the last time you slept on the floor?
Probably 4+ years ago, crashed in a hotel room after a singles get together.

32. How many hours of sleep do you need to function?
More than I seem to be getting lately. But the hallucinations are getting interesting.

33. Do you eat breakfast daily?
I don't care what anyone says, Bagels ARE breakfast.

34. Are your days full and fast-paced?
Way faster than Kal's.

35. Do you pay attention to the calories on the label?
Only when I forget to ignore them.

36. Do you use sarcasm?
Duh...

37. How old will you be on your next birthday?
Older. And Older than Kal. But I still have Penny and he doesn't [taunt, taunt]

38. Are you picky about spelling and grammar?
Yes I am. I'm a great speller, but I'm a lousy typist.

39. Have you ever been to Six Flags?
Nope

40. Do you get along better with the same sex or the opposite sex?
Opposite sex. Just ask any of them.

41. Do you like mustard?
Kal wrote this lame-ass question, didn't he?

42. Do you sleep on your side, stomach, or back?
Yes

43. Do you watch the news?
I try not to, but I read the online newspapers all the time.

44. One of your scars--how did you get it?
The one behind my right ear, from the removal of a mole as a late teenager and it opened up after the stitches were removed. Got a little messy and the scar is rather evident.

So there you go. 44 useless items of information about me for your dining and dancing pleasure.

15% gratuity added. :)

Happy Birthday Kal!

...and many more, brother. :)

Farg

You would think that after sleepless Sunday, I would get to experience the joys of Monday with Morpheus.

'Twas not to be.

It was well after 3AM when I was finally able to crash.

That runny stuff leaking from my ears would be my brains.

*sgh*

Ya know

The fact that you can still find yourself waiting for sleep at 12:45 AM after a long and full Fathers' Day taking the Wondertwins to the science centre really and truly sucks ass

Having to start your day in slow gear and in the rain makes it so much better.

Just sayin'...

I tell ya

Its an awesome time of year.

Not only is Game 6 of the Stanley Cup final on, but the CFL season kicked off last night, and the race is on to the 94th Grey Cup. This kind of sports nirvana doesn't come again until mid/late October as the CFL playoffs heat up and the NHL is kicking off.

The Argos played their season opener to a great crowd on a gorgeous day against the Ti-Cats. I honestly figured that the Argos would have their hands full with a rebuilt Tabby team. I was even more worried when the Argos lost Damon Allen on the first Offensive series. He got nailed with a late hit and I believe he broke a finger in his throwing hand. Back-up Spurgeon Wynn (yes, really) came in and on his very first pass, airs one out to Tony Miles for the TD. The mighty Ricky Williams rushed for just under 100 yards. Not a bad start for his first "for real" game in a new league.

So much for my skepticism.

The argos won 27-17. I don't mind missing that call in my pool. ;-)

Here it is, a sweltering Saturday and I'm flipping back and forth between the hockey game and the football game.

Its been a relatively quiet day. Penny is working all weekend. I watered the garden, did some laundry and the kids rented a movie to keep themselves occupied downstairs where the temperature is much, much cooler.

The kids and Penny have a very secret squirrel Fathers' Day project going on. I have no idea what it could be, but I'm sure it will be very interesting. All I know for sure is that it involves a couple of cans of spray paint and the glue gun.

I'm not sure what the plans are for tomorrow. I'd love to go to the Warplane Heritage out in Hamilton but its a bit of a drive and I honestly dunno if The Girl would get much out of it. The Zoo is a possibility. Its closer, at least and both kids like it.

Edmonton's up 1-0 on Carolina and Calgary's leading the Eskimos 7-0.

Gotta love this time of year....

How to make me feel like I'm in hell

Stick me on a crowded commuter train seated next to two noisy, dippy 20-something dyed-blonde females who have NO volume control.

Not that I have anything against said kind of female...

I just wish they'd dial it down a notch...and I just know they'll. yammer. all. the. way. home.

For all the William Shatner fans out there

This is one of the best parodies of the legendary "I Am Canadian" sketch. And I finally found the video to go with it.

Okay, I finally succumbed

I swore I wouldn't. But I'm weak. Forgive me.

I've officially fallen onto the YouTube wagon.

Holy potential work day time-waster, Batman!

I'm not personally keen on searching all the self-made vids for more evidence in support of Darwin's theory of evolution, or the Awards given out in his name. But its interesting to see all the old music videos out there from my hard rock days. *sigh* You just gotta love hair bands and truly impressive prog-rock.

So now you'll see me adding links to some of the tunes of my youth, just like all the other rapidly aging 70's/80's kids.

Sad, really.

Could a move to MySpace be far behind?? ~shudder~

Disclaimer: I am NOT contemplating a move to MySpace. I'm quite happy here, tyvm. I was just commenting, tongue firmly planted in cheek, on the slippery slope I was on having signed up with YouTube.

You may now return to your regularly scheduled blogging.

Just when I thought I couldn't be shocked

I really figured I had seen and heard it all (even if I hadn't necessarily done it all.)

With all the chaos I had experienced with my family years ago, I really figured that there wasn't much that could shock me.

Please note the date and time here as I freely admit my error in that judgement.

An old high school classmate sent me a message this morning asking me if I had heard from my sister. Of course, I hadn't since we don't talk that much. He said there was big news out of our Home Town this morning. Of course, those words never leave me feeling happy or unworried. He pastes a web link into his messenger window and I check out the article.

What I read left me absolutely stunned. Stunned.

The subject of the article is someone I have known for nearly 25 years. We were classmates for the last 3 years of high school..we played in bands together...socialized...and he was arguably one of the most popular guys at school. Solid family life, devout faith, and a real dedication to his teaching career. He married his high school sweetheart and all that...has 4 kids. As I mentioned to a fellow blogger this morning, "imagine the least likely person about whom you'd receive this news...the person you would simply think it impossible....and my old classmate is that guy."

So you can imagine my surprise to see his name and photo associated with a story of a recent arrest on charges of sexual interference and internet luring.

Him? Uh, this is a joke, right? There's no way. He's not....no...cuz he wasn't ever...you know?

There's a chorus of that running through my mind today.

All I can say is that as much as I feel for the family of the alleged victim, I feel awful for his family because I do know what they're going through. In a small town like ours he was well known and his teaching career is effectively ruined, even if it turns out to be a false accusation. Although the sad realization is that if there's an Internet charge involved, there's probably a trail of some kind...and therefore....some small grain of truth or concern in there somewhere.

Somewhere north of here.....families are going through their pain and hurt and shock

Somewhere north of here.....a community is reacting in disbelief

Somewhere on the sending end of this blog.....a guy is sad for everyone involved and is reliving his own grief and guilt-by-association...hoping that the healing can begin soon.

Sou'Wester Saturday

Its a damn good thing I'm nice and solid because the wind blowing today could take a small child away. Fortunately its sunny...so you could at least watch the little ankle biter flying off into the distance.

I was toying with the idea of a nice long ride today but I don't particularly relish the idea of having to pedal into the wind. Of course the wind would be blowing in my face both ways, because fate is like that.

The Boy is off to Buffalo for an overnight trip with his Corps and The Girl is at her grandmother's place for the night. DW is working until 9:30 so its just me and that darn cat for the day. Is it possible to teach a cat to play Scrabble?

DW was in a movie mood last night after paying some bills (Payday Friday often coincides with Movie Friday at our place) so she rented Casanova and Aeon Flux. We really enjoyed them both, particularly some of the comedic lunacy in Casanova. I knew it was only loosely based on the Casanova tale so I didn't object to the occasional departure from the story. The advantage of filming in a place like Venice is that it has remained largely unchanged over the last couple of centuries....except for the pollution levels, I suppose. Aeon Flux was definitely an interesting presentation of the original work...kind of a Logan's Run meets Gattaca sort of thing. However, spending a couple of hours watching Charlize Theron kicking ass and taking names is rarely a bad way to spend an evening.

So here we all sit, waiting until we drop off The Boy and DW anxiously waiting for me to finish pecking out this missive on the crackberry so she can read it. Over to you hunny. :)

As Fridays go, well, this was one of them

Actually it got off to a wonderful start.

Last night was spent in the glow of a 4-0 win in hockey and a nice, quiet snuggle, etc) with my bride.

When the alarm went off in the morning, snuggling up to the form beside me was way better than dragging my ass out of the bed to bike to the train.

I had heard it was likely to rain this afternoon, making it no good to ride. (It didn't' and I didn't. But who knew at 6:15?)

I had a 2-hr class session to conduct (with the inevitable last-minute prep beforehand) and then a meeting with my interim boss afterwards. When all that was said and done, I was baked. But teaching always does that to me. Classroom work is a mental and physical drain.

However...

Its Friday. Its payday. The weekend is here. I'm in a reasonably good mood and on my way home.

Enough blogging. I'm in the middle of "The October Horse" and Caesar is drawing closer to his fate. Vini. Vidi. Vici.

#413

I'm happy to announce that this is post No. 413.  I'm sure you're all rejoicing at that news.

 

There isn't a lot that's blog-worthy at the moment, hence my silence.  I was, however, pleased to note the successful removal of one high-ranking terrorist/insurgent vermin the other day.  Sadly, where one goes away, yet another will rise to fill his place.  I won't get all polyanna and wish for peace, flowers and happiness, but there really are some twisted and misguided souls out there.

 

A big thumbs-down to all the idiots more concerned with the fact that it was 6.6.06, than the fact that it was 62 years since the Normandy Landing that same day.

 

Why are people so stupid?  Penny?  Kal?  Cricket?  Anyone?  Bueller?  Bueller?

 

 

D+62

As we walked along the beaches of Normandy,
We came to Juno, Omaha and Gold,
And whispered a prayer for the boys,
Who said goodbye to it all;

-Chris de Burgh

Lest We Forget...

Sunday is a day of what?

(Holy crap, I haven't blogged since Wednesday!! Must be a sign of the apocalypse or something)
According to someone's religion - if you subscribe to that sort of thing - Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest. Of course, my mother never went for that argument when I was a kid and being directed to clean my room, etc. Damned lapsed protestants...

But, I digress.

This Sunday was the Ride for Heart. The 5AM alarm came mighty fucking early that morning. Even on a lousy nights' sleep I managed to remember everything I needed to bring and made it there in one piece. The Bat Rider and I were teamed up for the ride. He's as much a howl outside of work as he is in the office. He's far more regular rider than I am (as his blog shows) and he kept me hustling at a good pace. We were yakking and doing character assassinations all along the way (all the technicolour, spandex-clad Tour de France wanna-bes were the perfect fodder.) Some people take this shit a little too seriously. There was a bit of a lineup for our Early Bird start, but when we hit the Finish line and saw the HUGE number of people headed for the 8:15 start we figured we made the right call. I goofed in my initial estimate. There weren't 3,000 riders, there were over 13,000 riders. Holy crap! The photo gives you an idea of what the early stage of the 8:15 ride was like.















My legs were okay afterwards, but geezus, my ass was sore. Bike seats must be some kind of BDSM-inspired device.

There was no rest for the wicked, because after I got home Penny and I were yard-work demons. We weeded, we fertilized and we added some more edging to the front garden, picked up some better soil and stuff to mix in and feed all the greenery, and we did managed to get the lawn mowed. (Please remind me to get our own mower fixed...cuz that 6.5HP fucker from next door is a complete bitch to move around the yard.) By the time that was all done, I was done.

On our way out to DW for a little Blizzard reward, we met our new neighbours (2 doors down) and it turns out that the Wife and I have mutual friends and we've seen one another on the GO. The joys of suburbia and commuting. *bliss*

But after all that work, I was toast. According to Penny, I crashed around 9:30PM and I didn't surface until 7 this morning. I opened my eyes a couple of times after 4AM, but that was it. Fortunately, I'm not feeling any soreness (other than on my ass from my bike seat) and I am - for the moment - tempted to do the 50km ride next year.

And here I sit thinking that it's time for coffee.

(BTW, we did slip out to go see X-MEN 3. Wicked movie. I discovered that the "Xavier School" as shown in the movie is actually the campus of Royal Roads University. Wonder if this means I'll come back as a mutant??)