Thanks to James for turning me on to Rooster Teeth comics... just my style of humour. It doesn't say much for me, does it?
Monday, June 29, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Michael Jackson R.I.P.
Another Part of Me died yesterday. Say, Say, Say, what you want about Michael Jackson, his behaviour may have been Off The Wall, but his music could Heal The World. Do you Remember The Time when Thriller came out? He may not have been happy with the Man In The Mirror, but he was hoping to have One More Chance with his fifty city world tour. Clearly his death is not Black Or White, whether he had a Bad heart and it couldn’t Beat It. All we know is Michael Jackson is Gone Too Soon.
Seriously though, we'll miss Michael and I give my sincere condolences to the Jackson family. He will be missed.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
I Want to be a Ghost Hunter
I’ve been interested in the paranormal forever. I guess it started out as the normal youthful curiosity after watching some scary movies. Psychic phenomenon fascinates me. Stories of hauntings have always interested me. Even stories of monsters I’ve found intriguing. It doesn’t mean I believe it all, but I do find them interesting.
For a long time I’ve seen movies with ghosts and found them grossly entertaining. I really don’t expect a real ghostly experience to be like the Amityville Horror or The Entity. I should expect that they are more likely to be like The 6th Sense. Some of my friends said they didn’t find the movie scary, but I think that the events in the movie would be closer to a paranormal experience than others.
I’ve also praised A&E’s paranormal show Paranormal State, for a more ‘realistic’ view of the paranormal. They don’t film something and say, “Look! It’s a ghost!” But they’ll say they captured a misty phenomenon on film, and it could be explained by humidity levels from the entrance. The subject group of the show, the Paranormal Research Society (PRS), would be hesitant to jump to the conclusion that they have definitive proof of paranormal activities, but some of the cases they’ve documented have captured convincing paranormal activities. In almost every episode that I’ve seen the PRS has had some convincing experiences. For Father’s Day, my wife and kids got me the first two seasons on DVD… and I watched the first episode of season one on my lunch break.
I’ve also heard great reviews of a show called Ghost Hunters. I’ve never seen the show because for some reason my satellite provider doesn’t get it… Damn You ExpressVu! Although the personal reviews I’ve heard of the show have been favourable, the website Wikipedia notes some not so kind reviews of the show. That being said, I like Paranormal State and Wikipedia also has some bad reviews for that show too.
I think that the evidence caught on audio/video (AV) have always interested me as well. We’ll never know completely whether AV from these shows is not tampered with in any way.
Audio recordings have been used by ‘professional’ and amateurs alike for years. EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) is very popular and featured in movies and television. I saw an episode of a show called Sightings in the early 1990’s with a supposed expert in EVP. She walked through an old Civil War Prison and recorded some pretty creepy recordings. She had the entire fort to herself and captured some recordings like:
“Make it stop.”
“The pain…”
“That’ll do.”
There were other recordings that she captured, but I can’t recall what was said. She only caught those on her recorder after the audio signal was boosted and subtitled for the viewers to understand.
EVP has been so convincing and scary, that people are more likely to believe the phenomenon. However it can be easily debunked as pranksters, voices carried on the wind, etc.
When the movie “White Noise,” came out, I saw the preview of the movie and even before I said I wanted to see the movie, my wife said that I was not to bring that movie into our house. I saw the movie anyway, and I didn’t think it was that creepy.
Because of my interest in ghosts, I have a huge interest in old and historical buildings. I love to explore abandoned derelict buildings and see evidence of things that haven’t been touched in years. I took the picture in a storage building that used to be for the Residential School in Hay River, it was creepy and I couldn’t go to the basement of that building. Felt some bad mojo from there.
In the Northwest Territories we have the Naka (I’ve heard it pronounced Nuh-Guh) or better known as the Boogeyman. I’ve been told that the Naka’s origins actually started in before the Europeans arrived to Western Canada. I was told by elders that Naka literally meant stranger. And in olden times, when someone appeared near their village that was not known, they referred to them as Naka. Their appearance was usually indicative that someone from their village was going to be taken. Further stories have also indicated that this would be one tribe’s measures to prevent inbreeding. Someone would go to another village to steal away one of their boys or girls to be married off in their village.
The Naka has a fairy tale story feel to it, with historical origins, so I found it interesting. There’s been stories of Sasquatch, Yeti, Okopogo, Loch Ness Monster, and the Mothman all over the world. Some specified to certain geographical areas, such as the Okopogo in the Okanagan of British Columbia and the Lake Ness Monster in Scotland. Some evidence presented has been clearly debunked in the past.
Don’t you love hearing stories of people who had premonitions of things to happen and then proven correct later? Even I’ve incredible experiences with Déjà vu that have freaked me out. There have been shows produced about psychics like Medium and The Listener and countless movies and novels. There are different kinds of psychics with different kinds of abilities. There are different claims to different abilities and many skeptics have loved debunking claimed psychics. The most famous skeptic that I can think of was Harry Houdini. To him he took psychic claims and would disprove them because he felt people were being taken advantage of.
All this being said, I wish I was a ghost hunter or paranormal investigator. Just to be there to experience it and give an opinion of yes or no to the phenomenon. Got any ghosts? How about a demon possessing your daughter? Instead of calling the Ghostbusters, give me a call first.
For a long time I’ve seen movies with ghosts and found them grossly entertaining. I really don’t expect a real ghostly experience to be like the Amityville Horror or The Entity. I should expect that they are more likely to be like The 6th Sense. Some of my friends said they didn’t find the movie scary, but I think that the events in the movie would be closer to a paranormal experience than others.
I’ve also praised A&E’s paranormal show Paranormal State, for a more ‘realistic’ view of the paranormal. They don’t film something and say, “Look! It’s a ghost!” But they’ll say they captured a misty phenomenon on film, and it could be explained by humidity levels from the entrance. The subject group of the show, the Paranormal Research Society (PRS), would be hesitant to jump to the conclusion that they have definitive proof of paranormal activities, but some of the cases they’ve documented have captured convincing paranormal activities. In almost every episode that I’ve seen the PRS has had some convincing experiences. For Father’s Day, my wife and kids got me the first two seasons on DVD… and I watched the first episode of season one on my lunch break.
I’ve also heard great reviews of a show called Ghost Hunters. I’ve never seen the show because for some reason my satellite provider doesn’t get it… Damn You ExpressVu! Although the personal reviews I’ve heard of the show have been favourable, the website Wikipedia notes some not so kind reviews of the show. That being said, I like Paranormal State and Wikipedia also has some bad reviews for that show too.
I think that the evidence caught on audio/video (AV) have always interested me as well. We’ll never know completely whether AV from these shows is not tampered with in any way.
Audio recordings have been used by ‘professional’ and amateurs alike for years. EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) is very popular and featured in movies and television. I saw an episode of a show called Sightings in the early 1990’s with a supposed expert in EVP. She walked through an old Civil War Prison and recorded some pretty creepy recordings. She had the entire fort to herself and captured some recordings like:
“Make it stop.”
“The pain…”
“That’ll do.”
There were other recordings that she captured, but I can’t recall what was said. She only caught those on her recorder after the audio signal was boosted and subtitled for the viewers to understand.
EVP has been so convincing and scary, that people are more likely to believe the phenomenon. However it can be easily debunked as pranksters, voices carried on the wind, etc.
When the movie “White Noise,” came out, I saw the preview of the movie and even before I said I wanted to see the movie, my wife said that I was not to bring that movie into our house. I saw the movie anyway, and I didn’t think it was that creepy.
Because of my interest in ghosts, I have a huge interest in old and historical buildings. I love to explore abandoned derelict buildings and see evidence of things that haven’t been touched in years. I took the picture in a storage building that used to be for the Residential School in Hay River, it was creepy and I couldn’t go to the basement of that building. Felt some bad mojo from there.
In the Northwest Territories we have the Naka (I’ve heard it pronounced Nuh-Guh) or better known as the Boogeyman. I’ve been told that the Naka’s origins actually started in before the Europeans arrived to Western Canada. I was told by elders that Naka literally meant stranger. And in olden times, when someone appeared near their village that was not known, they referred to them as Naka. Their appearance was usually indicative that someone from their village was going to be taken. Further stories have also indicated that this would be one tribe’s measures to prevent inbreeding. Someone would go to another village to steal away one of their boys or girls to be married off in their village.
The Naka has a fairy tale story feel to it, with historical origins, so I found it interesting. There’s been stories of Sasquatch, Yeti, Okopogo, Loch Ness Monster, and the Mothman all over the world. Some specified to certain geographical areas, such as the Okopogo in the Okanagan of British Columbia and the Lake Ness Monster in Scotland. Some evidence presented has been clearly debunked in the past.
Don’t you love hearing stories of people who had premonitions of things to happen and then proven correct later? Even I’ve incredible experiences with Déjà vu that have freaked me out. There have been shows produced about psychics like Medium and The Listener and countless movies and novels. There are different kinds of psychics with different kinds of abilities. There are different claims to different abilities and many skeptics have loved debunking claimed psychics. The most famous skeptic that I can think of was Harry Houdini. To him he took psychic claims and would disprove them because he felt people were being taken advantage of.
All this being said, I wish I was a ghost hunter or paranormal investigator. Just to be there to experience it and give an opinion of yes or no to the phenomenon. Got any ghosts? How about a demon possessing your daughter? Instead of calling the Ghostbusters, give me a call first.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Internet Security
I mentioned before that we just came back from Grande Prairie, Alberta. Spent the weekend shopping, going for nice meals, shopping, and going for coffee at the Church of the Mighty Tim (for those non-Canadians reading my blog, I'm referring to Tim Horton's, which is a coffee and donut chain in Canada and in some American States. The coffee truly is the nectar of the gods).
I just thought that I'd mention that I didn't mention in my blog, or on my Facebook account that I was indeed travelling to Grande Prairie. Why? A new breed of internet criminal.
It seems that internet opportunists are now using Facebook and Twitter accounts to their benefits when people are saying they are "vacationing in Mexico" or "Lost in Las Vegas." It seems that burglars then know which house to hit. You can check out this article here. So, think twice to calling in sick and having your pic of you partying on a friend's profile, or announcing you're going to be tanning in the Bahamas (I can understand wanting your ex to be jealous, but you might be letting burglars know to pay your place a visit).
I just thought that I'd mention that I didn't mention in my blog, or on my Facebook account that I was indeed travelling to Grande Prairie. Why? A new breed of internet criminal.
It seems that internet opportunists are now using Facebook and Twitter accounts to their benefits when people are saying they are "vacationing in Mexico" or "Lost in Las Vegas." It seems that burglars then know which house to hit. You can check out this article here. So, think twice to calling in sick and having your pic of you partying on a friend's profile, or announcing you're going to be tanning in the Bahamas (I can understand wanting your ex to be jealous, but you might be letting burglars know to pay your place a visit).
Shout out!
Hey, I recently went to Grande Prairie, Alberta this weekend and got to visit with my Dad who lives in Fort St. John, British Columbia. He drove the two hours from FSJ and we got to meet his wife, Tess, who in turn got to meet my wife and kids for the first time. It was a nice visit even though Tess was feeling a little under the weather.
My dad asked me about my blog, having heard from one of his dispatchers at Teco Taxi. Turns out Keith has been checking out my blog every once in awhile and told my dad about it. So, here's a shout out to you, Keith. I hope you're not checking out my blog at work... just kidding, I won't tell.
My dad asked me about my blog, having heard from one of his dispatchers at Teco Taxi. Turns out Keith has been checking out my blog every once in awhile and told my dad about it. So, here's a shout out to you, Keith. I hope you're not checking out my blog at work... just kidding, I won't tell.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Amendment to Up Here
Yeah, okay, no one mentioned to me that the map was in German... at least my buddy Shawn would appreciate it. That is what happens when you get lazy and look for a map of the NWT on the internet and don't use MapQuest.
And Kara was kind to remind me that Wolverine is from the Northwest Territories. In the comics, he originated from Wood Buffalo National Park and appeared in Fort Smith. In the movie, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, there is no mention of Wood Buffalo or Fort Smith, but it starts off set in 1840 (I'm guessing) in the Northwest Territories. In the shots there are some pretty big trees and it looks like it's in Ontario or something, when some young kid behind me makes a smart alec remark, "That looks nothing like the Northwest Territories."
I guess history lessons are really bad in Canada. Does anybody remember Rupert's Land, Upper Canada and the Northwest Territories? In 1840'sh, the Northwest Territories was across a large portion of Canada... not just the NWT today. I actually turned around and told him, "Back then, the Northwest Territories was half the size of Canada." I don't think it was that big, but it shut him up anyway.
And Kara was kind to remind me that Wolverine is from the Northwest Territories. In the comics, he originated from Wood Buffalo National Park and appeared in Fort Smith. In the movie, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, there is no mention of Wood Buffalo or Fort Smith, but it starts off set in 1840 (I'm guessing) in the Northwest Territories. In the shots there are some pretty big trees and it looks like it's in Ontario or something, when some young kid behind me makes a smart alec remark, "That looks nothing like the Northwest Territories."
I guess history lessons are really bad in Canada. Does anybody remember Rupert's Land, Upper Canada and the Northwest Territories? In 1840'sh, the Northwest Territories was across a large portion of Canada... not just the NWT today. I actually turned around and told him, "Back then, the Northwest Territories was half the size of Canada." I don't think it was that big, but it shut him up anyway.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Coke or Pepcid?
Day 21 and still no colas.
I have noticed an increase in acids in my stomach causing heartburn. Apparently, when I had my gallbladder removed in September of 2007, a friend told me that to help digest foods I should drink cola. It was supposed to assist in what the gallbladder does, which is to break down foods in the stomach.
So... I don't know whether there is a direct correlation between drinking coke and not having heartburn. You would think it would be the other way around, wouldn't it? But the heartburn has becoming more frequent that I was actually thinking I should just have a coke and be damned with it.
Thankfully I have a loving and supportive wife who promised she would shove bamboo chutes under my toenails and then soak my feet in turpentine if I drank coke again... so, Day 21, and still no colas.
Just kidding, my wife would never do that to me. Although she would probably look at me disapprovingly which would be the same as the bamboo chutes and turpentine.
I have noticed an increase in acids in my stomach causing heartburn. Apparently, when I had my gallbladder removed in September of 2007, a friend told me that to help digest foods I should drink cola. It was supposed to assist in what the gallbladder does, which is to break down foods in the stomach.
So... I don't know whether there is a direct correlation between drinking coke and not having heartburn. You would think it would be the other way around, wouldn't it? But the heartburn has becoming more frequent that I was actually thinking I should just have a coke and be damned with it.
Thankfully I have a loving and supportive wife who promised she would shove bamboo chutes under my toenails and then soak my feet in turpentine if I drank coke again... so, Day 21, and still no colas.
Just kidding, my wife would never do that to me. Although she would probably look at me disapprovingly which would be the same as the bamboo chutes and turpentine.
When creativity dies...
Such a sad title for a blog. But it does feel like a death in the family when you know of someone who has so much potential through their artistic expressions and they let their natural talents go to wayside. I'll only say first names for these people... but it's only to let them know that I think of them and their talent.
Matt used to draw and paint and play a pretty decent guitar. At one time he nurtured his artwork by working for a graphics company, but now works as a parts supplier.
John used to draw quite a bit... comic book art that showed such promise. I hope he's still doing it, but he lives so far away now... last I heard he was working for a electronic chain.
Andy used to pound his drums to Metallica and AC/DC. He had a large bedroom that consisted of a bed and a drum kit... the bed was small and the kit was large. Don't know if he's still keeping the beat, but he's a Harley Davidson mechanic which is an art of its own now.
Binky... where are you? I heard rumors you were doing a comic in Vancouver??? Whatever came of the character Jupiter???
Cameron last I heard you were hanging with Binky... you also showed some awesome potential for creating some manga or comics.
Me... you had some great years acting in theatre and you had your foot in the door with that bit part on North of 60. You used to write songs and stories and sing to the girls... what happened?
Interestingly enough, life happens to throw you curves... I don't plan on stopping, but I realize I have to be patient enough to start again when the opportunity arises. I get sad sometimes thinking of the 'would haves' and 'could haves'... but we have to make the best of the 'right nows.'
Just remember, creativity never dies but regains new life at every turn.
Matt used to draw and paint and play a pretty decent guitar. At one time he nurtured his artwork by working for a graphics company, but now works as a parts supplier.
John used to draw quite a bit... comic book art that showed such promise. I hope he's still doing it, but he lives so far away now... last I heard he was working for a electronic chain.
Andy used to pound his drums to Metallica and AC/DC. He had a large bedroom that consisted of a bed and a drum kit... the bed was small and the kit was large. Don't know if he's still keeping the beat, but he's a Harley Davidson mechanic which is an art of its own now.
Binky... where are you? I heard rumors you were doing a comic in Vancouver??? Whatever came of the character Jupiter???
Cameron last I heard you were hanging with Binky... you also showed some awesome potential for creating some manga or comics.
Me... you had some great years acting in theatre and you had your foot in the door with that bit part on North of 60. You used to write songs and stories and sing to the girls... what happened?
Interestingly enough, life happens to throw you curves... I don't plan on stopping, but I realize I have to be patient enough to start again when the opportunity arises. I get sad sometimes thinking of the 'would haves' and 'could haves'... but we have to make the best of the 'right nows.'
Just remember, creativity never dies but regains new life at every turn.
Up Here
I was born here in Hay River, Northwest Territories. I was born in the hospital here, where my mother and my wife works. (Mother and wife meaning two different people... this isn't Deliverance y'all)
Although I've always been one of those who yearn to be anywhere else from where they are from, I can't say the Northwest Territories is a bad place. It's the last of the North American frontier lands. It has the biggest amount of area with the fewest amount of people (I dunno if this exactly true anymore since the creation of Nunavut in 1999 which was created from half of the NWT). It has the mighty Mackenzie River, the longest in Canada. The Great Slave Lake (on which Hay River is on it's southern shore) is the eleventh largest and sixth deepest lake in the world. We have eleven official languages for the Northwest Territories.
We've been on television. The first season of History Channel's wildly popular Ice Road Truckers was shot on the ice roads from Yellowknife to the diamond mines. There's a new reality series shot in Hay River and Yellowknife about Buffalo Airways which started here in Hay River and starts September of 2009. Reality TV biker dude extraordinaire, Jesse James shoots an episode of Jesse James is a Dead Man in the NWT's arctic... check it out... it's on tonight on Spike!
We have famous actors.
Leslie Nielsen
was born here in the Northwest Territories in Tulita, which was formerly known as Fort Norman. He's been in numerous Hollywood Productions, including but not limited to the Naked Gun series, the Airplane! movies, Men With Brooms, and some of the Scary Movie movies.
Margot Kidder was born In Yellowknife and became famous when cast as Lois Lane in theSuperman movies. She has also appeared in other movies, none really memorable. But has cameos in Mel Gibson's Maverick and the Superman television series Smallville.
Dustin Milligan was also born in
Yellowknife and is a newly established actor in Hollywood. He starred in the first season of the CW's resurrected series 90210 as Ethan. I never watched the show, but I'll give him a "Hell Yeah," just because he's from the Northwest Territories. He'll be appearing in the new Mike Judge film "Extract," and is currently filming a western with Paul Gross here in Canada called "Gunless." I'll be watching his career with keen interest. (Hey Dustin... psst... I'm an actor, too!)
So, I guess I'm saying I am proud to be from here. Just wishing I was closer to civilization. Somewhere where I can get back to acting on stage (or television again). Somewhere not so many people know me... anonymity does have its perks. But if you've never been here, you should come check it out... we could go for coffee.
Forgive Us Our Trespasses...
Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It has been one week since my last blog... I'm not religious... I'm just saying it's been awhile.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Roses and sunshine...
It's occurred to me that I've been recently ranting and letting my bitter side show. I, too was a poet and a gentle soul. I've been known to soothe the soul of the occasional amorous beauty or innocent child. Take this example of my creative, nurturing, loving side of me from Grade Ten... this poem which I can still recall...
Here I stand awash with love
with the gulls flying up above.
My feet are stuck
the sand within...
O' my God, the tide's coming in!
I know, I know... the creative genius oozed from my every pore like acne from a teenager working in a fry joint. Just kidding! Thought you could use a laugh.
Here I stand awash with love
with the gulls flying up above.
My feet are stuck
the sand within...
O' my God, the tide's coming in!
I know, I know... the creative genius oozed from my every pore like acne from a teenager working in a fry joint. Just kidding! Thought you could use a laugh.
Go ahead... make my day...
If there ever was a time I wish the whole world could read my blog it would be now... okay, maybe not the whole world, but how about the appointment seeking population of Hay River.
If you see me on the street, you can say hello, you can compliment me on my shoes, you can strike up a conversation about the weather. Hell, you can say I look fat in the pants that I'm wearing... here are my suggestions to you...
If you see me on the street, you can say hello, you can compliment me on my shoes, you can strike up a conversation about the weather. Hell, you can say I look fat in the pants that I'm wearing... here are my suggestions to you...
- Don't ask me what time your appointment is again. I deal with hundreds of calls a day and book, cancel, re-book hundreds of appointments a day. If you can't remember the appointment date and time you wrote down in the comfort of your own home, or from the card I gave you, how do you realistically expect me to recall your appointment date and time. Call me at work, and I'll tell you. Maybe.
- Don't ask me when doctor So-in-so is going to be in the clinic, because honestly I don't know. If he told he'd be back in September, congratulations you officially know more than I do... I'm like a mushroom (you figure that one out).
- Don't ask me if I can book you an appointment or put you on the wait list for an appointment. Call me... at work... during work hours. If the phone is busy, or it takes too long to get someone... think about it... I've already mentioned I'm booking hundreds of appointments from the phone and/or people in person.
- Don't whisper over my shoulder at a movie theatre for the above questions.
- Don't interrupt me and my wife at dinner at a restaurant for the above questions.
- If I'm standing at a urinal, doing my business... don't ask me anything!
- I won't lend you money.
- I won't give you a ride.
- I won't introduce you to my wife. (She probably knows you already, and that's not a good thing!)
- I won't ask you to babysit... ever.
Monday, June 8, 2009
If you build it, they will come...
I've got a blog follower... welcome Dhamone! I know other people read the blog, but it's nice to know I've got someone who might actually be interested in what I say.
My wife doesn't count because she has to pretend to at least listen to what I say. My co-workers don't count either because they want to make sure I'm not making them look bad. :)
Breaking it down...
My co-worker, a sassy nurse from Newfoundland, asked me if I knew how to send her friends a video through email, because the video was too big. I said to her that she should start up a DropShots account. She could download her video to the site, and then send the link to her friends via email.
She had her mouth slightly open like I rattled off Shakespeare in Greek. I asked her, "Was that a little over your head?"
She replied, "Yeah, explain it to me in Newfie-nies." *
I broke it down to her, only in my own cheeky way...
"Well, you put ta ting in ta ting... " Translation: Well, you put the thing in the thing...
* We refer to people from Newfoundland as Newfies... they also have a unique accent. Check out the show, "This Hour Has 22 Minutes," or the movie, "The Shipping News," with Kevin Spacey.
She had her mouth slightly open like I rattled off Shakespeare in Greek. I asked her, "Was that a little over your head?"
She replied, "Yeah, explain it to me in Newfie-nies." *
I broke it down to her, only in my own cheeky way...
"Well, you put ta ting in ta ting... " Translation: Well, you put the thing in the thing...
* We refer to people from Newfoundland as Newfies... they also have a unique accent. Check out the show, "This Hour Has 22 Minutes," or the movie, "The Shipping News," with Kevin Spacey.
The key word here is RESTRAINT.
Do you sometimes wonder what it takes to drive someone over the edge and make them go postal? I have a theory that they had to deal with idiots on a daily basis. Whether they be co-workers or customers.
I can't go into too much detail on our procedures for lateness and keeping appointments, but when you're late... you are late, and too bad, so sad, we have gone on to the next appointment. When you take into consideration not all clients keep to their scheduled time with the doctors, or doctors being called away for emergencies, we have to keep moving or forever fall behind.
I keep saying to people, be on time. You wouldn't check into your flight ten minutes late and expect to be still going on the plane. Although they would ask you to check in three hours early, so I'm not sure that's the right analogy.
I don't resemble the Charmin man from the Charmin commercials... so there is no squeezing here.
"Can't you just squeeze me in?" No. No squeezing. We have a policy against squeezing clients or so-workers. Again with the plane analogy, "Our flight is full sir, but I'm sure it'll be okay if you stand in the aisle.
"It'll just take a minute..." A minute for me to put you in maybe... but I know few doctors that can diagnose in a minute.
"You'd be doing me a huge favour!" Yeah, and what would I get in return. A headache and no Excedrin.
Stare at me some more. Nope, my statement hasn't changed... there are no appointments available. Staring at me won't change my mind, but it will make my feel sorry for you. Contrary to popular belief, the Jedi Mind trick doesn't work.
Sulking... that's what I had today. An elder came in ten minutes late for her appointment and complained when I told her it was too late.
"I drove twenty minutes to get here."
"I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do."
"I'm not made of money."
"Hm hmm."
"Gee whiz."
It came to that... 'gee whiz.' And then she stood and stared... with a pout.
Then I gave in. Not because I felt sorry for her, but I was ashamed to call her an elder. Let's set an example for our youth, if you can't get your way... pout. "Sit down, please." I said with disgust. I just wanted her out of my sight.
If I sound bitter... I am. Today was a bad day... only because of her. I'm not so uncaring that I wouldn't have put her in, if she was on the last of her heart medication, or she was greiving the loss of a loved one and needed to talk to the doctor. I've made exceptions in exceptional cases.
Now, she didn't thank me... to her, it was expected of me... to make a compromise. You tell me, am I justified or being judgemental?
I can't go into too much detail on our procedures for lateness and keeping appointments, but when you're late... you are late, and too bad, so sad, we have gone on to the next appointment. When you take into consideration not all clients keep to their scheduled time with the doctors, or doctors being called away for emergencies, we have to keep moving or forever fall behind.
I keep saying to people, be on time. You wouldn't check into your flight ten minutes late and expect to be still going on the plane. Although they would ask you to check in three hours early, so I'm not sure that's the right analogy.
I don't resemble the Charmin man from the Charmin commercials... so there is no squeezing here.
"Can't you just squeeze me in?" No. No squeezing. We have a policy against squeezing clients or so-workers. Again with the plane analogy, "Our flight is full sir, but I'm sure it'll be okay if you stand in the aisle.
"It'll just take a minute..." A minute for me to put you in maybe... but I know few doctors that can diagnose in a minute.
"You'd be doing me a huge favour!" Yeah, and what would I get in return. A headache and no Excedrin.
Stare at me some more. Nope, my statement hasn't changed... there are no appointments available. Staring at me won't change my mind, but it will make my feel sorry for you. Contrary to popular belief, the Jedi Mind trick doesn't work.
Sulking... that's what I had today. An elder came in ten minutes late for her appointment and complained when I told her it was too late.
"I drove twenty minutes to get here."
"I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do."
"I'm not made of money."
"Hm hmm."
"Gee whiz."
It came to that... 'gee whiz.' And then she stood and stared... with a pout.
Then I gave in. Not because I felt sorry for her, but I was ashamed to call her an elder. Let's set an example for our youth, if you can't get your way... pout. "Sit down, please." I said with disgust. I just wanted her out of my sight.
If I sound bitter... I am. Today was a bad day... only because of her. I'm not so uncaring that I wouldn't have put her in, if she was on the last of her heart medication, or she was greiving the loss of a loved one and needed to talk to the doctor. I've made exceptions in exceptional cases.
Now, she didn't thank me... to her, it was expected of me... to make a compromise. You tell me, am I justified or being judgemental?
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Kara, Matt & Co. coming home!
I follow the blog The Adventures of Matt, Kara, Hunter and Cavan in Faro, Yukon. I know Kara and Matt from when they lived here in Hay River, and their adventures of taken them from Kugluktuk, Nunuvut (check that out on MapQuest) to Faro, Yukon, adding a couple of family members on the way. Anyways, they shared by Facebook email that they are coming back to Hay River, and our little group of friends and my immediate family are excited they are coming to visit.
Coke addiction status...
Day 8 of my trials of quitting colas, and it's gone actually easier than I thought.
My co-workers ask me how it's going and I tell them its going good. I wonder if they're actually expecting me to go stark-raving mad and forage through the recycling box for the last drops of Coke from bottles and cans. But nope... all is good.
I went to see Star Trek on Saturday night (awesome, BTW, thank-you), and went to the concession counter for my usual. The usual consists of a large layered combo (large popcorn w/ layered butter and a large drink) and I was going to substitute the Pepsi with fountain peach juice. However, the peach juice was empty and I almost gave in. Okay, I did give in, and I asked for a Pepsi. The young counter attendant then asked me, "Is it okay if it's warm? We have no ice." It's only then that I said, maybe just change the pop with a bottle of water. Not only did I barely thwart drinking Pepsi, I saved four bucks. And if I was to give in to drinking Pepsi or Coke, it would have an ice cold one.
By the way, I have to give kudos to an old school chum for quitting drinking colas on June 1st. He read my blog after I posted the link on Facebook and he commented that he had quit. I don't know whether he quit because of what I wrote (which would be cool), or he did this before I wrote my rant and coincidentally quit drinking cola the same day. But in either case, congrats Gordon Starko! May we start the "Stop the Pop" Revolution! (Actually, school kids already did.)
I work in a clinic and one of our locum doctors and a nurse practitioner read my blog on me quitting drinking cola. One suggested that we post it somewhere and that it was a very good article (B-L-U-S-H).
I was going to quit drinking pop all together because I would be less likely to fall back in with cola, but I slipped today. Isn't "slipping" the term that recovering addicts use when they screw up? Anyways, there was a big accreditation day BBQ at the hospital today because we did well on the accreditation and we're a leading practice. So I get my burger, I get my pasta salad, I get my ice cream, and I get my punch. After I've drank half my punch do I stop and say to my wife, "Don't they put 7Up in this?" To which they said they did. I was truly disappointed with myself but my wife told me not to be too hard on myself. I did impress the diabetic nurse and the dietitian when they heard I quit drinking cola. Jennifer, the dietitian, also said that her husband stopped drinking cola too.
Okay, I won't be too hard on myself, but I won't be buying any other bottles of pop either. Next thing you know I'll be drinking Pepsi Coke speedballs (Coke & Pepsi combined) out of a dixie cup out back of the soup kitchen... just kidding. By the way, Interesting Fact: mixing half Sunny D orange juice with half Pepsi equals a taste not unlike apricot juice. I also worked at a gas station convenience store and we were very bored on a Sunday.
My co-workers ask me how it's going and I tell them its going good. I wonder if they're actually expecting me to go stark-raving mad and forage through the recycling box for the last drops of Coke from bottles and cans. But nope... all is good.
I went to see Star Trek on Saturday night (awesome, BTW, thank-you), and went to the concession counter for my usual. The usual consists of a large layered combo (large popcorn w/ layered butter and a large drink) and I was going to substitute the Pepsi with fountain peach juice. However, the peach juice was empty and I almost gave in. Okay, I did give in, and I asked for a Pepsi. The young counter attendant then asked me, "Is it okay if it's warm? We have no ice." It's only then that I said, maybe just change the pop with a bottle of water. Not only did I barely thwart drinking Pepsi, I saved four bucks. And if I was to give in to drinking Pepsi or Coke, it would have an ice cold one.
By the way, I have to give kudos to an old school chum for quitting drinking colas on June 1st. He read my blog after I posted the link on Facebook and he commented that he had quit. I don't know whether he quit because of what I wrote (which would be cool), or he did this before I wrote my rant and coincidentally quit drinking cola the same day. But in either case, congrats Gordon Starko! May we start the "Stop the Pop" Revolution! (Actually, school kids already did.)
I work in a clinic and one of our locum doctors and a nurse practitioner read my blog on me quitting drinking cola. One suggested that we post it somewhere and that it was a very good article (B-L-U-S-H).
I was going to quit drinking pop all together because I would be less likely to fall back in with cola, but I slipped today. Isn't "slipping" the term that recovering addicts use when they screw up? Anyways, there was a big accreditation day BBQ at the hospital today because we did well on the accreditation and we're a leading practice. So I get my burger, I get my pasta salad, I get my ice cream, and I get my punch. After I've drank half my punch do I stop and say to my wife, "Don't they put 7Up in this?" To which they said they did. I was truly disappointed with myself but my wife told me not to be too hard on myself. I did impress the diabetic nurse and the dietitian when they heard I quit drinking cola. Jennifer, the dietitian, also said that her husband stopped drinking cola too.
Okay, I won't be too hard on myself, but I won't be buying any other bottles of pop either. Next thing you know I'll be drinking Pepsi Coke speedballs (Coke & Pepsi combined) out of a dixie cup out back of the soup kitchen... just kidding. By the way, Interesting Fact: mixing half Sunny D orange juice with half Pepsi equals a taste not unlike apricot juice. I also worked at a gas station convenience store and we were very bored on a Sunday.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Definition of Procrastination (and a rant about viruses and internet explorer)
Definition of procrastination??? See pic in upper right hand corner of blog. Yeah, that's me. My last entry was May 21. It's now June. Although my last blog says May 26th, I actually didn't finish it until tonight.
In my defense, my computer caught a bug. Oddly during my typing, an audio clip started playing. And it sounded like something you'd hear on America's Funniest Home Videos or something, except there was no video. And although it was harmless enough, a little toddler speaking gibberish at a mile a minute while his or her parents were laughing hysterically.
However, when this gibberish comes on it sounded like someone playing a record backwards and a voice spoke to you (albeit in gibberish) to tell you your soul belonged to someone else... it kinda creeped me out. Especially all my talk about the paranormal in my last blogs.
Another audio clip played the features of the new car in the Nissan lineup.
And another was some kind of audio of some supermodel getting interviewed about getting painstakingly painted by hand for three hours... I wish I had the video for that one...
But then typing my last blog entry, my internet explorer would boot me... mid sentence. It was a good one too. But I tell you, trying to get the essence of a joke you wrote four times down in a blog is extremely hard, especially when you think you got it right the first time.
So I did a virus check with my Security program (infurity program would be better, although I know infurity isn't a word) and it showed there was nothing wrong with my computer. So calling my employer's techie guru, Rob, (I'm sure he wasn't happy I called him at home) he told me I might still have a virus, and told me about Windows Live OneCare, where I thoroughly scanned and repaired my computer. It found one minor and major problem and fixed both.
Rob also told me about Firefox web browser and that it might have less problems than Internet Explorer (patooey, I spat on thee!). Firefox seems to be working for me.
So, after getting all of this done, the last thing I wanted to do was be creative and type what I was going to type. Instead I decide to numb myself from the neck up and play my Facebook applications.
Does anybody know a phone number for a good exorcist? I heard the gibberish again...
In my defense, my computer caught a bug. Oddly during my typing, an audio clip started playing. And it sounded like something you'd hear on America's Funniest Home Videos or something, except there was no video. And although it was harmless enough, a little toddler speaking gibberish at a mile a minute while his or her parents were laughing hysterically.
However, when this gibberish comes on it sounded like someone playing a record backwards and a voice spoke to you (albeit in gibberish) to tell you your soul belonged to someone else... it kinda creeped me out. Especially all my talk about the paranormal in my last blogs.
Another audio clip played the features of the new car in the Nissan lineup.
And another was some kind of audio of some supermodel getting interviewed about getting painstakingly painted by hand for three hours... I wish I had the video for that one...
But then typing my last blog entry, my internet explorer would boot me... mid sentence. It was a good one too. But I tell you, trying to get the essence of a joke you wrote four times down in a blog is extremely hard, especially when you think you got it right the first time.
So I did a virus check with my Security program (infurity program would be better, although I know infurity isn't a word) and it showed there was nothing wrong with my computer. So calling my employer's techie guru, Rob, (I'm sure he wasn't happy I called him at home) he told me I might still have a virus, and told me about Windows Live OneCare, where I thoroughly scanned and repaired my computer. It found one minor and major problem and fixed both.
Rob also told me about Firefox web browser and that it might have less problems than Internet Explorer (patooey, I spat on thee!). Firefox seems to be working for me.
So, after getting all of this done, the last thing I wanted to do was be creative and type what I was going to type. Instead I decide to numb myself from the neck up and play my Facebook applications.
Does anybody know a phone number for a good exorcist? I heard the gibberish again...
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