Conversations I almost had had...

• September 10, 2007

I was in the kitchen a couple of days ago, minding my own business, making myself a sandwich. Now, the exact kind of sandwich I had wouldn’t normally ever come up as a topic of discussion or importance. I think. However, let me state for the record that in this case I was using up some of the produce that is slowly turning bad in our fridge crisper, so I chose to make a “bunwich” with mayo, tomato and pickle. Read More

A little inspiration in the wings..

• September 4, 2007

It’s funny just how subtle our influences are in life. It’s a little tidbit picked up from hither or thither that really brings out a sea change in our habits. Where, precisely, did I pick up the term “odds and sods”? Someone lamented the fact that it was heard so infrequently these days. Infrequent? Oh, I’m all over that! I’ll start using it at once. One of my biggest influences in life is actually one particularly noble and wise Canadian that goes by the name of Arthur Black. Read More

Happy Holidays!

• August 27, 2007

Well, that was good. It’s been ages since I’ve been out camping. Probably the last, best camping I’ve done lately was the Zarquil Zonar’s Wonderful Weekend in the Woods series of camps. The basic premise was you grab a bunch of buddies, you grab a flat of beer each, and you go out somewhere, build a fire, and spend a weekend not thinking about the opposite sex (Rule 4), keeping the fire alive by bringing a log when you (ahem) leave a log (Rule 11, I think) and - most importantly - keeping SGR in the dark about everything (Rule 7). Read More

Mother of.....

• August 14, 2007

So, lo and behold, I’ll be double-damned and dipped in chocolate…. Remember a few weeks back and I saw Buddy Guy? Wow… What a great show. Let me take you back to my comments… “The warm up band was, I believe, Warehouse from right here in Calgary. Which is a sadly unfortunate name because in Calgary, The Warehouse is also a venue that hosts live music. Know nothing about them, haven’t found a link via Google. Read More

Let's make it a good, good happy weekend!

• August 11, 2007

Some days are miserable. Some days are great. Some days you just have to relax and be patient for the world to come back to it’s senses. Today was one of those days that fell into place in the world of tech. You’re either a complete Linux geek or a Unix greybeard or some combination thereof if you’re following this. There’s been this little lawsuit going down in the States between a whole bunch of companies. Read More

Changing the policy.

• August 9, 2007

In the effort to better manage access, I’ve restricted access to the Photo gallery. You now have to create an account and be logged on in order to see the photos. This should hopefully restrict the casual viewers while those who are interested will take a few moments to create an account. Feel free to use an alias or whatever and jump right into the fray. Mom - you’re fine. Just make sure you’re logged in. Read More

"Quality pays for itself."

• August 8, 2007

I was told a story when I was quite a bit younger. My grandpa had his house plastered when it was new back in the 50s. He told the guys that he wanted it done right. He didn’t want to see a crack in the plaster for as long as he owned the house. I went around the house after he died looking at walls. Now I have to say, I’m not the sort of guy that examines walls, but for some reason the story came to mind and I figured that was my only shot at looking at them. Read More

I am Spartacus!

• August 6, 2007

Well, no, actually I am not Spartacus. I am neither a roman slave nor gladiator nor the charismatic leader of a slave revolt of over a hundred thousand. In fact, I’ve got a pretty firm grip on who I am. For good or for bad, I don’t duck behind a pseudonym here - although if you know me at all you’ll also probably know me as either Zarquil Zonar or sometimes Tapdad. Read More

I'm a traitor...

• August 1, 2007

Well, isn’t this interesting. As of yesterday I’ve entirely entered the Reality Distortion Field. The best thing about spending far more than I’m comfortable with in order to buy a Mac is that it’s suddenly made me slender, suave and stunningly attractive in a black mock turtleneck. My mere proximity to it’s sleek aluminum lines have caused me to devastate the hearts and minds of those around me as I’ve reached out and became instantly more productive and creative. Read More

Buddy Guy

• July 31, 2007

The last time I was in the Palace it was to see a movie as a kid - I think it was some Disney family flick. This was my first time to evaluate what changes they’ve made to the place. All in all, it’s pretty decent in there. There’s only so much you can do with a small theatre space like that that isn’t a theatre. Sadly, Calgary is suffering a severe lack of theatres and art space in general at the moment, but a small theatre downtown just isn’t going to be a draw enough to make it viable. Read More