Random Thoughts

Initial thoughts on the BlackBerry PlayBook

2012-01-02T21:11:00.001-08:00

On Boxing Day, as I was wandering the stores looking for ski boots, I came across the BlackBerry PlayBook. Well, not quite. I sort of went looking for it in the hopes that one wasn't available. I've been debating the place of a tablet in today's home and frankly, I couldnt find a reason one would buy one. But there I was, on the Feast of St. Stephen, walking out of London Drugs with a PlayBook.

I justified getting it in many ways. It was relatively cheap (I paid $249 for the 32GB version; compare that to $620 you would pay for the iPad 2), in fact, cheaper than my 32GB iPod touch I bought a few years back. It would be useful to test apps and things (I've been intending to build some apps for a while now) and I could use it at home to look up stuff when my computers were not on (which isn't as rare as I thought it would be). None of this really justifies buying one of these devices, but what can I say... I saw something shiny and nice... and I fell for it.

Anyway, onto my thoughts on the device itself, and inevitable comparisons to the other device that rides high in this space, the iPad 2.Note that a chunk of this was written on the PlayBook... but I had to do edits on the PC because of its horrendous ability to correct spelling mistakes (more on that later).

I found the PlayBook to be a nicely built device. Everything about it feels solid and reliable. It doesn't mean I am going to go about dropping it on the floor anytime soon. I must say though that it is heavier than I expected. This is the same reason why I wouldnt get an iPad, the thing is a bit too heavy to hold onto for long periods of time. The display and sound are especially lovely on this device. Of course, I hear the display suffers in terms of visibility in sunlight... but what sunlight are we talking about in dark Vancouver? The sound is especially brilliant. Play something on its stereo speakers and compare it the anything else out there. You'll be amazed.

Now, for the perceived negatives on this device. Take these with a grain of salt; I expect a lot from RIM and these sorts of devices in general, so perhaps they are a bit too harsh.

The lack of email/bbm/calendar/contacts is definitely annoying. Since I have a BlackBerry phone though, the bridge alleviates that in some way. I don't completely like that way of using email, but in a pinch, that will do. RIM is apparently addressing these shortcomings soon and things should get better. What is a lot more annoying is the lack of auto correct on the tablet. The BlackBerry phone is very good at learning and correcting your mistakes efficiently. I could type proper words quickly on the phone and expect punctuation to be added for me easily. Not so here. On the phone, I can press the space bar twice and it would put a "." for me automatically, as well as capitalise the next letter. This makes sense. Why this feature did not make it to the tablet is beyond me. I expect it to work out of the box on day 1. Still, this too can be fixed via a software update (I hope they do fix it).

The copy and paste/selection thing not working easily is quite annoying. This is especially the case in apps. Let's say I see something in the Globe and Mail app I want to copy it so i can search on google. well guess what? I can't. That is quite annoying. On the phone, the select option exists in every app I have seen. The crippled select/copy/paste mechanism that works (so far only in the browser as far as I can tell) isn't obvious. I thought tapping on a word would pop something up. Instead, I have to touch and hold for a few seconds before the thing pops up, then you have to select an option in the floating menu and then use it. I had to google that to see if it was even possible.

I can't find a way of searching for text on a browser page. Can you imagine that? This can be fixed too, but the fact that such a simple (and necessary) feature does not exist on a modern tablet surprises me. Or perhaps it shouldn't.

The huge lack of apps is frustrating. I used to think the browser could do it all. I am no longer certain of that. At least not the way it is done today. Some pages do work (like gmail). Many are simply piss poor when it comes to it. There is a Bing maps app. but I can't copy and paste stuff in it. Like when I clicked on the current location button and this error happened.

It searches in the wrong area (Business instead of Location) and doesn't even let me copy the coordinates to search in the right place! Using this app was frustrating. So, I looked for Google Maps. Google has done a great job with the maps app on the phone, and on the iPod et al. But, no such app exists for the PlayBook. So, I went to the mobile website. It never quite finished Loading. The browser tab was useless after I tried loading the page. Now, it could be some messed up JavaScript on the Google Maps side. At any rate, the PlayBook has no useful mapping software. There was an app called MapApp that uses the Google Maps API, but it wasn't very usable.

The lack of an integrated notification framework frustrates me. On the phone, when you get an email, a Facebook message, a BBM, a software update, an SMS, Google Voice message, what have you, they feed into a integrated, usable framework that notifies the user with a visual cue (the blinking light), a physical cue (vibration if you so choose), a audible cue (a chirp if you set it to). And everything went into your messages (apart from Google Voice) app and you could deal with it from there. Nothing of this sort exists on the PlayBook. How do I know if I got Facebook Notifications? Well, you won't know unless you open the Facebook app. How stupid is that? Again, I am sure this can be fixed... but the lack of parity features is frustrating. Why you would build something from the ground up and completely ignore the features that actually made your previous operating system/device highly usable is beyond me. It is as if RIM is working hard to make sure anyone who comes in contact with their device runs away from it. And pisses off those who have used past devices because of the lack of features in the PlayBook.

I used to work for a software company that got bought out by its competitor. The new company then set about building parity features from the old software into their offering. I don't think any customers of the old software quite got over the lack of parity features. Or the fact that parity was used with a lot of poetic licence. Four wheels does not a car make... and the PlayBook OS makes for a poor substitute for the old BlackBerry OS.

As I said, I expect a lot from RIM. I have had BlackBerry devices since 2005. I swear, I can still feel the phone vibrate in the middle of the night instinctively. It is still an extension of myself. I can do a LOT with my phone. I am constantly amazed at how much the BlackBerry can do and for how long. This is especially evident when these Android and iOS folks get all cute about things like messaging or email. My BlackBerry in 2006 had google talk and it worked. It worked for messaging to a desktop, to another mobile device, to whatever. As long as you had a google talk account, I could message you. And it worked well. Likewise for email. It is just reliable and beautiful. It played avi files out of the box. Mind you, it might have skipped if the avi was a bit too much for it to handle. But none of this converting nonsense like you have to do for iOS.

Now, what about improvements? For one thing, the browser is a real browser. The piss poor browser on my Tour (OS 5 I think) is atrocious. It works... but god, does it frustrate me. The browser on the PlayBook is a wonderful piece of work. It plays flash. Unfortunately, it also plays flash ads. And it is incredibly sensitive to me trying to full screen flash videos. It clicks on the ad for you thus opening it (in a new tab, but still). It runs multiple apps simultaneously. I actually find it annoying that RIM has to advertise that. Because the phone has done that forever. But, it is a differentiator to the iOS devices, so you need to point it out. I find it to be intelligent as well. For example, if I am watching a video and open a different app, it pauses the video. Now, if I am listening to an audio feed (like I do with the CBC radio feeds in a browser), it doesn't pause it. Sane and normal.

You can side-load content onto the device. What that means is that I can, using smbclient, connect to my PlayBook over the wireless network, upload and download media onto it. Say I have videos. Say I want to watch videos while I am not at home. I can do that. Avi videos that is. The same for pictures and what not. It also syncs your iTunes account to it, so if you use iTunes for media, then all that is available as well. I don't (there is no iTunes for Linux).

I've had an iPod touch for a few years now and I use it a lot to consume media. I use it to browse the news, post stuff on Facebook via other apps (mainly news). I am still using it for that. The PlayBook, while it has a much nicer screen and audio output, is no match for the little Apple device. A lot of that is because there is a vibrant app marketplace for iOS. RIM needs to fix that on their side. I've seen the iPad in action as well; it is a delightful device apart from its price. And the fact that you can't do normal things like side-load media. I am also impressed with their split keyboard thing for landscape mode on the iPad. Typing, selecting/copying/pasting etc on the iOS devices is a treat (mind you, it took many iterations to get here for the copy/paste! It was marketed as an actual feature!!!).

Anyway, I think I've gone on a ramble for a while now. The moral of the story is, this device is decent if you want something that is cheap and powerful and has a lot of potential. If you want all the apps in the world and all the polish that you've come to expect from an iOS device, you may be in for a bit of a shock. If you expect it to work like the legacy BlackBerry, you're also in for a shock. With that in mind, I'm still liking this device and will give RIM a chance to make things right. God knows, they've had their fair share of bad luck and poor decisions. Here's hoping, in the new year, that they turn both around. And, if you are an app developer, please, please, please create usable apps for the PlayBook. There are lovely apps out there (like the Al Jazeera one), just take the time to build something and hopefully, the ecosystem survives long enough to make it worth your while. And if any Canadian media types are reading (like the CBC or G & M/CTV, Shaw types), please build and improve your apps so they are on par with the other platforms.

Moustache season. Now closed.

2011-12-14T00:55:00.000-08:00

Some of you may know that I did something this November that I have not (intentionally) done ever before. I decided to grow a moustache for Movember. Along with some like-minded co-workers, we spent a month grooming our facial hair with the intention of raising funds for Prostate Cancer Canada.

When I started the effort, I thought we would raise perhaps $100 a person if we were lucky. We started off with a team of 9 people I think and $900 seemed like a seriously lofty goal. Who in their right mind would donate money for my scraggly facial hair after all?

This was my first time taking part in an event like this. I am not averse to taking up charitable causes, but it usually involves donating some money and getting on with life. Not so with this exercise. I had a team and team mates to cheer on. I had to grow hair for a month to show for it. I mean, it wasn't that hard (apart from remembering to not shave initially), but it still took some getting used to.

We went through a process of transformation over time. Some of us are blessed with hair growing genes. Others, not so much. Some of us gave into peer pressure and gave up (on account of the wives not approving apparently). Some of us had skin issues. Some of us grew hair in patches.

Donations were slow to come by. I dislike hassling people to donate. I firmly believe charity comes from the heart. You cannot force someone to donate. I dislike those random phone calls you get asking you to donate to a charity with some heartfelt story about some tragedy. I also dislike chain mails for the same reason: whether it is the one about how AOL and Bill Gates are tracking your emails and for each forward you'll get a gold bar or if it is some bunk about a poor child somewhere who needs some magical remedy to cure an alleged hole in her heart... I don't like the aspect of using guilt and greed to get anywhere. Thankfully, things like facebook exist, so in a sense, you can virtually hassle people in a creative manner without feeling terrible.

One benefit of having something physical to show for your efforts is that it becomes a conversation piece. People naturally ask you about your moustache and why you're growing it. In this part of the world, the moustaches sprout up like weeds in a garden during November. I feel bad for the year-round moustachioed men, they must feel a bit bothered by all the attention moustaches get this time of year. Or perhaps they welcome it. Who knows.

Donations started to trickle in. I got $20 from an anonymous admirer (I'd like to think anyway). The team started to get the odd donation. I was optimistic I would reach our goal of $1000. A week into it, someone at work donated a good chunk of change. Apparently, this person donates annually to a charity and decided Prostate Cancer Canada was the recipient this year. After that, donations started to come in. Daily we would get something. Sometimes, it was a buck each. Sometimes, it was 50s.

As the month went on and we took pictures to mark the event, more people became involved. My boss donated money. Others in the company donated money. Friends donated. Friends joined in the cause. Friends who live in far flung places donated money. We finished the month far ahead of what I thought we could raise. The team raised a total of $2,576. Not bad for a team of 20 (we grew to 20) men sporting facial hair.

Perhaps the best story of the lot was about the Norwegian fellow I work with. He joined in on the first day. He grew hair for a whole month. And no one really saw any hair. He grows incredibly fair and fine hair on his face it seems. So, on the last day, he applied some of his wife's mascara and came to work. He had a moustache after all! Norwegians are cool by the way. For a country so tiny, they have enormous influence in the world.

Anyway, I wanted to write to thank all the donors, participants, by-standers, patient partners and well wishers. I have not been affected by prostate cancer. But I am sure there are plenty of people out there who have been. So do us all a favour and get yourself checked out. And your friends. And your parents and children and partners. And thanks for putting up with us and our hair.

When I started this endeavour, I didn't expect many people to participate or for people to donate. I finish with a renewed sense of awe of human kind and the power of a (hairy) statement. The 854,000 or so registered participants raised an incredible $112 million over the course of the month. Us Canadians raised about $40 million of that. I am very proud of the fact that the world as a whole raised so much to fund research into prostate cancer. I'd also like to point out that Canadians participated in large numbers... and beat every other country out there. Be proud MoBros and MoSisters.

Movember. Now closed. But we'll be back next year. Stay tuned. I'm keeping my moustache for now :).

Something to ponder

2011-11-28T21:53:00.001-08:00

I heard this quote attributed to Prof. Sam Keen on the television tonight:

We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.

What is it that makes us go out and look for perfection when it may not be what we want?

The past

2011-11-28T15:20:00.001-08:00

Sometimes, you don't realise how nice life is. But when you are reminded of the past, it gives you some perspective. Not everything is like butter folks, not everything is like freaking butter.

I can't remember the number of phone calls and meetings I have been where the theme has been like this cartoon strip. I am glad that is in the past.

Never forget that the sun shines

2011-11-21T00:43:00.001-08:00

As I sit here, staring at DurableSubcriber.java, I am drawn to John Denver and his song about sunshine. Sometimes, I forget that the world is a bit more wondrous, a bit larger than my little problems.

So, put your problems aside for a moment and appreciate the little things in life. That last cup of coffee you had. The last conversation you had with your friend or relative. The last time you had a home cooked meal at your mother's dining table. DurableSubscriber can wait...

Neruda on love

2011-11-15T00:55:00.001-08:00

Because of you, in gardens         of blossoming flowers 

I ache from the perfumes of spring.

I have forgotten your face, 

I no longer remember your hands;

how did your lips feel on mine?

 Because of you, I love the white statues drowsing in the         parks, 

the white statues that have neither voice nor sight.

I have forgotten your voice, your happy voice; 

I have forgotten your eyes.

Like a flower to its perfume, 

I am bound to my vague memory         of you. 

I live with pain that is like a wound; 

if you touch me, you will do me irreparable harm.

Your caresses enfold me, 

like climbing vines on melancholy         walls.

I have forgotten your love, 

yet I seem to glimpse you in         every window.

Because of you, the heady perfumes of summer pain me; 

because of you, I again seek out the signs that precipitate desires: 

shooting stars, falling objects. 

So says Pablo Neruda.

Some days, I miss your perfume. Other days, I wish I never knew what it was. So long, oh albatross of mine (if I may mix a Coleridge metaphor with a Neruda one), for I am finally free of thy curse.

Do you know why we wear poppies?

2011-11-09T00:45:00.000-08:00

It is early November and many of us Canadians are wearing the ubiquitous red poppies on our lapels. Those of you who watch the BBC likely have seen our British cousins wear a similar poppy on their lapels. We wear it of course, in honour of all those soldiers who died at all those wars. We wear it for Remembrance Day. Canadians hold the poppy very close to their heart. After all, the inspiration for it came from a Canadian.

As I've touched upon before, In Flanders fields is a poem written by a Canadian soldier and physician, Lieutenant Colonel Dr. John McCrae. He penned that poem after seeing his friend die. The poem stirs up a great many emotions in Canadians I find. While we may not believe in war all that much, you can sense a wee bit of fierce pride when it comes to the wars of yesteryear and what many of our countrymen and women gave up for the world to be the way it is today. If you're into figures, know this: fully, one million Canadians went to fight in the second world war. That may not sound like much. Except when you look at the population of Canada at the time. Canada was a country of 10 million inhabitants. One in ten went to fight. That is incredible. This isn't 10% of the able-bodied 17 to 35 year olds or something. This is fully 10% of the entire population of the country that went to fight in nearly every theatre of war in Europe. I find that statistic to be incredible. Over 45,000 didn't come back. They perished in the various ravages that make wars what they are. An absolute waste of lives.

Our not quite fellow Canadians (at the time) from Newfoundland (they joined Canadian confederation in 1949) sent a percentage larger I believe.

So, you may be able to see why we so religiously wear these little red things on our lapels. A lot of our blood has been shed on the battlefields of Europe in the name of freedom, King and country. I'll take a pass at expressing my sentiments on how the rest of the British empire fared during the wars (especially the Indians). That will make this post far longer than I am willing to have it.

We mark Remembrance Day (in Canada) on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11 month of the year. So do all our Commonwealth brethren. This was when (in 1918) the Armistice was signed, ending the First World War. We may call it Armistice Day or Poppy Day or Veterans Day but the sentiment is the same. And we wear our poppies. In the freezing cold. In rain. In snow. In whatever mother nature throws our way. But this is where this Canadian story takes a bit of a turn.

You see, when I went to get my poppy this year (we donate funds to the Royal Canadian Legion in exchange for a poppy), the lady gave me a sheet on the history of the poppy. I thought I knew all that I needed to know. Lt. Col. McCrae and the armistice. What more is there? It turns out, plenty more. You see, this American lady who worked for the YWCA named Moina Michael read McCrae's poem and wrote one in response called We shall keep the faith

Oh! you who sleep in Flanders Fields,  

Sleep sweet - to rise anew!  

We caught the torch you threw  

And holding high, we keep the Faith  

With All who died.

We cherish, too, the poppy red  

That grows on fields where valor led; 

It seems to signal to the skies 

That blood of heroes never dies,

 But lends a lustre to the red 

Of the flower that blooms above the dead  

In Flanders Fields.

And now the Torch and Poppy Red 

We wear in honor of our dead.  

Fear not that ye have died for naught; 

We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought  

In Flanders Fields.  

She decided she would wear a poppy to remember the sacrifice of the soldiers. She began a tireless campaign to get the poppy adopted as a symbol of war sacrifice. Remember, this is happening in the United States. She succeeded in 1920.

Along the way a French lady Anna Guérin came upon these poppies and decided to get the war veterans to make poppies and sell them and use the proceeds to rebuild France. She convinced the British and the rest of the Commonwealth to adopt these poppies.

And this is why we wear the red poppies to remember. A Scottish-Canadian doctor and soldier's poem inspires an American who decides to make it a symbol of sacrifice which then gets picked up by a French woman who in turn convinces the British Legion (and others) to adopt it as an official symbol of remembrance. Read more on the story of the poppy here.

So remember that when you wear the poppy.

The one thing that saddens me is that I don't see very many of our American brethren wear these poppies. They too have lost much in these wars and I think it would be a fitting tribute to their veterans. In Canada, we may be of various political stripes, religions, ethnicities, colours, countries of origin and what not, but we all wear our poppies. Great effort is taken to make sure Canadians all over the place have them on. The Canadian delegation at the G20 summit had it on. Canadian reporters all over the world have it on. My mother used to send me a package in the mail when I lived in the US. I have every poppy I ever wore pinned on my curtain. And, I will have a new one this November 11.

So this Remembrance Day, take a moment and contemplate what those young men and women gave for whatever country you call home.

Another season of hiking comes to an end

2011-11-08T23:33:00.000-08:00

Those of you that have known me in the last few years know that I try and climb a local Vancouver mountain (Grouse Mountain) as often as I can. I hadn't tackled the grind since mid-September last, so I decided to have a go at it. And lucky for me, it was still open. The day was decent (no rain) and the trail wasn't busy. But then, by the half-way mark, there was ice. Everywhere. I fell a couple of times along the way and had a few more close calls. Suffice to say, I won't attempt it anymore this season. Of course, come Monday, they closed the grind for the season. So, I feel lucky that I got to go one last time this season.

This brings us to the end-of-year summary of the hiking season. It isn't so much that hiking season is over as much as Grouse grind season being over. But we shall overlook that simplification. At the beginning of this season, I had set myself a goal of beating my best time from before. I didn't really come close.

Now, keep in mind that the record was shattered (yes, that is the right term) by one Sebastian Salas and it currently stands at 25:01. That's right, 25 minutes and 1 second. My best time was somewhere near 55 minutes. I have a few co-workers who can do it under 45 minutes. Keep in mind that you are climbing uphill the whole time and gaining 30 seconds on your time is something of a feat. So, here's how I did this year:

As you can tell from the graph, I briefly flirted with the 1 hour mark (I was off by 113 seconds as I recall), but then things went awry. But, if I may redeem myself, I have done better this year than a previous year, both in terms of the number of times I went to the actual times I posted. I don't really have much data from 2010 since I didn't go that much and was busy with home buying and what not.

So, what's the take-away here? I need to sort out my time. If my co-worker who is nearly 20 years my senior can bound up the mountain more than 20 minutes faster than I can, I have some serious training to do. I think more data points would also help. I wish I had gone more often, I think I would have improved my times with practice. So, the eternal optimist that I am not, I will try and train up for the 2012 season in the hopes that I will a) dip below the 1 hour mark and b) beat the 55 minute mark.

Here's hoping.

Moustache season is open

2011-11-01T15:54:00.000-07:00

So, I'm taking part in Movember. As in growing a moustache for the month of November and trying my best to raise funds for Prostate Cancer Canada. I've actually got about 15 people from work to sign onto the campaign, although half have yet to sign up on day 1.

If you would like to donate to my awesome moustache (which will take time to grow since the rules state that I have to start today clean-shaven) or just feel like helping, go ahead and do so. If you're part of a team or doing your individual thing, let me know. I am curious who else participates.

This is the sort of thing I wish more companies encouraged. We're growing a moustache and having fun at it and raising funds for a good cause. Much better than the company buying me food, drinks and what not so I can bring a can of soup for the food bank. I never did understand how that made sense. If the intention is to raise money for charity, then why spend far more money/good than will be raised on the employees? Oh well.

Moustache season. Now Open. Bring it on.

My thoughts on Prisoner of Tehran

2011-10-31T02:43:00.001-07:00

I finished reading Prisoner of Tehran a while back and wanted to write up my thoughts on it here. I have to say that Iran has been a fascination of mine for a while. I am not sure why, but I find Persian history quite interesting.

The book goes over an interesting time in Iran; a despotic Shah gets overthrown, an Ayatollah comes into power. In between these events, the protagonist in the story goes through a lot.

Anyway, if you intend to read the book, stop as I will go into details of the book. The book was written by an Iranian Christian who now calls Canada home. As a 16-year old, she was put in prison as a political prisoner, beaten, tortured and so forth. She seems to be in an impossible situation: being sentenced to death and then saved by a prison guard, with a caveat that she change religions, and get married to him. Oh and be in prison for life. As a 16 year old.

Most 16-year old children, for they are children, don't have to worry about spending the rest of their life in prison. It isn't the sort of thing that comes up one would hope. And yet, here were a group of children and young adults going to prison to protest the Shah, and then the Ayatollah. The protagonist goes into some detail of how she was tortured and what she thought happened to the others. I am sure torture exists everywhere in the world... but reading about it makes one feel quite uncomfortable. You really have to wonder how badly you must have pissed someone off to get beaten to a pulp by angry men.

The protagonist seems to be lucky though, if you could call it luck; one of her prison guards takes a fancy to her, presumably races off to the Ayatollah (he seems to be from a well connected family) and somehow convinces him to commute her death sentence to one of perpetual imprisonment. And then he suggests that she marry him after converting to Islam, if you could call that a suggestion. As a prisoner, it doesn't sound like she has much of a choice. It is either death or marriage. As a married woman, I think she finds some odd things. For one thing, her new family seems to have all the affection in the world for her. She seems conflicted that her captor's parents seem to love her more than her own family ever did. She also seems to be deeply conflicted by how to feel towards her captor, saviour and husband. Her relationship with her own family prior to imprisonment is quite telling as well. They didn't seem to be a very loving family.

Anyway, there seems to be some level of fatalism out there; first she gets pregnant (presumably thanks to her captor and husband) and then he dies tragically by gunshots as she watches. Somewhere along the way, the trauma of it all causes her to miscarry. With her husband dead, she goes back to prison with a promise from her father-in-law that he will do everything to get her out. He seems to come through for her. He protects her while she was in prison and eventually get her out. She is free to go on with life, and of course, she gets married to the Christian fellow she wanted to marry before she went to prison. Except that everyone is watching everyone else in Iran it seems and apostasy isn't really looked upon favourably. Of course, word of her marriage seems to get to her former in-laws and the prison guards. And yet, they seem to protect her. And somehow at the end of it all, she makes it out of Iran to Canada.

I learned a lot of neat things about Iran through the book. I had no idea there were so many Russians who lived there. Although, given geography (as in, North of the Caspian), it shouldn't be that surprising. I also had no idea other people lived there (like the Hungarians). I am also conflicted on how to feel for this woman. On the one hand, she was treated horribly if the story she tells us is true (at least the way things transpired). Well, in any case, if a 16-year old is thrown in prison and tortured or sentenced to death, there isn't much justice out there. But then, given her lease on life (and a different kind of horrible sentence), she still seems to not be able to get on with life. I can understand her hatred for her husband and his family... but I don't know if she realises that she lives today only because of them. Perhaps death would have been a better option for her, but that's not how this story unfolded. But then again, she was a captive prisoner.

I find it fascinating that a country with such a rich past and a fairly well educated and modern populace chose to ditch one dictator for another. I remember looking at Akbar Nazemi's pictures (titled Unsent dispatches from the Iranian revolution, 1978 - 1979) when they were exhibited in Vancouver (he lives here as well I believe), and couldn't help but notice all the people who were out there welcoming the Ayatollah. It wasn't a fringe group of people, it looked like a genuine outpouring of happiness by all sections of society. From men in beards to school children and women, it seemed to cut across the entire spectrum of society. Some of this is also expressed in the book as well.

I just don't understand how all that promise of a better life without the Shah ended up the way it is today. I suppose that is the warning that we should heed: all these Arab spring type activities could actually bring out more extreme regimes into power who have little care for democracy and so-called western values. And we helped put them there.

Anyway, back to the book. I think it is definitely worth a read. I am glad she was able to get out of Iran and move to this country. Hopefully, she comes to peace with herself and her life.

Some things cut across boundaries

2011-10-19T02:15:00.000-07:00

My Turkish friend and I have a ritual. He sends me a link of something from Turkey. It usually involves music (My favourite thus far is still moustache man ibrahim tatlıses playing the baglama). I find the Indian analogue. It is kind of scary. You see and hear the same sorts of instruments. But the music is different. Yet familiar. The other day, I was listening to a Malayalam song. I do that from time to time... to ensure I still understand it (that's a joke by the way). It mentioned Omar Khayyam. I asked the Turkish fellow about Omar Khayyam. And he knew who he was. With a slightly different name but still, the same Omar Khayyam. Bonus points to anyone who points out which Malayalam song that came from. I am still at a bit of a loss as to how it made it into the song. The only place I can find is that the Rubáiyát was translated in the 1930s by G. Sankara Kurup. But for whatever reason, there it is.

Nevermind that Omar Khayyam, by all measures, is a polymath and genius and someone that, had he been English or French perhaps would have been that much more recognised. And yet, he should be familiar. He studied at Samarkand. That place has contributed to Indian history in plenty of ways.

He wrote about wine. As in consuming wine. He is supposed to have written the following verse:

"Enjoy wine and women and don't be afraid, Allah has compassion,"

So where am I going with this? Well, I don't really know. But I find it fascinating that there are so many shared experiences we as people have. The Turkish fellow sent me link to someone playing something called a Mey. I swear I have heard it before. Mind you, it isn't that much of a stretch to imagine something like this developing in these parts of the world. After all, we have all met each other culturally along the way. Conquered each other and brought ideas and music along with us as we went on. We just didn't have precision guided munitions and jets to do the dirty work.

Years ago (and perhaps I have recounted this story before) when I first came to Canada and was in grade 12, my lab partner's was this Ghanaian chap. Ekow and I were sitting in the lab trying to sort something out when we decided to ask the Japanese girl in front of us. You see, she was Japanese by heritage. She was born in Canada, but her parents stuck her with a Japanese name. Anyway, somewhere between trying to figure something out with a piece of lab equipment and a Japanese girl, we stumbled upon our shared knowledge of this NHK story about a Japanese grocery chain owner's story. Her name was Oshin. I remember Ekow and I being super excited that we had seen the same show all those years past, in different countries. The Japanese girl was clueless as to who Oshin was or why it was significant to Ekow and I. Poor woman. Anyway. I've mentioned this story from time to time to others... and my Persian friends have also had similar reactions. When I say Oshin, their eyes tend to light up. I guess NHK was busy exporting Oshin to the world. Honestly, I still try and recall what language I saw it in. The Persians watched it in Farsi, but I am fairly certain that it was dubbed into English for those of us watching on Doordarshan. I can't imagine it being in Japanese and sub-titled. I've seen a few episodes on youtube and I am still not certain which type I watched as a kid.

It is often hard to explain your heritage to an outsider. But then again, I think over time, what I think of heritage changes. I have this mental block of India. It is from 15 years ago when I left. When Tendulkar was still young (not that he isn't brilliant even today) and cable TV was still a novelty. The India of 1996 lives only in my mind. I've been to the India of 2008, and I am fascinated by it. It has that woman host butchering the Malayalam language in idea star singers. Everything in the India of 2008 seems to have something to do with SMS. My version of India was simpler somehow. But back to trying to explain my interpretation of heritage and culture to outsiders. Sometimes, rituals, belief systems and social norms are just not obvious to outsiders. But every so often, when you make the effort, you end up being enlightened. Someone else has something similar. Instead of 14 days it is 41 days. Instead of 6 strings, it has 7 strings.

I am convinced that we as a world are a lot more closely related to each other than we believe. We tend to amplify the differences between ourselves to claim niches or superiority. And yet, just beneath that competitive surface lies a whole maze of interconnected thoughts, shared ideas, common ideals and belief systems that make us more of the same than not.

I am curious what peoples experiences have been with others. Have you had that 'Aha' moment where you realise that something you thought was uniquely yours is no longer so?

Oh yeah, before I forget, go read Omar Khayyam's works. Read Khalil Gibran's works. Read Henry James. Heck, read Julian Barnes (for he won the Booker prize yesterday). And rejoice in the brilliance that is the human mind.

Finding Family

2011-10-13T23:11:00.002-07:00

"Losing family obliges us to find our family. Not always the family that is our blood... but the family that can become our blood.... and should we have the wisdom to open our door to this new family... we will find that the wishes we had for the father, who once guided us... for the brother, who once inspired us....

The only thing left to say will be:'I wish I had seen this, or I wish I had done that, or I wish...'"

My Name is William Forrester
Finding Forrester at MOVIECLIPS.com

The above quote and video come from the film Finding Forrester. I'll watch almost anything with James Bond in it (well except for the one where Pierce Brosnan runs around singing Abba songs; that's just going too far) and this was a decent one. Something not so different happened recently. I found family. Well, they were always there, but just a bit distant. With the help of some modern technological wonders, they have become a little closer. I never lost my family, I just merely had a hard time finding them. But now I have. And thank goodness I have. Because my life is infinitely richer as a result of it.

It is normal for us to live in our own little worlds, where everything fits in neat little silos: work, friends, family, personal life, random people in the lift. Typically, the contents of these silos are mutually exclusive; they don't cross paths easily. And most of us seem to like it that way. This doesn't always have to be the case.

I'm still trying to figure out who these people are and what makes them tick, but I think this is the beginning of something awesome, if I may use a Canadian word (I have it on good authority from an Irishman that awesome is a very Canadian word apparently). I have really cool cousins. Like insanely cool cousins who are quirky, brilliant and very good at picking on each other on Skype. I'm not much for counting my blessings in public, but if I am allowed this one chance, I'd like to do so.

Sadly, seeing them on a computer screen isn't quite the same as seeing them in real life. But that too shall be accomplished one of these days. Technology can only take you so far. Secretly, I've been planting seeds of thought in their mind (like in that Inception film) about how awesome Canada is and how the cold isn't really all that bad up here... in the hopes that one day, they all move up to Vancouver so we can go on some excellent adventures. Until then, I'll learn more about these people via Skype.

So if I may offer advice, it is this: reach out and touch the void as it were when it comes to people you know but don't really know. Because sometimes, you will blow your mind with the possibilities. And perhaps learn something new about yourself.

Steve Jobs is gone

2011-10-06T23:32:00.000-07:00

By now, you've heard that Steve Jobs has passed on. He was quite the brilliant business man and innovator. I've read some really heart-warming notes on how people felt about Mr. Jobs and I've also read some ridiculous nonsense.

I looked around the house and I own 2 apple products: a 4th generation click-wheel iPod from 2004 (the first thing I bought after I got paid working at this software company) and my iPod touch. The neatest thing about both of them was that they allowed me to do some things I couldn't do before. I never quite got into buying/burning CDs or walking around with a discman (or a walkman for that matter). There were mp3 players before the iPod, but the 20GB iPod I got was amazing. It came with 2 cables (firewire and USB!) and a charger and I think it cost somewhere around $400. I had to pay the $25 fee that the Copyright Board of Canada imposed on such media. After many years of use, it still works. Except that on a charge, the battery lasts about 30 minutes.

I bought my grandmother the first generation iPod touch. She still uses it and tells me about all the pictures on there and what not. While not surprised that she was able to use it (and play old Indian movie songs etc off Youtube), I was impressed that such a piece of technology worked for her. And the device was not quite like anything else out there. It was a touch screen device that played video. Perfect for when you want to watch something on a bus.

My mother owns an iPod (with the cameras) and an iPhone. She's even able to get Skype to work on them so I can see the dogs at home. Sometimes, technology can be awesome.

I bought myself an iPod touch as well, primarily to replace the ill performing iPod that I owned. And I use it almost every day. Typically, I use it at home and I realise that I use it more for other things than listening to music. In fact, I can't remember the last time I listened to music on it; I listen to the radio or use jango to listen to streaming media. The iPod touch does have apps for those, but I never quite got into it (especially given that iOS only recently started to allow multiple apps to run somewhat simultaneously). Of course, it isn't perfect. For one thing, I can't use my iPod's charger to charge this iPod touch. Even though the connectors work and so on. It also doesn't really multi-task that well. But whatever the quibbles I have with it, I do very much enjoy using it. And for the record, I have bought a single app. Angry Birds. And it was worth it.

I'll remember Steve Jobs as the guy who made people; ordinary people, line up for hours around the block to part with wads of cash for a piece of technology they could get elsewhere without the hassle or the price, then high 5 the rest of the people still waiting in line and give the assembled media a gushing interview about how awesome Apple products are. Steve Jobs made people want it. And they in turn became snobs about it. And they were proud of it. He made fanboys into cool beings. I mean, I've met rabid anti-Windows people before. Rabid linux users before (I'd like to say that I have run a linux machine at home since 2002 or so... and I am typing here from my Ubuntu box). But never have I met anything like an Apple fanboy. They believe in their gospel like fanatic religious people do. Thankfully, there is no suicide bomber equivalent of that fanaticism.

I'll also remember his company for famously using a picture of Gandhi and the controversy that generated.

I didn't know a few things about him. He was adopted. His biological father is Syrian. So he was an Arab-American guy. Take that, crazy people afraid of the 'others', Steve Jobs was one of them. Well sort of. Steve Jobs also had a major role to play with Pixar. And apparently, he was Buddhist. And a follower of the whole foods plants based diet that I am attempting to follow. A lot of mainstream America and Canada might be alarmed by all that. An Arab-American vegan Buddhist messiah?

So there we are then. An astute business man who took down titans of industry (including Canada's much beloved and lately bemoaned RIM) and forced industry to change. What he did to music is legendary. Aside from Napster, I think Steve Jobs can be credited with bringing music to the 21st century. I work with people who use Macs and love them. I don't quite see the point of spending twice as much and always fiddling for dongles to connect my laptop to a projector (my laptop sucks too; it only does HDMI and the projectors take VGA), but I will admit that Apple has, of late, really made their products a lot more desirable than before. I'll still not pay twice as much for a Macbook Pro, but the specs, form factor and battery life are quite attractive.

I also saw some odd pictures of people holding up iPads with candle apps outside Apple stores... and people expressing opinions one way or the other on how important he was to their lives and what not. Just remember people, he was a very successful businessman to whose company you paid vast amounts of money for the privilege of buying toys that made you feel cool. He is no messiah. If you feel that strongly about this man's death, may I suggest you do the world a favour and go clean up a beach or plant a dozen trees or something in his name? Or would that be too uncool? And for those who are making iDied jokes... there is a certain morbid mirth to it, but really, it is too soon. Wait a week or two.

Rest in peace Steve Jobs and may your legacy live long.

And yes, I realise I am part of the bandwagon of those writing about this event and so on. But I want to blog more... and here I am, blogging.

The good, bad and where-the-heck-have-you-been fall edition

2011-10-04T23:58:00.003-07:00

I've neglected my blog this summer. I'm sorry to whoever still reads it. Now that fall is here, I'll have more time to devote to it, I think.

So, what the heck did I do this summer? In a word, lots! I did a fair bit of running, hiking, biking, swimming this year. I turned vegetarian. Well, a relapsing vegetarian. I attended a wedding, a lamb roast, bought furniture, went back to school, learned to cook new things. I watched a royal wedding, a state funeral and a royal tour of our fine land. I also watched as our hockey team went all the way to the Stanley Cup finals and watched in horror as some of our citizenry decided to set fire to parts of our city.

School's back and I'm excited by it. I've also got back to reading. I missed my books. I have no idea why I stopped... but somewhere along the way, I forgot how peaceful it is to sit in a quiet corner somewhere and lose touch with the outside world and step into an imaginary (sometimes brutal) world where words paint pictures more powerful than any moving image can.

The vegetarian thing was inspired by a documentary I watched called Forks over Knives. I've had an interesting time of it. I think the hardest part of being vegetarian in this part of the world is not knowing what to eat on a regular basis.

I climbed a few new mountains this year and enjoyed some incredible views. This part of the world is a lovely place. Every time I get up a mountain, I realise how little we really are and how much of an impact a whole lot of us can have on this world.

My friends seem to be on a mission these days; to get married, to have kids and what not. I'm not sure I like all the change around me, but it is what it is and I have to live within the confines of what I have control over. So, go on, get married and procreate. But remember me when you set that table at Thanksgiving (like next weekend!)... I'll eat salad at least. Anyway, this isn't a ramble (well, it has been I suppose), but I'm back, and I intend to keep writing.

Goodbye Jack

2011-10-04T23:24:00.000-07:00

I've spent half my life in North America. I've spent the other half of my life in Asia and Africa. Well, mostly in Asia. I think I have seen a lot of interesting politics over my short lifespan thus far. I was born in a state run by democratically elected Communists. Not quite the they-will-kill-your-kids-and-eat-them-for-lunch kind of Communists that some may have heard of. They were more socialist in their ways. They spent time and money on somewhat sane things. Like basic healthcare. And going on strikes.

Vancouver has been home for a little over 13 years now. I've watched a lot of Canadian politics over that time. From the venerable Jean Chretien (I think he was great, even if so many Canadians seem to dislike him, I have no idea why they do, but they seem to), to my former MP Svend Robinson, I've seen a lot of good and not-so-good people out there trying to run our countries.

And then there was Jack Layton. He was an interesting sort of guy; he rode a bike, had a funny moustache and had some progressive and some crazy ideas. I am not a big fan of our current government (or the past ones for that matter), but I have some reservations about seeing Jack and his ilk run my country. Perhaps that was misguided though.

Jack inspired us all I think. Whether you believe in his brand of politics or not, he was steadfast in what he believed in. He charmed his way up to becoming leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition, unseating the Liberals in the last federal election. Nevermind that most of it was at the expense of the Bloc (which is a good thing; the last thing I want to see is my country carved into 2 by separatists). He even seemed to win against cancer. But then he didn't. I saw his last press conference when he said he was going to step down for a bit and go fight that cancer.

And then, I was woken up one morning by the radio saying that Jack Layton had died. It was indeed a very sad day. The sense of sadness and profound respect that the nation had for this man and his ways was something amazing to see. And his last words to us

And finally, to all Canadians: Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment.

They genuinely inspire me. I know these are the words of a man who knows that his time is up, and pretty much anything he says will be thought of as wonderful... but here he is, urging us to make our country and our world a better place. And that too, in a rather eloquent way.

So to you Jack, from me, a hearty thank you for trying an making this country; my country, our country a better place and for inspiring us to do better and make a more just society. As an immigrant to this great land, I have felt a lot of things; envy, joy, sadness and above all, inclusiveness. I don't know if you or your party deserve any credit for it, but I'll share it with you and all of Canada. I have felt at home here, even if I don't completely understand how hockey makes us go bonkers and set stuff on fire or how we put up with the crazy amounts of rain and cold that come our way... or how we all fret about our beloved social welfare state... but I know that I am home whenever I land at the airport and there is almost nowhere I'd rather be on almost any given day.

Goodbye Jack. You have done a lot for us. And we shall never forget your ideas, your thoughts and your wishes for us. Rest in peace good sir. Merci.

I'm missing all the fun

2011-08-08T00:45:00.000-07:00

Rumour has it that summer is here in Vancouver, but for a fleeting second. If you blink, it will disappear on you. I had so much planned for this summer. Not much has panned out.

While there are other seasons in Vancouver (namely grey and rainy), I much prefer this brief period of time where we all feel like we're part of the rest of the Northern hemisphere, enjoying the warm rays of the sun's tour of the upper latitudes. This year hasn't been much of a summer in my mind; I've seem more grey and rainy days than I care to remember.

All that is now changing however. The mercury goes above 20 now (shocking!) during the day. It says 16 right now, but then again, it is past midnight. I did manage to do one thing I have never done before: hike dog mountain. There are pictures on G+ for those who care. The hike itself was not that much fun; there was far too much mud, gnarly roots and nasty bugs to make it interesting. The worst was the melting pack ice though. I fell through ice a few times. And even with the warmer weather, having your legs soaked in ice cold water/mud/ice is not a pleasant experience. I will say this much; the hike may not have been something I would write home about, but the view from the top of dog was definitely something to talk about. You can see so much of Vancouver and its adjoining communities from up there. My little point and shoot did not do it justice.

I haven't been out on my bike for over a month now. That in itself is quite sad really. The worst thing is, I can't remember the last time I went out for a walk on the sea wall. Things have to change. I'm actually spending time staring at COBOL on another monitor right now and while things build, updating my often neglected blog. Anyway, it looks like I am heading back to staring at COBOL/Java. Someone has to do it :).

Home is where the heart is, right?

2011-07-11T23:38:00.001-07:00

I shall be home. Some day.

But I'll keep my distance from the pachyderm.

With a Swedish Model (Miriam Ilorah) providing the sights and a Senagalese composer and singer (Baaba Maal) providing the vocals... home is a hard thing to figure out.

When up is down and down is something else

2011-07-11T23:26:00.000-07:00

I am constantly amazed at how often I forget what life is really about and how truly random things are. People and places that once meant everything to you one day stop being so. Sometimes, it is because newer things fill up your time and space. A new job, new surroundings, new friends. Other times, its a change in life. Like your friends having kids. Or moving away. Or they stop keeping in touch. Or they move on.

Whatever the reason, one fine day you wake up and realise that you've no longer thought of that person, place or things in a while. Where one day, you raced home to go play in the yard with them, now, you no longer need to. You speak to people every day for 10 years of your life and then life changes. You stop talking or seeing each other, summers go by, you buy new shoes, clothes, cars. The change is so gradual that you you have it in the back of your mind. Eventually, you forget about it and move on.

And then one day, many aeons later, you find a reason to see this person; you run into them on the street or read about them in the newspaper... and you realise that those days when you thought you knew just about everything about this person, place or thing, those days are no more. In fact, you realise how little you know about them. You realise that, as time has gone by, so too, things have changed. Where once you knew what her favourite meal was; now, you're at a loss to explain the new found ovo-lacto-vegetarian hippie streak. And yet, it was there. You just chose not to see it. You are once more a stranger.

I think the most interesting thing we fail to grasp is that we ourselves change; we change a little every day until finally one day, what stares back at you in the mirror wearing those Armani glasses and hipster clothing isn't really that happy little boy that a long time ago woke up and said, mum, I want to become a pilot when I grow up or a veter.... you know the dog doctor. Because I love dogs.

So true

2011-06-12T02:06:00.000-07:00

I've seen this happen. More than once.

Kudos to the Wong Fu guys.

Why I wish there were more Linux friendly "things" out there

2011-05-30T21:26:00.000-07:00

I recently purchased a Garmin 405CX GPS watch that I wear when I go out running/biking etc. The idea is to use the watch to train to become a healthier person. It also helps that you can tell time with it. However, it does not work easily with my Operating System (I use Ubuntu 11.04).

I realise that the vast majority of the world likely doesn't care about Linux, but I would have thought they would at least provide a usable way to get the data manually off the watch via the USB ANT+ thing they provide. I installed Firefox 5 beta using wine and then tried to install the plugin that way (it won't let you install on the Linux version of FF)... but the plugin never quite installed. I was able to load the garmin_usb module using

sudo modprobe garmin_gps

and see it in lsmod:

Module                  Size Used by
garmin_gps             23245 0
usbserial              42908 1 garmin_gps

I gave up after some fiddling... and resolved to use Windows XP instead. It is a shame really.

Life

2011-05-16T21:26:00.000-07:00

Life can be fully amazing. Full of joys, full of sadness, full of kindness of friends and strangers, prayers and hugs. You can be affected by what is around you. Whether it is the nuclear radiation in Japan or the warmth of the sun or the sunny disposition of that wonderful cashier who packed your milk and eggs at the green grocer today.

Life has a way of catching up with you. I sit here in my comfortable office looking at the last rays of sun as it disappears for a few hours (its past 9pm here and still light out), leaving behind a soft red afterglow in the cloudy sky and am amazed at how good life can be. How fortunate one is to live.

Perhaps the music I am listening to has something to do with this melancholy mood I am in. In case you're wondering what I am listening to, give this a listen.

That was a video I came across on facebook. The pictures on their own are awesome. The music makes it that much better I think.

Perhaps it is what I am reading that makes me feel so. Some of you may have heard of Derek K Miller. Some of you might not have. But what he has written on his blog is truly thought provoking. If you feel like life is getting you down or that the world is bearing down on you or you feel like no one cares about your problems, give that a read. Even if you don't feel that way, give that a read. I have mentioned this before... the world is a lot bigger and more complex that we give it credit for. There is a lot out there that is worse. And we find a way of making our insignificant problems larger than they need to be in the grand scheme of things.

So take a moment, take a deep breath, look out the window, stare at the dark clouds forming and re-forming and pause. Smile a little. Think of all that is good in your life. Think of all that you have seen that is worse.

As for myself, I am going to read for a bit and think about what to write on a wedding card (my friend is getting married at the end of the month). Or what to say to a little newborn who is not here yet (my friends are having a baby towards the end of the year). Or perhaps, I will just go lie in my bed and look out the window at the clouds that are forming and re-forming as I did when I was a child on the terrace of my home in another country in another era when life was, just as beautiful as it is today.

So this is what it feels like...

2011-04-12T23:45:00.000-07:00

Some things in my life have changed. For the better. I didn't know it could be this good. I am happy. I learn lots. Its freaking amazing. I can't believe it took me this long to realise this.

The best part is.... there is no overbearing, unpredictable, ridiculous charade with requirements that change every 5 weeks with new keywords and bizarre blogs... and self-aggrandizing back patting by the folks I have to deal with now. No more yay team emails. Thank god. I am lucky.

Unreliable technology

2011-04-12T23:29:00.000-07:00

I've had this debate with my friends for months now. Why I think my BlackBerry is better than anything else out there. I am not partisan about this. Maybe I am biased. This is really a digression, but I will start off with that. I've had a blackberry since 2005. It was one of those bricks (6xxx series) with the scroll wheel on the side. It was monochrome, the phone sucked and was a brick. Since then, I have had a smaller brick (with colour!), then the first Pearl (which I loved) and now the Tour (I had to upgrade the OS to 5.0 by a hack because Bell won't release it officially). Consistently, over the years, things that it did (or at least, the things I considered important), it did well. I got push email. I got a keyboard that worked. I got a browser (it sucked... but whatever; in 2005, that was the best it was on a mobile device)... Google talk worked. Gmail integration works. Google Maps works. My contacts from google sync seamlessly. Multi-tasking works. Like truly works. Multiple things run. At the same time. Without anything being put to sleep or whatever. And the battery doesn't die in an hour as a result.

That's why I love my berry.

I have an iPod touch. I use it when I am home on the wifi network. I love how I can browse most websites (I read the globe and mail a lot, and the website is far better than the native app). I love multiple tabs in mobile Safari. YouTube works. Angry Birds works. I don't get why its spell checks sucks and it tries to fix things when I don't want it to. I don't get why I can't search for stuff easily on a webpage (it took me a while to figure out how to do it even... use the google search box to search for text on page). I don't understand why multi-tasking sucks on it. But whatever.

My issue tonight is not either of these. Fanboys (I guess Apple and possibly Android have those... I doubt there are BlackBerry fanboys out there) have done this to death. Beaten it over and over and over. The Apple people think their platform is the best. Whatever. I can't afford their platform for the most part. Especially when it is twice as expensive for 'elegance'.

My issue is my PVR. I setup the recording of the English language debate tonight before I left for work this morning. It didn't record.

I have a Shaw Pace set-top box (758D). I use Novus as my service provider. I needed a PVR. I built my own e-SATA 1TB box. It seems to work some of the time. Every so often, the thing flakes out. Its almost like once a week, I can assume that it will stop working. It will tell me that my PVR is full when it is not. It will tell me the PVR is not available from time to time. The hard drive never seems to stop even when the TV and STB are off. It frustrates me no end that it stops working. I don't understand which piece of this setup is responsible for this pain. The fix is to reboot it. Like unplug it from the wall type of reboot. This wipes out the Guide and delays PVR access.

I don't know if the Pace box is at fault or if it is the provider or the firmware of the device (which I understand has to be updated remotely by Novus). All I know is, the damn thing is so unreliable that I question my decision to buy the box. I setup things to record with an expectation that I have half a chance of not seeing the recordings. And not really working fully either. As in, lots of drop offs and pauses. Thank goodness most of the stuff I care about is also available online (sans commercials).

If I could be a fanboy of companies, I would pick 2 off the top of my head. T-Mobile in the US (not sure why they are being sold to AT&T... but that's beside the point now) and Novus. Novus has been awesome to me so far. They send me a bill once a month... the service works (well) and I don't have to deal with weird issues from them. I would recommend both of those companies wholeheartedly.

But here's the thing. This STB/PVR/service setup's reliability is so flaky that it doesn't work for me. It sometimes works. And unreliable technology is not like the BlackBerry. My BlackBerry works. It does what I want and it does it well. Sure it has its issues, but it does the 10 things it is supposed to do well. I just don't feel the same with the STB/PVR/service.

Anyone have ideas/suggestions/thoughts on what I can do to make the PVR work? Why is this thing so unreliable?

Its everybody's favourite season: election season of course!

2011-04-03T23:04:00.000-07:00

Canadians are off to the races once more to pick a new group of MPs. There's 308 of them. One of them will become Prime Minister. And it seems that a good chunk of the electorate doesn't give a hoot about the process.

The media do a good job of reporting on the events. On the surface at least. But they try. They also seem to relish in finding Canadians and asking them about the elections to get the desired effect of a disenchanted and largely uninterested and ill-informed set of people to sheepishly grin on TV.

Many people I have seen interviewed have similar excuses; its not time for an election, I don't know what the issues are, I haven't voted since I last used my discman, this will change nothing (meaning the make up of our parliament). Many also don't seem to care. The level of antipathy and downright anger is amazing. Its like someone inconvenienced them with these (admittedly horrid) election advertisements in between their Jersey Shore and HNIC broadcasts. Canadians know what HNIC is. At least, they ought to. The nerve of that elitist Ignatieff (how do you pronounce it again?) and that funny fellow Jack Layton and that Frenchie old curmudgeon and evil Harper. That's about 10% of Canada. They can actually name 3 of the four federal party leaders out there. I am pretty sure Rick Mercer hasn't done a talking to Canadians version of his old skit (talking to Americans), but I would bet a good cup of coffee that Canadians are quite ill-informed about their so called democracy. And no amount of tweets from the party leaders is going to change that.

It is sad really. The good news is, the issues that are brought up in these elections are not really that relevant to the average Canadian out there in the Tim Horton's line up (think Roger Abbott's character at Tim Hortons). Most Canadians don't really know much about corporate taxes I would wager. But that's a big deal in this election. Should they be lowered to 15% or raised back to 18%? Most don't really understand what an F-35 is and why we should or shouldn't buy 65 of them at a cost that now sounds quite unrealistically low. This also is a big deal. There aren't very many issues that Canadians care about. Now, if they were talking health care or selling our water to the Americans, you would have a public who were willing to stick around and watch the news after HNIC on a Saturday night and see what the party leaders have to say about it.

But, is pleading boredom or worse, apathy really a good thing for our democracy? I hear people say this over and over: I don't care about the issues, they don't affect me etc. But they do. Huge chunks of money you send to the government through income tax, sales tax, import tax, carbon tax and god knows what other kind of tax are being portioned off by these guys. It is _your_ money. Know why gas prices are high? There's a lot of taxes on them, that's why. Oh and various coups, wars and what not in places that produce them. And speculators who are cashing in and paying capital gains tax on their earnings.

The other thing that makes me sad is that a whole whack of these people here care peripherally at least about what is happening elsewhere. We are quite animated when it comes to our role in Afghanistan and our lack of role in Iraq and especially, what is happening with various democratic movements in the Middle-East. I find it incredible that people are willing to get shot at, lose limbs, families and risk torture and losing everything they have to get a chance to vote. Meanwhile, here we are, bemoaning the fact that we don't know what the issues are and why we should vote.Thank goodness these people in North Africa and the Middle-East are not taking cues from us Canadians regarding democracy. Our enthusiasm might just make dictatorship appealing enough (I doubt that but still).

I was incredibly fortunate to be in the US to see the current president get elected. I saw the election process from start to finish. From the terrible advertisements,from the arguments about whether he was black enough or too black to whether he was a Muslim, a smoker or the devil. I went to his inauguration ceremony on the national mall. As an outsider, I was glad to see so many people show up and stand for hours in the cold weather to see their democracy in action. It was somewhat historic I agree, but at least they seem to care about their democracy. Passionately. Sometimes, illogically. But they do care.

I also come from a land where people like my grandparents did not have the right to vote when they were young. A lot of 20th century history had to happen before they got to vote. World Wars, winding up of colonial empires, Gandhi and what not. I never got to vote there, but I suspect the past century has imprinted in the people of that region the importance of democracy and why one should participate in it fully. Not that everyone there practices it... but I think they get how valuable their vote is.

So, my dear Canadians, do me a favour, give snooki or whatever other character it is that you're watching these days a break, get involved in your democracy, get intimate with the issues and make an informed decision on the future of your country. You should also cheer on all the Canadian teams at the Stanley Cup playoffs. But I am sure you can spare a couple of hours to perform this duty to your country. Voting is a privilege, make it count. Wearing a red hoodie and saying eh is enough most days, but we can do better this time around, eh?

Decent alternatives to Outlook

2011-03-02T23:35:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to find a replacement for Microsoft Outlook. Despite all its bulk and penchants for getting infected with viruses (from way back I should say), I do miss using Outlook. I just don't feel like paying for it nor do I need all of its diverse features.

So, I am looking for alternatives to Outlook. I tried Microsoft Mail and it was actually quite decent. I also tried Thunderbird and while I am not a huge fan of its mickey-mouse icons, I don't mind it either. If only Thunderbird had the polish that Firefox has.

I heard from people that Entourage sucked. Its not like I have a mac, but while doing research on this subject I ran across that.

So far, I have the mail part covered. I find it weird that despite using IMAP, my client only gets mail every so often (by default one of them was set to retrieve mail every 30 minutes!), but I was able to configure it to grab mail every minute. The parts I am having trouble with though are the calendar and the directory lookup (where you look up emails of people using some kind of search mechanism).

I didn't realise how import the calendar was until I missed a few appointments. Normally, with Outlook, the reminder thing pops up and annoys the heck out of you, so you deal with it. Not so with webmail. You just get a popup and tend to forget it exists. Not to mention that the window doesn't repeatedly annoy you to deal with it. Sometimes, it is good to have something nag you.

I am trying to talk to a Kerio Connect mail server in case anyone is wondering. Since I couldn't figure out a way to get Windows Mail to sync calendars, I decided to stick with Thunderbird. Turns out that if I use the Lightning plug-in with Thunderbird that it can at least sync the calendar in a read-only format. I find it clunky, but at least I can see my calendar entries on the desktop now. I still find the whole Thunderbird thing odd though. It was reminding me of things from Wednesday to Friday. I am not sure why I need to be reminded of something that far out in the future especially if the reminder in the calendar is set to 15 minutes. And I am not sure what will happen if I dismiss them (my guess is, they will get dismissed). I am not sure where the issue lies, whether it is Kerio or whether it is Lightning/Thunderbird or some configuration somewhere in between but Kerio Connect doesn't seem to have a solution that works for me. Sigh.

Oh well. On the bright side, at least I get access to my calendar through Thunderbird. I just have to log into the web interface to create new calendar entries. I was also able to get Thunderbird talk to the LDAP server to do lookups, but I think that misses out on group email addresses. And I had to make lots of guesses to get it to work. Still, I suppose that is progress. The thing that annoys me is that Outlook just works with this out of the box. There is a Kerio Connect connector for Outlook and voila, everything just works. I'm not even going to bother trying to connect my BlackBerry to anything :).

If only the good folks who volunteer their time on Mozilla's Firefox would give Thunderbird some love... that might actually give Outlook a run for its money. I guess it is open source and anyone can contribute (hmmm I wonder if I could...). Until recently, I had written off desktop clients for e-mail. I greatly appreciate my Gmail account. But, I think there needs to be something more than an email in one of the many dozen tabs I have (some of which are hidden by the Panorama feature, one of my favourite Firefox 4 features).

So, has anyone else has success, luck etc with replacing Outlook? I am tempted to try using Evolution for Windows, but I suspect I will not get any further than I did with Thunderbird.

Snow!

2011-02-27T04:13:00.000-08:00

Vancouver has been enjoying a bit of snow. As I sit here, watching India play England and learn some new things in the Java world, I look out my window and see snow falling slowly. It has been falling all day and all night now. Good thing its Sunday. The odd thing is, there are still people trundling about even at this hour (past 4:15am on Sunday).

Anyway, hope all is well wherever you are and here's hoping things turn out well for all.

looks like someone drove over the concrete barrier

snow is covering everything out there

The photo does not do the tree justice

snow on the planter stand on my balcony

The North African democratic fantasy

2011-01-28T00:58:00.000-08:00

Apparently, there is an impending flood of democracy sweeping North Africa. That's what some people seem to think. I don't know what to make of it. While it sounds like a progressive sort of thing, I have my doubts. Recently, the Tunisians managed to chase away their dictatorial leaders out of the country. What started at some unfortunate soul dousing himself in paint thinner and setting fire to himself (ending in his death a few weeks later) has toppled a government and thrown the whole of North Africa in political chaos.

I am not sure what made the rulers of Tunisia flee. My guess is, they had enough funds stashed outside of the country and had a plan on what to do post-ousting. They probably had safe-havens sorted out (apparently some of the crooks are Canadian residents!) and made their way out rather than risk getting killed by popular anger. Perhaps the army said it would no longer support them, perhaps they were wishing for some peace and quite on the golf course somewhere nice.

Parts of this world are cheering on the youth of Egypt and Yemen in hopes that this event will precipitate a further revolution. I hardly doubt that will happen. Here's why. Egypt is not Tunisia. First, it is a much larger country. I heard someone say 85 million people. A few thousand youngsters who use twitter and come up with novel ways of protesting hardly speaks for the country. Second, Egypt has been under some kind of state of emergency for over 40 years (since the war with Israel in 1967). The Egyptian government and military/police forces have had years to prepare for these sorts of outbreaks.

Yemen might be another matter, though I don't see it ending up the way Tunisia seems to be ending up. If anything, Yemen seems to go the way of Somalia... a country armed to the teeth with little or no political leadership keeping the country functioning.

It was quite amusing to hear the Canadian Prime Minister speak of democracy while he was visiting Morocco yesterday. He was praising the steps taken by these protesters and discussing the merits of democracy. There's just one problem with that. He's in another country that isn't a democracy talking about a neighbour's revolt and overthrow of an autocratic government. Apparently, Canada is going to try and get a free trade agreement going with the Moroccans. Why not. Trade first, democracy later. Nearly worked with China eh.

I don't know if many of the folks who are cheering for these countries to throw away the shackles of autocracy and join the good law abiding states filled with democracy have really given much thought to the implications it might bring. Firstly, many of these states get support from the 'enlightened' countries of the world. In terms of foreign aid, Egypt gets the second most American foreign aid according to what I heard. That's up there with Israel and Iraq. We've turned a blind eye to an autocracy for over 40 years, where the press is not free and people who have political thoughts... get put in prison or worse. And we give them money. And now, we want the twittering lambs (as in lambs being led to slaughter) to rise against the establishment?

As well, what happens if this uprising is a success? What chance do we have of a stable democracy taking root? Look at Iraq? After all the money and weapons the world has pumped into there, what good has democracy done for them? Sure, the dictator is gone. Its been replaced by a bunch of people who have been elected (some say through fraud) and unable to make decisions. The car bombs still go off, the people still suffer. They no longer suffer from the no-fly zones or the lack of medical supplies thanks to sanctions. Just from other things. Its quite sad really, with all that oil and all that promise, how is Iraq really doing? My barber went back to Iraq. I hope he's well. But I am not sure it is a much better place than it was before he went back. I know that these things take time to setup, but in spite of all the fire-power, prodding by the Americans and billions of dollars, these people have not been able to sort out a government on their own thus far. What chance will Tunisia or Egypt have if something similar happened? Which country's tax payer is going to step up to pay for that?

The other thing to consider when cheering these people on is what replaces the current devil. As they say, better the devil you know. If Egypt becomes 'free', what happens if the Muslim Brotherhood forms a government? They're not exactly big fans of the West. Look at Iraq once more. What happened there? Saddam went away and he was replaced by Shia lunatics and Sunni lunatics. Not only do they not want to work with each other, their dislike of the West (and America in particular) is scary. The same thing seems to be happening in Lebanon. Hezbollah is now in power. Sometimes I wonder if we tinker around too much with the structures and principles of other countries. Should we really be telling them how to run their countries and what form of voting is right for them?

As well, not all revolutions are truly revolutionary. The Bolshevik revolution changed a large part of Europe and Asia. An autocratic Czar was replaced by a Politburo that itself was replaced a few decades later. But not before it caused all kinds of headaches for all sorts of people. But right next door, the Ukrainian Orange revolution sort of fizzled out. First there was a revolution, then the guys running the revolution couldn't agree on what to do with their spoils of revolution. Then they decided to fight each other in elections. Then they both lost and the guy they were initially revolting against is back in power once more. Who knows where it will go from here. They've been revolting since 2004 in Ukraine. Somehow I don't know if all those people who stood out in the cold (I remember seeing the cold and wondering what kind of dedication these people had to stand outside in the frigid winter, day after day, protesting) are happy with the state of affairs their country is in today. I don't know if saying that their revolution is in tatters is that far from the truth.

So what do we do now? I don't know. Maybe if we stay out of it and let them decide for themselves, it would be good. Maybe we can stop funding all these countries who really shouldn't be getting aid from us to continue oppressing their own people. Or others (like the Palestinians). And maybe we should set the record straight and admit to ourselves what we're doing. We do support dictators and criminals. Hell, we even give them safe havens (how do we explain all those Tunisian ex-government crooks having Canadian residency visas?). We do spend vast amounts of foreign aid for all sorts of purposes. Not all of them are that altruistic in nature. In fact, I would go so far as to say that we do everything with our own gain in mind. Let's try and do something good with our tax dollars. Let's end poverty in our own country first. Let's fix a city in Haiti (and by fix I mean, rebuild the infrastructure, get the vestiges of normal life going; schools, hospitals, agriculture, courts, that sort of thing).

I wish the folks trying to wrest their version of freedom and democracy from the devils that oppress them the best of luck. I hope you succeed and you build something better and fairer than the one you're trying to dismantle.

Angry birds and assessments

2011-01-04T23:49:00.001-08:00

I got my property assessment today. I don't know if I should be excited or sad. My property is worth more than it was worth last year. By a decent percentage. Yay. Of course, that also means that my property taxes go up. Not so yay.

I finally broke down and bought my first ever paid app from the App Store from Apple. Damn. Is Angry Birds ever addictive. I had read about it before and dismissed it as a silly game, but I think it is worth the 99 pennies I paid for it. The guys who created it are dealing in digital crack I think. If you've ever wanted to do something worthwhile with your time while you're stuck in a line, bored at a party or on a bus, train, airplane or just can't go to sleep, play Angry Birds. It will make you happy. And if you have an Android based phone, the game is free (ad supported).

Also, I've been watching the last season of Da Vinci's Inquest. This isn't American Law and Order, but its really good. A narcotics cop turned coroner, Dominic Da Vinci is an awesomely flawed character. I put him up there with Dexter. Except he's not out there killing people. If you need to watch a good (Canadian) drama, go watch Da Vinci's Inquest. I find the story to be a lot more realistic and it portrays this fair city with all its gritty glory, mixing in reality (like the prostitutes murdered on the pig farm) with some things that perhaps was on the books but never got implemented. I am just sad that I didn't watch it when it originally aired, and am watching it out of order (I watched season 1 a while back on Hulu when I was still in the US). (Nicholas Campbell)++.

Oh yeah, Happy New Year. Here's hoping that the blog gets a bit more attention. And here's hoping the year brings happier things to all.

We'll take a cup o' kindness yet

2010-12-31T02:16:00.002-08:00

As I sit here on the eve of 2011, I am drawn back to this past year. Many good things happened, many not so good things happened. I can't remember much of this year, but the little that I do remember gives me reason to pause and consider those events.

I suppose the single biggest thing to happen this year was me taking the plunge into the housing market. While it wasn't an entire failure, it wasn't an overwhelming success either. A lot of the inventory in the market is quite expensive. I think I was caught between waiting to save more and hoping for the market to cool down and not really making a difference because prices were steadily climbing. It turns out that prices have gone up more since I bought my place. I am not sure if that's a good thing or not, but that is what it is. Getting settled in has been quite the affair; I am home, but I am not entirely sure this place is a home. There is still plenty that needs to be done.

I know at least a few other friends who went out and bought places, so I think we all took big steps this year.

I had my first (and so far only) house guest from out of town come spend a few days with me. I was thrilled to have a visitor. We went and did all the regular touristy things. I hope I was a good host.

I ran the Vancouver Sun Run in May. It took me a little over an hour to run the 10km route. While I wasn't entirely thrilled with the time, I am glad I at least participated and finished it.

I spent most of the 2 weeks of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver getting to enjoy a side of the city I don't think any have seen. It was truly a magical time to use a cliché. Vancouver was alive like never before. I don't think there was much that would have put a damper on those magical days. It was a bit odd to see the Paralympics not get quite the same reception; they got the roadblocks, security and what not, but not the same level of fanfare and crowds. I really hope that the people who are in charge of future Olympics find a way to integrate the two events and stretch everything a bit longer. I think it would have been much better had we put the two events together and added a week onto the entire schedule.

I made the annual trip out to Kelowna in the summer. Sadly, I am not sure we can keep doing this for too long. Many of the guys brought their wives/significant others etc along with them. They were all fun, but when there are close to 20 people in a group, coordinating anything becomes a bit of a nightmare especially when people want to do vastly divergent things. That and all the drama that comes along with the women (forgive me for stooping to that, but really, there was far more drama than if there were 10 guys left to their own devices with booze added to the mix) made the trip somewhat lame. As well, the guys aren't quite the same when the women are around...

Aside from that small trip, I didn't manage to do anything else vacation-wise. Partly that was because I didn't have anything concrete in mind and partly it was due to the financial situation of my poor bank account. I did want to make it out to the island, but I never did make it. I shall have to remedy that in 2011. I want to see more of Canada and the world. I am thinking of heading east to the Atlantic provinces. It is sad that it costs so much to visit parts of this country compared to what it costs to visit our neighbours. I mean, I can spend a week in a fancy Mexican resort for less that it costs me to fly to Prince Edward Island.

I attended the wedding of one of my friends this year. It was the third wedding I have attended in my nearly 14 years in North America. It was quite a wonderful affair; there was a wedding in an Orthodox Church (where there are no pews, you stand through the service), a reception at the Church as well, and a bride that did not stop dancing. It was quite memorable and I was thrilled to be around so many of my friends to see such a wonderful event. Weddings are truly amazing events. Especially when you know that the two people that matter on that day are perfect for each other. I have been invited to at least one wedding for 2011; I have a hunch it might be my first multi-wedding year.

A couple of my friends took the next step and had children. I have yet to see the little kids in person, but their pictures are quite adorable. I hope to see them in the new year. I am guessing that the likelihood of more kids on the way is high.

I've learned a lot about myself and my friends over the year and I think I've gotten a bit better at this game of life. Hopefully, this bodes well for me and this little clan of folks I know. Here's hoping the new year brings us good lessons, good times, good friends and happy thoughts. To my dear readers, thank you for reading and I hope your new year is filled with good things.

Remember freedom fries?

2010-12-17T10:59:00.002-08:00

I can't believe that it has been over 5 years since Robin Cook passed away. He was one of the few principled politicians out there that I have known of and dare I say, admired. Listening to his resignation speech (from the cabinet), I have a profound sense of sadness for Britain and for the larger civilised world. It is sadder still when you go back in time and think of people like Hans Blix, much maligned by the then US administration and by many others in the world.

History will be astonished at the diplomatic miscalculations that led so quickly to the disintegration of that powerful coalition.

says Cook of the split between the allies in regards to this war.

The world is worse off today without people like Robin Cook. I sure hope the folks that went to war and decided to rename food are enjoying their freedom fries secure in the knowledge that at least now, those (phantom) weapons of mass destruction are indeed beyond use; safely put away in the figment of their collectively (tiny) imaginations.

Rest in peace Robin Cook. The price you paid was small. The price the rest of these sods are paying is still being counted... in lives and dollars; the numbers of digits that make them up, boggles the mind.

Have you ever wondered?

2010-12-08T00:33:00.000-08:00

Lots of things have kept me busy the last little while, so I haven't had a chance to write about something that has been on my mind of late. It is that season once more, when fat men in red suits and excuses to make merry come together to have a go at making the ailing retail market better by buying loved ones things they likely don't need because some guy was allegedly born in a manger in a land far, far away...

Aside from getting that Lexus with the ridiculous red bow tied around it in honour of Jesus' birthday, there are well meaning people out there collecting unwrapped toys for children or money so toys and things can be bought for needy children. And it is a beautiful thing I must say. Local celebrities, the average bloke in the suit and tie, all come out to do their bit.

I was watching the news the other day and one of this city's more venerable events was on at the local hotel. Apparently, last year, they raised more than 26,000 toys and $25,000 for the kids. All that for the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau. This from, and for a region that has about 2.5 million people. Something troubles me with these numbers though. Assuming these toys are for the really needy children out there and assuming that each child gets _a_ toy, are we saying that there are about 26,000 children amongst this population of 2.5 million that have families who cannot provide a toy on their own? That is not counting all the toys you can buy with the money that was raised.

If that is so, we are indeed living in a place that has a lot of sadness and poverty. I find these numbers to be a bit on the high side to be frank. Are there really 26,000 kids out there with nothing for Christmas? Or are parents helping themselves to the generosity of others? Or is it something else like some kid that's getting 20 presents? I don't know. This much I do know. When I was a kid, I got a lot of things for Christmas. I think my mother still buys me stuff for Christmas every year. Most of the time, these are things I don't need and will likely never use. Its not like I was out there looking for Santa or something when I was a kid; we grew up with very different notions of what Christmas was; there was no barrage of marketing telling us about all the things we needed or else be scorned by the kids across the street; no one tried to sell me a mobile phone because I was not naughty (there were probably no mobile phones back then). But I did enjoy getting presents.

My hope is that for all those kids out there who need something to believe, I hope they believe in Christmas and get a present for it I hope their lot gets better for next year. I sure as hell hope no one is taking advantage of all these toys people have collected for the truly needy. And finally, I really hope that people appreciate that presents are just things. What is more important at this time of year is to appreciate life and those that make yours bearable. I am looking forward to a quiet Christmas where I spend some time with the people that make me who I am and I ask Santa for one thing (apart from all the cars and hot women I have asked him for which he seems to not deliver); help me become a better person. Wrap that and put it under a tree and I'll be happy.

Remember those who are no longer here

2010-11-07T23:23:00.001-08:00

As we come upon another Remembrance Day, we are once again greeted with the spectacle of red poppies on lapels and backpacks and hats and things. We wear them as a mark of respect for all those who went to the various wars and either died fighting or came back to tell their tales. A Canadian physician (and solider) Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae wrote the poem, In Flanders Fields after losing his friend at the Battle of Ypres. It goes like this:


In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Because of this poem, we wear those little red poppies to remember the folks who went to various wars to protect our freedom and as a mark of respect for those who came back. It is but a small gesture. Most of us will never know what war is like, thankfully; and a lot of that can be attributed to the sacrifices of these men and women.

It is amazing that after all the horror stories and sadness that we hear about war that people are still willing to go to one. What is worse is that we as a people can't seem to get past war or conflict as a way to resolve our differences. Whether it is through terrorist acts or large scale militarised battle, we are not free of the clutches of the quarrel that Dr. McCrae wrote about.

A few years back, when I wandered by the war memorial gym at UBC, I recall seeing a plaque stating the facts related to war and why the gym was called that. Apparently, almost 700 students went to war during the first world war, 78 of whom didn't come back. For the second world war, 1680 or so souls went to fight, and 169 didn't come back. It is really sad that young students who had so much going for them decided to trade education to go fight for King and Country. I don't know if anyone today would do that; generally, university campuses are quite anti-war these days.

Anyway, I don't quite know where I am going with this post. Let me say this much: on this Remembrance Day, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, take a minute to remember those who you likely don't know who went to fight a war for their country. And if you have a poppy, wear it. And hope/pray/wish that we don't have any more wars and nonsense to lose more people in.

Of batty broads and other such things

2010-11-01T00:25:00.001-07:00

I've seen a few batty broads in my day, but this one takes the cake. Batty doesn't quite do it justice. I haven't a clue how to deal with her batty ways, but avoiding her as best as I can seems to help.

Anyway, onto more fun topics. Why do people dress up for Halloween? I never quite understood the point of it. Maybe I don't get Halloween. It looks like a whole lot of batty folks go all out and get dressed up as princesses and sailors and nutty things of that nature. I thought Halloween was for children and that the point of it was to scare them. Perhaps not. And I thought trick or treat meant that someone would pull a trick on the onlookers? Or is it all about chocolates and a way to go overboard on it?

And while we're on the subject of things I don't get, what does the Easter bunny have to do with Easter? And why pray tell, does it lay chocolate eggs? Or is it just the bearer of chocolate eggs? What does the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus have to do with the rabbit?

Anyway, fall is here and I have been busy with school and work and have neglected this 'ere blog for long enough, so I thought some fresh writing about nothing special would do me some good. I am alive, the rains are back, the sun don't shine and all is otherwise set for a decent bit of autumn in Vancouver. Next up, winter. I hear its going to be a nasty one. Should be interesting. I had dinner last night at a restaurant where the server brought a bowl of hot water and a rather large tablet that looked like an antacid you would chew. Except, when you add that into the hot water, the thing turns into a towel. Whoever thought of that must be rich by now and should be given some praise for thinking of such a neat thing. I mean, the ability to create a towel out of just water (I don't know if the warmth was needed for it to work) and a tablet is quite amazing. Think of travel convenience. Mind you, if a whole pack of towel tablet things got wet in the rain... that might spell disaster for the person carrying them in their pocket. Anyway, check out this youtube video on it.

Well, it is indeed past bed-time here, so I had best turn in. In the mean-time, all you batty folks out there, take care and try and be a bit less batty eh?

Fly away with me

2010-10-11T04:40:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but I have this urge to run away from everything and everyone I know and go hide in a forest somewhere. Maybe its because it is the wee hours of the morning or because I can't sleep from all the coffee or because I feel uneasy about something, but I sure do feel like hiding from the world right now.

As I sit here, staring at nothing in particular, when I should be content and happy, I feel to urge to get away from it all. Not sure why. Maybe its because I haven't been on vacation for a while. Maybe its because I don't know what I want to do in life. Maybe its because I am not happy about the way things are. Maybe its because I just want to get away from it all and sit in a place where I have no choice but to contemplate what to do next in life. Away from computers and cars and phones. Just me and nature.

We do live in a strange world I find. We chase after silly dreams; buy a house; establish and raise a family; do well at work and so on. But what if all that overwhelms you? It seems like life is a race. All of it. From the time you get to work to the time you get out of there, to the time you loathe on the bus thinking about all that you still need to do at work or home. Never mind that it is sunny outside or that the ocean looks spectacular, all that comes to the mind is the lack of a sense of fulfilment. Like something is missing. Or lost.

But what? I have my health. I have a job. It pays the bills. It teaches me stuff. I have friends. I have the means to get around. Should I not be happy? And yet, somehow, I feel like the sun isn't shining when I need it to. How do I fix this? I don't know.

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving to the good Canadian folks out there. Time for turkey, happiness and peace on earth. Or something like that.

What would Akbar say?

2010-09-16T01:01:00.000-07:00

I have been reading news from back home in disbelief at the amount of violence that one crazy preacher in Florida has caused. It seems that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have decided to go back to curfews and violence and what not. The issues in that mountainous part of the world are exceedingly complex, but this much is clear: whatever illusions anyone had of peace and prosperity and improvements that were supposed to happen... cannot quell the underlying sense of anger that seems to exist there.

I feel sad reading about it. As a child, I remember listening to the news and wondering what these terrorists were; in Punjab, in Jammu and Kashmir, in Sri Lanka. So much violence. They used to rattle out how many paramilitary forces and militants were killed on a daily basis. I don't think it ever dawned on me that these were people... they were just forgettable numbers to me. They were these odd beings, these terrorist creatures... they died a lot.

Also as a child, I remember hearing about Fatehpur Sikri in history class. It is probably one of my regrets in life to not pay enough attention to the history of India and the world in class. I think I spent more time counting the number of times that teacher said the words 'Now see...' than anything else. Sad as it is, there are things I should have learned then. I guess its never too late to learn. At Fatehpur Sikri, there lies a gate called the Buland Darwaza, this giant gate that keeps the mosque on the other side of the gate. The city was built by emperor Akbar. He (we assume it was him) thought it right to put the following quote (in Persian) on his gate:

"Jesus, Son of Mary (on whom be peace) said: 'The world is a Bridge, pass over it, but build no houses upon it. He who hopes for a day, may hope for eternity; but the World endures but an hour. Spend it in prayer for the rest is unseen.'"

That an emperor of a powerful Islamic empire saw it fit to put a quote attributed to the Christian son of god (and prophet to Islam, peace be upon him) speaks volumes to me of what Islam in the subcontinent is about. It may have come (at least in the North) by the sword, but it stayed and became our own. I am sure that the many millions who celebrated Eid ul-Fitr in the subcontinent did so with their non-Muslim brethren in peace.

I realise that my hope for peace probably makes no difference, but here's my plea to all sides and crazies out there. If the great emperor Akbar saw it fit to quote Jesus Christ on his grand door to his mosque in Persian no less, surely, in the 21st century, we can try and live in peace? When the average person outside of India thinks of India, they probably think of the Taj Mahal... something built by an Indian emperor as a tribute to his wife whom he dearly loved. Oh he was a Muslim too. But so what? Is the Taj Mahal any less Indian because of that? I am guessing not. So how is it that we can so easily throw stones and fire bullets at one another in the name of religion because some preacher half a world away talked about buring the holy Koran? How is it that we can so easily separate ourselves into various buckets; Muslims, Hindus, terrorists, nationalists? There has got to be a better way.

If we managed to get freedom from the British (and carve what was then India into 3)... why can't we all just live in peace, play cricket, build the next google and generally have a good time?

Of pastors and sheep

2010-09-13T01:05:00.000-07:00

I am sure there are tonne of blogs about this topic out there already. But it bugs me, so I shall write about it. Apparently, an alleged man of god, somewhere in Florida decided to burn a few holy Korans to make a point. Somehow, he equated Islam to terrorism and decided that September 11 would be a great day to set them alight on a bonfire. This man is a pastor of a tiny church, supposedly bringing the word of god to his parishioners. Except this man isn't applying many of the lord's suggestions. Like love thy neighbour.

It is incredible that one lunatic person has managed to cause such a lot of trouble for so many people. I think I saw the American President talk about this whole book-burning-Islam-bashing event two or three times. It is sad that so many people take this man's threats to heart and believe that he is the voice of reason and representative of America. Because he's not. I am not American, but by all the gods, there are many that I know and they are not so petty.

America does not hate Islam. Nor does Islam hate America. It is really sad to see extremist bigots on either side of this argument use religion as justification to spread hatred. How is it that the nuts in Kabul and elsewhere not realise that this guy is nothing but a mirror image of themselves? All he is doing is using religion as a shield to spew his brand of hate? These two religions who have so much in common, of which Isa is a prophet for one (and the son of god for the other), how can their collective god allow one set of fools to hate another set of people based on the actions of a small minority? He's not.

America is not a Christian country in the strictest sense. The sane folks who wrote that constitution made sure of that. This was a country which was after all founded by a bunch of people fleeing religious persecution. Their money says, In god we trust. Not in the Christian version of god. Or the Islamic version of him. Just god. America is a country with a lot of people. People who believe in all sorts of things. Men who choose men as partners. People who are vegetarians. People who are new immigrants like me. While I may not agree with what some of them do, I could not imagine that the collective America was out to get anyone. Maybe their government is misguided from time to time, looking for imaginary weapons of mass destruction in the desert and causing lots of damage to their reputation as a result, but America is also the country that helps others. How many sacks of USAID wheat has been sent to various disasters around the world (including the floods in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan)? Is it Christian wheat? Did Jesus stamp the USAID logo onto it? No. Americans did. People did. People who felt the need to help their fellow man because of whatever compunction they have.

If there is a god and he/she/it reads my blog, here's my plea:

Please dear god, can you fix these people all around this green earth of ours who use your name to perpetrate the worst kind of nonsense out there? Feel free to smite them down with whatever you happen to have handy. Diarrhoea works. A swift kick in the ass works too.

And if you're one of these cretins that is doing this, can you please stop? Lets try and worry about the stuff we need to worry about, not about who is going to burn what book. Burning books is stupid. Go burn some wood or something if you're bored. Books are meant to be read. And God is not some kind of football you use to kick around when you please and use as justification to tie suicide belts and blow yourselves up in.

Just call me your wingman

2010-09-05T00:34:00.001-07:00

I think I am a good wingman. Or something like that. To date, I have facilitated 3 or 4 people's ability to get laid. Seriously. I seem to be able to create the atmosphere for my friends to get busy with other people. Sometimes, even without copious amounts of alcohol.

Which makes me wonder. What am I getting in return?

At any rate, my plea/advice/request to them is as follows:

Do not blame me for how well or poorly this turns out for you. I am only here for to facilitate; any mistakes, diseases, children are not my responsibility.

In at least a couple of cases these folks have been friends of mine. As in, a guy I know got busy with a girl I know (and they have no business knowing each other in any other way). When it comes to that, my plea/advice etc has been to not make me take sides when things go sour. For I know they will.

But this isn't about them. This is about me. What am I getting in return for facilitating these things? For saying all the things that I do to these folks? For getting away from a warm comfortable place so they can get their acts together? For pretending like nothing has changed?

I am not sure.

What's more, none of these skills seem to help me at all. And my friends, despite trying have not been very successful at helping me. Now you're probably thinking that is a lot easier to hawk something useful vs something that's not. I agree with you. I mean, its one thing to facilitate something when everything is going well, its a whole other thing when there is disaster a-brewing. Oh well.

So much for that. Now, if you need a wingman, give me a holler and bring some good luck. And if you know a good one, send him/her/it my way. I need me some good luck :).

Excuse for poor blogging

2010-08-15T00:45:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I don't blog more. I mean to, but I get side tracked. I've been busy of late. The home is coming along well, though I am still on the hunt for that couch and dining table. I even had my first visitor.

Work has been keeping me quite busy too. I can't think of the last cool thing I have learned at work though, so that's starting to worry me.

As for what else I have been up to, I was out once again to Kelowna. We do this every year for the BC Day long weekend and this time I got a head start by getting there a day earlier than the others. It was an awesome time. By the end of it, there were 16 of us there. I learned many new things there. I learned that I can tan and peel. That's a little scary. I finished a book while there (R. K. Narayan's Waiting for the Mahatma, worth a read) and got part way through another (David Davidar's The Solitude of Emperors, also pretty decent). I ran for about 80 minutes across the farms and fields of Kelowna, bought a tonne of fruit on the way back and generally had an amazing time with my friends. I love doing this sort of thing; hanging out with friends and visiting fun places. Next year, I hope to go on a cruise or something with a bunch of these folks.

I also had my first visitor staying over. Ray works at the same place I do, but lives in Florida. He came by for a visit and I hope he had a good time in Canada. Things I learned from Ray while he was here: we measure in strange units (for him), our summers are like Florida winters, we party hard (I doubt that is the case... but I'll add it here for completeness), our Jazz is quite good, our infrastructure and stuff (like customs at the airport etc) are efficient. Ray and I went for a run around Stanley Park one day when he was here, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is quite neat to be in the park on a non-holiday especially when the tide is out as well. I saw quite a few North Pacific sea stars stranded on the rocks that day.

I watched the 3 episodes of Sherlock, the new BBC series that brings Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's detective to the 21st century, with iPhone to boot. I am quite excited that the show has kept the main themes of the 19th Century Holmes intact and made new stories out of old ones. I hope they continue with the series. I am looking forward to the next season of Dexter and Spooks... I saw the trailer for season 5 of Dexter and it looks awesome. I do regret watching it though... but from what I recall of the season 4 trailer, I forgot most of it by the time the season started :).

Anyway, I'll try and blog more. Summer isn't very long here and we've been quite lucky to have good weather, so I've tried hard to be outside and do things instead of being inside all the time. Tomorrow, we barbecue on the lake!

Been here

2010-08-15T00:20:00.002-07:00

Dilbert can be remarkably close to reality on many occasions. I think I have had similar conversations at work. Thank god for Dilbert.

His Lordship wants to come home to... Canada?

2010-07-24T09:48:00.000-07:00

In case you're a Canadian, you likely know that Conrad Black has got bail and wants to come to Canada. He wants to come home apparently. Whose home? His Lordship surrendered his Canadian citizenship in order to become Baron Black of Crossharbour. While I disagree with the then Canadian government's stance on Canadians being honoured by other countries, I find it quite amusing that Lord Black wants to come back to Canada after saying such lovely things about us as

a plain vanilla place or, to paraphrase our distinguished travel writer, Jan Morris, “a good second prize in the Lottario of life”.

More haughty wisdom from his Lordship can be found on this blog post.

I say we let him in. We're better than that. But your Lordship (for you are indeed a Lord in this country too), if you say such silly things about us... we are not going to be very keen to see you around here and you might just be the recipient of a nice pie in the face.

What do you guys think of this whole affair?

Being Happy

2010-07-21T00:45:00.000-07:00

I wonder why there is so much unhappiness in the world sometimes. I'm currently reading R. K. Narayan's Waiting for the Mahatma. The world the protagonist in the book lives in is a rather harsh one. And he seems to be quite unhappy. What makes one unhappy?

Some days, I ask myself what the heck I am doing here. Maybe its because I have worked for the same person for 4 years and the same company for over 6. This was supposed to be a short-term job that would bring bigger and better things. I don't know what it has brought. I mean, I am doing better things. I am doing bigger things. But I don't know if it makes me happy any more. I don't wake up with the anticipation of hurrying to work to learn something new and make the world a better place. I don't know why. I suppose I have the ability to do that to a certain extent. Is it the lack of ambition?

Reading back to some of the earliest posts on this blog, I gave myself the task of being happy. Like it is something you do like take a shower or brush your teeth. That was almost 5 years ago. I don't know that I have made much progress since then. Life has changed. I have grown. Not just fat, but as a person too. I know a lot more than I did then. I also realise what little I know now and how much more there is to learn. Does that make me unhappy? Not really.

Is the world around me making me unhappy? I don't know. Am I unhappy because interest rates went up yesterday and my mortgage payments are changing? Yes, but that doesn't make me unhappy. Well it does, but its not the same kind of unhappiness. I knew, going into this owning a place business that interest rates would go up. I hedged my bets on it not going up too much in the next 5 years... something that can be validated in 5 years I suppose.

I was wandering by the sea wall the other day (did I mention I live 1 block from it?) and I realised that I was living in paradise. It was sunny and warm but not hot, the breeze was gentle, the scenery marvellous, the sounds of the water lapping on the sea wall comforting the healthy scantily clad women, beautiful... by all accounts, I should be giddy with joy. And I think I was. For that brief moment. But then I come back to various things that bother me. My age bothers me. Not because I am getting older. We all get older. I wanted to achieve a lot more by the time I was here. Except I can't figure what what 'a lot more' is. My job bothers me. I don't know why. I expected to do a lot more. Except I don't know what lot more is here either. My health bothers me. The fact that my knees hurt and I can't run 10k on a dime annoys me.

People bother me. Like when I see dog crap on the sidewalk. Or when they jaywalk when I am driving. Or when they use up 3 seats on the bus... one for their bag, one for their ass and one for their miscellaneous hand held things like the free newspaper and Starbucks that they proceed to spill on the seat. The free newspaper dispensers bother me. I think they waste their lives giving away worthless pieces of rubbish that clog up the streets and trains and buses. Leave the damn papers in a pile somewhere and go about doing something better with your life rather than trying to give me free newspapers.

Should any of this make me unhappy? Should I care that dogs poo on the sidewalk and owners keep going away like they didn't notice? Should I care that I feel like my job is taking me nowhere useful? Should I care that I may be at significant risk for cardiovascular disease on account of my fat ass and elevated levels of LDL and triglycerides?

I don't know. On the one hand, yes, I should care about it all. These are all solved problems though. I just don't have an effective way of solving them myself... but I do know that people have solved them rather easily. So, why am I unhappy over them? How do I get myself motivated to try and tackle them? Am I going off the deep end?

Ideas?

The trials of moving

2010-06-29T00:40:00.000-07:00

For those (one, maybe two people) who read this blog, you may recall that almost a year back, I did something I wanted to do for a while. Move. As in, move back to Vancouver and be happy. Well, that happened last year. The second half of that return home was to buy a place. That happened as well. It feels like months ago! Well, the next bit of that saga is happening now.

I got keys to the place a couple of weeks back and I have been unpacking ever since. I can't begin to tell you how awesome it was to move the way I did. This may sound like a bit of an advertisement, but who cares, it is my blog after all and I shall sing these people's praises if I choose to.

Firstly, the good folks at Certified Packaging & Transport from the DC area (Jessup MD I think is their home) did wonders packing my stuff. They came over, packed everything with hundreds of thousands of sheets of packing paper. The guys who did the packing and moving were pleasant and seemed like real decent folks. They gave me a decent estimate and did what they said they would do. To date, I have not found one thing missing or broken from my meagre possessions from DC. I think there were over 70 boxes/items they shipped. Everything was packed properly. I am in awe of how well things can be packed and transported. From the time I gave them a call to get an idea of what to do, to the day when my stuff cleared customs here, they were out there looking out for me. They were a referral from a co-worker who did the trek a while before I did. I am thankful to her for the contact. I have since passed their contact info on to another co-worker who is making the trek back home to Canada. Hope it works out for him and his guitars.

Secondly, I have to give Canada Customs and Revenue credit. I had an appointment with them to clear customs (and apart from the wait they made me do at the airport when I first returned home), their handling of my move was stellar. The movers faxed the manifest to Customs, I showed up and was done in 2 minutes. I am not making that up. They even saw me before my appointment. I guess when the total value of everything is not that much, they don't care. But they still made dealing with them a pleasant experience.

Next, Williams Moving from this part of the world. They did my initial move to DC and I was impressed at how quickly they moved my stuff out of here. Well, I was again impressed at their awesomeness on delivering my stuff to the storage locker. You see, they are the receiver of goods from Certified Packaging & Transport in Canada. Their people called me the moment my items crossed the border and arranged for all the paperwork that had to go to Canada customs. I was also quite happy with the guys at Public Storage... they sorted out a locker for me quickly and I had my stuff delivered by Williams there. I guess I am always in awe of these sorts of things because they look somewhat magical to me. Moving large numbers of boxes and things in an efficient manner is an impressive sight, to me at least.

My stuff made it to Canada in December of 2009. I had been looking for a place last summer and thankfully, this spring, with yet another referral from a friend, found a realtor. Danny was awesome. He gave me good guidance on what to look for and dragged me around looking at all sorts of things, some that I liked, some that I didn't and one that I ended up buying. His professionalism was awesome. He also sent me to the mortgage broker and he was quite helpful in explaining how mortgages work and what the process is. He also ended up getting me a good rate on my mortgage. These two folks, along with my notary who did the close made the whole process not as scary as I imagined it would be. I cannot say enough about how useful they were and how accessible they were when it came to silly questions I had. I had to jump through a fair number of hoops to get all the paperwork done, but in the end, I got everything in order, got the mortgage, bid on the house and what not.

The home inspector fellow Terry Rudolph from Cascadia Inspection was quite professional as well. I think he's a P.Eng and used to work in the construction industry before. He explained everything in his report in quite a bit of detail, explained what kind of construction is out there and why things are built the way they are. He seemed to know a tonne of stuff and tolerated all my questions. The only question he wouldn't answer was the one where I asked him if he would buy the place if he was in my place. Wisely, he said that he couldn't answer that.

Once everything was in place, I needed my stuff moved from the storage locker at Public Storage to the new place. I was referred by yet another friend who made the move to Strong Brothers Moving from Vancouver. These guys were good. They had everything in their truck and had everything inside my apartment in about the same amount of time as it took for them to load up. Probably because of the packaging from DC itself, my stuff was likely easy enough to move and quick to move. Still, they did an amazing job and were very professional about it all.

I've been surrounded by boxes and paper and stuff for about two weeks now. I am starting to see the place look like a real place now, minus some furniture I still have to buy. That should be rectified soon enough. So far, I am loving it. I am 1 block from the water, 1 block from the new skytrain, blocks from friends (another friend is moving in across the street on Canada Day!) and what not. It isn't like there aren't some issues... I miss not seeing my mum and the dogs. It is a bit odd to have to call my mother to talk to her seeing as she lives like 20 minutes away and works quite close to my new place. The sound of traffic takes some getting used to... as does the drunk/loony singers wandering the streets. Still, if I close all the windows, I hear nothing apart from the occasional fire truck.

I finally have Internet (Novus has been awesome so far) and office space with a door! Now I need a fan because it gets hot in the office. Apart from little things like that, I am quite thrilled with the place. I am once again off the car; back to carrying groceries and walking it home. Thankfully, downtown Vancouver is full of all sorts of good places within walking distance. Like Costco. And T & T. Or the little fruit shop across the street. There is plenty to eat out at. From the fancy Italian restaurant that is part of the building to Provence (which is a block away), there is lots and lots here to eat. And I can run on the sea wall, use the crazy facilities in the building and what not.

I don't know how I managed all this. Somehow, it feels a bit unreal. I had plenty of support from my friends and my family, a good deal of luck and a decent enough employer who pays me enough to barely afford all this :). I can't thank my friends enough for going to see places with me, answering all my questions, helping me put stuff together, lending me tools etc. Hopefully, all goes well and I will have an awesome time here. The take-away, if there is one, is that referrals are definitely worth their weight (if you trust the judgement of the person doing the referrals) in some kind of precious metal. Without that, I would have been worse off I think.

Anyway, its late here. If you're in town, come check out the place. I have an inflatable queen bed which can be handy if needed.

Sometimes, they deserve a swift kick in the ass

2010-06-07T22:48:00.000-07:00

I witnessed something today that made me feel very sad for Canada. As I was walking home from my bus stop today, I noticed 3 of my neighbours standing by and talking to each other by the road. Nothing special right? Right. They happen to be folks who look like they came from the far east of Asia. Except, if I spoke to them on the phone or looked at their well maintained lawn and garden, I wouldn't know they were Asian. If I were to take a guess, I would say they are people like the average person here; they worked hard, squirrelled away money and bought themselves a place, paid their taxes and went on with life.

A white Pontiac Grand Am was going by. It slowed down next to these people. The person in the front passenger seat threw something at them and then the car bolted out of there, turned right onto my street and disappeared. I wasn't sure what happened. I think those folks who got some kind of iced coffee drink on them were just plain stunned. I walked across my little street and asked them what happened... and they were shocked.

I suggested that perhaps it was a bunch of dumb kids, but one of the old guys said that they are old enough to drive. And he does have a point there. They're not 6 years old, they're at least 16 or so. I couldn't see the car by the time I got to the corner, it was long gone by then.

Now, maybe I am jumping the gun here, but it clearly looked like some stupid kids who have some less than nice thoughts running through their heads and decided to act on it. I am quite disgusted that it happened and that I saw it and that I could do nothing useful about it. There are only a few times in life when I wish I had some kind of useful superpower thing... I don't want to be batman or superman full time, but if I can catch those idiots and leave them hanging off the top of a building for a couple of hours in the pouring rain here while they figured out why they deserved what they got, I would be okay with that.

Beyond that though, I am saddened to know that this sort of sad behaviour happens in this place. I am sure it looks funny if you're 16 years old and have nothing else to do... but come on, find something else to do. Go for a run or something. Go train to participate in the Olympics. Go climb a mountain. Don't throw your trash on some old people hanging out by the side of their property having a perfectly lovely conversation about something. How about don't throw your trash out at all and recycle it instead?

I guess the only thing I can do is to try and be a better person every day in the hopes that maybe in my own small way, I can make the world a slightly better place. And as for those assholes, I hope they get diarrhoea. Lots and lots of diarrhoea. Nowhere near me, nowhere near anything I care about. And then maybe they can think about what they did. Or, if there is a superhero dude out there, do me a favour and fix these kids somehow. Thanks.

I miss the Olympics

2010-06-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

I fully intended to write about how awesome a time I had during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. I never did because I had too much fun during that time. If I were to be succinct, I would say that it was the best time I have ever had in Vancouver. EVER. The city buzzed with a veritable slew of happy (some drunk) people, running about, giving people high-fives, cheering on the athletes of all nations, talking about Canada's chances and generally having a great time.

Transportation worked. I was in downtown Vancouver nearly every day of the Olympics. I was able to get in and out in good time, within reason. I even drove down a few times and didn't run into major issues with traffic.

I went to a couple of curling games. I had an amazing time cheering the players and watching curling of all things with a huge crowd of people.

I spent a lot of time in Robson Square watching the festivities there and hanging out with the crowds. I stood in many, many lines for hours to get in and see various exhibits that various Canadian provinces set up, as well as those of other countries.I had an awesome time at the Holland Heineken House (those Dutch are awesome). I thought the Quebec presentation was odd... because it had no roof or poutine.

Above all, I think I saw Vancouver grow up into a city that was able to handle large events and crowds. We were the media darlings of the wealthy northern world for a couple of weeks. And I think we handled ourselves quite well. The weather wasn't perfect, but hopefully, the weather does not reflect negatively on us in any way. Many folks visited Vancouver (though none I know... sadly) and I think they liked what they saw. I hope they come back.

John Furlong and VANOC (the folks who organised the Olympics) did quite the job getting this thing off the ground and executed an amazing event. CTV did an awesome job of broadcasting the events on multiple TV channels and via the Internet. They didn't do so good a job with the Paralympics. That was unfortunate.

I also think the IOC and the IPC should sit down and figure out how they can run the Olympics and Paralympics together as a 3 or so week event. The overwhelming vibe I got from spectators and friends alike was that it was wrong to separate the two events. They are all athletes, able-bodied or otherwise. And I think Canada would have done better medal-wise. It didn't help that we had a couple of weeks of a break in between because the crowds and the excitement sort of went away.

The substantially overestimated horrors related to traffic, violence and noise and what not did not materialise. I remember prior to the Olympics, all sorts of people were making rumblings of how horrible this event would be for the residents of the city (it was no cake walk, but it was a small inconvenience in my opinion) and how badly off the city, the province and the country would be financially. All the numbers are not in, but I think this was very successful. Lots of people were in the city. Many were Canadian. We all spent a lot of money. We all had an awesome time. Everyone tried to buy those red mittens. Many were not successful. Many also wanted the Canada hoodies. They were sold out!

The Granville Street area that was closed off and had street performers, art exhibits and music was really well thought out. I am sad to see electric wires go back up there for the trolley buses. They should just keep that theme going with closed off sections of Granville Street, add music, art and lots of good food sort of like the food at the night market.

I could go on and on about how good it was, but I don't think I would do justice. As the BC tourism ads said, you gotta be here. Or rather, you should have been here.

A couple of weeks ago, when they opened up the athletes village to the general public (and started selling them to us at high prices), I saw John Furlong (ex-CEO of VANOC). The humble way he approached his job (maybe it was an act, but I liked it at any rate) and the way he carried it out to the end (and the way he dealt with the very tragic death of the Georgian Luger) has made him a very respected man let's say. The overwhelming sense of excitement in that crowd of a thousand or so people that day was that we did such a good job in 2010 that we should give it a go again. I said it all along that should we do well with this, we should seriously put in a bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

I honestly think we would make it our own games and deliver a highly successful and very Canadian Summer Olympics that the city and the world will talk about for a while. I think it will also give us enough time to win the bid and get our act together financially and otherwise to make it happen. And if John Furlong is up for it... I'll be the first to vote for the Olympics (there was a referendum the last time around where many city residents made a big deal about voting against the Olympics). And I am not kidding.

Good luck to the Russians in 4 years with this... I hope you can deliver a games as good as we did. I hope we do better medals-wise than we did this time around in 2014. I also hope we rock Canada House in London (I hope they have something like that in London in 2012). Anyway, a bit of a ramble, but to sum up, the Olympics were awesome and I can't wait to have that feeling again in the city.

No more Mr. Nice Chauffeur

2010-05-26T01:21:00.000-07:00

If you're eating or have any semblance of an appetite and want to keep it, stop reading. Or perhaps you are the sort that can handle it all. Anyway, the following story is a bit disgusting.

The last weekend was the Victoria Day long weekend when Canadians start doing fun summer things like going camping. Never mind that most people don't know that it celebrates the current Sovereign's birthday (and marks Queen Victoria's birthday)... Anyway, the rodeo was in town and along with 3 other friends, I decided to go see it. Or at least the Saloon portion of it. Which is to say that it is a large room (probably a gym or something), with a stage and lots of cheap, disgusting beer. Outside is a lot of carnival type food.

We proceeded to eat and drink while there... and some of us got a bit more tipsy than others. I had my bottle of water confiscated at the door to the Saloon because I suppose the folks who sell water inside the Saloon need to sell me a new bottle of water. Anyway, after many hours of standing about and enjoying the somewhat questionable country music, we decided to head home. My newly washed car (I had spent 2 hours in the afternoon washing it) was parked some distance away. As we walked back to the car, I asked everyone if they needed to throw up anything prior to getting into the car. As you can imagine, no one had anything to throw up. Good enough. We start driving. I get onto the Highway towards home. My friend in the front seat is dozing off. I keep driving. I look over at him and he's still sleeping... only now he's throwing up as well. Yikes.

I pull over to the side of the busy highway and ask him to get out of the car and finish his business. I see that some of that disgusting stuff is on my seat. Needless to say, I am quite taken aback by this turn of events. I am sitting there thinking how best to clear it all up, so I go ahead and find some of those wet wipe things and wipe the seat down. Disgusting. I give the guy a few of those things as well so he can wipe himself clean. That took about 10 minutes and we are off on our way again. I ask the guy if he's going to be okay and he says fine. So I continue. Few minutes later, I see him just going full tilt all over the seat and the floor of the passenger side. Yuck. I pull over once more (now right by a bridge) and survey the damage. The seat is covered. The floor is covered. My poor car.

The stench is far past bearable now. I go out to make sure the guy's not dead. He's not. He's throwing up chunks of beer soaked pizza and god knows what else. He's covered in puke himself; his jacket, shirt and pants are just a collage of chunky goodness. Err... grossness. I am sitting there surveying the disgusting scene in my car and the two clowns in the back of the car are howling with laughter. I couldn't help but laugh for a bit... it was a comical scene; 3 drunks, one soiled car and me trying to figure out how this nightmare would end. Another 10 minutes later, after trying my best to wipe the seat and the drunk guy clean, we are off once more. I am praying to all known gods asking that my car be spared any further damage. As we drive, the guy sticks his head out the window and throws up some more. Joy.

This went on for a bit. I dropped off one of the clowns and decided to head back to the highway to drop Sir Pukes-A-Lot home... and they changed the way the exits work! So instead of going West on the Highway, here I am going East. Worse still, I saw the sign say West... and ignored it in favour of listening to the remaining clown in the back of the car. Big mistake.

After making another loop, I headed back to the city. By this point, the guy in the back had figured out that I had some unopened (plastic covered) magazines there and fashioned a make-shift puke bag. That came in handy soon enough. More puking (this time in the bag) later, I got the guy to his home and sent him off with his puke bag and all the other crap along with a plea to not dehydrate.

After that, I dropped off the last person in the car (who had stopped laughing finally) and then rushed off home in the hope of cleaning up this horrid mess. I got home, thanked my lucky stars that the rubber mats had taken the brunt of the puke and proceeded to hose that off. Once that was done, I spent about 30 minutes trying my very best to clean off the puke on the seat (and bits on the floor) using lots of paper towels, latex gloves and disinfectant wipes. Not that it made much of a difference. After a half hour of cursing, I had done my best to clean up the mess. I went to sleep dreading the stain and stench that was still in the car.

I got up early enough in the morning and took stock of the mess. Red stains and a horrible stench. Just wonderful. I found a car wash fellow close to home and got him to shampoo the entire car and wash it all over again. $90 and an hour later, the car looked clean. The smell was quite another story. That didn't go away. I can't believe my car smells so disgusting. I have put dryer sheets in the car in the hopes of it masking the stench. And since then I have not been back to the car.

The lessons learned here are many. Foremost amongst them is that it is no longer cool to transport middle-aged drunks. Their reaction time is too long and their control of their various orifices is at best mediocre. I shall take transit from now on and meet people where ever. Or park and walk pretending to have taken transit or something. And I hope the universe owes me one for being saddled with this mess. And in case you're saying that was bad... something someone told me (when I related this story) struck a chord with me. It could have been worse. Like he could have had diarrhoea as well. When you look at it that way, I escaped with minor injuries! If you've got friends who have the urge to drink themselves to oblivion, let them. Call them a cab or something though. Or call their parents. That works even better.

Observations made while pounding the pavement

2010-05-10T22:47:00.000-07:00

My legs hurt. My feet hurt. My back hurts. And I would do it again.

I finished running the second largest 10km race in the world, hosted in Vancouver. The Sun Run is probably the largest race type event in Vancouver, but probably not the most entertaining or the most hard core. I finished my race in 1 hour 03 minutes and 54 seconds. That's 6 minutes, 24 seconds a kilometre. I placed 14739 (out of 51,419 people), 1657 in my age group (Males between 25 and 29).Technology is an amazing thing. My running, not so much.

I really, really, really wanted to finish the race, injury free in under an hour. That was my goal. And I was about 4 minutes short. I am quite disappointed in that result to be honest... but I guess I can always try next year. Or I can sign up for the next race, dubbed the Underwear Affair, a race to raise money for research into stuff below the waist or something. Apparently, lots of folks in their undergarments go out and have a fun 10km race. Not being an exhibitionist, I don't think I would fit in.

The Sun Run and my results taught me one very important thing: I am not ready for a marathon. While I was fine at the end of the race (I was able to walk a good chunk of the way back home), I doubt I could have run another 32 km. I think I need a lot more training before I can attempt a marathon and come out of that without hurting myself (and finishing the event obviously).

The weather yesterday was perfect. Sunny and about 15 degrees. It felt quite warm when I was running. I think next year that I will start one wave ahead (I was in the 'white' wave this year, next year I will skip up to the 'green' wave and start sooner) with more runners than walkers. One thing I found a bit annoying was all the folks who were walking right in front of the runners. The race is big enough that they shut down major roads in the city. They also put up signs every so often telling the walkers to keep to the right and let the runners pass. But apparently, people don't heed signs. There is plenty of space on the course for the walkers, the runners and the crazy folks. You also run into some strange things; like the fellow who was jogging while on the cell phone. I am not saying a clear route would have made a difference in my time... but it would still have been nice to get a clear shot at finishing the race sooner.

I am always amazed when people give up a nice Sunday morning to raise money for a good cause. Especially when Mother's Day is on the same day and can be used as an excuse to skip the hard work. While the race wasn't as well organised as it could have been, it was a remarkably smooth affair. If I could, I would get better music along the track (none of that sad sentimental crap; you want to pump up your runners, not make them feel like giving up) and mark the distance more often. It works for me if I can see how much further I have to go and what time it is (from race start). I am totally looking forward to next year's Sun Run, hopefully, we can beat the Peachtree Road Race (they apparently have ~ 55,000 runners, making them the largest 10km race in the world).

If I was crazy, I would try doing the remaining 2 marathons this year (but I won't). Nor will I try running up Grouse Mountain, but I will hike it. Some day, I hope to qualify for this race. But that's a long way off right now. Oh well, off to do my homework (yes, I am back in school).

Checking in on that list if things to do

2010-05-03T22:21:00.000-07:00

A while back, I made myself a list of things to try and accomplish in the next little while. Well, let's see what I can cross off:

~~Run the Sun Run (this Sunday)~~
~~Buy a place~~
~~Learn to ski (well sort of)~~

Not bad. Well honestly, the race isn't until Sunday, the place isn't bought until I have paid for it in June... and I don't know how much I can really ski. But its a start. I am slightly healthier and fitter than I was when I wrote the list, so I suppose that is indeed progress!

What if you build it and they don't come?

2010-05-03T00:51:00.002-07:00

Apparently, the correct quote from Field of Dreams is

If you build it, he will come.

I haven't seen the film. Nor do I completely understand the context.

I work for a software company. We build software to make education better. Or at least that's the idea. I am back in school once more. It is a bit strange to be back in a classroom now. There are people there who are like 10 years younger than me. Its a bit weird listening to their conversations. Some things don't change. Video games are still the norm for the overweight young adult male. Except it is something called Call of Duty or some such thing.

The platform used by the school I am attending is a rival platform to the one my employer builds and sells. We lost this contract a while back. This gives me a good opportunity to get to know this competing system and learn from it. Except... I don't see much use of it in there. The guy teaching my class has the simplest of things for the course. He has like 6 links in his course page so far. All of them link to either a docx file or a pptx file. And that's it. Oh and he uses the mail in there. But he admits that it is very limited.

Which begs the following questions:

Are we wasting our time building all these features?
Is he unaware of the potential of the platform?
Have I consumed too much of the corporate kool-aid and become a believer in technology for education to the point where common sense takes a departure... and I believe learning should involve use of e-learning platforms?

I don't know. I am not sure whether I was shocked at the simplicity of the course material or saddened by it. Hell, I can monkey this together in a few minutes on any site. A couple of <a href's> and some <li's> and what not and we're good. Is this why we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, hours of testing, crap and what not for? So that the instructor can link to a few word documents and power point presentations? Is this why they are not our customer? I don't know.

Recently (well, last summer; time sure flies), I had a conversation with a former co-worker. He's an awesome guy, taught me a lot of things. He wrote a couple of things on a piece of paper that I still hold onto to this day. Anyway, he's now a high school teacher. He teaches sciences and chemistry to those that can tell the difference between science as a subject and chemistry as discipline. I asked him about how they use technology to teach kids. His answer was along the same lines as the way I see my course material today. They use google sites. Or to be more precise, the kids used to mock up little sites on google sites and then link off to content and things. The teachers caught on fairly quick and decided to create pages for themselves.

There isn't anything super-fancy there. No fancy question pools or agents that can do things. Just storing the content in some place that is accessible to the student and the teacher. Technology that works and does the job. Without the fluff. That's a pretty novel idea I think.

I realise that this isn't how administrators or people in charge of education think (the various provosts and deans and what not at universities), but the more I think about it, the more I wonder what role we have in shaping education. These people don't see a need for it. Or at least, not enough to invest time in creating fancy course materials. Is it because it is too clunky to use? Too many clicks? Too much proprietary stuff that is not portable?

What is the point of all the work I do if a professor who teaches technology chooses not to use the significant feature set that is available to him? The product is not one I work on, but the idea is the same. What good is a product we spend hours to build if no one out there is using it? Or maybe they are... and I am spending too much time thinking about stuff rather than sleeping.

Oh well. Off to sleep. Thoughts? Well, say something then.

I'm in a lot of debt...

2010-05-02T00:03:00.000-07:00

If you get an email from me asking to wire me money to get an even larger sum out of some Nigerian prince's bank account.... that's probably a scam. But... I am in a large amount of debt. I did something recently. I wouldn't call it silly. I wouldn't call it smart exactly either. Or at least, if I could go back in time and change decisions made in the past, I would have done so.

So what have I done? Well, I went and put an offer on a small place. And the sellers accepted. And now, the bank and I own a little place. Well, mostly, the bank owns it. I have to pay them off, a little at a time for a very long time. This is all very exciting for me. And it was quite stressful while the whole process played out.

I can't believe I managed to buy a place. But when I look at what I have paid for a few sq.ft of apartment, it does make me feel a bit sad. But such is the reality of the real estate market in Vancouver. It seems to have a mind of its own, forgetting that the rest of the world seems to think that property prices are either flat or declining.

But since I live in Vancouver and need the proverbial roof above my head, that's what one has to do to get a roof. The home inspector tells me the roof is in good shape by the way.

As for what happens next, I shall get possession of the property in June and will proceed to move into the place slowly. I should hope to be moved in by mid-summer. I am excited to be able to furnish my new place and generally enjoy the feeling of home ownership while being constantly reminded of my debt to the bank. Hooray. If you find yourself in the Vancouver area and need a couch to crash on for a short period of time, let me know and I shall try and help out!

Another one bites the dust

2010-04-02T14:19:00.004-07:00

I just got off the phone with a friend who is at the airport who is making a journey to Brazil to propose to the woman he loves. Or something like that. I am very happy for him. It does feel a bit sad though, to lose a friend as it were. Yeah, I know, I am not really losing anyone, they are still the same old farts as they were before... its just that they need to ask for permission before they step outside their thresholds. Or something like that.

Apparently, there is a baby on the way for another one of them, another one is getting married in a couple of months and so on. Houses are being bought, baby rooms are being decorated, talk has moved from cars and drunken weekends to ultrasounds and what school district is a good place to buy a place. And I am happy for them all. Or something like that.

I knew this day was coming. I knew it wouldn't be pleasant. But the part that I am most saddened about is that it is happening so soon. Why couldn't all this happen in a few more years? Or am I just selfish or sad that this isn't happening to me? I guess it is something like that. I suppose I wouldn't feel so bad were I in the same boat as they are... off to eventual surrender. I know that sounds a bit extreme, but I don't think it is that far from the truth. I suppose, in polite circles, people refer to it as being considerate or something, but at the end of the day, it is a loss of freedom. Or at least freedom to do what _I_ think is good.

So maybe it is all this freedom I have that I am sad about. It is probably something like that. My grandmother has made it her mission in life to call me every other day and tell me about some girl or the other she thinks I should marry. But what if she's a lunatic? Oh, son, but that can't be the case. She's from a good family after all. Ha! The lunatics belong to that underbelly of society we don't associate with then? Well, son, that isn't quite the case. There are no lunatics out here... it is all your imagination. Okay then. So when are you getting married? You do realise that I am getting old and I want to see your wedding before I go. What about my cousin first? He's older no? Well, he won't listen to me. So shall I talk to this family then? Not any time soon. But why not? I don't know. I just don't fancy this car sales approach to choosing your partner in life. I mean, if the tyres are good and it gives good mileage and the wipers work well and what not... do I just buy it? What about how the car looks? Or what it will do in Canada with a medical degree that its fellow medicos deem unworthy? How about an engineer then?

How about I figure this out on my own? Do you know what happened to your cousin who is now nearing 40, is bald and can no longer find any girls? Do you want to end up like him? Even though he now wants to get married, there isn't anyone left to marry him. Do you really want that to happen to you? Well, no. Good. I know you're a good grandson, you will do as I say. I'll talk to these people who are coming in from America, their daughter is an engineer there only, so you guys will get along just fine. But what if she's a lunatic? She can't be! She's from a good family. But she's American? Not really, she's Indian.

The above is a typical conversation I have with my dearest grandmother on a regular basis. I love her to bits, but this getting married nonsense is getting me down. So my dear friends who are not yet married and are contemplating taking the plunge: don't do it just yet. Think of me. For god's sakes, if I lose all the single bastards, I'll be the weird guy who goes to the McDonald's at the mall to be sociable during the holiday season. Like on Christmas day. Do you really want that? Or even something like that?

Who will be the legends of our time?

2010-02-14T03:08:00.003-08:00

I've been reading more and more of late on Physics and Physicists and the sorts of work conducted in the recent past. I had come across this Airtel ad

a while back which goes into some detail about the many people who have made India what it is and it got me thinking... what will be the names they use in the future? The ad is a bit off... for example, there were many others (like Tesla and Marconi) working on radio communication during the same time as Bose...

It is truly amazing to me to look into the fascinating contribution of physicists from India. People such as Jagdish Chandra Bose and his namesake Satyendra Nath Bose (after whom the quantum physics particle boson is named) have made incredible contributions to our understanding of our world. But they are just some of the great names that come from the sub-continent. Still others like Ramanujan show a fascinating side of humanity; the need to learn, the need to be curious.

I am a big fan of the advertising agency that does Airtel's ads; their marketing is subtle and I for one wouldn't have guessed they were in the telecommunication business (well apart from the -tel in their name).

Somehow, they have captured an idea on film that speaks about communication in a different light than the number of minutes of talk time you have or the number of GB of data bandwidth you are allowed to use. Sprinkle in a little bit of the genius that is AR Rahman, and you have a winning advertising campaign. So are they the heros of our time? I am sure Rahman is, but can an advertising agency?

If we could step back to Physics for a second, I wonder if you can name a contemporary physicist. Or a mathematician or biologist for that matter. Because I can't. It isn't because they don't exist; there are plenty of very worthy scientists out there who win the Nobel prize every year (and probably a hundred more who don't win for every one that wins) but it feels like they have almost no impact on our lives. I feel like we are more obsessed with Lady Gaga or the lunatic fringes of political society than we are with science and the advancement of knowledge. I don't know what it was like for the great minds of the past during their lifetimes, but whatever the case, their work has had a lasting impact on the world in one way or the other.

Anyway, I am not quite sure where I was headed with this post... oh yeah, I was pondering who the people of the future will look back upon as someone who had made an incredible contribution to life as they will come to know it. I don't know. And I am sad I don't know. Can you think of any?

Self-interest

2010-02-08T01:02:00.002-08:00

I've been thinking a lot about why people do what they do. And the conclusion I have arrived at isn't one that surprised me nor do I think it will surprise many (or any if there are any) of the readers out there. People are almost always motivated by self-interest. While that probably isn't a revelation of any sort, I wonder why so many people couch it as some sort of altruistic thing.

There have been many recent narcissistic activities I have seen including the minister in the Indian state of UP who has decided a police force is in order to protect statues of herself. Statues that apparently cost $1 billion. I don't know about the math, but this cult-ish activity of erecting statues of oneself usually ends up with someone else coming in and taking down the statues by force. Remember Saddam Hussein's statue? So, why do I care about all this? I guess I don't really. I feel bad for the tax payers of UP for their money being spent on such silly activities, though I suppose the statue makers and the statue erectors and the ribbon cutters benefit with employment. I've noticed such activities closer to home though, that's why I thought I'd write about it.

You see, in about 4 days (this coming Friday!) Vancouver will be hosting the XXI Winter Olympics. As expected, there is a lot of celebrating going on here. Vancouver is an amazing place almost any day of the year (that's my yardstick... many people disagree with me about the rain but I don't care), of late, it has been especially more so. The officials who are organising the games have worked hard and we as a city have benefited a lot from the games coming out here. The cost of all this is a round 6 billion Canadian dollars. Of course, no one will really know the cost just yet, but I figure 6 billion is a good number. That's a lot of money. Keep that number in mind for a second.

Now, like any good event we have that brings out the revellers and the politicians, so too, the protesters show up. Many years ago, when I was in Canada for about a year, then Prime Minister Jean Chretien invited leaders from the Asia Pacific Economic Conference (APEC) to come to a conference in Vancouver. He chose a university campus as the venue. In fact, it was my future alma mater. I don't know what prompted such short-sighted judgement from the planners, but typically, university campuses are not exactly the place where you want to invite a bunch of politicians with questionable pasts. Like one fellow named Suharto. When that show came to town, all hell broke loose. Protesters were pepper sprayed, beaten and what not. At the time, there were many decent protest leaders who were protesting worth social causes. Or so we thought.

Fast-forward many years. Vancouver has grown tremendously. Property prices have sky-rocketed. The population has grown. We're a vibrant little city walled by mountains, Americans and the Pacific ocean. And we love living here. Some things haven't changed. Our climate is as mild as it was before. Our homelessness has not gone away. Our drug addiction problem has not gone away. Our solutions have not worked. So it was little surprise that there were honest people out there questioning the logic of spending 6 billion dollars to stage the largest event we've ever had when we also have Canada's poorest neighbourhood in the same city. There's barely 2kms between Shangri-la and the centre of misery in this city

View Larger Map

So, out come the protesters. I understand why they question it. But it seems to me that these people are interested more in being in front of the cameras of the estimated 10,000 media who are expected to be here. Many (not all) of the protesters seem to be activists who seem convinced that they are fighting hard for the downtrodden, the forgotten, the ones who made a pact with the devil as it were. Fine.

Actually, not fine. I hear a lot of drumming and chanting and complaining. I don't hear any solutions. Now, I can't really conduct an experiment here and give these people 6 billion dollars and see how they convert the downtown east-side into some kind of homeless utopia or somehow fix all the people who have substance abuse issues or are just plain unwilling to be helped. I don't even know if using the word fix is correct. None-the-less. I am very happy they live in a city and a country where their views are heard and covered by the media. But what are these drumming hoards going to do about it? Let us not just shake our fingers at the various wise men who spent 6 billion on this Olympic farce as it were, let us also hear how you will fix this issue. I'll go one better. Let's see you do something about it other than protesting. In addition to make a big deal about how you're fighting for the poor and the downtrodden, why not do something for them? And by that I mean something concrete and tangible. Not giving a homeless fellow a loaf of bread while the cameras and looking and then buggering off to your warm comfortable homes and telling yourself that you did good.

If you are that committed to your cause that you are willing to fly in people from other parts of this vast nation to make noise (all the way from Ontario apparently!), I want to see you also make them clean the streets and sidewalks, I want to see you try your hand at helping the drug users and the prostitutes and the homeless do something better. I want you to provide solutions that are practical and do-able. And I want you to stick around and make it happen. If you truly believe in all this, I think you will.

Call me sceptical, but I think many of these people are more interested in making noise and seeing themselves on the evening news than they are of really fixing the issue. I realise that fixing an issue as complex as the one we have in the downtown east-side where this country's poorest destitute people live isn't going to take place in a week, but doing _something_ is important. It makes me very sad when I see so much poverty out there. I don't know how to make it better. My solutions involve playing Santa there... running about town throwing money on the sidewalks in the hopes that these people get a meal and maybe a place to sleep. But that's not going to fix the problem. I suspect a good chunk of that money would be spent on making many drug dealers and criminal organisations rich.

Anyway, I know this is becoming a bit of a rant, but the point I am trying hard to make while not falling asleep is that a lot of people do stuff that is in their self-interest. But somehow they feel the need to make it look like they are doing some kind of favour to the world. Not all of us can be Mother Teresa. But if you're going to pretend to be one, try your hand at it before you make speeches and stuff.

If you know how to make things in the downtown east side better, I am listening.

Pro-rogue?

2010-01-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

I think I was listening to the radio yesterday and heard someone say that Stephen Harper was a Professional Rogue seeing as he prorogued parliament. While the sentiment expressed by that person is quite in line with what a lot of Canadians are expressing, I can't help but wonder where these people crawled out from. Canadian politics for the most part is a boring spectator sport. Our parliamentarians spend more time grandstanding and blaming each other for some silly thing than they do anything interesting. And I like it that way. I am very happy that I live in a country where the biggest parliamentary problem today is the fact that the Prime Minister pulled a cheeky move and shut it down until March.

I don't mean to suggest that I am in favour of what Mr. Harper pulled out of the hat; quite frankly, I am appalled at what he has done. My outrage has more to do with the way these elected people treat our institutions and the lack of realistic work being done by these people. These people get paid good money to go to Ottawa and spend time arguing about things and doing things to make life better for the rest of us. Now, these people have a 3 month vacation. A 3 month paid vacation. Its not like they are on strike or anything like that. They've just been given 3 months off to avoid the winter weather that plagues Ottawa it seems.

Our democratic form of government allows for procedures like prorogation in some circumstances. But they are not meant to be abused at every whim. It seems like the Prime Minister is using prorogation to try and avoid discussing various issues that are out there, chief among them the Afghan detainee inquiry. Instead of dealing with the issue in a sincere fashion (assuming all the things we hear from the government are to be taken at face value), the Conservative party has been busy sabotaging the inquiry and the (minority) government has been adept at slowing down the release of the documents that our diplomat in Afghanistan was sending to his superiors outlining his concerns that detainees are being abused. The only thing they have accomplished though is to make more people take note of it. I am sure they will still be talking about the detainee issue when parliament reconvenes in March.

The state of our political landscape makes me quite sad. We have a minority government that seems to be able to ride roughshod and see their agenda through. This is chiefly because the rest of the parties (who are all left leaning) don't have among them the common sense to keep the government in check. We have the Liberals who seem to have fallen from grace. They have had a string of second rate leaders who make Stephen Harper look good. The NDP doesn't count for too much here... if they had their way, we would be mired in a deficit 3 times what it is now and have unions flourish everywhere. We'd also probably be hurtling like a rock towards being a second rate country if they got their hands at power. All that leaves behind are the separatists. Thankfully, they are not much use to the country either. Thankfully, the secessionist tendencies in Quebec seem to be on a simmer and without that, the Bloc has precious little to do other than grumble about something or the other.

The sense of outrage shown by the opposition parties is spectacular though. The Liberals talk of the Conservatives lack of respect for the institutions of democracy. On the face of it, that sounds genuine. But the Liberals, when in power, have done exactly the same things. Rex Murphy's column in the National Post outlines his views on the circus and it is a good read for some background on the ill use of our institutions by both parties. The rest of them can talk about how they would be different, but I somehow doubt they would do any better had Canadians allowed them that much power in parliament.

As for the lay person out there expressing their outrage (or their support) at the act of prorogation, I wonder how many of them actually pay any attention to their day to day governance or whether they even vote in federal elections. People tend to express strong views when it comes to taxes and that makes sense; it costs you something. Surprisingly, many seem to have issues with prorogation as well (and some have a hard time saying it), though how it costs them, I am yet to understand. But I am glad they are at least paying attention.

At any rate, I am not happy with the stunt our PM pulled. And I would like my tax money back for all those days these MPs are going to spend not working. Because I could not do that at work and still keep my job.

I love being back in Vancouver!

2010-01-02T00:10:00.000-08:00

I know I say this enough, but it is worth repeating. I am *so* glad that I am back in Vancouver once more. The past few years, I was quite bored on days like New Year's Eve. Most of the people I knew were not around. This time around though, I got to hang out with my friends here and keep the neighbours up till god knows how long. I got home after 5 and I got a text message at like 8 asking about whether I had seen a lost party animal...

Days like this make me feel very thankful for the fact that I live here and have such awesome friends. Friends who open their homes (and I suppose hearts) to us so that we can have an awesome time. I spent a lot of time last night talking about what we as people from different parts of the world are doing in Vancouver. My drunk friends were listening to songs from their homeland (I think we all owe a thank you to youtube for helping us find obscure things we saw as kids on TV available once more), alternating from regular run of the mill pop stuff to hardcore nationalist stuff from both sides of the various wars they came away from. It was quite an amusing sight.

I also got to hang out with one of my friends who lives in Haiti. Well, he lives on a resort in Haiti, where he enjoys life to the fullest. His stories of Haiti are shocking though. The poverty there seems to be quite dramatic. Some of his stories are similar to the ones I have heard of Mozambique. Haiti sounds wonderful and depressing at the same time. Hopefully, I can go visit soon.

On the whole though, I think this has been one of the best New Year's Eves I can recall with plenty of food (We ordered food from Memphis BBQ), a liberal amount of alcohol and great conversations. I wanted to try doing the polar bear swim, but couldn't convince anyone else to go, so I gave up. There is always next year. This also seemed to mark the first time I haven't really spent time with my married friends (or those that are staring down the road to marriage) for New Year's Eve. Normally, we all meet up, but once you get married, there are families and kids and what not to take up your time I suppose. Priorities change. Still, last night was fun.

I am hoping to hit the slopes on Saturday and then go see a comedy fest with another visiting friend from google land. I hope all of my (one or two) loyal readers out there had a great New Year's Eve as well. Let's hope this year will be a good one.

Anyone remember Y2K?

2009-12-31T00:11:00.001-08:00

As the year comes to an end, the various media folks out there are compiling lists of things that happened during the year and during the last decade. I guess we all started 2000 wondering about this scary Y2K thing. I remember people saying that the lights would go out and the VCRs would awaken and try and kill us all... But that seems like such a long ago. I remember I had a cellphone then. But not even in my dreams did I think that there would be a phone that plays music and videos and allow for emails to fly through the air and what not.

A decade can make such a huge difference! One of the political countdowns had a picture of Arafat and Bill Clinton hanging out with Ehud Barak trying to make peace before the second intifada started. Seems like such heady times then. Since then, Arafat made an exit (permanently), Clinton went his own way, some lunatic bastards got on some planes and flew into buildings, George Bush started all sorts of wars and even he's disappeared from the face of the earth it seems. Mind you, the mess he left behind is still here, though day by day, it looks like we care even less about that.

The weather folks have their own countdowns too, our lovely British weather lady was saying that on the whole, this decade has been the hottest on record and Canada was warmer by 0.5 degrees Celsius than last year. Which makes me wonder how they measure Canada's temperature.

As for myself, if I had to make honourable mentions of things, what would I call out as being important? Well, I suppose getting something of an education and a job for two. Getting to live and see America would make it on the list. Going to visit a few places (I have a very large list of places I want to still see) would be another. Buying a car. I guess, in the grand scheme of things, nothing that significant. Although I have to say, the job is nice... it pays for almost everything else.

As to what there is to look forward to, let me see. I am sure the Olympics will count as one of the highlights for the upcoming year. So will owning my own place (or rather owing the bank a lot of money for many years to come in exchange for a place to stay). More education? Why not. But in what. Get married and all that? We'll see. I am not a big believer in marriage and happily ever after. Because it certainly seems not to be the case. Although, like Christmas, perhaps, there is something to it.

Anyway, since this is my last post of the year... I wish you all a safe New Year's Eve, a prosperous 2010 and all that other good stuff. Watch the Olympics in February and March, they should make for a real fun time. I for one hope that the Canadians do indeed 'own the podium' as they've been hoping for. And I'd really like to see the lone Indian fellow make his mark in the scary sport of Luge.

I'll stop with a question. What are you looking back on and looking forward to? Maybe those are two questions. But let me know.

My version of 2009 in a few words

2009-12-26T18:18:00.000-08:00

As I sit here on Boxing Day, I thought I would look back at 2009. My main inspiration for such a compilation comes from an entry of a similar vein from someone I have learned a lot from... so why not apply what we learn eh? So, what happened in 2009? A lot of things happened.

For much of the early year, I was, like many around the world (and most in the DC area and the United States) engrossed in the impending swearing in of the first non-White President of the United States. If I could use but one word to describe it, that word would be spectacular. I don't think I have ever been in a crowd that large and I will certainly not forget the sense of happiness and pride those people had. I know a lot of democracies cry about the disconnect between the voters and their government and the level of apathy that takes over the populace but the time leading up to the inauguration was indeed marked by the opposite.

February and March seemed to creep by far too slowly. Most of it was filled with work and the knowledge that I would not get a raise for the year due to the economic woes of the day. Those were not fun days. I did get to meet some really interesting characters from my company; we had our annual meet-up of people from around North America, Europe and Asia. I did make it out to Las Vegas for a bit in March with a dear friend of mine and I was glad to get away from work for a few days. Vegas was awesome and a lot warmer than DC. I got to see some really cool parts of America... including the Grand Canyon. The word there would be spectacular as well.

By April, I had made up my mind to make a rather big change in my life. I was going to leave DC for home. How I would get from that decision to implementing it was not that obvious to me. I think that's about when I started following the foodwishes blog and started trying some of the stuff Chef John talked about. I am hooked.

I can't think of what I did in May. I am sure it wasn't really all that awesome. I saw New York City in June. I went there with a few friends. Not to take away from any of that, but for me, the best part of this New York City trip (even after considering the Halal cart at 53rd and 6th) was the chance to meet up with a friend of mine from India. I saw him after 13 or so years by the Empire State building. It was awesome. I was truly thrilled with that trip. It also gave me a chance to see NYC when it wasn't cold or miserable. I was there a year before that with my grandmother and mother... but the weather wasn't all that great. I also grew a year older somewhere along the way...

Then came the craziest part of the year. My landlord lost her house to the bank in a foreclosure. I had to bugger off. I had to also go to Texas and do an awesome benchmark at Dell and eat really really good barbecue. I also had to present at a conference in July. Did I mention I was going to be homeless? It was quite a crazy few weeks but somehow, I got through it all. I managed to get all my stuff packed and taken to storage. I did my presentation, got to stay at the hotel the conference was going on in thanks to an ex-coworker (and now customer) and finally found a couple of really good Canadians to take me in for about 10 days. After the 10 days, I left for Vancouver. My departure from DC was quick... I never did get to see all those other places out there... but you know what? I was home in Vancouver!

Coming back to Vancouver was bitter sweet. I was thrilled to be home. To see my friends and go see the city. To hike Grouse Mountain. To go see the mighty Pacific Ocean. But some things change. People change. Things you expect to exist no longer do. Having said all that, I would still not trade any of those days for anything. I had an awesome summer in Vancouver. I went looking for apartments to buy. I watched as their prices rose like crazy. I didn't buy. I went to the Okanagan, had a fun weekend, spent some awesome time with friends and generally enjoyed British Columbia.

I enjoyed working from the time I got back at the old office on campus once more. Even though it was a quarter the size and filled with very quiet people, I had fun. Once school started up in September, it was a lot more interesting. For one thing, there were lots and lots of people on campus once more. Somehow, September and October just went by with Thanksgiving being something of a blip along the way. Work was crazy busy so I guess that's why I remember so little of it. Not that November was much better work-wise, but at least we had a day off in the middle with Remembrance Day. Remembrance Day is always something sombre here and I watched all the activities on TV. I didn't make it to Victory Square in Vancouver to watch anything unfortunately. I think I also started running around then getting ready for a couple of races in the Spring. Hopefully, I will be able to make it without injuries and under the times I set for myself. We'll see.

November was also the time I was trying to get tickets to the upcoming Olympics in February. The one word sentiment for that was frustrating. So far, I got tickets to a couple of curling games after hours and hours and hours of wasted time trying to get logged in. Nothing special, but at least I will be able to go be a part of the exercise. I'll probably never again be able to say I was at the Olympics. I think I managed to meet up with a few former co-workers for dim sum somewhere in November.

December is almost over and I got a few things done. I finally got my stuff shipped in from DC. Thankfully, it has arrived here, and so far, I think I have everything I packed up on the other end. Still outstanding though is a place to put it all in... so for now, my stuff is in a storage locker. I am not too thrilled that I don't have a place of my own to stay. I got off work for a little over half a month which was very nice. I went skiing the other day for the first time and didn't break anything. That was a relief.

So what's in store for the rest of the year? I don't know to be honest. I don't know what I am doing for New Year's eve, but I doubt it will be anything that interesting. I got to get back to my storage locker and search for more stuff that I am missing. I suppose that is something to look forward to.

At any rate, I am quite glad that 2009 is coming to an end. Some really good things happened during 2009 including me moving back to Vancouver. As for what there is to look forward to for 2010, I am sure there is a lot. For one thing, we should have a kickass Olympics in Vancouver in February. And hopefully, I will finally find a place I can afford and can be happy living in. What about the rest? We'll see.

Grouse Grind hike times and other fun stuff

2009-12-21T01:51:00.000-08:00

This year, I kept track of every hike I made up the Grouse Grind. I think I've blogged about the grind before: its a really good hike up a local mountain in Vancouver. People call it nature's stair master and they're not kidding. My best time ever up the mountain was about 55 minutes. Sadly, I was nowhere near that time for this (shortened) season. Here's what my hike times looked like for 2009:

The graph is courtesy of Google spreadsheets (part of Google docs). I wish the graph itself was more than just an image, I wish it was dynamic. I am sure Google will make that happen one day.

In other news, I headed out skiing for the very fist time (ever) to Cypress Mountain (close to Grouse Mountain) today in the pouring rain. I have to say skiing is quite a bit different than snowboarding. The mountain was not busy on account of the weather and we had to drive through some wicked fog to get to the parking lot. I like that you can park the car, walk a bit and get on the chair lifts right away. At Grouse, you have to take the gondola up first and then the chair lifts. Anyway, I didn't get a whole lot of skiing done today because I was not too adventurous (I didn't even go up the bunny hill, I just hiked up a bit and skied down) and then they closed the mountain down early because of the lousy weather. Which meant that I got a refund on my lift ticket. That was nice. I think I will go get a lesson or two before I try skiing on my own. It looks far too easy to get hurt trying to come down snow and ice with no knowledge of how to interact with the snow. It was fun none-the-less.

I had gone up with a couple of friends and we ended up giving a couple of Czech girls a ride down the mountain. They are on a travel visa here for a year and as with many such folks, they work on the mountain and I guess they missed the last shuttle off. So the five of us, we packed into a little car and headed back down the mountain in the dense and shifting fog and safely made it home. My knees are a bit sore and I am tired overall, but I am glad that I got some skiing in and managed not to break anything. The Czech girls had interesting comments about Canada and how we weren't as friendly as we'd like to think we are. Quite an interesting bit of info if you ask me. It gives us a chance to improve I suppose. And they have an interesting life. They seem to travel around the world and live in different places and get to know the way people there live. Apparently, they are thinking of heading to Australia or New Zealand next year. Good luck to them!

Climate change woes

2009-12-21T01:18:00.000-08:00

I have been a (relatively) silent spectator to the various goings on of these much hyped climate talks in Copenhagen recently. But now that the circus is over, I thought I would jot down my thoughts on the issues raised there.

There are still sceptics in this world who question whether climate change exists and whether it is a man-made phenomenon or something that occurs naturally. There are also people out there that question whether one Charles Darwin was high on some really good crack when he came up with the idea of evolution. But we will leave Mr. Darwin out of this one. Let me say that I believe that climate change is happening and that it is man-made. That is not to say that I completely understand the science behind it all, but I can say that I trust the people who say that change exists and I believe they are credible and worth listening to. In case you're wondering what I am not sure about, or interested in finding out about, I am curious to know how they measure green house gas emissions for one... its not like you can catch it in a closed container and measure its volume at standard temperature and pressure or something... but that is a tangent we shall leave alone for now.

The lead up to the conference was quite the event. All the world's media and all the world's politicians were doing their bit to get noticed. A bunch of guys in the Maldives decided to conduct the business of making and amending laws under water to show what might happen to them if climate change is not dealt with decisively. Various Canadians ranted and raved about how the Europeans have made cuts and how they are successful and how we are not doing our fair share and falling behind and so forth. Still others insist that we are a northern country and an industrialised one at that and need to heat our homes and power our industries and thus need to generate a lot of energy and are thereby expected to pollute. Others were out defending the oil sands of Alberta, now something of a stigma and a shame for all those green-savvy liberals. Many people are concerned about the polar bears and their vanishing habitat. I see a sign every day on the skytrain with a polar bear that has zebra like skin markings that says evolution is not an option. I agree.

Still others play games with numbers. Some guy was saying we only generate 2% of the world's emissions. That actually sounds reasonable until you do the Math. We are a country of a little more than 30 million people. Assuming the world is still at 6 billion human beings, we are 1/200th the size of the world's total population. And yet, we produce an astonishing 2% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions! If we were to play with the numbers a bit, China and India could pollute on massive scales and still get away with it. Some think they are.

Whatever side you are on, whether you believe the world has actually accomplished something worthwhile at Copenhagen or just wasted our tax payer money and their time... the reality is this: climate change isn't waiting for Obama or any other messiah to sort itself out. With our development as a species and with our social progress as nations, we are polluting more. It seems that the majority of the world has its heart in the right place. On the grand scale, I think most of the industrialised and recently industrialised countries agree that green house gas emissions are something that needs to be curbed and perhaps reversed. But no one is willing to take the first step because they don't want to be at an economic or political disadvantage. Nor is anyone disagreeing on the fact that less developed countries should be allowed to develop. With better technology so they don't pollute as much. But this too is debated to death with no firm conclusion.

Most of this makes sense to me. I think largely, the populations of the world are also in agreement on this matter. We all want to live with a clean conscience, we all want to not have our great grand children or whoever suffer from the lack of action on our part. But, very few of us are actually willing to do anything about it. It is amazing to hear the amount of criticism heaped on the Canadian government by all sorts of people and organisations. Do they deserve it all? Sure, some of it is well deserved. Signing an agreement and then doing absolutely nothing to meet its obligations is rather shameful. Both federal parties in Canada that were and are in power are guilty of that. It irks me to see that. But what bugs me more is the impending sense of doom that many people parrot but these same people will not do one thing to reduce climate change or their own impact on the environment. Let's be honest: when Canada pollutes, it is us 30 million or so Canadians that pollutes. Sure, there are industries... but they are not some magical entity that is at fault here. Canadians work in these industries, Canadians use the products of these industries. It seems all right to blame the oil sands for making us look bad but remember that the oil sands also pay vast taxes to the Canadian governments and employ many people who in turn pay income tax and send kids to school and what not. It also produces fuel which we use to drive and fly about this country.

I suppose, if you're an armchair follower of politics, it makes a lot of sense to be angry at the Conservative government we now have and shake our heads at how out of step they are with Canadians on this matter. But what would be better in my opinion would be for Canadians themselves to just change the ways they live, change the way they consume energy and change the way they pollute. If we can change, I am sure the government will come around to it. I mean, sure if 10 people decide to bike to work 3 days a week, in the grand scheme of things, nothing has really changed. But perhaps the government will see that 10 people are making a change in lifestyle and maybe build bike lanes or give you a tax break for not driving a polluting car. I don't know if that would happen... but we shouldn't be doing it for monetary incentives anyway. We should be doing it because we feel it is the right thing to do.

The government can make changes. I am not sure people will like it though. I drive a car from time to time. I am well aware of the price of fuel in British Columbia. We have a fuel surcharge added to every litre of fuel we use for our vehicles... a tax to pollute, sometimes referred to as a carbon tax. No one likes to pay it. But that is one way government can try and help. Now, what concerns me is what happens to all that money. Does it actually go to be used to improve the environment in some way? A utopian notion of that would be the government building windmills with carbon tax money. Or does it go into general revenue and the government allocates it as it sees fit? I don't know. But knowing that if I pay 3 cents per litre and spend 60 cents per fill up on the carbon tax... and then magically 60 cents gets spent on something to reduce green house gas emissions takes place, that will make me feel less unhappy about paying the tax. Better still, if I could somehow measure all the carbon emissions I cause as I do my day to day things, I could try harder to reduce the things that are truly the worst of the lot. This sort of thing can work. If you tell me that I can climb Grouse Mountain (a local mountain in Vancouver) in 55 minutes, I will try and beat that time the next time I go up. Its just in our nature to be competitive. If you tell me I release 10 litres of x type of green house gas by driving to work in my car today, maybe I will drive less knowing that 10 litres of x type of gas are not going into the atmosphere because I biked to work. Providing this type of information to people will allow them to make more informed decisions. Sort of like calorie counts on food items.

I realise its a lot easier to complain about things rather than actually do something about them, but if we as a world are serious about climate change, then I don't think we should wait for governments, lawyers and technocrats to show us the way. Rather, I think we should get going and hopefully, they will get the message and catch up. So, does anyone know how I can reduce my green house gas emissions? I have the obvious ones covered. I take public transit or walk as much as I can. I try and eat less animal based food (apparently, those flatulent cows are pretty bad for the earth), I turn off stuff I don't use (from monitors to lights to stuff that's just plugged into the wall for no good reason). But what else can I do to make this a better world? Remember, the cuddly polar bears are losing their homes. And your grand children's future is in the balance.

Of Princes, puddles and Olympic games

2009-11-17T01:17:00.000-08:00

It has been a busy few weeks out here on the Wet coast of North America. November seems to be zooming along at a great pace. Our future King made an appearance in Vancouver, sparking all sorts of debate about the role of the monarchy in this Dominion and whether it will end with the demise of our Queen. The final phase of Olympics tickets went on sale in Vancouver. I didn't get any tickets. And it has been raining like crazy here. Apparently about 220mm worth of it. I also went and met up with some people whose story is quite a good one.

Let's start with our Prince. As many of you hopefully know, Canada is a Constitutional Monarchy. In rough terms, that means that we are part of a Kingdom or realm... in this case, one headed by the House of Windsor. We have a monarch. We like to call it the Canadian Monarchy. The Canadian Crown. This is rather important. For example, when speaking of the Queen in the context of Canada, she is Queen Elizabeth II of Canada (and then Great Britain and her other dominions). She's also Elizabeth II, la Reine du Canada. She is the Head of State. When she is in Canada, her Royal Standard is flown and takes precedence over any other flag. She is the head of the Canadian Royal family. I make the painful distinction to point out how much she is a part of _our_ country. She is Canadian. Pretty much everything you see in this country is connected to her. Our money has her face plastered all over it. Our Parliamentarians are Her Majesty's parliamentarians. This is Her Majesty's government. There is Her Majesty's loyal opposition. All land owned by the government is called Crown land. That is, it is owned by the Crown. She is Commander in Chief of the armed forces of Canada. The Law Courts are courts of the Crown. Our laws are not laws until they get Royal Ascent (which means the Queen signs it into law). When you break them or take the government to court, it is in her name that you will be prosecuted. That is, it is you vs Regina.

This country would not function without the Crown. So far so good right? Well, now come the kinks. Enter HRH Prince Charles, heir apparent to the Canadian throne. And his wife who will one day become Queen of Canada. Sure, they say she will never use the title, but legally, the wife of the King will be Queen. It doesn't work the other way. That is to say, the husband of my Queen regnant will only be Prince Consort and never King. Thank god for that. A lot of people seem to think Canada needs to move away from the monarchy and become a Republic. Sure, it sounds sexy. Others have done it, why not us? What is the relevance of a monarchy in the 21st century? Who needs a Queen or a King, especially ones that live far away in Great Britain? What are we, second class citizens that we have to be dictated to by a bunch of people in a stuffy palace somewhere in England?

Those are some of the sentiments I have heard. There are some merits to these questions. Why shouldn't we become a Republic? Well, because it makes little sense to change the form of government we have. What sort of Republic would we want to be? An American style Republic where the head of government and the head of state are the same? A Westminster style Republic like many of our brothers in the Commonwealth where a ceremonial President is head of State while the power to govern is in the hands of a Prime Minister? Or should we just elect our own King or Queen? Or Governor General? I'll get to the whole Governor General and head of state in a second. But what are our choices? I don't like any of the alternatives. For one, they cost too much. If we elect a head of State like a President or Governor General wannabe, we will surely go down the road to hell. If there is anything I have learned as a resident (and citizen) of Canada, it is that our politicians, while they mean well, can't make big decisions. If I may borrow a line from the fantastic fabrication that is Braveheart, it is to say that our politicians cannot agree on the colour o' shite if their lives depended on it. We will spend the rest of our days in Constitutional limbo trying to figure out if the head of state should be a francophone or a visible minority or a francophone woman from a minority. And then of course, he or she would be political... they will be Liberal or Conservative or have Socialist leanings and what not. The office of whatever you want to call it will forever be plagued with complaints about bias. That is surely not better than what we have today.

My main argument for keeping the system as it is, is as follows. The Queen is a fairly benign entity to Canada. She's our head of State and lives elsewhere. She is above politics. She doesn't cost us that much (aside from whatever expenses we incur when she or her family come to visit and whatever Rideau Hall ends up spending on flowers). The Crown has worked well (and quite well at that) for over 400 years. Changing the system will cost far too much. Would you really want to reprint all of our money? Change every symbol related to government that is out there? Remember that pretty much anything out here has a Royal something attached to it. You can't walk away from that and keep the relics of the monarchy. What will we be left with? Nothing. Will we have the Canadian Coldstream guards? The Canadian Blackwatch? The Royal Canadian Mint? The Royal Regiment of Canada? Royal Warrants? The Gray Cup? Lord Stanley's cup? Do you really want it to be called Don Cherry's tacky cup and have it dressed in some god awful fabric (don't get me wrong, I like the guy, but really..)? No. We will lose all that.

Do not forget that we are British North America. We are _still_ part of the British empire, whatever stage it is in. We are different from others on our Continent. We have a heritage and tradition that is free from the fires of Revolution. We are Canadians. I don't get why we have such an issue with our heritage. We are the ones who collectively went to war for others freedom an ocean away. And not once at that. Being a Constitutional monarchy does not diminish who we are as Canadians. She is _our_ Queen. Remember that. And after her time, he will be _our_ King. My King. I don't care who the 'he' is, but I have tremendous respect for what it represents. It has given our country 400 years of stability and god forbid the day we ruin it. The last argument I will make about this is as it relates to our francophone population. Yes, the English won on the plains of Abraham. Yes the French lost. But we are Canadians. We are not English and French. We are British Columbians and Quebecers. We are the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens. We are not the French from France or the English from England. We are Canadians. This is our heritage. I am very proud of the fact that Canada is a bilingual country. One of my hopes is that one day we all embrace it to the point where we can understand and converse as easily in one language as we can in the other. Anyway, long story short, God save the Queen and leave my head of State and government alone. Worry about why Canadian teams haven't won the Stanley cup in over 16 years.

So actually, this isn't the last about my bit on the government. Let me clarify. When the Queen is not in town, she appoints a representative. This person is nominated by the government (more correctly, by the Prime Minister) to represent Her Majesty when she's not in town. That person is called the Governor General. In every province (since we are a federalist government), there is a Lieutenant Governor who is HM's representative in the province. The Governor General is the representative of the Crown in Canada when the head of State is NOT in Canada. The moment she sets foot in Canada, she assumes the title of Queen of Canada and the Governor General retires to a nice place somewhere in Rideau Hall perhaps. I have heard (and read) more than once that the Governor General is the Head of State of Canada. That's just horse shit. The Governor General is the representative of the Crown. Canada's head of State is Her Majesty in the Right of Canada, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada. Please get that right. There are no ifs and or buts about that.

Onto the Olympics. One reason why HRH Prince Charles came here was to inspect our progress in getting ready for the games. I tried very unsuccessfully to get tickets to see anything at the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler. I can't tell you how disappointed and angry I am that I couldn't even get into the damn site to get tickets. I mean, what the heck? I sure as hell hope that whoever ended up buying all those tickets does not get to sell them back to the public for a profit. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and not one where the grubby greedy hands of cretans should be allowed to spoil my chance at cheering my national team to victory. All that was left when all was said and done were tickets to some crappy hockey games (Belarus vs Sweden, really? $140 for that? I could have watched the Canadians play the Americans for that) and the victory ceremony. What a rip-off.

It has been pouring cats and dogs out here. I can't believe how much rain has fallen. We actually have puddles. We have a pretty decent drainage system here because of all the rain we do get, but with the fall leaves covering drains, we are seeing flooding in places. Apparently, over 200mm of rain has fallen in the last 2 days. Crazy! I got drenched today going to and coming back from work. Its not all that good when its slightly above freezing with crazy winds out there. I love the rain. But getting this much of it in such a short period really makes me wish for summer to be here now. Someone told me today that the monsoons have arrived. And they are right. Except for the lack of warmth and the thunder. Its outright soggy and mushy out there... eek. And apparently, the temperature is rising and so all that snow from the last couple of weeks is melting. Not good for all those who live by creeks and on hills. Let's hope we get through without too much damage.

And finally, onto a good story. This story does not have a good beginning if you ask me. It starts with a war. In an area called Indo-China. Where various people were fighting Communists and Capitalists and working hard to kill one another. A family of 4 escaped that mess. They somehow got on a boat from there and somehow ended up in Canada. The father was 40 at the time. The mother 40 as well. The children, just wee little ones. They had nothing. They didn't have a grasp of the language. The weather was alien to them. Years went by. They worked hard. Very hard. They prospered. Twenty-five years later, at 65, the father was celebrating his birthday with his friends and his first grand child. He speaks with grateful tears of what he has accomplished. Of what this country gave him. A chance to live the dream. He has a lovely house, plenty of food and most importantly, health, hope, faith and love. This man is the father of one of my good friends. And that wee boy has, like me, moved back from America back to Vancouver :).

Stories like Viet's are why I am so proud to be Canadian. It shows that these countries take in people in need and give them a fighting chance. To succeed and become productive citizens. As Emma Lazarus wrote,

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Our brethren to the South espouse this and so do we. Thank god for these countries. It makes me appreciate what I had and still have. I have two homes. No one chased me away. No disaster made me leave. My parents did. But I go home. And I go home with joy knowing that I belong in both places.

Though he may have a limited command of the English language, that old man expresses his thanks for living here in as many words as he can. The sentiment is quite clear. His joy is also very clear. And his instructions to me are also very clear. Get married soon. He's apparently expecting 10 grand children. And we get to contribute :). Oh and in case you thought he was too busy celebrating his birthday, he did find time to ask me what my religion was and to tell me the neighbour across the street is also Hindu and that he has a daughter about the right age for marriage. Happy 65th Birthday Mr. and Mrs. Le (who is 5 days younger!). I hope to celebrate many, many more with you guys. And I assure you, the day I find the right woman, I'll let you know. If you find her before me, send her my way.

I learned a lot this week. I love my countries. I love my life. I am very lucky. Even if I am still somewhat drenched :). God save the Queen and Jai Hind.

And what have we learned, Charlie Brown?

2009-11-07T19:49:00.005-08:00

I came across this video as I was reading up on things and I thought it was rather a nice way to remind ourselves of our recent past. Sometimes, Charles Schulz had a way of teaching all of us young and old a little bit about the world. All I can say is, we shall never forget.

Tell me this isn't so

2009-10-12T03:34:00.000-07:00

I have something of a set ritual every day when I wake up. I try and dodge the alarm clocks. I have an old little analogue alarm clock I set for around 6am. I also have the alarm on the blackberry set to (depending on how I feel the night before) about the same time. I usually don't hear the regular clock for whatever reason. Anyway, one favourite technique of avoiding the alarm is to wake up, pick up the blackberry and head back to bed. I keep the thing deliberately away from arm's reach so that I have to get up to turn it off. Usually, it ends up with me taking the phone back to bed with me and leaving it by my head so I can hit snooze again in 10 minutes. Sometimes, I read the already queued up emails (being on the West Coast of North America means that the Indians, Chinese and the East Coasters have already finished/started their day). I also, if I am up for it, check facebook and the BBC in that order. And so it was Friday morning last week. The headline of course, in case you have forgotten, is that the President of the United States won the Nobel Prize for peace. I dozed off. I think I woke up at the next alarm ring and checked again to make sure I wasn't dreaming that one up.

I wasn't. My first reaction was... for what? Traditionally, the Nobel prizes are held in fairly high prestige around the world. Its not so much that people compete to win, its more just something very prestigious to be associated with. I know that my Alma Mater has been dreaming forever of winning more Nobel prizes. To date, we have a single one, that of Dr. Michael Smith. There are other measures of a research university besides winning Nobel prizes (say, publishing in a prestigious journal like the Lancet or Nature)... but winning a Nobel prize seems to be the gold standard as it were.

The peace prize is probably the only controversial one of the lot. It seems like they are given out (not always) for political reasons. That is not to say that many of the winners are not worthy; people like Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela and organisations like the ICRC are perhaps the epitome of the award but sometimes, the Norwegians hand the award out to some questionable characters out there. Like say one Henry Kissinger. Someone many people consider worthy of being sent to the Hague to be tried for crimes of war committed primarily in many South American countries during his time in the State Department and as National Security advisor. One such event was that other September 11th, way back in 1973, for those who care to go find out more. Or say Arafat, Rabin and Peres. Or Al Gore. And now Obama.

Nevermind that the citations were for some noble cause in most cases; in the case of Kissinger, it was for the end of the hell that was the Vietnam war, in the case of the trio from the middle-east, it was for the Oslo Accord. Al Gore won probably because of that film he made and for his talk on global warming in a country that officially didn't accept it (at the time anyway). I am sure there are plenty of people out there who believe, one way or the other that these people didn't deserve their awards and should be thrown in prison or mocked for their hypocrisy or something like that. Equally, I am sure there are those out there that believe their contributions were legitimate to the Nobel committee's stated citation, no matter what they did before or since.

The Obama nomination is something else though. Pretty much anyone else prior has done _something_ to deserve their award. We can point to something tangible to justify that. Henry Kissinger _did_ help end the war in Vietnam. The three musketeers from the Middle East _did_ indeed sign the Oslo accord (and Clinton made sure they shook hands) in the (I think genuine) hopes of making peace amongst their people. US President Obama was nominated two weeks after he was sworn in as President. His citation talks about "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples". Aside from making a promise to close the illegal prison in Cuba, he had not done much else other than being a) not Bush and b) the first half-black President of the United States. His election did indeed bring about something of a renewal in the United States. People seem to have genuine hope and a wish for a more progressive prosperous and non-violent United States. Or at least one that is much more multilateral than the prior administration.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am not anti-Obama or pro-Obama. I am merely interested in the man. Generally, I think he has been good for the image of the United States; Obama is much more palatable as the person representing the United States compared to the cretins from the previous 8 years. Some of them are probably responsible for crimes against humanity and will never face justice for their crimes. But that is the world we live in. Obama is also a very eloquent man who has expressed some incredibly noble thoughts and ideas to various parts of the world. I recall seeing a survey they conducted in Canada which said that Canadians would elect Obama by a 94% margin. For those keeping score, that is much higher than the percentage the Americans themselves were willing to elect him by. Not that the poll has much credence because a) it is a poll, b) Canadians do not get to elect American presidents and c) Canadians are a lot more left leaning than our American cousins. Suffice to say, Obama is a rock star in Canada. Canadians probably know more about him and his life than they do about their own leadership.

Anyway, the point here is to ask what exactly Obama has done so far to be given the Nobel prize for peace. I am baffled as to what he has done to strengthen anything. He hasn't said silly things like "If you're not with us, you're against us" for example, but does that qualify to put him the same league as Linus Pauling? He hasn't started any new wars based on highly questionable intelligence or flimsy lies. Does that qualify him? He hasn't added any new country to the Axis of Evil yet. Is that enough? He hasn't really made any headway with any of the issues that the world has put on his plate (and ones he has gladly championed)... the plight of Cuba, the lunacy of what is going on in the Middle East, the mess the previous administration left with the two active wars, the illegal prison in Cuba, the support for questionable governments (like the ones in Pakistan, Israel, Saudi Arabia), the alarming changes in climate and so on and on and on. He is the President of the United States, not the President of the rest of the world. Just because we want him to solve all the problems out there... it doesn't mean he will. I don't know what he has done to get the award. I am baffled as to why he was given the award.

Note that this is jealousy or some kind of anti-American rant or anything like that. I've so far heard many people have issues with people questioning the logic behind handing him the award. I feel that some of these die-hard supporters of Obama consider than in the same vein as someone picking up a rusty nail and poking the eye balls out of a cute puppy and then stomping it to death. I mean, yes, he's a half-black man, he won fair and square in the election and he means well and electing him is quite an accomplishment for the United States of America in their quest to reconcile their sordid past... but he is no god or demi-god for that matter. He's just a guy. And he's going to do what all the guys before him did. Protect the interests of his country in a world where there are winners and losers. That means that if it makes economic/political/military sense, he will support a murderous regime. That means he will gladly do trade with one communist regime while doing his best to starve another. It means that he will always see one group of middle easterners as legitimate and the other as corrupt and one that encourages terrorism. This isn't going to change. Obama may be a half-black President. But he's not nuts.

Or maybe I have underestimated the Nobel committee. Perhaps they are much smarter than I give them credit for. Perhaps they have hanged the carcass of the dead albatross around Captain Obama's neck while he navigates the rough waters of the world. Perhaps they have pigeon-holed him into not doing anything too nasty by giving him the peace prize. Because after all, the expectation of the world now is for him to live up to the award he already been given. This is a bit orthodox if you ask me, but it might just work. Give someone an award and maybe, just maybe, you can force them into acting for the collective good of the world.

At any rate, interesting times are ahead.

Realisations made while driving around town

2009-10-06T00:11:00.002-07:00

One of the things I missed terribly while I was out of Vancouver was the lacking in my life of interesting events that I actually enjoy. Not the type where someone tries to break into the house... I mean pleasant things. I've done some interesting things in the spur of the moment... and on Sunday, my friend and I decided to drive all the way across town to get a burger. Not an ordinary burger mind you, this is one good burger. Except I didn't get one. Because I had already eaten. Anyway, to Vera's we went.

As is usual with most of my friends, we talk about a few staples. I think most guys talk pretty much about the same things. Women. Cars. Sports (if we can agree on what). Money maybe. We somehow ended up on the topic of women. We pulled into a petrol station and there in the next pump was this absolutely gorgeous woman filling petrol in her car and then wiping her windows down. There was something incredibly attractive about that. It helped that she was indeed very good looking and she had a very nice car (a Honda Prelude custom painted in purple with some really nice rims). She seemed to be a Broncos fan too for some reason... at least that's what the team in Denver is called I think. How do I know? She was wearing a Broncos sweatshirt. I looked over and my friend was not quite paying attention to the filling of gas, he was staring at her like I was while pretending to fiddle around with the fuel tank lid.

I wanted to honk the horn and tell her that she's welcome to wipe his car too since she seemed to enjoy wiping hers. But I didn't. Nor did I step out of the car and go say hi. Why? I mean realistically, what is the worst thing that could happen? She would probably leave and think I was some kind of pervert. No harm done, the chances are, I will never see her again anyway. But that got me thinking... what does a guy have to do to meet a girl? I've been to plenty of bars since I turned 18. I think I've talked to a handful of women. None of them were very interesting. And apart from the couple of women who took a fancy to me (and that always makes me wonder what trick she has up her sleeve...), I would not say I have had good times meeting women at bars. Not that I am looking to meet some bar wench... but that's where a lot of people here seem to go to meet others. The chances of meeting a sane and sober woman in a bar and having a conversation I consider normal are non-existent. Or at least as close to non-existent as I can tell from the past 10 or so years.

Where else? Work perhaps? I work in the software industry and in a little satellite office where meeting people who wear shoes is a relief... so the chances of me meeting a woman at work are also non-existent. And again, I am not sure meeting someone at work is a good thing... what with both your careers having the chance of going down the drain depending on corporate policies and what not. And unfortunately, the women in this field tend to be, in the words of a friend, third-world ugly.

Where else? The bus? That has never worked for me. Either I am trying to sleep on the bus or I am trying to read on the bus. And while I am surrounded by many women on the bus, I don't think I have ever talked to them in the 10 or so years I have taken the 99 B-line to UBC. I think you can easily come off as creepy or strange or whatever if you approach someone on the bus like that. One of my friends did ask a girl out on a date on the bus once... something about her eating carrots and him asking her to share. Somehow, that sounds very cheesy to me but it worked for him. Damn carrots.

So, where else is one to meet these elusive women? I've talked to plenty of them at stores and stuff. You know the smiling girls at the coffee shop or the store selling crap you don't need or at the local restaurant that only hires women of a certain body type. But they are just trying to do their best to make a sale or get a better tip or whatever. They are not interested in me or the fact that I can write backward or upside down at about the same speed as I can regularly. Or about what I do or what I want to do in life or why I think we should try and spend time researching micro-turbines as a way to generate energy using residential graywater...

I'm fresh out of ideas on where to meet them. I've had some success going anywhere where they exist with the two dogs... dogs are, as they say, chick magnets. But then, they are really interested in the dogs and not me. Most of the time, I stop and think and say, yeah, if I say or do something, it will come off as creepy. Now, I am not out to get a pound of flesh from society for making it this way... plenty of people meet plenty of other people, its just I don't know how and I don't know where to do it. If I listen to my family, their idea of solving this problem is to outsource it... literally. Lets send for a wife in India. Like you're shopping for a pair of shoes. If she has X education, she gets a check. If she's has this colour skin tone and her family is of this caste then we get a few more checks and what not. But that doesn't work for me. Chances are, some poor woman will end up being miserable here and make me miserable... all for some misguided chance at a 'better' life in Amrika that some lunatic in her family convinced her of. You know, the America where the ground is paved with gold and where we wipe our bottoms with rolls of Benjamins (and yes, many people I have met back home can't seem to fathom that there is a Canada that is different than America... which saddens me both for them and for Canada). All this is aside from the fact that people tend to treat you as a commodity... education, looks, skin tone, voice, height, weight, family connections... all have a value associated with it. Your aim is to maximise the value while staying within the confines of conch shells and ancient ways that somehow predict your future through the time you were born and the phase of the moon and which hind leg the family dog lifted up to pee the first time you saw it and what not. This isn't to say that women out there are nuts or gold diggers or anything... I have met just as many nice women out there as I can think of elsewhere... its just that I am still in the same situation... you approach them and god knows what kind of shit breaks loose.

So, here's my plea (maybe that sounds desperate... and it isn't desperation here) to the fairer sex: do us guys a favour and approach us once in a while. If you're interested in getting to know us, by George, do something about it. Because most of us won't find that creepy. Sure, I will still think you are secretly out to knock me unconscious somehow and tear out a kidney and make a run for it... but that's just a healthy imagination (and not paranoia :) ) at work. A lot of people seem to argue about equality and what not... things that were a product of the last century. I want to see that in action now. Come hit on me as it were. Ask me out on a date. I'll pick up the bill sometimes, you can do it some other times. Heck, I'll even drive.

Failing that... I guess I will have to just grow old alone. And you wouldn't want that now, would you? I'd be a burden on the healthcare system for god's sakes! It is in your interest, nay, it is your duty to make sure I don't end up old and alone. Or not. Thanks for reading.

What do you do when what you want is not achievable?

2009-10-02T00:06:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to set myself realistic goals for where I want to be in life and trying hard to achieve them for a while now. Bear with me, I am no granola crunching hippie or some kind of new age practitioner or something... I am just a fat guy trying to not be so fat as it were. But what if you're goals are simply unachievable? I mean, what happens if you're goal is a worthy one and your work towards it admirable... but the chance of you achieving it nigh on impossible?

This week, His Holiness the Dalai Lama came to UBC and Vancouver for a conference on peace. While I am not one of those people who looks to Eastern philosophy for spiritual guidance (what with me being from the East and all), I genuinely do admire this man and his take on life. Regardless of what the official Chinese government and some others may call him, he is something of a spiritual being... someone a lot of people seem to be mesmerised by. He is no wolf in sheep's clothing as the bureaucrats in Beijing portray him to be, but he sure is something else. So nice that a whole load of kids took trains and buses and cars to go out to GM Place I think to hear him (and others) talk about peace.

He has articulated his dream of going back to Tibet for years now. But what are his chances? I mean, it is a lofty dream, it is definitely a worthy one, but realistically, what are the chances that he will ever set foot in Tibet again? In one word, none. Some revolutions will never come. Will he ever give up on the dream though? Not likely. Has his life been in vain? I don't know any more.

Sometimes, dreams are just dreams. Nice things you would like to have. Sometimes, you convince yourself they are worth your while and you pursue it pig-headedly even though you know in your mind that you are swimming against the tide and don't have a hope in hell of achieving them. And yet you pursue it like it was the only thing that mattered. Such is the human spirit. I wonder what happens to all those who spent their lifetimes into achieving their goals and ultimately failed. Do they die as unhappy souls only to be re-born into a world with a whole new purpose? Perhaps we are going into the supernatural here... but it does make me wonder.

At any rate, chase those dreams I say. Because they are what makes life worth living.

First day of classes

2009-09-09T21:20:00.004-07:00

Tuesday, September 8, 1998. It was a somewhat sunny day. And it was the first day of classes at the University of British Columbia. It seems like such a long time ago now... but I recall back to those days fondly. From somewhere out there, came a naïve little person who spent 5 years of his life being moulded and influenced by that place, its ways and teachings only to end up working there... making this my 11th year on Campus (minus the year and a bit between graduating and working there and the 2 and a few years of which I spent in DC). I am still naïve, but I would like to think that I am a little less so.

A good friend and teacher once told me that after all these years of being immersed in something, he realised that he knew so little. I guess the difference for him is that he acknowledges and understands the scope of what he doesn't know. Someday I hope to be more enlightened. Every day is a journey towards that goal I suppose. Wish me luck. And the best of luck to the students who started (or are continuing) their academic lives at UBC. You're truly lucky.

Its the what's up edition

2009-08-31T21:58:00.000-07:00

I haven't been blogging as much as I would like now that I am back in Vancouver. Why? I've been busy doing other things. Like climbing mountains and swimming laps and working. Being home is great. Working from here is a bit of a different story though. But there's no point writing about that. Because not much will change.

Anyway, what have I been up to? I've been lazy of late in terms of apartment hunting. I haven't done much travelling. I haven't really lost a lot of weight. But I am happy. And that wasn't the case before. I am perfectly happy enjoying what is left of summer. I have to say, I have come to a few realisations. First, being happy is important. Far more important than earning more money. Second, I missed sushi. Third, friends are awesome. And fourth, having a car is not a bad thing. I can live without it for sure, but having it makes things happen faster.

Its also something else to have dogs once more. I grew up in a house full of all sorts of animals. We used to have dogs, rabbits, birds, fish, a sea gull, a wild boar named Al and I am sure other things I have since forgotten. When we moved to Canada, all that went away. I spent 13 years without a dog. Now that I have 2 adorable (if neurotic) mutts in my life, I don't think I will ever live without them. Dogs are amazing.

I have almost finished reading the book, the last lecture by Randy Pausch. I don't know what to think of it. He has some inspiring words but at times, I feel like he's got an unnecessary chip on his shoulder. But then again, he's a dying man, what does he care... he's just trying to get his message out there. I watched the lecture online on youtube and am impressed by his ability to be so positive while he counts down his time on earth. Finality is scary sometimes.

Anyway, its almost time for the 10 O'clock news and I am excited to watch the National at 10 pm on CBC like I used to...

Approaching milestones and dealing with them

2009-08-10T00:24:00.002-07:00

Over the weekend, I had to go spend time with 15 friends to celebrate the 29th birthday of a friend. We're sort of at that age where we are going to cross that invisible threshold that marks 3 decades on god's green earth. Somewhere between the lamb and the tiramisu, we kept coming back to trying to figure out a way to make our mark on the big 3-0. Since this also happens to be the time where some of us are settling down to a married life (I missed one wedding this summer already and am hopefully not too late for at least one next year; and one friend took out his phone and showed around the 3 month old baby's pictures), I get the feeling we are in sore need of some validation for our almost 3 decade reign here.

A lot of the conversation hung around going to Vegas or Mexico for the next stag, but I am convinced that there is more to it than a stag. I have a list of things I have wanted to do in life and some day I hope to do them. I am going to list them here in the hopes that if I see them, I will try and work towards them. So here's my list:

Run a marathon
Run the 2010 Vancouver Sun Run and beat my previous time (~55 minutes in 2004)
Learn to ride a motor cycle
Become a certified diver
Do the West Coast Trail
Try Surfing
Train for a triathlon
Do more hiking
Learn to ski
Travel
Go fishing
Buy my first place

This list is by no means a complete one and isn't ordered in any particular order. I would like to start accomplishing some of these soon enough, but some will take longer (like the West Coast Trail or the motor cycle one). As you can tell, most of these have to do with being in better shape. That is an unstated implicit goal for me as well. I was probably the fittest I ever was the year I started working for my current employer (way back in 2004!). I did miss out on the a lot of the running and hiking and it is time to pick that up again.

What are your goals? Have you met them?

Coming Home

2009-08-10T00:02:00.001-07:00

I made it. I really made it. I have started the next phase of my life. Looking back at almost 3 years ago, I was on the right side of the 20s, busting out of my cocoon and exploring the wide world out there. And I loved it. And then I realised what I had done. I had left behind everything that mattered to me. I am coming home to my beloved city. For those who follow my blog, you know that I do ramble on and on about Vancouver. But I am home now. And I am secure enough to know that where ever I may end up in life and whatever I may do, I will always have two homes: Vancouver (and Canada in general) and India, where I was born and lived for the first half of my life.

As I sit here, just past my 13th year living in North America, I realise that I have almost spent half my life here. Between Vancouver and DC, the last 13 years have had its fair share of ups and downs, opportunities gained and dreams crushed. As I look back at why I came here, I am more certain that the choices that were made for me have moulded me into the person I am. I have met some wonderful people, made life long friends with a select few and will be forever thankful for all the experiences I have endured.

Canada gave me a home. Not because I didn't have one or because I was fleeing persecution or anything. I was an economic immigrant. My parents believed there were greener pastures out here. I cannot gauge their success for it is only theirs to pass judgement on, but I can say that while there are days when I still wonder why we all packed up those suitcases and left our home for this cold and sometimes dreary place, I am always reminded of what we have achieved as a family and what I have accomplished as a human being. It may not be much, but to me it is everything. It defines who I am and more importantly, it is the foundation on which I will have to build myself. To grow, one needs a firm foundation. And between the two countries that are 12994 kilometres apart, I have got the best foundation I could ever hope for.

I come home to Canada, after spending 3 New Years and Christmases and birthdays away from my family. I come home a dozen or so kilograms heavier. I come home knowing that some of the most influential people in my life live in DC. I come home knowing that they will always be there when I IM them, ready with advice, genuine support and all round friendship. I appreciate that. I come home a little older and a lot more grown up than when I left. And I am at peace with that. My 3 year old adventure in DC is coming to a close and I have had the best outcome possible: I keep my job, I keep my sanity, I keep my friends (even if they are 3800 Km and 3 hours apart). I leave knowing that some people really are more than just random friends; they are people who will pitch in and adopt you for a couple of weeks at a time because you are in a bind and will make your time there the most pleasant in memory, they are people that I will some day see again, and be able to return the favour.

I come home humbled by life. When I left, I barely knew what life was, though I thought I did. I thought it meant going to work every day, excelling at it and earning money and then going out and spending it all on things that I can scarcely remember. I come back knowing that there are far more important things out there, from human relationships to broadening one's horizons, from facing challenges to succeeding (and failing) at them. I come back knowing that I can take care of myself, that I can live by myself and that I can actually do that well. I also come back knowing what is important to me. My life is important. My health is important. My family and friends and dogs are important. Most importantly, my sanity and happiness are important.

I know that over the course of my life I will find reasons to complain about all sorts of things. I think that is human nature (and I hope that it is not unique to me). I hope that when I go down that road of doom and gloom again (whether for legitimate reasons or not) that I will recall all the good that came of my time in DC and of how important home is for me. In Vancouver, I have found that perfect home. A good friend once told me home is where your family is. And she's right. Except family in this case is a bit larger than the ones you are related to by blood. The family ties she meant are the ties one has to the community, to the city and to the ideas that make Canada what they are. It is a place where an immigrant can come and retain his immigrant culture. It is a place where immigrants of different ethnicities can hang out with each other in perfect harmony. It is a place where the true beauty of nature can be seen, enjoyed and mourned (for it is not perfect).

Every time I fly into Vancouver, I look out of the window and try and pick out as many things as I can. From the building where my friend used to live, to the IKEA in Richmond, this is my home now. This is my family. This is my tribe and my community. This is the best place on earth (well, its a tie with India :) ). It is our home and native land. With a Sovereign and a Westminster style of democracy and with abundant socialist leanings, this is my home. This is my home because it works for me. This is my home because it makes me happy. This is also the home where I will pay more for almost everything compared to DC. But I think I will gladly pay that price differential. Because I don't think I can put a price on my happiness.

I am just excited to be home. To take a stroll down memory lane and to make new memories. To meet old friends and make new ones, to see old landmarks and experience new ones, to conquer the next mountain that is out there and to beat my time up the Grouse Grind. This is home.

The moral of the story here is, follow your dreams and never forget what you have. Because sometimes, just sometimes, you will find out that what you have and gave up is more important than anything else you may find. Tread softly, but leave footprints and never forget the journey I suppose. I love life.

On Birthdays, life changes and decisions

2009-07-04T23:15:00.000-07:00

I have not been blogging for a while. I need to get back on the blogging wagon once more. A lot has happened since I went to New York and came back. I celebrated a birthday. I was in Texas for 2 weeks on work. I made some big decisions relating to my life. Canada and the United States both celebrated their birthdays.

So here it is. I'm officially 28. That's scary. When I was a kid I always wondered what it would be like to be an adult. Well, here I am, adult enough, yet I am not sure I have an answer for that question. I know what it means to be an adult in some ways... you are responsible for all sorts of things: rent, food, laundry, you have to work for a living, your friends get married... but surely, there is more to being a grown up than all that. I somehow feel cheated, its like there is this list of awesome things adults do, but I am not aware of them or have not encountered them. Maybe getting drunk is what being an adult is all about, who knows. Still, there is one tangible benefit to being an adult and that is having the ability to drive a vehicle.

Anyway, this last little while, various circumstances have precipitated themselves and I have made some big decisions in life. I have decided that I have had enough of this adventure in America and I am going to move back home to Vancouver. When I think back to the time I decided to move to DC (and you can go back and check my blog from 2006), I had a lot of expectations. I am not sure I met them all, but I have gone as far as I can go here. I need to be home with my family and friends. The good news as far as that goes, I get to keep my job (or so says my manager and his manager), I will have a roof over my head as soon as I get home, I'll be able to start the next stage of my life.

Of course, this brings about a lot of work before I leave. I need to pack and ship my stuff back. I started on some of that by getting estimates... and its EXPENSIVE! I can't believe how expensive it is to ship my possessions across the continent and cross a border! I also have to pay someone to come pack the bigger things (because I don't know how one packs a glass top table properly). I went through the process of rationalising what to do... do I ditch everything here and buy everything back home and take the financial hit? But then who is going to buy a used bed? And what would I get for my TV? It didn't make sense to sell all these things for a fraction of the price I spent and the go home. One the other hand though, I will have saved some cash. What if I rented a truck and drove across the country? I considered that... but then again, I will need someone to help me with that.

What else? I was in Austin for two weeks. I spent time there eating LOTS and LOTS of good Texas BBQ, learning lots of good things about our product and how far we can push them and generally working 16 hours or so every day (even the weekends). I got to hang out with a couple of awesome co-workers for parts of the stint, including one awesome evening stumbling from bar to bar on 6th Street while admiring and cursing the heat at the same time. It was well after midnight and it was still a balmy 35 degrees! I don't know if there are any vegetarians in Texas, but if there are, I give them credit. I would have succumbed to all the awesome goodness of brisket, ribs, sausage and steak by the first week! I'd also like to say that I got to work with an exceptional team of people at Dell. I am a big fan of those guys.

I went to the Canadian embassy on Wednesday to celebrate Canada Day. I met some nice Canadians including the guy who let me into the venue despite me not having an RSVP. The official volunteer fellow was being a hard ass by not letting me in... but this guy, he sounded Canadian enough and let me in when the official looking fellow wasn't looking. Thank you, whoever you are. I consumed some food and stood in a beer line for Unibroue paid for by people like my mother (Canadian tax payers). I dont drink beer, I just stood in line so someone else could get another one without standing in line again. I also met a charming lady from Vancouver of all places, who is a student at UBC and is doing a stint as an intern at the embassy in DC! It was nice to hang out with Canadians. I missed out on the singing of the national anthem and getting a chance to chat with Ambassador Wilson, but I had to get back to work and attend meetings with my manager.

I also watched the American Independence Day celebrations on TV with the concert and fireworks on the National Mall. It looked like a lot of fun. I would have loved to go see it in person, but somehow I didn't feel like going by myself. You see, most of the people I associate with here are Canadians and... they're all back in Canada! Oh well. Normally, I would say there is always next year, but I know that is not the case. I remember Independence and Republic Day celebrations back home in India; they were a huge deal. I guess when you are a young country like the modern Republic is, you take your freedom seriously. We used to parade around in our uniforms and watch the raising of the flag and what not as part of school activities. Nothing that formal seems to exist out here and I think it would be too far out of place or deemed overly nationalistic or something akin to that here... but I have to say, it was fun as a kid. I always enjoyed watching the big parade in New Delhi where various military hardware made it across Rajpath. Someday, I will go see that live. That and the Beating of the Retreat 3 days later.

Anyway, Happy Birthday to my dear Dominion and to the United States. Its time for bed.

New York and back

2009-06-09T19:34:00.000-07:00

I love travelling and going on vacation. A couple of weekends ago, a few friends and I went up to New York City. I met up with more friends there. New York city is awesome. And getting there from DC is cheap, fast and easy. You hop onto a bus right by the office, spend four hours on it and viola you're in the middle of NYC. So that's what I did with a couple of friends. We headed up to New York on Friday morning. We took the Megabus double-decker (with glass roof!) bus there and got seats on the upper deck.

The bus got us there on time and we decided to go check into our hotel. The hotel is right across from the UN building and once we had sorted that out, we did what most tourists do in NYC, wander around.

We walked a lot that day. We ended up going to a comedy show on the upper east side in the evening and because my friends smoke, we ended up meeting one of the comics. He was quite the interesting guy. He wants to change the world with humour and his ideas. He seemed to know a lot about the world and was a lot more accommodating of our differences. We also had an ethnic Hungarian who was born in Holland and grew up in Sweden there... spouting the benefits of Sweden and its version of social democracy. His girlfriend was just Dutch...

Anyway, the next day, I was supposed to meet up with a friend of mine from back home in the old country as it were who I hadn't seen for over 13 years! He just so happened to be in NYC the same weekend as me and I wasn't going to miss the chance to meet him. So I did. Right by the Empire State building. Technology is amazing. If it wasn't for Facebook, I would not have known he was going to be there... nor would we have figured out when and where to meet.

Anyway, Nikhil, his friend from REC and I hung out around NYC, took in the sights, sounds and so forth of the city. Then my travel companions finally made their way to find us... and after a few beers, we decided to go see things. We made our way all the way down to the southern tip of Manhattan to catch the Staten Island ferry to go past the Statue of Liberty. That was awesome. We made our way back and we saw two Marine 1 helicopters (used by the US President) and a whole bunch of polo ponies coming off Governors Island where Prince Harry (3rd in line to the Canadian (and British) throne) was playing polo! Only in New York I suppose. Mind you, the White House is on my way to work... and I see it every day that I go...

Somewhere along the way, another one of my friends had met up with us and the six of us went to see another comedy show, this time by Time Square. We wanted to go see a Broadway show but that wasn't to be. The lines at TKTS were just too long to be worth standing in. After the comedy show, we split up, I said goodbye to Nikhil and a couple of us went to get food at the halal cart on 53rd and 6th. The food there was just plain awesome. After that, we headed back to the hotel.

The next day, we packed up and headed out. We came back to DC in the early evening so that we could get ready for the work day. If only I could have stayed there longer. I guess the big thing for me was meeting someone I have known for sooo long in such an interesting city. My friend had not really changed that much. And it was a true pleasure to discuss what happened to us since we last saw each other... from the various people who went to school with him to those who got married, who are engaged, who have kids... to discussions on politics and just societies and what is fair and what is not, it was sheer joy. I am glad I got the opportunity to meet up with him in this part of the world and to hang out, albeit just for one day. It looks like I'll be heading out to San Francisco if all goes according to plan, so that should be another chance to meet up with him.

Anyway, here are some of the pictures from the trip

The Lennikov circus

2009-06-04T18:09:00.000-07:00

Canada is a country full of immigrants. From the folks who crossed the Bering Strait way back when to the loads of Europeans who hopped on boats and took the perilous journey to the east coast to the Chinese, Japanese, Indians and so forth that took boats and what not to get to the west coast, Canada is a country built on immigration. I am one such immigrant. And I am a very proud one at that. I can happily say that I am Canadian and not worry one bit about whether someone would have a hard time (at least in Canada) believing that to be the case in spite of the colour of my skin, the lack of knowledge as far as things like touchdowns or Kardashians go... and in spite of any accent I may have. That is what makes Canada so unique, so beautiful. We welcome all sorts of people. Rich ones, poor ones, light ones, dark ones... it runs the gamut. We even welcome war criminals and refugees. Mind you, if we catch you (as a war criminal), we are sticking you in prison.

And so we come to Burnaby. My entire life in Canada has been spent in Burnaby. That's about 10 years. Burnaby is adjacent to Vancouver and is, as far as I am concerned, the best part of the GVRD... you're not cramped like in the city, you don't have to cross any bridges to get into the city... and there's damn good food everywhere. A while after I moved there, this Russian family moved there too... the Lennikovs. Mikhail came with his wife Irina who had a student visa, they had a kid named Dmitiri with them too. Typical Russian family, typical Russian names and so on. Now, I don't know these people in case you were wondering. Back to the story. Turns out that Mikhail used to work for some interesting people back in Russia... when it was the USSR. He worked for this organisation called the KGB as a translator.

Shocked? Well, wait, it gets better. Mikhail let Immigration Canada know about his former employers. They didn't seem to have issues with him when they waved him in. Fast forward many years, and like most immigrants to Canada, they apply for permanent resident status. Now, people start freaking out. Because he apparently worked for the KGB. He was deemed a security threat because of his former job and has to leave. In Canada... there is an appeals process for everything.

For the most part, we are very nice about giving anyone what they want. You as a dude want to marry another dude? No worries. You as an immigrant want to avoid bombs and shit in Kosovo? No worries, come on over. Just remember to be yourself... put up with the cold, and oh yeah, try to like hockey, eh? Seriously, that's about all that is about all we ask for. We don't ask you to thump your chest and scream your allegience to Canada or to Her Majesty. Or to serve in the military or to change your name to John because Rahim is uncomfortable for us (though you might get a better job if your name sounded more Canadian). We don't ask you to speak English or French. You want to take your driver's licence test in Punjabi? Sure, lets do that. We don't care. We love differences amongst ourselves. That's what makes us Canadian. We are a bunch of different people who live in (relative) harmony, try and eek a decent living, enjoy each other's food, hang out and in general build a better world for the rest of us. Respect our laws, call out the crazy ones and we will attempt to make them more just and accomodate you. That is Canada for you.

The Lennikovs would fit right in. They are the epitome of the Canadian immigrant. Hard working people with knowledge. Except you see, one of them worked for a rather well known external intelligence agency. The part where I get lost is when they appeal to stay... the people in charge say no because the man worked for the KGB. If you have evidence as to why this man cannot live in Canada and must be kicked out of the country for good, we want to know what that is. Was he killing people? Was he doing something against the interests of Canada? Was he responsible for some horrible crime? We want to know. Because, if he was, our collective conscience is not hurt by the fact that his wife and son will no longer be able to live with him in Canada with the rest of us. But if he hasn't and you're deporting him only because of his former employer and the fact that he was honest about it... then that's just plain stupid.

I understand that there are national security reasons to not widely publish evidence. But you got to give the man a chance to see the evidence against him and argue his case, even if it is under a gag order, no? What is it that makes it okay for us to send this man back to Russia and god knows, maybe get his nuts cut off for defecting? Maybe that won't happen. If he really wasn't that important... he's just going to have a hard time meeting his family again once he's back in Russia. I'll tell you this much, that kid is going to be in trouble if he had been deported to Russia. They would have drafted him into the military and god knows what sorts of shit he would have to go through. I have Russian friends who won't go to Russia because of that fear. I have Persian friends who have the same fear. Its sad really. I can return to India any day and the worst thing I will have to endure aside from the heat and humidity is probably every person I meet asking me when I'm getting married. And the Indian Army would probably scoff at my portly self and say, please bugger off in perfect English :). At any rate, the mother and the son can stay. But he cannot.

I don't get why this man cannot stay in Canada. I think its cruel to deny that family their father and husband. If he's a threat, lets neutralise it. Lets prove it out in a court of law, lets establish beyond a shadow of doubt that he is indeed a risk to Canada because he was a spy or maybe still _is_ a spy. But lets do our due dilligence. Instead of trying to ship him off at 3 in the morning to St. Petersburg. Thankfully, a lot of the public think he should stay in Canada and a church has allowed him to claim sanctuary inside. I don't think such laws are inviolable, but I am heartened to see that the Immigration folks won't enter the Church and drag him out. The right thing to do in this case is to either prove that he is indeed a threat in a forum where we as Canadians are satisfied that he is indeed a threat... or drop the deportation order and let the man get back to living. Being stuck in a Church in Canada is a LOT better than being stuck a continent apart from your family, permanently exiled... but he is not a free man... and we have imprisoned him without a trial and a right to a fair defence. That's not my Canada. Dear minister of public safety, please correct this, will you?

The road is calling...

2009-05-23T22:38:00.000-07:00

I had some decisions to make recently. About where I want to live. About what I want to do with my life. I have made some decisions. I also had another decision to make. Should I buy myself a new toy (Nikon D90 most likely) or travel... and I decided to travel. While I really do want to buy the camera, I think I would be a little deflated with that purchase if I couldn't do much in terms of travelling for the summer. Because my discretionary funding for such things will not accommodate both.

Anyway, now that I have decided on travelling, I have a bunch of places to go see. I have decided to stay (for the most part) in the North-eastern United States (though I have been contemplating a trip to Nova Scotia for the The Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo) and see what I can before I leave this part of the world. So, I am planning on going to New York city at the end of the month, Boston, Chicago, Miami, LA and Vancouver. I am sure there will be other places along the way... but that's on the agenda for now. I am also going to Austin TX again for work for 12 days... and I am thrilled about that. Lots of BBQ, good people to work with and the weekend to see Austin!

I'm looking for suggestions on what to see... so let me know if you've been there and what there is worth doing. I've been to both Boston and Miami in early 2008. I liked both but Boston is not meant to be visited in the winter... it was really cold. I want to go see Cape Cod etc... I haven't been to Chicago for 19 years or so (barring my visits to O'Hare airport). And as for LA... it falls in the same bucket as Chicago. Fun times!

Some times, governments are just stubbornly wrong

2009-05-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

There are some things one should never do. One should never cheat on your taxes, one should never lie to one's physician or lawyer. One should not be stubbornly dumbassed about something that the majority of the country and its courts agrees on. The Canadian government has been, of late, doing some unnecessarily dumb things. My concern today is the appeal by the government of a ruling by a federal court in Canada that says they have to appeal to the US government to repatriate a Canadian citizen who is being held at Guantanamo Bay on questionable charges in a reasonable time-frame.

As a Canadian, I have some rights. I am allowed to come back to the country whenever I want. I can expect to use my travel documents (my passport) to enter many other countries. On behalf of Her Majesty, the Minister of Foreign Affairs requests that I be afforded all assistance and protection as seen necessary to travel through other countries. I can even expect, when there is no Canadian mission, to appeal to a British mission for help! That I suspect is because their Queen happens to be our Queen as well... and we are after all, members of the Commonwealth.

I also expect my government to do everything in its power to ensure my welfare. If I die outside the country, I expect them to do something for my family, like repatriate my body home. I expect my government to defend my interests if I am in trouble (regardless of where I am). Why then is a legitimate government trying so hard not to help a Canadian citizen?

The Americans haven't tried Omar Khadr. The Americans most likely want him off their hands because of regime change in America (without any tanks or bombs) and some recognition of the cruelties done and the flimsiness of facts. He's our citizen. The Americans are our friends. If he had done something wrong (as alleged), lets bring him home and try him in a proper court with all safeguards and proper jurisprudence. He was a 15 year old kid taken out to a horrible place by lunatic parents on a religiously charged quest to change the world. But he was a 15 year old kid. I don't think he decided to go to Afghanistan from the confines of Toronto. I don't think he believes in the nonsense his parents did. And if there is evidence to the contrary, let us try him keeping in mind that it was a warzone and people were shooting at him and... he got shot in the back, becoming a paralysed from the waist down... and blind in one eye. Not that what happened to him has any bearing on what he is alleged to have done. But... justice is a two way street, lets not forget. Someone shot a kid in the back as well.

Why the government has decided that they can appeal this decision is beyond my comprehension. What court is going to say that we should leave a citizen stranded in a kangaroo prison? We shall see. My expectation is that the government will lose its appeal. I hope the judge throws whatever he has at his disposal at the government. I also hope that the public sees this nonsense for what it is... a tactic to delay making a decision and a waste of time and money. And just plain cruelty. I have not been a fan of some of these decisions made by the Harper government and this stands out as an example of their lack of care for their own citizenry.

They've also got one Canadian citizen living in a Canadian embassy in Khartoum because they are unwilling to issue him a passport to travel. I don't get it. If he is part of some terrorist organisation as is claimed by CSIS and the government, repatriate him in handcuffs and try him in our courts with the evidence you have. Don't stick him in an embassy in another country in limbo. That makes no sense. And again, its cruel. As a Canadian citizen he has the right to return to his country. If you're unwilling to repatriate him yourself, give him his documents so he can travel and when he enters, pick him up if you believe that he is a criminal and stick him in jail and file a case against him. Its just plain stupid to leave a man in limbo. We are not a super power and whatever secretive knowledge you have, I trust a federal court judge to keep to himself or herself while you try him in a semi-secret court if necessary, if you think national secrets will be divulged.

I don't buy into the claims made by some in society that because these two people are not white enough, the Canadian government doesn't care. Canada is a remarkable tolerant country and I don't for a second believe that our government is racist. For one thing, a fair bit of our government is not white. I feel proud to say I am Canadian... in fact, I am a hyphenated Canadian, I have two countries I can call home and am very proud of. I just don't understand why they would do things that fly in the face of common sense in these situations. So please fix this Mr. Prime Minister. For there is more than just two peoples lives at stake here.

This is also Vancouver

2009-05-06T08:27:00.000-07:00

I know I say Vancouver is a great place... but there are not so great sides to that lovely city too. Take a look at this CBC video and see some of problems the city is facing. I am hopeful that some day, we will solve this problem. We as a country have a lot going for us, money, great healthcare, smart people, I hope to see the day where these problems are not just contained, but actually solved. We are no super power, but we should be solving these problems and exporting our innovative solutions to the rest of the world that can use it. I think that is a role Canada is perfect for.

I think I am in love...

2009-05-04T22:34:00.002-07:00

with the world, its history and its future. I am always amazed at the beauty that is nature and the variety and diversity that is history and the link we all share.

Imagine... when some guy named Hadrian was ruling the Mediterranean, some other guy named Kanishka was plying his trade down from the Khyber to the Bay... Along the way, there are places like Merv. Samarkand, Taxila, Gandhara, Peshawar, Mathura... Apparently, the 2nd Century was the happiest time on earth. Some day, as my Muslim brothers would say, Insha'Allah, god willing that is, I will go see it all.

I've been cooking

2009-04-30T18:39:00.000-07:00

I've been talking about cooking duck for a while. I got some well packed Canadian duck from the local Giant recently. Well, I finally cooked it... and ate it... and it was great! The skin was crisp, the meat tender. I like cooking.

Here's the duck... with veggies and all.

Dear birds

2009-04-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

Dear birds, now that spring (or summer if you believe the temperatures today) is out, I understand that you are out to enjoy the weather, the trees and what not. I am glad you are out. You make, for the most part, very sweet noises and provide welcome distractions while I wait for the bus.

However, I do have a gripe to bring up with you. I do not appreciate you emptying your bowels while I am walking below you. As it is, I feel bad that I get to work so late... I don't need you letting loose on me on my way to the bus stop, thereby making me walk back home, wash my hair and be even more late for work. Do me a favour and stop crapping while people walk under you. Try using one particular corner of your world (nowhere near my place of residence, place of work or anything else) as most humans do. You might find the rest of your world more enjoyable. I agree with you that seeds need to be dispersed and all, but they are not going to germinate on my head... or on the concrete below. Try finding areas where trees grow over open earth and plants that are not on the sidewalks...

I can't for a second claim to be perfect. Us humans do all sorts of terrible things to you birds; we cut down trees, drive cars and blow smoke at you, use pesticides that cause your shells to be brittle... but we don't crap on you do we? We try to do our business in the privacy of a rest room for the most part... and apart from the drunks and some of those Tamils who ruin beaches in Chennai, we our very best to keep that stuff out of sight... so why not try that?

Dear birds, please be nice to me. Some tell me that you crapping on me is supposed to bring me luck, I feel like you ruined my hair and my jacket (because I wiped it off with my jacket sleeve in horror). I am sorry for whatever triggered that... but can we please call it a truce? No more crapping on me or sidewalks or anywhere where I am. I'll leave out bird seed... pretty please?

Oh wow!

2009-04-13T17:57:00.002-07:00

So, not that I am a chef or anything, but I think I did better than I have done in a very long time. I made an awesome dinner tonight. A nicely brined pork chop, a blueberry gastrique to go with that, steamed asparagus, crunchy sourdough and a glass of orange juice. I finished that off with some lovely caramelized pears from last night. No whipped cream though.

Not that I ever hope to be bored out of my mind... but now I can at least entertain myself with decent food. Next on my list, duck!

Remembering what happened 15 years ago

2009-04-07T23:15:00.000-07:00

Fifteen years ago, I lived on another continent, in a land that was (and is) home. Ten or so years prior to that, I lived on yet another continent. Counting back that far makes me feel so old. The former of course was Asia, the latter, Africa. Fifteen years ago, a man named Bill Clinton was President of the free world. Jean Chretien was Canada's big shot in Parliament. John Major was the Prime Minister in the United Kingdom. Maggy Thatcher's dear friend Mitterrand was President of the Fifth Republic. And fifteen years ago, on that continent of Africa, something started.

Something so vile that the word used to describe it (legally as per the IGO called the UN and colloquially) does not quite convey its cruelty and indiscriminate nature. What happened in Central Africa by those great lakes was truly horrible. Genocide. A word made up from a couple of Latin words. An estimated 800,000. In about 100 days. Do the math. That's about 8,000 a day if you assume a uniform distribution. That's a lot of deaths. How many people do you think you see in a day? How long before you can count up to 8,000 unique people? That rate incidentally was about 5 times faster than that of the Nazis.

What was a battle between a set of people who thought they were different from each other... called Hutus and Tutsis, turned into the mass murder of one set of people along with moderates from the other side who didn't want to participate or did not necessarily agree with the activities. What makes it worse is that the world sat by and watched, looked the other way, pretended not to hear, pretended not to care. Some even actively took part in making matters worse, helping the murderers.

At some point in the mid 20th century, once the horrors of the so called final solution were realised by the world, we all took a collective vow of never again. Not on our watch. Not in my lifetime. Yeah right. If we learned anything from the horrors of that final solution and similar ones carried out in the far east, it was that human beings have an incredible ability to be cruel. To forgo all norms of decency. To throw away the veil of pretending to be nice. To do unimaginable torture to one another. The cruelty that makes places like Treblinka and Belżec horrible names and hallowed grounds at the same time and names like Himmler, Mengele, Ishii reviled. Ishii incidentally is alleged to have lived and worked close to where I now live, in Maryland.

And yet, we either forgot or didn't care about those vows. We let it happen again and again and again. We definitely watched while it happened in Rwanda. Fifteen years ago, we could have done something about it. But instead, we looked the other way. Cynics would say, there is no oil there, so why should we care. I don't know what to tell them. But fifteen years ago, because of our actions or lack thereof, we let something come into being. Something that took away about 800,000 of our fellow men, women and children. By some of the cruelest ways possible. Chopped by a machete, left to bleed to death. Hacked to pieces. The Germans were at least clinical; they gassed and shot their victims. And any time someone says something like that, you have to stop and wonder.

We as the world had sent a bunch of blue helmets out there to try and keep the lunatics away from the others. We sent them with a half-assed Chapter VI mandate. What does that mean? You can shoot if shot at. But you cannot enforce the peace if they shoot at each other. My country sent a General and his assistant. The UN gave it a pronounceable name... UNAMIR. Because a blackhawk helicopter fell out of the sky in Mogadishu, the Americans didn't bother with Rwanda. Who cares if another bunch of Africans kill each other eh? The French were busy meddling and supporting the murderers. Canada sent a General and his assistant and that was about it. The rest of the world was busy worrying about other things. The blue helmets were made up of a bunch of ill equipped and poorly trained third world soldiers. Why? Because they get paid more on UN peace keeping duty than they do sitting at home in their barracks.

And what happened? A bunch of Africans took up machetes, incited by the radio, out to kill 'cockroaches', they hacked their neighbours to pieces. And what happened to not on our watch? It went by the wayside. The few that cared could do little. The UN failed. Days, weeks before the beginning of the massacres, the general in command asked for more troops, equipment, supplies. He got nothing. His own country left him stranded. The former colonial masters of that land had sent some troops. Decently trained, professional, armed to the teeth type Belgians. But then they withdrew because they lost a bunch of soldiers to the murders. That left the UN force commander with next to nothing. He had about 270 soldiers to command and his bosses at the UN told him to abandon ship. He chose not to for whatever reason.

This isn't really the story of General Dallaire. He was but one pawn in that tragedy. He survived, experienced it all, returned, got discharged from the Canadian forces on medical grounds, tried to kill himself and when that failed, decided to write a book. Go read Shake hands with the Devil if you want to see what 15 years ago looked like from his point of view. He now spends his time as a senator in the Upper house of Parliament and as a witness at the ICTR trying to convict the many devils that did what they did in those days.

But what of those people who lived and died back then? Did they not have dreams and hopes? Were they not human? Was their life not worth something? How were we able to look the other way? What if the shoe was on the other foot, you know the foot where you and I have to run for our lives because some crazy machete wielding fellow is out to cut us into pieces because of who we are? Would we not have felt anguish at the lack of care of our fellow man in America and Canada and China and France and Russia and India and the rest of the world?

Doing nothing is doing something. By doing nothing, we chose to side with the perpetrators of those crimes. I am not saying that we need to be super heroes and fight crime in every shape and form... but when we send a bunch of people to represent us and defend fellow man from such acts of senseless violence and then we look the other way or choose not to care, what are we saying about ourselves? That we care when it suits us? That's what it boils down to. We'll protect you if none of our people get hurt and someone else pays for it right? But then why pretend to care? Why have the UN? Why not just live by the adage every man for himself? Why the façade?

And what of those that committed the crimes? When do they face justice? When they meet their maker? I am not a religious person, but if there is a god, I sure as hell hope these people have their day of judgement. And so too the people in power who chose not to do anything knowing full well what would happen.

Fifteen years ago, we had a choice to make. And we chose wrong. We looked the other way while 800,000 people just like us got chopped to pieces. They may be dead, but they deserve some dignity in death at least. So, spare a thought for those men, women and children. There is no list of people saved or a Steven Spielberg movie (ironically, released a year earlier) to give us an idea of what their lives were like and how they lived and died. Just an estimated number. And whatever weighs on our souls.