A Long Way from Anywhere

Don Cherry

2006-11-23T12:58:00.000+13:00

Clad in matching nylon workout pants and jacket, looking like he might be preparing to coach a game later that afternoon, the seventh-greatest Canadian of all time makes his way up through the stands at the Hershey Centre in the western Toronto suburb of Mississauga.

Though he hasn't coached a National Hockey League game in 26 years, this is still Don Cherry's element — the hockey rink. He has spent most of his 72 years in places like this, actually having helped design the Hershey Centre for the major junior team he once owned and briefly coached here. But for all of that time spent behind benches and in dressing rooms and in front of microphones in similar places, Cherry remains an iconoclast, a controversial figure sometimes improbably isolated from the game to which he has given so much of his life.

Take this picture-perfect day in early August.

He has come to visit with longtime friend and former minor-pro teammate Brian Kilrea, the most successful coach in the history of Canadian junior hockey, who, at the moment, is otherwise engaged -- he's taping a new segment that will air this season on "Hockey Night in Canada." Think Hockey will break down various elements of the game with the help of well-known hockey personalities such as Kilrea, Adam Graves, Paul Maurice, Bryan Murray and Wendel Clark. It will be hosted by Ron MacLean, Cherry's co-host on Coach's Corner, the wildly popular longtime centerpiece of "Hockey Night."

Noticeably absent from the segment is Cherry. Somehow, when it comes to Think Hockey, Cherry is persona non grata, a most improbable state of affairs, considering his credentials:

• In 2004, he was named the seventh-greatest Canadian of all time, ahead of Wayne Gretzky and Alexander Graham Bell, in an exhaustive Canadian Broadcasting Company poll that drew 140,000 votes.
• He coached more than 500 NHL games, including two Stanley Cup finals.
• He is the most-watched personality on Canadian television and arguably the single-most influential voice in Canadian hockey, despite appearing on camera for less than seven minutes once a week during the NHL's regular season. Even the Canadian Press, the country's national wire service, has someone tape Coach's Corner every Saturday and write a story if Cherry says anything controversial.

How popular and consequential is he?

"It's a real hard thing to describe," admits Joel Darling, executive director of "Hockey Night in Canada" and, thus, Cherry's de facto boss. "He's the most recognized face in Canada. It's like traveling with a rock star, the Rolling Stones, except he's bigger than them in this country."

"It's like if you took John Madden and overlaid him with Rush Limbaugh," adds Calgary-based columnist, author and broadcaster Bruce Dowbiggin, one of Cherry's frequent critics. "It's become larger than life. I don't think there's any position in the U.S. that equates to it."

So why is Cherry sitting off to the side of the ice, shooting the breeze with a reporter, instead of shooting Think Hockey with the CBC, his pal Kilrea and the rest of the gang?

Well, maybe that has to do with a "credential" that hasn't been mentioned yet — Cherry's propensity to infuriate and alienate at least as often as he illuminates. Over the years, from his bully pulpit on Coach's Corner, firing from the lip at anything that moves, he has managed to enrage a long list of folks including but not limited to: his bosses at the CBC, French Canadians, European players in general, Swedes and Russians in particular, players who wear visors, and members of the media by whom he is regularly poleaxed.

So perhaps the surprise is not that he is unwelcome to join the fun at Think Hockey. Perhaps the surprise is that, after all these years of force-feeding polarizing commentary to a country where, at least from the outside, civility seems to be highly prized, Don Cherry still has a job at all.

At the end of this gorgeous August day, as Cherry makes his way to the ice to swap a few stories with his pal Kilrea, we are left to ponder a simple question: How is this possible?

Maybe as good a place as any to start trying to figure out how all of this happened is when Cherry first came in contact with the game he loves.

Born in Kingston, Ontario, in 1934, Cherry wasn't blessed with either size or enormous talent, but he played the game on the edge. He pursued his dream of being an NHL player with that same in-your-face attitude. A bruising, brawling defenseman, Cherry left high school at the age of 14 and chased his hockey dream across North America — Windsor, Barrie, Hershey, Springfield, Trois Rivieres, Kitchener-Waterloo, Sudbury, Spokane, Rochester, Tulsa.

Along the way, Cherry met a young woman named Rosemarie Madelyn Martini, then 17, in Hershey, Pa. On their first date, Cherry took Rose to one of his hockey games. True to form, he was involved in a bloody fight.

Rose always said her father thought Canadian hockey players were the most uncivilized people, and Cherry did little to dissuade him from this point of view. Yet Cherry also was capable of uncharacteristic sensitivity, especially when it came to how much his love for hockey cost his family. In a tribute to his late wife for the Rose Cherry Home, a hospice for children, in Milton, Ontario, Cherry wrote:

If you believe it, Rose packed and moved 53 times. The minor career is a tough life for families; one bedroom; [daughter] Cindy slept on a mattress on the floor, and bathed in the kitchen sink; toilets were in the cellar with cold air blowing through holes in the walls; so cold you had to have blankets around you when you had to go; it was not pretty.

In Springfield, come back to our apartment after game on the road, Rose curled up in bed, the place alive with mice and rats.

The point I'm trying to make is Rose Cherry's Home for Kids is named after a person who never quit …

And what he really meant, of course, is that Rose never quit on him.

Cherry retired from hockey for the first time from the game following the 1968-69 American Hockey League season. Having given up a less-than-lucrative second career as the world's worst Cadillac salesman, Cherry turned out to be better suited to a pickax and jackhammer, so he took a construction job with Kodak in Rochester, N.Y. As St. Patrick's Day approached, Cherry, a devout Protestant, thought it would be a good idea to paint his tools and hard hat orange — a decision that, not surprisingly, didn't sit too well with his mostly Catholic co-workers.

"I put 'God Save The Queen' on the back of my hard hat," Cherry says, still getting a grand chuckle out of the stunt almost 40 years later. "I was always like that."

During the 1971-72 season, Cherry indulged in one last kick at the can as a player. It didn't really satisfy — he was a healthy scratch most nights for the Rochester Americans. With the team struggling, ownership figured they might as well get their money's worth out of Cherry and installed him as coach midway through the season.

The effect was like somebody introducing Michelangelo to his first piece of marble. "As soon as I got behind the bench, I knew I was born for it," Cherry says.

At the end of the season, Cherry the player was released, but team owners had been impressed by his coaching and quickly offered him the permanent job at $15,000 for the next season. Rose wondered why her husband didn't ask to be the general manager, as well. So Cherry called back and got his wish — but no more money.

Cherry guided the Americans for parts of three seasons, earning the AHL's Coach of the Year honors once and the opportunity that had been denied him as a player — a real chance at the big time. In the fall of 1974, he took over as head coach of the Boston Bruins.

By then, Cherry had earned a reputation as a stylishly dressed, ultra-theatrical bench boss, an uncannily accurate foreshadowing of his TV career. Part of his leadership style derived from his fascination with historic military leaders, especially Lord Horatio Nelson, known for bold action and a disregard of orders, and Sir Francis Drake, a hero and pirate. For Cherry, coaching a hockey team was like captaining a naval vessel — you had not only to act the part but also look the part. "I always thought of a team as a ship," Cherry says. "Everybody has to pull together. One weak cog and you've had it. I sort of learned from Drake and Nelson how to treat men."

Under Cherry's idiosyncratic guidance, the Bruins finished first in the Adams Division four straight seasons. In the '77 and '78 Stanley Cup finals, they lost to the hated Montreal Canadiens. For his efforts, Cherry earned a Jack Adams Award as coach of the year in 1975-76 and was selected as an assistant coach to Canada's entry in the 1976 Canada Cup. The rough-and-tumble Cherry was on top of the world.

Then, in a span of less than two minutes at the end of the seventh game of the third round of the 1979 playoffs, Cherry would see it all vanish. His Bruins led the mighty Montreal Canadiens by a goal with less than two minutes to play in the seventh and deciding game of the semifinals, when Boston was assessed a penalty for too many men on the ice. A man up, Montreal tied the game, then drove the dagger home in overtime. The Habs went on to win their fourth straight Stanley Cup, while Bruins GM Harry Sinden, with whom Cherry had feuded, canned the popular coach.

Next season, Cherry coached the Colorado Rockies, posting the worst record in the league, and was dismissed after yet another conflict with management. His coaching career was at an end, leaving Cherry and many other observers to wonder: What if the fateful penalty never occurs?

What if Bill Buckner makes that play? What if Scott Norwood isn't wide, right? What if Steve Bartman stays away from Wrigley that night?

"We'd have won the Stanley Cup and then Harry wouldn't have been able to fire me," Cherry says without hesitation. "My life might have been a little different. They liked me in Boston. We were tough. We were a Boston team. I was like a Southie to them. I was heavier. I had a big face. I'd say things."

He'd say things? If ever there was an understatement, that is it. Cherry's penchant for speaking his mind, the cost be damned, is what sparked longtime "Hockey Night in Canada" executive producer Ralph Mellanby to call Cherry and make him an offer that would change everything, for Cherry, for the country, maybe even for the game.

With Cherry's Colorado Rockies out of the Stanley Cup playoffs in the spring of 1980, Mellanby asked Cherry if he would provide analysis on television during the postseason. Almost immediately Cherry began to offend.

Among other things, Cherry critiqued coaches' wardrobes as much as their game plans. Canadian media critics quickly weighed in, denouncing Cherry's propensity for descriptors like "geez" and "youse" and "attaboys" as low-brow, hardly the sort of thing that kids should be listening to on the publicly funded CBC. Owners soon threatened to bar Cherry from their buildings. A great obliterating snowball seemed to be rolling down the hill of Canadian hockey culture.

"Never mind lasting 25 years, I didn't think he'd last 25 minutes," says Mellanby, who is fond of repeating the oft-quoted line that Canada has two official languages, French and English, "and Cherry is the biggest star on Canadian television who doesn't speak either of them."

But Cherry's discoverer and enabler was also his staunchest defender. In response to calls for Cherry to get the heave-ho, Mellanby told CBC brass that if Cherry went, he was gone, too. Both men stayed, though there were palliative changes. On the theory that a small dose of Cherry was less difficult to swallow than a full game's worth, he was moved from game commentary to Coach's Corner, a brief segment that runs during first period intermission.

"They figured, 'How can he get into trouble?'" Cherry says, an impish grin crossing his face. "They didn't know."

For perhaps the first and only time in his life, Cherry played it safe, breaking down plays and explaining the nuances of the game. But it wasn't what Cherry wanted, nor, as it would turn out, what viewers wanted, either. "It was kind of stupid," Cherry recalls. "I was just doing it to keep the job."

Then, he saw a clip of an old interview he had given when he was with the Bruins about what it would mean to win the Stanley Cup. Most of the answers dealt with boyhood dreams, but at one point Cherry deadpanned that he wanted to win the Cup for the money.

That was it! That was the tone he wanted to bring to Coach's Corner — irreverent, brutally honest, cutting, controversial. "For me, that's the way I had to do it. I couldn't just survive otherwise," Cherry says. "I knew I was taking an awful chance, but I didn't care."

What has followed has been 25 years of some of the greatest sports theater anywhere, not to mention some of the most memorable, contentious moments in Canadian broadcast history.

There was the night that Cherry, asked about Winnipeg Jets assistant coach Alpo Suhonen, quipped, "Alpo? Isn't that a dog food?" The remark prompted the team's owner, Barry Shenkarow, to call Cherry a racist and threaten to sue him.

Cherry has often savaged European players for being soft, returning to that theme as recently as the opening segments of the current season.

He has repeatedly enraged French Canadians, calling into question their heart and love for their country. Referring to the French translation of the Memorial Cup, Coupe Memorial, Cherry once famously quipped, "What's that? A car giveaway?" Cherry also referred to freestyle skier Jean-Luc Brassard, chosen as the country's flag-bearer at the 1998 Olympics, as "a French guy, some skier nobody knows about." Predictably, French Canadian politicians repeatedly have complained about Cherry in the House of Commons in Ottawa.

During the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Cherry weighed in when Russian Olympic officials made noise about withdrawing from the Games because of perceived bias when it came to drug testing. "I've been trying to tell you people for so long about the Russians, what kind of people they are, and you just love them in Canada with your multiculturalism," he scolded. "They're quitters and evidently they take a lot of drugs, too."

At the start of the Iraq War in early 2003, Cherry loudly supported the Americans, while co-host MacLean defended Canada's position of noninvolvement, which, to Cherry, equaled nonsupport of an ally. The raucous debate lasted an entire Coach's Corner segment in March of that year and became a national news story. The CBC later removed the transcript of that segment from its online archives.

The more inflammatory Cherry became, the more criticism he received. The more he was criticized, the further he went. The further he went, the more popular he became. The more popular he became, the bigger the ratings. And the bigger the ratings, the more profitable Coach's Corner became, which made it nearly impossible for anyone at CBC to pull the plug — assuming, of course, that the network ever wanted to pull it in the first place.

Many influential critics were not entertained, or amused. At one point, celebrated Canadian columnist and author Roy MacGregor said Cherry's "thinking, and his extraordinary influence, has been the single-most destructive influence on the development of Canadian hockey."

Dowbiggin says he believes Cherry's continued championing of physical hockey while belittling nonaggression has changed how minor hockey coaches and parents view the game — a view that Canada's national hockey body, Hockey Canada, has been trying, with varying degrees of success, to eliminate from grassroots hockey for years.

Hockey sociologist and author Julie Stevens, an associate professor at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, says Cherry does not speak for or to all of Canada. In fact, with the growing multiculturalism in the nation, she believes he speaks to a narrower segment of the population all the time.

Why then, is he still such a popular figure with the masses? Perhaps because Canadians see themselves as wanting when it comes to their national identity and how they're perceived internationally, they often respond passionately to what Cherry says. Whether it's defending Canadian hockey players wherever they might be playing or remembering the exploits of Canadian soldiers during the D-Day assault of World War II or calling attention to Canadian peace-keeping missions, Cherry is in many ways a distinctly unifying force. "We tend not to blow our own horns in Canada, we're too polite," Stevens admits. "At times, Don Cherry says things Canadians wish more of our leaders would say."

Damien Cox, a columnist for the country's largest paper, The Toronto Star, and a contributor to ESPN.com, says Cherry's strongest beliefs strike a chord at the most sensitive parts of the Canadian hockey psyche, whether it's fighting or the place of Canada and Canadians in the game or the style of play Canada represents. "These are parts of hockey that don't appeal to everyone," Cox says. "It's like he's standing in the middle of the DMZ, shouting out his view. Some people see him as their champion, their warrior. The one thing you have to say about him is he doesn't mind standing alone."

Luckily for Cherry, he hasn't had to stand alone. Though he has worked with a variety of hosts and announcers over the years, it is alongside co-host MacLean since 1986 that Cherry has enjoyed the kind of rapport and chemistry that is television magic.

Not that the relationship has all been sweetness and light. As MacLean readily admits, there have been many times when he has been angered by Cherry's comments on Coach's Corner. But MacLean has never lost his admiration for Cherry's convictions — convictions that are at the very heart of the show's success and Cherry's popularity. "He's just a sterling example of how sharp a nonschooled person can be," MacLean says. "He's a great example of what's in all of us."

Cherry prepares for every Coach's Corner segment as though he were preparing for a game. His preshow routine is written in stone: breakfast, including tea with honey; a steak at 1 p.m.; an all-important nap; three cups of coffee, black.

Similarly, despite appearances to the contrary, what happens during the show is also hyper-controlled. And — surprise, surprise — it is Cherry, not MacLean, who is doing the controlling. "He's the one who polices the segment," MacLean acknowledges. "He knows what he's doing, and I have no idea what he's doing. He's a better judge of what's going to get us fired than I am."

If true, this would come as a shock to fan and critic alike. The popular perception is that what separates Cherry from almost everyone else in his position is that his internal wiring system does not include a fail-safe switch, that he draws an average of 1.4 million Canadians every Saturday night who believe what is about to follow is some kind of out-of-body experience, a raw, roiling, undiluted stew of anger and opinion, passion and outrage.

Cherry couldn't disagree more. "I know exactly what I'm saying," he says, "so that when I'm fired, it won't be a slip of the tongue. Everything I want to say, I say."

So who is this guy? What makes him tick when the camera is turned off and the rink has gone dark?

First and foremost, there is almost no pretense about the man, for all his fame and fortune and notoriety. As he saw his father, so does he see himself — an honest laborer, giving value for what he is paid. He might walk around in suits that would cost your average construction worker two weeks' pay, but, in his own mind, he's carrying a lunch pail. "When you start thinking you're a somebody for being on television, you are in deep trouble," he insists. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard in my life."

He might seem like a complex contradiction at times, but his core beliefs are as basic as you can get — he believes in loyalty, and honesty, and the game.

And maybe, just maybe, he believes in the game a little too much for his own good. "I don't take vacations," he says, with a rare note of wistfulness in his voice. "I don't play golf. I don't do anything but hockey. Hockey is my whole life."

He shared both his passion and the backlash it often provoked with his childhood sweetheart, Rose, until 1997, when she died after a battle with cancer. For a time, hockey was all he had left, and, in the harsh light of reality, Cherry might admit his life felt surprisingly empty.

"I was that guy standing in the kitchen, eating beans out of a can and washing the spoon in the sink," he says of his life as a widower. "I knew a lot of people. But I had nobody to hang around with. I had a lot of acquaintances. I don't know why I don't have many friends.

"My life is very narrow," he acknowledges with the barest hint of a catch in his voice. "That's not too good."

Although he is a man of great means, with his television and radio shows, national endorsements and association with a string of bars and restaurants that bear his name, Cherry lives in a modest home in a suburb west of Toronto. Around the corner, children Tim and Cindy live across the street from each other, where they serve as an army of two handling Cherry's affairs.

The geographic proximity suggests an emotional closeness that isn't necessarily reflected in their daily relationships. Hockey is my whole life.

Hugs and kisses? Not so many in the Cherry house.

Organ donations? No problem. When Tim was 13 and needed a kidney transplant, the decision for Cindy to give up one of hers was made without hesitation, she says.

"It's a little different than being lovey-dovey," Cherry explains. "It was understood."

So here he is, 72 years old, though far from ready to go gently into that good night. A few years ago, he met a Ukrainian woman named Luba, who would become his second wife, at a hockey banquet she was attending with her brother. Where else? "A lot of people think she's my daughter," Cherry says with a broad grin. "I don't mind."

A lot of people also think the unlikely saga of Don Cherry will end ugly — a nasty public dismissal, perhaps, after the kind of self-destructive pronouncement that can't be taken back or forgiven, even by all those gentle Canadians. But that seems a little bit too predictable for a man who has made a life out of speaking his truth, no matter how it is received.

One thing is certain: However the saga ends, we will never see its like again.

I guess it was worth the time...

2006-09-14T09:41:00.000+12:00

I got an email from my thesis supervisors to let me know that a paper they have written, based on my thesis research, has been accepted by the PriceWaterhouse Cooper Centre for Global Excellence as one of their paper's for the year. I am pretty stoked because they take only a few pieces that should have a commercial impact. While the whole paper isn't on my stuff I completed in my thesis, it is from work I gathered and questions that arose in the process. We do get a little bit of money out of the process too which always makes me smile.

I have also updated and added some cool links over the past week or so, and updated any broken ones.

Logic Puzzle

2006-09-04T15:29:00.000+12:00

A lot of investment banking interviews have little logic puzzles involved in them. I really find them quite fun and thought I would pass one on that I was sent today and consumed 45min of my busy day. It is a logic puzzle with the following rules.

The father cannot be left alone with any daughter (without the mother present).
The mother cannot be left alone with any son (without the father present).
The thief cannot be left alone with any family member (without the cop present).
Only the father, mother, and cop can operate the boat.

Sounds simple? Fair enough - let’s see if you can beat the IQ game: - press the round blue button to start.

Movie Review: Lucky Number Slevin

2006-09-04T15:10:00.000+12:00

After the moving/lost cat fiasco, Snarl and I really weren't up for hitting the town. Gret's and Alysa and the other North Shore folk were heading into watch Mattie's band play in town. I had seen them quite a few times over the past couple months so I really wasn't too fused. The only thing was that Gret's is heading to France next week to work on a cruise ship and I won't be hitting the farewell party because I'm down to Palmy with Snarl for the weekend. After much harassment I almost caved and went until T-Rex pulled out a copy of "Lucky Number Slevin".

I had heard awesome stuff about this movie, but for some reason it hasn't come out here yet. For those of you who enjoy "The Usual Suspects", "They Game" and other thinking thrillers this one is for you. Josh Harnett stars as Slevin, an unlucky individual who, in a case of mistaken identity, is caught in the middle of a war between rival crime bosses (Morgan Freeman and Ben Kingsley). Slevin is also under constant surveillance by relentless Detective Brikowski (Stanley Tucci) as well as the infamous assassin Goodkat (Bruce Willis) and finds himself having to hatch his own ingenious plot to get them before they get him. While this movie is quite smart it does slow down a little in the middle. IMDB ranking of 7.4 is about right.

The New Place, The Lost Cat

2006-09-04T14:50:00.000+12:00

Saturday was spent shifting to my new place. I got up early and started packing because the boss said that he would come over at 10am and help me move some of my big stuff. Well, as I was throwing some things together Snarl's cat decided it was play time and attacked my face, leaving this HUGE scratch across my nose. I was so fucked off the cat got chucked outside while I cursed profusely. My mother would definitely have not been impressed at my language, but if felt good at the time.

Well I had my car basically packed by the time Colin showed up and we moved my desk and mattress. The bed breaks down into many pieces, so it is quite easy to move if you have a drill to take all the screws out. The bad thing about the bed is a result of it being hand made, and easy to move, it squeaks quite bad. I guess this is something the new roommates will have to get used.

I finished unpacking and had the room put together by late afternoon. I was pretty happy with myself and decided to go back and pick up the cat. Well, while I moved the cat decided to go on some sort of adventure and was no where to be found. My old place was on a pretty busy road and Snarl didn't want her kitten to be left outside because it was quite normal to see squished pets on the road. I had figured that she would be fine in the back yard for a couple hours while I hated her.

When I went to find the cat it was no where to be found. I ended up canvassing the neighborhood for about 3 hours in the dark thinking that I had killed Charlotte's cat. At 8pm I had to go and meet Char and let her know that I had lost her cat. The reaction I received was pretty much what I expected, sadness followed closely by confusion which led distinctly into wrath. I could see the logic in her face, how is my cat lost...It doesn't go outside at Ryan's house...Ryan must have put the cat outside...Ryan killed my cat.

When you are the boyfriend of a veterinarian, losing a pet is basically the same as losing their child. Once I assured her that my former roommate was going to keep an eye out for her in case she got back, and that we would go look again first thing in the morning and had searched quite vigilantly earlier, I was fairly sure my relationship was intact.

We got back to the new place and started making some food and the old roomie sent me an SMS saying that the cat was found by the next door neighbor. We went and picked up the damn thing, and another close call was avoided.

Moving: Part 4

2006-08-31T16:31:00.000+12:00

Yes it's true. For the 4th time in 6 months I am moving. For the 1st 20 years of my life I only moved 4 times, and no times after the age of 5. After moving to Vancouver, I seem to move an excessive amount. While many of the times were out of my control (living in dorms, flatmates gave the house up, getting a job) this is the first time I decided to to throw my hand's to the heavens and say "fuck it". Let me explain...

Over the past 2 months I have lived with a 37 year old 12 year old. This guy, lets call him "Chris" is a total douchebag. When I moved in he seemed like a decent sporty guy who was recently divorced and wanting to get his life as a single guy back together. It seemed like an ideal situation; "Chris" ownes house and travels a lot for work...Ryan lives in house and has his own place.

"Chris" failed to inform Ryan that:

1. Chris did not really travel that often
2. Chris had a child that lived with Chris 3/4 of the time
3. Chris whined about having a child, in front of child, making for very unconfortable situations.
4. Chris was unsocial and Ryan was not "allowed" to have guests over
5. Chris was an emotional basketcase that Ryan did not need

So...when some guys I know called me out of no where and asked if I wanted to move in with them it didn't take much thinking. Hopefully this is the last time I have to move, and my end of crazy roomates.

Six Horrifying Parasites.

2006-08-29T10:04:00.000+12:00

Houseguests from Hell: 6 Horrifying Parasites Guaranteed to Overstay Their Welcome.

Living with a Veterinarian I get to hear about lots of gross and disgusting things. Some of the worst is parasites, you can't seem them but they can sure do some damage. When it comes to parasites, it’s all about perspective. You may call a lifetime of growing and feeding off another organism lazy, but they call it opportunistic. In fact, these life-sucking go-getters have managed to carve out some of the most ingenious survival strategies in the world. By some estimates, parasites outnumber free-living species nearly four to one. So show some respect. After all, mooching isnt’ as easy as it looks.

Cymothoa exigua: Biting Your Tongue, So You Don’t Have To.

When fish mommies want to strike fear in the hearts of their misbehaving fish babies, we suspect they draw on the chilling animal savagery of the Cymothoa exigua. As a youngster, this nasty little parasitic crustacean begins a life of terror by fighting its way through the gills of its fish host of choice, the snapper. Once there, it attaches itself to the fish’s tongue and begins feeding on the rich blood pumping through the artery underneath. As the parasite grows, it drinks more blood and eventually causes the tongue to atrophy and disintegrate. But does the Cymothoa mouth-squatter leave its fishy friend tongueless? Of course not. It does any craft parasite would do and replaces the old tongue with its own body. The fish is actually able to use the parasite just like a normal tongue, only it has to share all the food with its new friend. Yes, the whole foster-tongue thing seems like a pretty nice gesture on the part of ol’ Cymothoa - until you remember there was nothing wrong with the fish’s old tongue in the first place.

Previously on Neatorama: When Exigua Got Your Tongue, It’s For Real

Screwworms: Causing Problems Right out of the Hatch.

The screwworm isn’t really a worm at all; it’s a type of fly. But if living under a false name were the worst of the screwworm’s misdeeds, you can be sure it wouldn’t appear in this story. No, this parasite’s rap sheet is about to get much, much more disturbing. To find its host, an adult female screwworm seeks out exposed flesh on an animal (usually some sort of livestock, but an injured soldier or a human baby isn’t out of the question) in search of a place to lay her eggs. She prefers wounds, but may also settle on using the eyes, nostrils, or anus of her victim to construct a nursery. Next, the 200-or-so eggs hatch, and the larvae start burrowing into their host’s flesh. Once they’re situated in their cozy little meat tunnels, the infant flies continue to feed and grow. The bigger they get, the more they have to eat. Eventually, this creates a whole lot of festering and oozing on the host, which attracts more flies, which lay more eggs, which do more feeding and burrowing. It’s a brutal onslaught, and a swift one. Screwworm larvae are reportedly capable of consuming an entire sheep or dog from the inside out in five to seven days.

Sacculina carcini: Reasons You Shouldn’t Pick up a Hitchhiker.

If you ever have a choice between being possessed by the devil and being possessed by a Sacculina carcini, opt for the devil - no contest. A female sacculina begins life as a tiny free-floating slug in the sea, drifting around until she encounters a crab. When that fateful day arrives, she finds a chink in the crab’s armor (usually an elbow or leg joint) and thrusts a kind of hollow dagger into its body. After that, she (how to put this?) "injects" herself into the crab, sluicing through the dagger and leaving behind a husk. Once inside, the jellylike sacculina starts to take over. She grows "roots" that extend to every part of the crab’s body - wrapping around its eyestalks and deep into its legs and arms. The female feeds and grows until eventually she pops out of the top of the crab, and from this knobby protrusion, she will steer the Good Ship Unlucky Crab for the rest of their co-mingled life. Packed full of parasite, the crab will forgo its own needs to serve those of its master. It won’t molt, grow reproductive organs, or attempt to reproduce. It won’t even regrow appendages, as healthy crabs can. Rather than waste the nutrients on itself, a host crab will hobble along and continue to look for food with which to feed its parasite master.

Filarial Worm
Filarial Worms: Proof You Need Thicker Skin.

Filarial worms are the nasty little suckers you can thank for lymphatic filariasis, which, according to the Pacific Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis, is the second-leading cause of permanent and long-term disability in the world. (Mental illness is No. 1.) Filarial worms are round, threadlike parasites that travel from human to human via that harbinger of disease transmission, the mosquito. How do they make the leap of host? In an interesting (if scary) example of parasite ingenuity, filarial worm embryos living underneath the skin can sense the onset of night, which is their cue to head upward to the skin’s surface in order to increase their chances of being picked up by a passing ’skeeter. Should they get sucked up, they grow into larvae within the mosquito’s muscle fibers and then get themselves injected into new hosts. Once they’ve returned into a human home, they open up a franchise in the family business - Wreaking Havoc. Filaria often lodge in the body’s lymphatic system, where they can inflict any number of torturous symptoms, not the least which involves carting your genitals off to the elephantiasis clinic in a wheelbarrow.

Read more: The Global Alliance to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis | Lifecycle of Filariasis

Souce: Dose of Tenacity Wears Down an Ancient Honor

Guinea Worms: Exposing Parts Nobody Wants to See.

Where there are guinea worms, there is Guinea Worm Disease - and that’s usually in Africa. When a human consumes water contaminated with guinea worms, the little buggers infiltrate their host’s intestinal walls and commence mating. After conception, the males die off, and the females hang around for about a year, growing and eating. Eventually, these slender ladies get bored and decide they need to lay some eggs. To do so, they make their way down the body to the lower extremities, where they bore a small hole through the skin. The resulting lesion begins to fester and burn, which usually leads the host to plunge his or her foot into a soothing bucket of water (Of course, in areas where an entire village shares a single water source, this helps spread the infection.) Unfortunately for the sufferer, the water doesn’t solve the problem of having a three-foot female worm dangling its genitalia out of your foot. And to complicate matters, if you yank on that sucker, it’ll break apart and could cause a fatal infection. So how do you rid yourself of the not-so-little hitchhiker? You go see a doctor, who - over the course of three or four weeks - will kindly wind the worm around a stick, inch by agonizing inch. Not the most pleasant method, but certainly a proven one. This cure for a guinea worm infection has been around so long, so believe it’s where we get the snakes-around-a-staff symbol for medicine.

Source: Insane Snail Parasite

Leucochloridium paradoxum: Parasite for Sore Eyes.

Prepare to be dazzled. This parasite’s got a life cycle more mind-bending and chilling than an M. Night Shyamalan film. Leucochloridium paradoxum are a type of fluke (a.k.a., parasitic flatworm) that prey on birds - a fascinating turn of events considering they begin their lives as eggs in bird droppings. Thus, the problem facing baby Leucochloridum paradoxum is, "How do I get myself back into one of those feathery things?" Taking a page from Greek history, the infant flatworms rely on Trojan trickery. First, they hang out in the droppings until a snail happens along and eats the bird dung. Then they initiate their devious plan of action by taking up residence in the snail’s eyestalks. (Sure, it sounds slimy and gross to us, but after a childhood spent living in bird feces, it’s a step up.) As they mature, the flukes become visible through the snail’s translucent skin. And that’s when things get interesting. To a bird, this fluke-filled eyestalk looks like a caterpillar. So the bird devours the stalk and ends up with a bellyful of Leucochloridium paradoxum that will, of course, lay eggs and begin the cycle again. Meanwhile, the snail shakes its head, shops for an eye patch, and vows never to eat feces again.

___________

This article was written by Chris Connolly for our friend mental_floss magazine

Survey

2006-08-29T10:03:00.000+12:00

*TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF - The Survey*
Name:	Ryan Douglas Wales
Birthday:	May 25 1979
Birthplace:	Cranbrook
Current Location:	Auckland, New Zealand
Eye Color:	Green
Hair Color:	Dirty Blond
Height:	6'0"
Right Handed or Left Handed:	Left
Your Heritage:	Melting Pot of English, Irish, Norwegian, and Native American
The Shoes You Wore Today:	Black dress shoes
Your Weakness:	Nachos
Your Fears:	Motorbikes
Your Perfect Pizza:	A mexican pizza from panago...
Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year:	It's a secret
Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger:	haha
Thoughts First Waking Up:	Piss off cat...
Your Best Physical Feature:	Smile
Your Bedtime:	Sometimes early, sometimes too late
Your Most Missed Memory:	Hockey dressing rooms
Pepsi or Coke:	Pepsi
MacDonalds or Burger King:	no way
Single or Group Dates:	Single
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea:	Nestea
Chocolate or Vanilla:	Vanilla
Cappuccino or Coffee:	Cappuccino
Do you Smoke:	nada
Do you Swear:	too much
Do you Sing:	poorly
Do you Shower Daily:	Sometimes more than once
Have you Been in Love:	Ya!
Do you want to go to College:	For 8 years
Do you want to get Married:	Indeed
Do you belive in yourself:	Mostly
Do you get Motion Sickness:	First time was on a flight last Saturday
Do you think you are Attractive:	More than I probably am haha
Are you a Health Freak:	I wouldn't say freak
Do you get along with your Parents:	When I don't live with them
Do you like Thunderstorms:	Love them
Do you play an Instrument:	no
In the past month have you Drank Alcohol:	Ya man
In the past month have you Smoked:	never
In the past month have you been on Drugs:	nope
In the past month have you gone on a Date:	Ya
In the past month have you gone to a Mall:	Yup
In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos:	I haven't had them in ages...so I might soon
In the past month have you eaten Sushi:	Indeed
In the past month have you been on Stage:	No
In the past month have you been Dumped:	No
In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping:	It's winter here
In the past month have you Stolen Anything:	na
Ever been Drunk:	Ya
Ever been called a Tease:	Who hasn't
Ever been Beaten up:	Been on the losing end of a couple hockey fights
Ever Shoplifted:	Yup
How do you want to Die:	Happy
What do you want to be when you Grow Up:	Professional Athlete...not gonna make it though
What country would you most like to Visit:	Greece
*In a Boy/Girl..*
Favourite Eye Color:	Blue
Favourite Hair Color:	Blond
Short or Long Hair:	Long
Height:	Shorter than me
Weight:	Not toobig and not too small
Best Clothing Style:	Casual but nice
Number of Drugs I have taken:	some
Number of CDs I own:	I have a lot of digital copies
Number of Piercings:	0
Number of Tattoos:	1
Number of things in my Past I Regret:	The things that have hurt me have only made me who I am.
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

Boobs on Bikes

2006-08-22T10:03:00.000+12:00

It is really too bad that I don't work downtown Auckland. I am pretty close (10 min), but far enough, and too busy, to be able to attend the inaugural "Boobs on Bikes" parade during my lunch hour tomorrow. Apparently to start kick off some erotica expo, dozens of porn starts are having a nude parade, down the busiest shopping street in the country. Police officials said that "they did not regard the parade of leather-clad porn stars as indecent." This really doesn't surprise me since one of their own moonlights as a hooker on the weekend. I guess having hundreds of horny business men may be good for business.

I have no idea how this is allowed...

Stubby Storts

2006-08-21T16:35:00.000+12:00

One of the first things I noticed in this godforsaken country is the excessively shorts worn by guys...commonly called stubby's. I am proud to say that after over 3 years I have not been tricked into buying a pair. I may pick up some before I go home...I know the boys will be jealous.
When ever I see guys strolling around in them that 80's classic just pops into my head..."who likes short shorts"..."we like short shorts"....

THE STUBBY

If there is anyone who has pictures of people who should now be wearing these shorts, feel free to pass them on. I can make it a catagory called "People who should not wear stubby's". Lets start if off with Reg Reagan, Australian icon from the Footy Show.

Santa!!!!

2006-08-21T16:24:00.000+12:00

The road hockey crew invited me around to their place a few nights back. I had been having an really shitty day with my car breaking down, deciding that I am going to move out of my flat, and just some general boredom. I figured that I would stop by to say hi, maybe have a couple drinks, and then take off nice and early because I wanted to go for a big fun the next day. Well when I got to Sprague's house, to my surprise, they decided to throw a Christmas party in August. There was no messing around here; mistletoe in the doorways, a Christmas tree covered in lights, Christmas baking, and a vat full of warm Christmas "cheer". They even had Christmas carols just cranking and everyone totally got into it. The night definitely had a snowball effect until there were numerous people, stripped down to their underwear singing some Tragically Hip, on a newly made deck at 3am. Totally a random night that is was one to remember.

Line of the night (while sceamed at the top of his lungs): "Oh my god its a dance party"

What Trading Teaches Us About Life

2006-08-17T13:48:00.000+12:00

While I wish I came up with this list myself, I can't take recognition for these words of wisdom. Thanks Trader Feed!

So many life lessons can be culled from trading and the markets:

1) Have a firm stop-loss point for all activities: jobs, relationships, and personal involvements. Successful people are successful because they cut their losing experiences short and ride winning experiences.

2) Diversification works well in life and markets. Multiple, non-correlated sources of fulfillment make it easier to take risks in any one facet of life.

3) In life as in markets, chance truly favors those who are prepared to benefit. Failing to plan truly is planning to fail.

4) Success in trading and life comes from knowing your edge, pressing it when you have the opportunity, and sitting back when that edge is no longer present.

5) Risks and rewards are always proportional. The latter, in life as in markets, requires prudent management of the former.

6) Happiness is the profit we harvest from life. All life's activities should be periodically reviewed for their return on investment.

7) Embrace change: With volatility comes opportunity, as well as danger.

8) All trends and cycles come to an end. Who anticipates the future, profits.

9) The worst decisions, in life and markets, come from extremes: overconfidence and a lack of confidence.

10) A formula for success in life and finance: never hold an investment that you would not be willing to purchase afresh today.

Why I play hockey...

2006-08-17T13:13:00.000+12:00

If you don't know, this is why boys like me play hockey...

The cockiest, dirtiest, most irresponsible group of athletes in the world. Will do anything and come back to tell his teammates about it. Live the dream until they are 35 then realize they never made it. Ladies love us, guys want to be us, we are the soul of the universe. You lace up the skates, put on the gloves, strap on the helmet, and walk on to the ice and nothing else matters. It doesn't matter that you failed a test, your girl is bein a bitch, or that you got a ticket on the way there...you're world is absolutely perfect for the next couple hours Here's to faceoffs, goals, assists, overtime, livin' on the road, cold rinks, early mornings, breakaways, goin' top shelf, countless hours of practice, bag skates, thousands of dollars, dangling d-men, big hits, broken twigs, new skates, packin' bombs, wheelin' broads, coaches, adding the letter "y" to the end of everyone's last name, the word "f", pick up, fights, let downs, miracles and most of all - the game, Hockey Why? Why do we skate back and forth night after night? Skating so hard we throw up. Skating so hard your heart beat rings in your head, while your lungs are grasping for air. Late nights, early mornings, Friday nights, Saturday evenings, broken bones, torn muscles and deep bruises. We skate through it all. Because we live off our adrenaline, because the game frees your spirit, because the party in the locker room is fine, because your invincible once you step on the ice, because a shot can make you smile all night, sniping the twine, the rattling of the boards, the feel of the puck, and skates carving into the ice is a rhythm to live by, because its possible to skate fast enough to leave all your worries behind. Sweat is the cologne of our accomplishment. Why? Why would someone push themselves so hard? It's not for the money, it's not for the girls, and it's not for the fame. We do it because we love it...

Rules to live by

2006-07-17T11:31:00.000+12:00

While working at my new job has not made me rich, I have definitely grown and put me outside of my "comfort zone". I think that many of us get into a routine where things are easy, without challenging ourselves. The people who can get away from these routines end up living exciting and interesting lives and know who they are a lot better than someone stuck in the same old place. This is why I:

a) Went to UBC
b) Came to NZ with Snarl
b) Took a job in Auckland and forcing myself into a relationship situation that is far from ideal
c) Eat spicy food...

In summary it is always good to give your head a chance to start fresh.

I read a great quote from Trader Feed that brings this altogether. It is from Lila, by Robert Pirsig:

"If you want to drink new tea you have to get rid of the old tea that's in your cup, otherwise you cup just overflows and you get a wet mess. Your head is like that cup. It has a limited capacity and if you want to learn something about the world you should keep your head empty in order to learn it. It's very easy to spend your whole life swishing old tea around in your cup thinking it's great stuff because you've never tried anything new, because you could never get it in, because the old stuff prevented its entry because you were so sure the old stuff was so good, because you never really tried anything new...on and on in an endless circular pattern" (p. 25).

Hockey Day in NZ

2006-07-08T13:40:00.000+12:00

So Snarl has headed back down to Palmy. She starts back at uni on Monday for her last semester of class work for vet. It is going to be pretty intense for her but she will be fine. Well I dropped her off with her friend to drive back so I am back to flying solo for the next couple months. I like having her around and miss her when she is gone but things have been good so far. Well after I dropped her off I went to check out this gym near my place. It looks good enough at the University of Auckland high performance center. I am able to get a discount as an "other student discount". Massey, for some reason automatically issues your student card for 5 years even if your program isn't that long. It allows me to get student discounts for 3 years after I graduate...Sweet! Well on my way home I went by this school and saw a group of guys playing road hockey. I knew that they couldn't be kiwi's so I wandered over to see if they needed another player. Obviously they were all Canadians who have moved here over the past few years and play road hockey every Saturday morning. I joined them and had a wicked, and fun, workout. It is awesome running into random fun events like that. I am also meeting up with them later to watch the rugby tonight. They invited me over because they are having a party with a projector, drinking some beer, and playing some fusball. Good time, good times....I love random events that happen to me.

Dinner Date

2006-07-07T09:41:00.000+12:00

The boss pulled me aside the other day and told me to take Snarl out for dinner on the company account. He said that he knew that she was heading back down to Palmy for the next semester and should go on a nice date. Well I am not going to pass up a chance like that so we went to this fancy restaurant called Micanos down on the waterfront last night. It was this big open restaurant which huge windows to view the harbor and helicopter pad. We decided to try food that we hadn't eaten before. I ended up having ostrich fillets for my appetizer and then had a local fish called Hapuku (blackened with lemon risotto and lemon butter). Snarl had local snapper fillets pan fried with herbs on carrot, parsnip and potato mash. The meal was great and it was one of those places we wouldn't have gone on our own because of the prices! Thanks Boss!

Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest

2006-07-05T14:15:00.000+12:00

I just saw Kobayashi win the the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest on ESPN for the 6h straight year. He broke the world record by eating 54 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes. This years race was tight with Joey Chestnut challenging him right to the very end eating 52 hot dogs. I am really amazed at the weird sports around and that their is a MLE...major league eating. These guys not only eat hot dogs and hamburgers but weird shit like "corned beef and cabbage" eating competition. How much do these guys make? How do you train? Do they vomit after each competition because most aren't that fat...so weird.

Near-Perfect Market Indicator Discovered

2006-07-05T13:25:00.000+12:00

I read this on trader feed and I realized that there are people with no talent who won't give up...

Years of Research Reveals Consistent Trading Edge in Aurora, IL
Stock market researchers at the University of Chicago yesterday announced a breakthrough in their efforts to find the perfect market indicator. He is Delbert Dunmore, a home-based trader in Aurora, Illinois.According to Giovanni Celini, Ph.D. of the University's Institute for Market Research, Mr. Dunmore has failed to make money for 18 consecutive years of trading, with only a single month of gains during that time."This is a result far beyond chance," Dr. Celini noted. "Mr. Dunmore has been remarkably consistent in his ability to lose money."At first, the University researchers thought that Dunmore had discovered a key to losing in the markets. Only after careful observation, however, did they find that Dunmore himself was the key."The man has incredibly poor judgment," Dr. Celini reports in The Behavioral Finance Journal. "We call it a 'Reverse Midas Effect': everything he touches turns to shit."Dr. Wayne Byerly, behavioral finance researcher at Cornell University, believes that the Reverse Midas Effect may win the Chicago researchers a Nobel Prize. "Mr. Dunmore is helping us answer questions that have never been asked before, such as 'What keeps people trading when they are so obviously devoid of talent?'"None of this seems to faze the 42 year old Illinois trader, who was recently hired by a well-known New York investment bank to head their Contrary Opinion desk. "People say I lose all the time," Dunmore explained, "but at least I'm good at something." Indeed, his incredible consistency has brought him celebrity status, as he recently shared a STuBY award with Native Americans, Salem witches, and the Chicago Cubs, honoring America's greatest losers.His brush with fame, however, almost never came to be as he recently experienced his first winning month in nearly two decades of trading. "I felt pretty good coming into June," Dunmore explained, "and I bought a boatload of Harold's Stores (HLD) stock in the middle of the month. I didn't realize that I typed in the wrong symbol, though, and wound up owning the exchange-traded fund for gold (GLD). Damn thing went through the roof."This was quite a blow for Dunmore. "I couldn't believe I lost my losing streak," he lamented. "For days, I went around feeling like a total loser."Lately, however, the Chicago suburbanite has returned to consistent form, as he shorted the oil market after reading an online bulletin board tip that massive new hurricanes had not demolished the Gulf coast overnight. This trade was so spectacularly misconceived that it landed Dunmore a spot on a local access cable television show in Aurora.Dunmore attributes his success as a market failure to a strategy a trading coach helped him implement many years ago. "At the end of every year, I replenish my trading account," he explained. "If I didn't do that, I'd never have become the trader I am today."Bio:
Brett N. Steenbarger, Ph.D. lives perilously close to Aurora, IL and offers a tip of the hat to The Onion and the many Delbert Dunmores who keep trading psychologists busy.

Who's Judging Who Now

2006-07-05T13:11:00.000+12:00

Just read a news article about former Judge Donald D. Thompson, a veteran of 23 years on the bench, is on trial on charges he used a penis pump on himself in the courtroom while sitting in judgment of others. To make an embarrassing situation worse the white-handled sexual device sits before the jury box for hours at a time. Occasionally an attorney picks it up and squeezes the handle, demonstrating the "sh-sh" sound of air rushing through the contraption's plastic tubing. I know that if I was a jury I would bust out laughing every time I heard a shhhhhhhhhhhh.

Thompson took the stand in his own defense, saying the device was a gag gift from a longtime friend with whom he had joked about erectile dysfunction. He said he kept the pump under the bench or in his office but didn't use it. All I can say is ssssssssssuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrreeeeeeee..

Links

2006-07-04T11:08:00.000+12:00

I have realized that a lot of the links I put up don't work due to my incompetence...That is now not the case. I rule.

Movie Review: Superman Returns

2006-07-04T10:31:00.000+12:00

Snarl and I went and checked out the new Superman movie over the weekend. I was a big fan of the originals as a kid, and I remember the first movie I saw at the theater was either 3 or 4. I remember thinking it was awesome and that I ate Smarties...That's it. We were both pretty stoked since it was directed by Brian Singer from the X-Men series. We were both really impressed and enjoyed the CGI involved in it. The animators did not have the benefit of a superhero who wears a mask, and it is almost indistinguishable between the real and CGI superman. The plotline stayed true to the original whereby Lex Luthor has a "plan" to take over the world. I won't go into details and ruin it for everyone. The only downside I can say is that it is a little long (2.5 hours) and when I get tickets to the late show at the end of the week there is the possibility to doze off when you are in really comfortable seats...

The changing face of sport

2006-06-29T09:53:00.000+12:00

The globe and mail had a fascinating article about how the University of Alberta's medicine and engineering department inventing a devise that can regrow human teeth. This tiny ultrasound machine roughly half the size of a nail on your baby finger, will be able to gently massage the gums to stimulate growth of the tooth root. The custom-built machine, which can be mounted on a tiny braces bracket or a plastic removable crown, needs to be activated for 20 minutes a day for a total of four weeks for results to be noticed, according to the researchers. This devise has received approvals from American and Canadian regulatory bodies, and now the work continues to get the tiny product ready for the dentist's office and people's mouths.

This hits pretty close to home with me since I got my first tooth chip at age 10 and, throughout my teens ended up knocking out 1 tooth and chipping a "few" more. Thank god for my parents dental insurance because I would be an ugly bastard if it wasn't for good 'ol Dr. Callen.

Hey miss...You're fetus is queer

2006-06-28T09:16:00.000+12:00

Recent research has shown that the the chances of a man being gay increases by 1/3 for each older brother someone has.

"These results support a prenatal origin to sexual orientation development in men and indicate that the fraternal birth-order effect is probably the result of a maternal 'memory' for male gestations or births," Bogaert writes in his report in PNAS Early Edition. A woman's body may see a male fetus as "foreign," Bogaert explains, and her immune response to subsequent male fetus's may grow progressively stronger. If this immune theory were correct, then the link between the mother's immune reaction and the child's future sexual orientation would probably be some effect of maternal anti-male antibodies on the sexual differentiation of the brain. With each male offspring the antibody buildup will increase causing lasting damage.

Sunshine and Seafood

2006-06-27T10:01:00.000+12:00

Podge and Jay came into town this weekend. Saturday we headed down to Mission Bay and went to this Belgian bar and drank some good beer and ate seafood in the sunshine. It was a great afternoon just chilling and hanging with the mates. We went out that evening and went to this bar called "Minus 5". The whole place was made of ice, the furniture and glasses were made of ice, and they gave you fur coats and mittens as you went in. You were only allowed to go in there for 20 minutes and it cost 20 bucks which was pretty steep. It is a pretty funny gimmick and worth going once since the ice sculptures are quite cool. It was very entertaining watching Podge try to "lick everything"....

World Cup Update

2006-06-27T09:56:00.000+12:00

So pissed off...Australia got beat this morning after Totti takes a dive with 5 seconds left in penalty time against Italy. This sets up the Italians with a dot shot at the end of the game to win. I was really pulling for the Ausies as the Cinderella team of this WC. While I still have 2 teams for my pool in the tourney, the favorites Brazil and Ukraine, my heart is with England to win.

Weird stat of the tourney....Switzerland is the first team to be eliminated without letting a goal in the whole tournament. The were eliminated today by Ukraine in a penalty shoot out after their game tied 0-0.

How "fortunate"...

2006-06-27T09:47:00.000+12:00

So the world's second richest man Warren Buffet has decided to give away $ 37 Billion of his fortune. Buffets success has been attributed to investing in companies with solid earnings growth, but may not be in areas that are sexy or trendy. For example Mr Buffet criticized Wall Street's valuation techniques for the IT industry during the 1990's as they failed to recognize that these companies did not have any earnings. His company "Berkshire Hathaway" is a large shareholder in Coca-Cola, GE, and many other large companies. He has decided to donate $ 5 Billion per year to the Gates foundation and other philanthropic foundations managed by his family. In all when he dies he will only leave his family with a net worth of $5 Billion. When you get to be that rich, why not donate money to who needs it. It really isn't going to make a difference if they are worth $5 Billion or $50 billion.

That's not how I roll...

2006-06-23T10:42:00.000+12:00

I have enjoyed my time in NZ but when I read articles about how much money people are making I-banking at home I do get a little jealous. Hopefully this frenzy stays around for another 18 months and firms want to give me a 400K golden handshake when I roll into town and I have the balls to turn it down and wait for something better. There have been a few more boutique firms opening up in Cowtown and Tdot and analysts and traders are in big demand. A record year for underwriting and takeovers are expected and hopefully this carries over till I get there.

DUB SEE

2006-06-23T10:28:00.000+12:00

I woke up yesterday feeling like total ass...In the words of a Kiwi "I was crook". The weather has gone to shit and it seems like everyone has gotten some sort of cold. Podge is coming tonight for a weekend of boobery and dabautchery so hopefully any poisons I consume will kill the bugs inside.

I read an article showing that home court/ice/rink advantage in sports churns up the body's production of testosterone, thus increasing aggression and energy levels. The theory believes that this stems from the primal need for home territory. Researchers stated, "Humans might be just like rodents and lower animals when they defend their home territory, being more territorial in a venue they're more comfortable with". The research also stated that, "there have been a couple of studies showing that athletes at home have a better mood profile, meaning higher vigour and confidence and less anxiety, lower depression, lower tension and lower fatigue". I guess this could go in Germany's favour at this world cup and explain why South Korea came out of no where 4 years ago to make the semi finals or why only 2 of 12 game 7's in the Stanley Cup finals have gone to the away team. The Oilers were doomed!

I have been lucky to have a TV in the office during these sports playoffs and apparently I am not alone. IBM Canada has allowed programmers to watch games via their computers at work, hopefully reducing sick days and increasing moral. I know that since I don't have cable I haven't been wanting to miss work.

NZ Music

2006-06-22T10:18:00.000+12:00

After being in NZ for a couple years to their music and culture. For the most part, NZ music is shit. I know that they don't like hearing it but bands like ELEMENOP are so bad, no matter how much you play them on the radio. However there are a couple of bands that are gems.

1. Pluto-this is a electro rock band from Dunedin who have just released their first album and the song "Long White Cross" would go to number 1 in any country. I have linked the video down below as my video of the week.

2. Op Shop-I went and saw these guys 2 years ago and went for a beer with the band. The singer Jason Kerrison is a great performer and a great guy. When the auditions for the new ROCKSTAR Supernova he went and made it through to LA and might be in the final 20. It would be cool to "know" someone in a band who made it big with legends Tommy Lee and Jason Neustadt.

3. The Feelers-Great rock band. I don't know why they haven't pushed to try go international as they have a great sound and their album are all great cover to cover.

4. Shihad (Pacifier) -These guys are enormous here in NZ. While their sound is a little heavy for me they are really talented. They gave the US a go back in 2002 as Pacifier with their headline song Pacifier. They got a little radio play but gave up and came home. This is the all time favorite band of Welsh band "The Lost Prophets". Their songs are always a favorite to any red blooded Kiwi male.

Sports Orgy 2

2006-06-22T09:51:00.000+12:00

So the hockey and basketball playoffs are over now with the Heat and the 'Canes coming through on top. The Edmonton run to the Stanley Cup finals definitely kept my interest. It was quite cool because Jarrett Stoll played his junior hockey for the Kootenay Ice and it has been great watching his development from a 16 year old kid to now the go to faceoff man for the Oilers. I also played against Shaun Horcoff back in the day when he was the man in Castlegar. You know he was going big places when he was the leading scorer for the RMJHL as a 15 year old. The Canucks have announced that Alan Vinnault as their new head coach after anchoring the Manitoba Moose to a number of successful seasons. Hopefully he can get my team back in order.

I went to the All Blacks vs Ireland last weekend and it was an amazing experience. 40K fans going mental in the ice cold rain. I was so damn cold and wet that I had to wrap these little plastic flags over my legs to help keep the rain off. It was definitely and experience to remember.

I have been watching the World Cup in the morning before work. Me and few buddy's put together a little pool. Luckily, I ended up with Brazil and Czech as my teams and I have a great chance of taking home the money....Oh ya.

The Solstice

2006-06-22T09:38:00.000+12:00

Today is the shortest day of the year for the southern hemisphere. As such I wake up I have rarely been outside with sunlight. As such my running has gone shit with only 1 run over the past 2 weeks. Well at least I don't have to move again.

I shifted places last weekend and now live with a mid 30's sales manager for a travel company and he seems like a pretty good dude. He owns the house and is away at sales conferences a lot so I will have the house to myself quite a bit. He owns this place so I don't have to worry about moving hopefully for the rest of the time I'm in Auckland. The old roommates have now moved to London. I was totally shocked at their laziness and how inconsiderate they were during the move. They didn't pack or even start, until after one of their fathers had come to pick their stuff up. They ended up having to stay up all night after they were to be gone, and forced him to miss work after he had already spent 1000 on their move. I was going to help them clean up the place but they can only waste my time for so long. I had offered to help them pack and get things sorted the week prior to moving but they kept on putting things off. All I can say is Fuck um...

Jussi is my Homeboy

2006-06-11T19:36:00.000+12:00

Went and watched the Oilers win a great game against the Hurricanes. The intensity was great and they played their game plan and were ale to neutralize the Cane's offence. The only thing was that the Oilers weren't able to capitalize on their power plays. Carolina has the most aggressive penalty kill I have ever seen, which doesn't allow the pp unit to set up. When Ryan Smyth scored with 2 minutes left I was jumping around yelling in an empty bar near my place....It was awesome but it would have been better to celebrate with friends.

The Sports Fan

2006-06-10T14:14:00.000+12:00

There is an orgy of great sporting events on over this month. Like any sports fan, the excitement and anticipation remind me of myself at 7, waiting for Santa to bring me a wonderful present. Firstly, ESPN has decided to pick up the Stanley Cup finals. I didn't know this had happened and stumbled upon it at work and was able to "listen" to game 2. The Oilers got blown out and it seemed that they were pressing too hard, causing them to laspse defensively. Hopefully, McTavish brings them together and refocuses for the next game.

The World Cup of Soccer started last night. I have started to watch "football" and this is a great sporting event. I had no idea that more people watch this than the summer Olympics. A lot of investment banks have studied that work productivity and people taking their sick days to watch matches. Me and a few friends have done a pool and drawn teams, and I got Brazil. Bring in the winnings. Tonight is England's, first game (my favorites). They play at 1am so I may have to stay up and watch it.

Next weekend, I am going to watch my first international rugby match. I am going to see the All Black play Ireland. It should be pretty sweet. Rugby is HUGE here and people go mental over it. A few years back I went to a Super 14 game (rugby professional) which was cool but this should be ssssssssooooooo much better.

A Life In Boxes

2006-06-10T13:55:00.000+12:00

After a week of flat hunting I have found myself a new place to live. This week I move into an house with a guy who is an owner of Contiki Tours NZ. He is a 30+ triathlete who has gone through a divorce and is wanting a new guys roommate. It isn't far from my current place and he has everything set up already so it should be sweet. I had an option to move in with some friends but live farther away and it would be a nightmare to get to work. While it would be nice to be with friends, I am tired of living like a student in a place that is small, and worrying about chores and other peoples messes. My new roommate is away a lot so it will be like I have my own place. I will put through some pictures when I move in later in the week.

I am going to go to the All Black vs Ireland rugby match next weekend with my old roommates after we move out. They take off to England next week and this will be one of the only times we actually did anything as a flat. I should be fun since I have never been to a rugby international match. I guess I can tick that off the list.

Weekend Link Fest

2006-06-03T16:09:00.000+12:00

I have just read a few intersting article in the newspaper.

1. New research has found that CEO renumeration packages are not linked to company performance among Canadian companies. This agency relationship is a complicated measure for shareholders and the focus of academic research over the past 20 years. The study compared total compensation paid to CEOs from 2002 to 2004 to companies' total shareholder returns, including both share price appreciation and dividend payments.
They grouped companies according to industry sectors, and measured the excess of their returns compared with their industry average. The study included all public companies that have ranked within the largest 100 companies in Canada for the past 10 years — a total of 65 companies. The sample is small because many companies have disappeared from the top ranks over the years as a result of takeovers or business problems, or have not been publicly traded for at least 10 years.The review found no broad correlation between the amount paid to CEOs and their companies' performance. In other words, companies with higher compensation were not more likely to have better performance, while companies with lower relative pay are not generally the ones with worse performance.

If managment is not inclined to maximise shareholder returns, they will take on the alternative. This will include maximising personal income, or job security, rather than maximising shareprice. Board of directors need to take notice to solve this agency problem with packages that can included stock options or using real options for project valuation.

2. The oldest surviving book in Western civilizations was found in Greece. Greek philosophy expert Apostolos Pierris said the text may be over 2500 years old. “It was probably written by somebody from the circle of the philosopher Anaxagoras, in the second half of the 5th century B.C.,” he said. Anaxagoras, who lived in ancient Athens, is thought to have been the teacher of Socrates and was accused by his contemporaries of atheism. Last month, experts from Brigham Young University in Utah used multispectral digital analysis to create enhanced pictures of the text, which will be studied by Oxford University papyrologist Dirk Obbink and Mr. Pierris, and published by the end of 2007.

The scroll contains a philosophical treatise on a lost poem describing the birth of the gods and other beliefs focusing on Orpheus, the mythical musician who visited the underworld to reclaim his dead love and enjoyed a strong cult following in the ancient world. The Orpheus cult raised the notion of a single creator god – as opposed to the multitude of deities the ancient Greeks believed in – and influenced later monotheistic faiths. “In a way, it was a precursor of Christianity,” Mr. Pierris said. “Orphism believed that man's salvation depended on his knowledge of the truth.”

3. Israeli scientists have discovered an ancient ecosystem containing eight previously unknown species in a lake inside a cave, where they were completely sheltered from the outside world for millions of years.
The newly discovered crustaceans and invertebrates were found last month in a cave near the city of Ramle in central Israel, team leader Amos Frumkin announced Thursday.
“This is a very unique ecosystem that is completely isolated from the surface,” said Dr. Frumkin, a cave researcher in the geography department of Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

The cave, located 100 metres below ground in a limestone quarry, includes tunnels that extend about 2.5 kilometres. Inside, a large underground lake holds the previously unknown species, some similar to scorpions and shrimp.

Calls You don't Want to Get

2006-06-03T15:58:00.000+12:00

Snarl decided earlier in the week that she was going to come up to my place for her study week. Everyone was getting stressed and she needed to get away from the madness. Well she was driving up with a friend on Thursday after they finished class. Well I got home from work and I got a call that they had gotten into a car accident. Her friend had lost control and gone off the road where they rolled down an embankment, flipping the vehicle a couple times. They had to crawl out the window and climb up a big hill back to the highway. It was cold, dark, and on a road that few drive on. Luckily someone stopped and helped them. Both the girls were fairly sore and shaken up, but thankfully were not seriously injured. Well I received the phone call from Snarl very upset and stuck in butt fuck no where. Thankfully, the police officers were willing to give them a ride to Taupo (45 min away) and I arranged with the other girls father to come down and get them. I left after work, fairly upset, with S's dad to make pick up the girls. Well their trip to get away from the stress hasn't really worked out so far but thank god they are ok. I don't really know what I would have done if I got a call with the alternative. It is times like this where your mortality is thrown in your face, making you realize what is important.

The London Factor

2006-05-30T20:51:00.000+12:00

My life is never dull. After living here for 3 months I found out today that my flatmates are moving to London in 3 weeks. I found out that he applied to for this job on Friday in which I was like meh. However I am now caring more now that I have to move...So gay, so very very gay. I like this place, I like living near the beach and I think that it is going to be difficult to find another place this cool. I guess I will be looking for a place for the next couple weeks. :( I am really not looking forward to it.

I watched one of the greatest TV episodes last night. There was a 2 hour special of Greys Anatomy. I man was shot with a bazooka and the EMT put her and inside the body to stop the bleeding without knowing that the grenade had not exploded. The love plot between Dr Sheppard and Grey is looking to heat up again. The tension is frustrating...it reminds me of the whole Ross/Rachel...The characters are superb, the subplots draw you back weak after weak, and each episode is independently enjoying. These shows are few and far between.

PS The barnacle has the largest penis of all animals relatively to their body size

The X Factor

2006-05-28T21:39:00.000+12:00

Went out with the flatmates last night to watch the Super 14 final. The game was a total bust because the fog set in and you couldn't see anything. Definitely one of the worst TV sporting events of all time. All you could see was the camera moving back and forth over the thick fog. So so gay. The Crusaders won 19-12 and fully deserve the championship. After the game we decided to go and watch the new X-Men movie. Again, the critics have been cutting into it but I fully enjoyed it. Not going to go too much into details but it filled in a lot for me. I watched the cartoon but didn't read the comics so I really didn't understand the whole Jean Gray/The Phoenix thing. Also the special effects were pretty rad with the pinnacle being Magneto moving the golden gate bridge. Since it was filmed in Van I did see the apartment building I used to live in in UBC, which was pretty random. There was also a trailer for the new Superman...it looks ssssssssooooooooo good.

Today I went for a big run and it destroyed me. It as only 12 km but after hockey last night my legs were not wanting to move. I figured that I better go though since I ate a butt load of Indian food last night and was going to my bosses for bday dinner tonight. It was a struggle but ended up being alright.

Dinner tonight at the bosses was great. Their family has really taken me under their wing since moving up to Auckland. It was my bday on Thursday and Sarah's (their daughter) flatmates bday yesterday. It was a really nice roast chicken dinner with roast vegs. They had a fruit platter and I got to eat some fejioas and try paw paw. It was a great night and really appreciated what they have done for me. I did have a little talk with my boss about work and he went over a valuation that we did for a client. It looks like I may have fucked up by a million bucks. I am so mad at myself. Working with large sums of money commands a great attention to detail and small mistakes turn into million dollar mistakes, something that can't happen very often.

On a better note, Oilers in the final...oh ya!

The Fit Factor

2006-05-27T13:37:00.000+12:00

My training has gone to shit this week. Torrential rain has made my morning run almost non existent. I ran a 10k yesterday and I plan to go for a 2 hours session tomorrow. It hasn't been a total waste since I did have hokey practice on Tuesday and I have a game tonight. Not the same but surely not like sitting on the couch devouring bowls of icecream and snacks.

I am missing watching the playoffs, especially with the Oilers charging their way to the finals. Being up 3-0 (now 3-1) makes its pretty much a sure bet. The town is going crazy and enjoying their new found fame. As an 8 seed that just scrapped into the playoffs. If my Nucks didn't collapse in the last 10 games they wouldn't be in this position. First time that the team has been this deep in playoffs since Ranford was the tender, Messier was the man, and the Great One just got traded. It has been 13 years since a Canadian team has won the cup and this would be great. The Oilers were almost moved out of Edmonton in the old NHL and now they are sitting near the top. Similarly, so were Carolina and Buffalo who are in the semi's on the Eastern Conference finals. God Bless the new NHL.

It is also the rugby Super 14 final tonight. This is like the Stanley Cup of rugby for South Africa, NZ, and Australia. The game is at 7:30 tonight with the Cantabury Crusaders vs Wellington Hurricanes. The Crusaders have been the class of the competition the last 2 seasons. The have the world rugby player of the year, Dan Carter, and former and current All Blacks captains Ruben Thorne and Richie McCaw. The Hurrinanes are going to be the underdogs but ended up 3rd overall during the regular season and have retiring All Black captain Tana Umana. He is by far the scariest looking dude in pro rugby, if not pro sports. Living in Palmy for 3 years pretty much means that I have to chear for the Hurricanes but I do think the Crusaders will pull it off.

On a general note, isn't it great that girls flash their boobs when their team wins...

Weekend Link Fest

2006-05-27T13:13:00.000+12:00

I have found heaps of things I want to talk about so I will give brief summaries to mention the gold mine that I found.

M&A pace has doubled in Canada this past year. They still see large consolidation in the oil and gas industry, with many resource companies having aggressive acquisition strategies. If this holds pace, there are still many careers opportunities for when Snarl and I move back next year.
In the biggest IPO of the year, MasterCard Inc. Shares surged in their stock market debut Thursday even though the world's No. 2 credit-card brand originally priced below expectations.
MasterCard shares rose $7.00 (U.S.) to $46.00 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The shares were priced at $39 each and the initial public offering raised $2.39-billion.
The long-awaited IPO will go down as one of the market's biggest in the past two years, eclipsing the $1.7-billion raised when Google Inc. went public in 2004. Purchase, N.Y.-based MasterCard is now valued at about $6-billion, an amount projected to move higher as investors clamour to get a piece of one of the most venerable names in financial services. When I see the size of those numbers all I can see our fees.....1.0% of the amount underwritten equates to 60 million dollar fee split among a team. My lips are dripping with anticipation...
The coolest thing I have seen in a while is the new training programs created by Apple and Nike. The two companies announced Tuesday they are jointly developing a wireless system so some Nike shoes embedded with a sensor can communicate with Apple's iPod Nano music player to track a runner's performance and help choreograph songs to the moment.The co-branded kit comes with a sensor that fits inside compatible Nike footwear Â sold separately Â and a wireless receiver that attaches to the iPod. Data on running time, distance, pace and calories burned would be stored on the iPod, which could then display the information on-screen or deliver it audibly through headphones. After the workout, the data also could be automatically sent to a personal runner's log at the new nikeplus.com website whenever the music player is synchronized to Apple's iTunes program. The iPod will also incorporate a new "Power Song" feature, so a user can instantly queue up a piece of music for extra motivation at the push of a button. All I can say is so fucking cool.
U.S. scientists at Duke and Penn are developing an invisibility cloak using fabric called "metamaterials", which are engineered with tiny physical structures Â metal coils, or rods shaped like aerials. Scientists have been able to ÂtuneÂ them to bend electromagnetic waves, and effect that could be extremely important in military applications. Hide an object in a metamaterial cloak, he said, and electromagnetic waves would flow around it as water flows virtually undisturbed around a smooth rock. Light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation would strike the cloak and simply flow around it, continuing on as if it never bumped up against an obstacle. That would give an onlooker the apparent ability to peer right through the cloak, with everything tucked inside concealed from view. Once, production is complete I think that this technology would not be something that would beveryone'syones hands. Theft, peeping toms and omisusingsings wguaranteeentee to be linked if this technology got into the wrong hands. It is straight out of a sci-fi or Harry Potter story.
The Enron executive have been found guilty. Thank god this is over and that the corporate world has put measures into place to protect investors from this happening again. 290 years between Lay and Skilling is as much as a serial killWeirdweird.

Movie Review: Da Vinci Code

2006-05-27T12:47:00.000+12:00

Went and watched the Da Vinci Code last night and what an adventure it became. I drove across the city to watch at a big theater with comfy seats and where I could get a little shopping done before hand. I get there an hour early and find out that all movies are sold out. I was pretty pissed off because I got lost and wasted a bunch of tme and gas driving around. I took off and headed home and decided to stop into the local cinema that is about 500m from my place. I had suspected that it would be full because they only have seats for 50-75 people per screen. Well suprisingly I there were tons of tickets available and I wasted over an hour dicking around getting lost.

While I really wasn't in a good mood, I went in with an open mind, the same way I did when I read the book. While I think that there was a lack of chemistry between hanks and tautou the characters were well portrayed and it was entertaining. I really think that the critics have been a little harsh. The reason that the book sky rocketed to fame were the ideas behind it...not the story itself. Since everyone already knows those details, all that is left is a big treasure hunt like "National Treasure". Since the expectations to make an unbelievable movie over a treasure hunt could never be fulfilled...It is getting ripped. There is no way that Da Vinci should be getting a lower score on IMDB than National Treasure (6.5 vs 6.8). This movie is getting way too much flack, and if you want to see an enjoyable adventure movie to kill 2.5 hours it is worth it.

Someone is almost old

2006-05-25T21:07:00.000+12:00

I know someone who had a bday. It might be me, it might now be...I am not going to tell. But more likely than not, its me. The birthday really hasn't been too eventful. Actually, work today was horribly boring. I had to supervise this data room due diligence. While it sounds enthralling, it meant I had to sit and watch people read financial and legal material. I was ssssssssoooooooooo bored. I did organize my songs though....and play some spider solitaire, so the time did pass by somewhat slow rather than totally fucking slow. After worked I decided to treat myself to some fish and chips check out the new X-men. Fish o chips went down but X-men was sold out. I decided to visit my friend...Napoleon dynamite. I haven't watched it in ages and it is still so awesome, so so so so so awesome.

Pictures

2006-05-23T22:56:00.000+12:00

I have spent most of my free time uploading my photos from the past 6 months on to my yahoo photos page. It is now complete and shared for you all to see. I hope you enjoy.

I had practise tonight and felt buggered. The travelling makes me tired for a few days. Its probably because I am on the go for the whole weekend when I go away and dont really get to relax. Consequently, I haven't got a run in since Friday. Hopefully I get one tomorrow. If its gonna happen I better get off the bed. Ciao

Want Twins...Drink Milk

2006-05-22T21:46:00.000+12:00

Women who eat lots of dairy foods such as milk and cheese are much more likely to have twins than those who eat plant foods, a new study has found. Women who eat animal products, particularly dairy are five times more likely to have twins than women using vegan diet, found Gary Steinman, MD, PhD, author of the study .

Women who ate meat and dairy are five times more likely to have twins than those who used a vegan diet. Steinman believes that high levels of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) in the meat eaters' blood are the culprit. IGF is 13 percent higher in the women who used animal foods than in vegan women, the study found. In America, growth hormones are commonly injected in cows to boost milk and beef production. Elevated levels of IGF in women caused either by consumption of meat and dairy products or by genetic influence increase the sensitivity of the ovaries to follicle stimulating hormone, thereby increasing ovulation and the odds of having twins. This study shows for the first time that the chance of having twins is affected by both heredity and environment, or in other words, by both nature and nurture," said Dr. Steinman.

This makes gets me a little worried...3 of Snarl's grandparents are twins and she eats more milk, cheese, and yogurt than anyone I know. Hmmm....this is scary

Market Insight

2006-05-22T20:54:00.000+12:00

For those of you who are into the markets, economics, and game theory I found a great book called "The Undercover Economist" by Tim Hartford. For those of you who, enjoyed "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson, this book explores the economics of things that you have always wondered about but didn't know it was economics. Who really makes money from fair trade coffee? Why is it impossible to buy a decent second hand car? How do the Mafia make money from laundries when street gangs pushing drugs don't? Who really benefits from immigration? Looking at familiar situations in unfamiliar ways, The Undercover Economist is a fresh explanation of the fundamental principles of the modern economy, illuminated by examples from the booming skyscrapers of Shanghai to the sleepy canals of Bruges. It is a really great book.

I also came across an article comparing the investment banks to the bands of the world. Here is how it goes.

1) Goldman Sachs = The Rolling Stones but Goldman could almost be U2
2) Citigroup = Ozzy Osborne Both Citigroup and Ozzy are growing old disgracefully; Citigroup's many and varied brushes with the authorities around the world make the bank worthy of an alliance with the former Black Sabbath singer.
3) Deutsche Bank = Fleetwood Mac Immensely profitable? Check. Years of infighting and not communicating with one another? Check. Badly in need of a style makeover? Check. It's Fleetwood Mac.
4) JPMorgan = Radiohead Too clever by half, and needing another big hit to remain relevant? It could almost be REM.
5) Barclays Capital = Oasis The capital-markets division of Barclays Plc could be the Red Hot Chili Peppers; chaotic in the 1990s, gained some focus in the early years of this decade, now looking a bit bloated and self-indulgent.
6) Morgan Stanley = Coldplay Deadly earnest. Blue-blooded. Well-heeled. Regularly at the top of the charts, though even fans have the nagging sense they might just be going through the motions. Morgan Stanley and Coldplay are made for each other.
7) Merrill Lynch = Madonna Both Merrill Lynch & Co. and Madonna peaked in the 1980s and have been irrelevant since the 1990s, notwithstanding umpteen attempts at reinvention.
8) HSBC = any boyband'nuff said
9) UBS = Phil Collins The bank and the former Genesis drummer/singer are both rich, both based in Switzerland, and no one with any sense gives a hoot about either.
10) Commerzbank = David Hasselhoff Commerzbank AG and David Hasselhoff are huge in Germany. Scientists have failed to explain why.

Very astute, and very funny . . .

All the Events

2006-05-22T20:42:00.000+12:00

Went to Palmy to see Char this weekend. It was big Monica's 30th Bday and a huge party was planned. I have mine a little later in the week so I figured it would be a good day to go and celebrate. I flew down on Saturday morning bright and early. I really can handle a 1 hour flight over the 6 hour drive. I had a coffee and read the paper and BANG I was there.

After I went for breakfast with Snarl I went golfing with the boys. After birding the first hole I drained a huge 60ft put with 2 breaks for eagle. It was the only time in my life I have ever been 3 under par. Oh it was rad. After golf we headed to a Turkish place for dinner and then off to the Celtic for the celebrations. Monica had rented out the joint and there was tons of people there. It was a great night.

I hung out with C all of Sunday and made everyone a big dinner. It tried out my rib recipe but tried it with lamb. It was really not as good as the beef ones. Mental note has been taken. After dinner I flew back and headed to bed. I ended up only having to pay $15 for 2 days of parking...Not bad not bad.

New pics are updated from the Australia trip and some of summer's events. Check it out.

Mine Disaster-Kimberley, BC Canada

2006-05-19T10:31:00.000+12:00

I am in absolute shock right now. I got to work this morning and was blown away by what I read in my daily news paper. A mine disaster in my local town killed 4 people. For those of you who know me, I say I am from Cranbrook, BC. However, actually I am from Wycliffe, I rural community between two towns. Cranbrook, the major center of 30K and Kimberley, and mining and tourism community of 5k people. I played hockey and went to school in Cranbrook, so my allegiance lies there but my family is defiantly part of Kimberley. My mom is a bank manager at one of the banks, my aunt is a nurse at the local doctors clinic, and my uncle is a car salesman there. I also played all my golf at the Kimberley Golf Club. A lot of my friends parents worked at the mine and a lot people I golfed with work in the mines. Without this mine I would have never my girl. Her family moved to Cranbrook in the 1980's because her father got a job as a mine inspector for the local mines.

This community was founded on mining, at one point in time it was the largest nickel ore mine in the world. The town grew by attracting ex-professional hockey players to work in the mine and play for the local senior hockey team, the Kimberley Dynamiters. And, in the 1930's before there was a national hockey team, the Dynamiters were the top non-professional team in Canada and won the gold medal for Canada at the ice hockey world championships. While the mine has been scaled back over the past 10 years, it is still a major foundation of this community. As such, disaster that occurred yesterday has hit quite close to home...let me explain.

It started when an environmental consultant, who had been missing for a day, was discovered yesterday morning near the old mine's water-sampling shed, where company Teck Cominco treats the mine's still-contaminated water. These water treament plants are on the other side of the river from my family's farm, less than 5 km from my house. The water was dumped into the St Marys River, and my parents wouldn't let us swim drink any of it for good cause. It is however one of the best fly fishing rivers in the world.

When a employee found the body, he called an ambulance and entered the shed in what appears to be an attempt to save the consultant. Soon, he too was killed by what is believed to be hydrogen sulphide fumes. When the ambulance attendants arrived a few minutes later, they also died trying to rescue the mine workers from these fumes. One of those individuals was a father of my friend.

To say the least this has been a rough day and has quit quite close to home. I feel for the Newcombe family whose family was part of this close community. Mr. Newcombe's son was supposed to be married on Saturday, and the night before Mr. Newcombe's death, his family and friends had a celebratory barbecue at his house. Mr. Newcombe was also a curling coach. Last year, he led a team of four Cranbrook women to the playoffs at British Columbia's Scott Tournament of Hearts.

While I am a long way from home right now, and haven't talked to many of them in a while, my thoughts and prayers are with them in this time of need.

Arr Matey Let Me Swab Your Tape Deck

2006-05-18T22:11:00.000+12:00

The pirate has struck. Yes, I have been making mix CDs tonight from illegal downloads and I don't feel guilty about it. I made 4 great CDs tonight for running. I also had my P2P software going and I download about a billion Beatles and Stones songs. Really I don't care because these old bastards don't need the money. Well Sir Paul McArtney pockets may feel a little lighter since he is getting divorced from his supermodel second wife. Fortune says that he is worth 1.5 billion so after this episode he won't be in the billionaire club any more. He is going to have to hand his badge in and hold his head in shame. I bet Linda is laughing from 6 feet under...

It makes you think

2006-05-16T19:04:00.000+12:00

Had a meeting today with a company that has a really interesting business model. This company is a conglomerate that owns multiple companies worldwide. They have an extremely flat corporate structure where each of the business units is run with entrepreneurial focus. Rather than the typical combination to achieve economies of scale and achieve synergies, they try to keep the entrepreneurial drive. Overall, they turnover a billions with each business contributing a small amount. The end product is a lot of small business with the legal/financial support that allows them to grow. This strategy has worked wonders for them, but isn't the "sexxy" way they teach you in business school. It is really one of those things where "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

Is there a chance the track will bend

2006-05-15T20:16:00.000+12:00

So I had a meeting today regarding this company that was wanting to issue an IPO. These guys are a start up infrastructure company that has developed a light passenger monorail. The business plan was good but they need 30 million to put in a test track. The money involved in this business is huge. To build a subway/monorail/sky train cost more than 30-40 million per kilometer. There has been a lot of excitement over the product that these guys have developed. The problem was that all I had in my head during the meeting was that Simpsons episode when the traveling salesman sells a monorail to Springfield and Homer quits his job at the power plant and becomes the train conductor. I had the song in my head that went Monorail...monorail...monorail. I almost lost it when my boss in some serious voice asked during a discussion about the engineering certification, "is there a chance the track will bend". You don't know how hard it was to keep a straight face...

Here are the words to my distraction.

Lyle Lanley: Well, sir, there's nothing on earth Like a genuine, Bona fide, Electrified, Six-car Monorail! What'd I say?
Ned Flanders: Monorail! Lyle Lanley: What's it called?
Patty+Selma: Monorail! Lyle Lanley: That's right! Monorail! [crowd chants `Monorail' softly and rhythmically]
Miss Hoover: I hear those things are awfully loud... Lyle Lanley: It glides as softly as a cloud.
Apu: Is there a chance the track could bend? Lyle Lanley: Not on your life, my Hindu friend.
Barney: What about us brain-dead slobs? Lyle Lanley: You'll be given cushy jobs.
Abe: Were you sent here by the devil? Lyle Lanley: No, good sir, I'm on the level. Wiggum: The ring came off my pudding can. Lyle Lanley: Take my pen knife, my good man. I swear it's Springfield's only choice... Throw up your hands and raise your voice!
All: Monorail! Lyle Lanley: What's it called? All: monorial! Lyle lamely: Once again... All: monorial!
Margo: But Main Street's still all cracked and broken... Bart: Sorry, Mom, the mob has spoken! All: monorial! monorial! manorial! [big finish] monorial! Homer: Mono... Doe!

Ribs are Mantastic

2006-05-14T21:59:00.000+12:00

There are relatively few times in your life where you build something up in your head and it lives up to those expectations. Under most circumstances it lacks something that makes it great. Well tonight was not one of those nights. The tender care I put into marinating ribs for 2 days in my special sauce, the 3.5 hours of slow cook and basting the meat, all led to the best meal I think I have made. As a self proclaimed chef, these are nights that you remember forever.

Exact recipes will be sold for a price that will equal the value of the meal. Get your hope up, it's worth it.

Southern Cooking

2006-05-14T16:34:00.000+12:00

So I am waiting for my ribs to cook up. I have been excited all day, waiting for the moment to gnaw the meat off the bones of a former cow. Oh so good. You just feel so manly eating a dinner with your hands. I don't know what it is but the only way it could be better is if I killed it myself this morning. Oh how good would that be. This is going to be the way to top off a good weekend.

Friday night I had a hockey game. I don't know what it is but I really haven't been all that motivated with this new team. Things are getting better now that I am getting in decent shape but I really don't seem to click with a lot of the guys. Its hard when a bunch of them are 18/19 and don't have a clue about anything. Hopefully it gets better. Well we destroyed a team 8-1 which always makes me feel better. We were tied at the end of the first half and then we just took off. I got 1 goal and 3 assists which is nice to pad the stats. I do love scoring goals.

Got called into work yesterday to work on a deal that has been on again/off again. As of now it is on so we had to get things ready for a board meeting on Monday. The weather was shit yesterday so it didn't really bother me. After work I headed over to the shore and went for dinner with Nick and James. We made some mojitos and had a man feed of prawns which was great. I also got to try the great NZ "white bait" fritter. It is a fish patty made of white bait, a small fish (like a minnow) that is a delicacy. It was really good. Something you have to give a try to if you get the chance.

We went for a few drinks in the city afterwards. I am so over the bar scene so I bailed fairly quickly. I really wanted to go for a big run this morning. If I am going to run this marathon I can't have too may boozing nights on days before my weekly long run. As such, I woke quite refreshed this morning and churned out a solid 14km run in 1hr 20 min. I am definitely not going to win any speed records with that but I am happy with that time at the moment. On my run I ran past a stadium near my place and noticed that there was a NBL basketball game on this afternoon. NZ has a semi professional league where a lot of Ausie/Kiwi and a few US college players play in from March to July. A lot of these guys use it as a warm up for their pro tryouts later in the year. The skill was alright (Canadian Uni) and it only cost 5 bucks. Surely going to make it to another game sometime.

The Price is Right...NZ Come on Down

2006-05-13T16:20:00.000+12:00

Got called into work today. A deal that fell through a few weeks back is now going again and we had to have a couple reports updated and ready to go for a board meeting on Monday. I still got my run in so I am not really concerned. I was going to do a little exploring of Auckland today but the weather has turned to shit so the motivation to go outside isn't really there. I'm going to a mates tonight for the great prawn extravaganza. It is going to be prawntastic.

Read a couple awesome articeles this morning. NZ and Australia have this wicked rivalry over absolutely. A conversation over rugby, cricket, Russel Crowe, and pazlova will almost always cause a bitter arguement. NZ really has a small man syndrome. Trying to always show up their big brother next door. In brilliant Ausie fashion someone in Australia decided to put NZ up for sale on EBay, "A country of sheep with average weather" was the tagline. Bids were up to $3000 before EBay pulled the transaction. Brilliant I tell you, absolutely brilliant.

On a different note, given the soaring commodity prices it has become extremely expensive for a country's treasury to produce coins. Canada ran into this problem a number of years ago and used steel coated with copper and nickle for the penny and nickle. However, for countries who did not switch it now costs 1.23 cents to make a penny, and 5.73 cents for a nickle. Given this, the Canadian governement has made a killing. The now produce all the coins for Thailand, Papa New Guinea, and New Zealand. This is a perfect example of comparative advantage for those international trade/economics nerds like myself.

The Valuation Continues

2006-05-10T20:41:00.000+12:00

Valuing a company is hard. It is time consuming, tedious, and like solving a puzzle. I have been working on this valuation in which the comany's value is dependant upon the number of corporate water bottles. I am getting a little frusterated.

Was told an interesting thing today too. We went for lunch with a former parter of Goldman Sachs NZ and simplified stocks and investor behaviour. He said,

"Stocks are easy to work with, ff you want a stock, I want it more. If you don't want it, I won't look at it. There is always a reason for a purchase."

I am learning that psychology and behavioural finance plays a lot bigger role than CAPM and DCF. That's not what they tell ya in Uni.

Choose your own theme party

2006-05-07T17:55:00.000+12:00

Went to a big house warming party last night at Nick and James'. The 3 apartments on their street decided to throw a 3 flat housewarming party where people could make there way through the 3 houses. It was a dress up "Choose your own theme" party with a mandatory dress up. It was such a great night. I met a lot of new people and had a great time. I really like going to parties with lots of different groups of friends. You end up meeting a lot of people. I find that you end up making new friends through friends so its always great go to these events. Most original costume goes to Nick with his "Single Dad" outfit. I took quite a few pics and can be linked to in the sidebar. Didn't get a lot of sleep though. When you stay at someone's house when they throw a party, you go to bed when the last person goes to bed. It was annoying because there is always a couple guys who just don't want the party to die and totally oversay their welcome. Totally kills what was otherwise a great night. Definitely going to be an early bed time tonight.

The Weekend

2006-05-06T15:17:00.000+12:00

Woke up this morning and went for my big run. I ended up running a little over 13km in 1hr 15 min. Definitely not a great time but I was really just concerned about making the distance without stopping. The speedwork is going to be happening soon so these times should be dropping. I as pretty stiff so I went for a good walk and stretched this afternoon. I took a bunch of pics so of the neighborhood and the link is now updated. I have a game tonight but we are playing our b-team. We should slaughter them. Yup, I think they are lubing up at the moment. My game last night was canceled because all the rain caused for the rink to flood. No good at all.

I remembered what I was going to write about last night. On Thursday morning we had a Sunami warning! The problem was that no one new about. There was a large 7.8 earthquake near Tonga that had supposedly caused a sunami that would hit NZ and Fiji. The media got onto it quite fast and started on the story while everyone in NZ was sleeping. This was over blown and the warning was all for not. Its a good thing too because the failure of the government to notify people, either if it was false or true, was totally mishandled. I would have been in so much trouble having a flat on the beach. I was also running along the beach when it was supposed to hit. I didn't have a clue until I got back and saw it on the news while I was eating breakfast. Its a good thing that it didn't happen because I would have been fucked. It makes me worry too that I haven't bought any flat insurance yet...Do ya think its a sign?

There is sand in here from asshole to breakfast

2006-05-05T22:28:00.000+12:00

I have been giggling since I watched Rove and he started saying, "there is sand in here from asshole to breakfast". I don't know what that means but it does crack me up.

I am surely not helping the music industry today. Ya I have have downloaded about 50 songs in the past 2 days. Oh how do I love high speed wireless internet.

Steve Yzerman, my idol as a kid is deciding if he is going to retire this week. He is 41 and sitting as I think 4th on the NHL all time scoring. He is the longest serving captain in the league starting at the age of 20 for the Redwings. Oh if Gretzky and Mario weren't there he would have been the best. So great, so classy, the ultimate team captain. I will shed a few tears when he is gone.

An Analysts life lessons

2006-05-05T21:49:00.000+12:00

Alright, my power went out and I lost my first post. Oh you don't know what I've already written. Are you intrigued...na me neither.

Anyways I have had quite a good learning experience this week. I have been researching a company called Just Water Intl. Currently there are no analysts valuations on them so what I saw goes haha. Well this process starts with working the numbers within a company's financial statements. Within these publications contain the story of the company for the year. What I have learned is that while many people are able to crunch numbers and come up with the magic value, however not many are able to look big picture and say "what does this mean:. This was quite evident in the news paper today regarding the analysts interview of the consequences of the NZ government unbundling the telecommunications loop. While this will bring NZ internet into the 21st century, it also creates a real competitive market for internet. What a good analyst is able to do is think is get to a revaluation and then step away think big picture. This is I think the most important thing I have learned so far and invaluable in not only in this career, but in all problem solving. Those who are able to master this skill, make good MDs/CEOs and corporate advisors. Something that I am defiantly striving for.

I read an interesting article today about how the price of gold is fixed daily. While it is based on supply and demand it is set between the five largest gold trading banks. It is quite an ordeal and ceremony that you would expect in the Stone Masons. It really quite fascinating.

Keith Richards wants to die

2006-05-01T20:17:00.000+12:00

So after the Rolling Stones' tour of NZ they headed over to nice Fiji for some R&R. Well now Keith Richards is sitting in an Auckland hospital after some drunken boobery and dabautchery on their vacation. The story goes like this, after a good day on the Vodka and a switch to Rum at dinner, Keith Richards decides that he is going to clime a coconut tree. Yes, this is something I have seen done by Scuba him self on one of our stumbles home. Apparently the staff at the hotel were told to cater to to the Stones at all costs. If they didn't management told him that their jobs were gone. Well after Keith realized that his 60+ body wasn't able to do it alone so he got a poor kid to help him climb this damn tree. So expectedly he falls out of the tree and old man Keith has to get flown to Auckland to get checked out. As funny as this is the rumor is that the kid who helped him into the tree has gotten fired. What a shaft!

One is the lonliest number

2006-04-30T20:01:00.000+12:00

So I am back to flying solo. Snarl has headed back to Massey to finish off the semester. This long distance suck but at least we are able to see each other at least once a month. Anyways I start my marathon training tomorrow. Lets see how I make out. This is going to be a 20 weeks adventure until the Auckland. Lets see ow it makes out.

Snarl and I watched Closer last night. I would write about it but it is shit. That is all you need to know. No link, nothing! I am not promoting that movie ever.

You can call me Mr. Gardener

2006-04-29T20:47:00.000+12:00

After cleaning up our small 100 sq ft back yard I have decided to grow a small garden. I have been really motivated to cook with veges that come from my hard work. I remember how cool it was as a kid to have tones of lettuce, carrots, rhubarb, and berries all summer. I have been hooked on watching the Jamie Oliver cooking show and for those of you who know me, know that I like to cook Well I have planted some celery, spinach, lettuce, zucchini, beans, basil. I also decided to grow water melons. Apparently they take over 200 days to grow. Either way I am going to be a legend of the apartment complex with watermelons galore when summer roles around or nothing will happen. We already have a green pepper plant that grows peppers which is rad. I will give updates on how the garden is growing and any new recipes I put together. Oh ya oh ya I am getting excited.

Movie Review: Match Point

2006-04-29T20:24:00.000+12:00

Snarl and I went and did a little shopping last night. Well we wandered into the cinema and decided watch "Match Point". We had both heard good things about it and new that it had gotten an academy nod for best original screenplay. It also starred Scarlet Johansson who is the sexiest vixen alive right now. All and all I was thoroughly impressed. The storyline is about tennis pro Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys Meyers )takes a job as a tennis instructor and hits it off immediately with one of his students, wealthy young Tom Hewitt. Tom introduces Chris to his family and Chris falls quickly into a romance with Tom's sister Chloe. But despite the growing certainty that Chris and Chloe will marry, and the enormous professional and financial advantages that come Chris's way through his relationship with the delighted Hewitt family, Chris becomes increasingly intrigued and eventually romantically involved with Tom's fiance, Nola Rice(Scarlett Johansson), a struggling American actress. Their passionate trysts leave Chris in danger of losing the wealth and position he has now come to enjoy. Meyers is a total creep in the movie, similarly to the unintentional sleaze he was in Bend it Like Bekham.From reading some boards it seems like Match Point runs as a mirror to Crime and Punishment, something that I think I will read sometime soon.

Baptism of Fire

2006-04-28T18:08:00.000+12:00

So have been involved in this merger for the past two months. This was my first deal I was working on since starting my career as an I-banker. Well I got to go home early today because all the work as done due diligence over and sale and purchase agreed upon. Everything was ready to go because the papers were going to be signed no Monday. Well after a good dinner thinking that I was going to get my first bonus next week I just got a call saying that the acquiring company was pulling out. Yup 2 months work down the drain. Hopefully me weekend gets better...

Life knowing nothing

2006-04-27T22:24:00.000+12:00

I have been at my job as a corporate analyst now for 2 months now. I really don't know where the time has gone. I have learnt a lot so far and it excites me, and scares me, at how much I still have to know. I would just like to drop a few words of wisdom that I have picked up so far.

1. There are no friends in business.
2. People who know the price of everything, know the value of nothing
3. When researching, start with what your good at. This will make you comfortable and give you and idea what to do next.
4. When you feel a sence of urgency, slow down and do it right.
5. There are no friends in business.

The Tiki Tour

2006-04-25T21:34:00.000+12:00

So today was ANZAC day. I was going to go and watch the dawn parade this morning but it when I woke up a torrential rain was pouring down. I had my 2 minutes of silence in my warm bed rather than getting obscenely wet at 6am. The rain was pouring so hard all night it woke me up and caused me to lay awake in bed wondering if the garage was flooding. Gladly, only a small amount of rain came in, not the 3 inches that was there earlier in the week.

I was thinking of giving my flatmates a link to the blog but have opted against it. They are kinda frustrating to live with and if I need to have a rant I don't really want them reading it. I like the place and the annoyances isn't really worth causing a fight. After 6 weeks now I have realized that I am really not going to be good friends with them and they just want to do their own thing.

The boss took snarl and I on a Tiki tour around Auckland. It was really cool and we got to see the sights from a locals point of view. I now know that Auckland is built on a number of small volcano's (somewhere between 40 and 60) that have been inactive for 1200 years. The easy way to navigate the city is by knowing where the water and these old volcanoes are. The cool thing about these volcanoes (or hills now) is that the Maori used these little mountains as fortified bases and to live on. If you look at them you can see areas where the would carve out the mountain to have level landings to live on and where the built walls for protection. A lot of the hill have large blow outs and pits where the volcanoes have blown over time. I forgot my camera which was really disappointing. At least now I know where and what they are called it should make things easier. We went up a couple of these hill. One Tree Hill is one of the largest volcanoes in the area. One the top of it is a large memorial commemorating the Maori warrior and no tree. A guess a demonstrate a few years back chopped down the tree that was on the top and the Maori tribes and city can't seem to agree on what kind of tree to plant to replace it. So typical of any political process.

Also I am thinkin of making a few changes to the site and focus it a little. Lets see how it goes.

Loose Change

2006-04-23T13:32:00.000+12:00

Cool hand Luke just sent me through a link to this 911 documentary on 911. It discusses the science and possibility that the attacks were actually designed by the presidency. The reasons are quite mind blowing and the evidence is significant. After watching it I thought about what history classes will be teaching about 911 and the insane W presidency. Independent analysis and critique will only happen once the emotional aspect is taken away, as such much later in my life. For those of you who want to view here it is.

Part 1:

This is well worth the time. Tell all your friends about this and passe it on. It is also available on Video Google, just search "Loose Change".

Speaking of loose change I bought a car this morning. Ya I have been driving a piece that Snarls sis purchased when she was here backpacking earlier in the year. For some reason I have owned or used 3 cars now that are ugly 80's cars that are the color of baby diarrhea. One more a green, 2 have been a gold beige brown. So gross so gross. I think that I am not all that picky with cars and haven't been able to afford anything that I really like. My other car was a baby blue K-Car. All of my cars have ended up with ridiculous nick names. Firstly, 1980 Oldmobile Delta 88 called "The Indian Race Wagon". Secondly, 1986 Baby Blue K-Car with a huge Jesus fish on the back called "The Jesus Mobile". Thirdly, 1985 Pontiac Sunbird called the Diaper. Char has had a Mitsi Mirage that has been lemon for that past few years. Now I am getting rid of Char's sisters Corolla that leaks oil and is so ugly. Not really an I-wanker car. Well I can't really complain because it has been a savior these past few months. I have used it for the move and to get situated up here. Well now that things have been sorted I picked up a good used car. Auckland has a huge car sale every Sunday where people come to sell their cars. I negotiated with guy who has his own car lot but it was full. Ended up getting a Nissan Primera GT (in America Nissan G20). I pick it up tomorrow and pretty stoked. I think this car is going to need a good nickname. If anyone has any let me know.

My spidy senses are tingling..

2006-04-23T13:08:00.000+12:00

So in NZ they have a habit of pooling state holidays together. In January you get 3 out of 5 short weeks and in March you get Easter 4 day weekend and then ANZAC day. For those of you who don't know ANZAC days is their version of remembrance/armistice Day. I was wondering the significance why they seem to schedule it when the rest of the world seems to do in in November. Well the reason is 2 fold. Firstly, is Gallipoli invasion happened in April where NZ and Ozzie troops were basically sent to their death, secondly is that the poppies for the November celelbration were late when the first armistice day happened in 1921. The logistics of sending poppies were late, 6 months late. Anyways I am taking advantage of these short weeks now because they are few and far between (only 1) until October.

Watched a few movies this weekend. On Friday Snarl and I went and watched V for Vendetta at St Lukes. It was enjoyable and I was entertained. Not on the same level as Spiderman, or X-Men. Got to see the trailer for the new X-Men and for a remake of Spiderman. Totally looks badass. Yesterday I added to my garden and did a little planting. I got some good veges hopefully going to be coming in soon. I planted a watermelon vine. Hopefully it doesn't go to nuts. I love watermelon but it takes 200 days before I get any fruit. They should be ready just when summer comes. Oh ya.

Last night Snarl and I were going to go to town but got lazy. We decided to rent a few movies. We got there and really couldn't decide. Ended up getting Saw 2, which no one other than me wanted to see. It was alright but expectedly not as good as the first. And "The Yes Men". This is a documentary I have been wanting to see about 2 guys going to conferences and doing TV interviews pretending to be from the WTO. Personally it was a little to socialist for my liberal self. I am in support of most WTO and free trade policies but I always like to hear both sides of any argument before my mind is made up. I am still and economist before a socialist, something my family likes to hide.

Big pink bunnies are scary

2006-04-17T22:01:00.000+12:00

I am so tired....sssssssssooooooo sssssssooooooo tired. I played a hockey tournament this weekend. We played 5 games but lost in the finals. I am acting like I don't care but I hate losing more than anything...The blase attitude I am feeling right now is new and I don't know where it has come from. I have a break for a couple weeks. I hope I can get refocused and get my motivation back.

Got my copy of my thesis back. The majority of the comments are grammatical...I have had a really hard time changing from "legalize" to "legalize" ect. Yes, it looks as if my nemesis is the ize...Lets see how it impacts my grade.

Canucks lost 5 of last 7 games to not make the playoffs. You have to hate a team that is in a position to control their own destiny and blow it. There are changes going to happen in the organization this offseason.Hmmm Bert hasn't been the same since after the suspension. A change of venue is in the cards for sure.

Snarl is here for a couple weeks over her break. It is nice to have her around. Ling ling came up here for the weekend as well. Her new boyfriend got her tickets to the Rolling Stones and Nickleback concert. So jealous.

I am pretty stoked, NZ public television has picked up "The Daily Show". People here didn't even know who Jon Stewart was when the Oscars we out. I tried to explain the show to my friends but they just didn't understand. Now they will be able to see the wisdom...

The whore sent me through a great cynical blog called the Atheist Jew. Give it ago.

Oh The Festivities

2006-04-08T18:07:00.000+12:00

Been busy the last couple days. My boss has started delelgating me a lot of new things. It is pretty good because I get to work and really don't know what I will be doing until I get there. It makes things kinda fun. On Thursday I found out that Auckland was hosting the IIHF World Hockey Champs (Division 2 Pool B)....So it was basically the bottom of the barrel for hockey countries. I figured I would watch Chine (who was just relegated) vs the Ice Black of NZ. I was really surprised to see the size and quality of the Chinese players. NZ on the other hand need a good coach and kick in the ass. I figure that since China has a billion people they are going to be able to throw a half ass good team in any sport really. In quality of hockey in Canadian terms it looked like a midget team playing a Junior A team. While not the best game to watch (China won 5-0, but should have been more) it really made me miss it.

Today I decided to cruise down to the waterfront to Wine and Food festival. It ended up being pretty sweet. There was so much free food, cheap nice wine, with some bands playing. I went to a couple tasting and was taught a little about wine. I really wished that I was there with someone other than myself but I didn't know how sweet is was gonna be. I was cracking up at the skanky girls who were just getting boozed though. My predator instincts were on and could tell the bitches who had been there since it opened at 10am. You know...While everyone else was sitting around talking they were dancing and running their fingers through there hair to the music being played on a CD between bands thinking they were so fucking hot. It reminded me of that Jeff Foxworthy skit from way back when...

NCAA, Work, and Ramblings

2006-04-05T20:34:00.000+12:00

So I thought that I would just drop a few lines and some random things that have been going on while I watch lost...I am so hooked its pathetic. For those of you in the Northern Hemisphere I don't want to know shit. The show has been so frustrating this season because everything has been moving so slow. It is really driving me mental.

Anyways, I have been lucky that my office has a big screen TV, and my boss is sweet with me having it on as long as I get my work done. It has been sweet since I got to watch the NCAA tourney in a couple years...Watched the finals which was quite a let down after the rest of the tourney. I guess, like everyone else, I hopped on the George Mason bandwagon. I was really pulling for them. I read an article about how their economics department is home to 2 recent Nobel laureates and they started describing the game theory of attending a Mid Major school and incentive. Haha I you are an econ geek and sports fan it is pretty good read . George Masons recent success can be attributed in the following way,

"He figures that George Mason's recent success has to do with the incentives facing the very best young basketball prospects. Elite players commonly drop out of college to join the NBA early, meaning the advantage enjoyed by top college programs able to recruit them is smaller than it was. What is at work may be a version of what game theorists call "prisoner's dilemma." Elite players may have more incentive to position themselves to be hot NBA prospects than to do the things -- pass the ball around, for example, as opposed to shooting -- that would make their teams more successful. George Mason's players, who have been long-shot professional basketball prospects, may have fewer competing incentives and might therefore be more inclined to work as a team."

Shit...Lost is a recap episode. This totally makes my earlier rant more relevant. I don't know if I can take it. I turned down quiz night for this...Oh ya, I just read an article the other day in Maxim about Evangeline Lilly, you know Kate the prisoner off the show. Well she went to UBC the same time as moi, and, for some reason I think that she was in my only history class (according to the search I am doing right now she did International Relations and Poli Sci)...Hammy it says that she was a waitress at Earls as well. Hammy I wonder which one because I have some friends who worked there. It could also be the hot girl in Kev's class who he asked if he she wanted a shot at the title. I am going to have to do a little networking....

Ok enough of the tangent. Take a look at this blog about being a woman living in Baghdad right now. It is the first, and definitely not the last, blog to be nominated for a literacy prize.

Enough is enough...I'm out

Work in Guatemalan Highlands

2006-04-05T20:23:00.000+12:00

I have a friend who is doing some aid work in Guatemala at the moment. She sent an update of her work that is really interesting and thought provoking and I'd thought I'd share it with you. Enjoy!

This email is a mix of journal writing and reflection with other interns over the past three months. I hope that you find it interesting. It's long - maybe something to print and, if you're interested, to share with friends.)Hola a todos y a todas,This is probably the 9th time I've sat down to write you this update in the last month. Lately I have been having a hard time articulating in any sort of coherent way my experiences over the past five months. Here comes my best shot! This email will be followed within the next couple of days by a Yahoo photo album with photos since my last update in January. Get comfortable - there are a lot of them. Hope you enjoy.

Work at Nuevos Horizontes (NH) has been extremely satisfying and also very challenging. Within my program (Community Education and Organization - EDOC), I have been responsible for the development of workshops of four themes: HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs); Human Reproduction; Contraceptives; and Puberty. Lately, because of understaffing (we had a co-worker quit in February and don't have the funds to replace her), I have also taken on work in Healthy Relationships, Sexual Decision Making, and Recognizing Violence.My responsibilities include preparing training manuals for workshop facilitators on these themes (we have a small resource library that has helped a lot with finding information), choosing or designing relevant learning activities, making supporting visual aids (taking into account the low literacy rate of many of the groups we work with), and developing workshop guides. The workshop guides I find really challenging, primarily because of time restrictions and the great diversity of needs between user groups.

For example, I was asked to prepare (and co-facilitate) a 3.5 our workshop on the Education of Sexual Health with emphasis on HIV/AIDS and STIs for a group of 21 urban Elementary and Junior High school teachers. We focused on how to talk to their students about those themes while training them on the subjects. As a means of assessing needs and pre-existing level of knowledge, we did a debate 'For' and 'Against' the education of sexual health in schools. That was really important because it really magnified for us the resistance and barriers to these themes, and gave us a pretty clear idea of what areas where really concerning them as potential educators of sexual health. We spent a fair amount of time developing the concepts (sexuality, sexual health, Sex Ed) with the group afterwards to clear up some pretty major myths and misunderstandings. The group seemed to open up and I think people really took away some important learnings.

When I compare the needs of that group to a women's group in a rural area who have asked to learn about HIV and STIs, I find we are faced with a very different reality and different needs. The one group I have been asked to work with has learned about HIV in part from a woman they know who was infected by her husband who was working (likely illegally, not that that is particularly relevant) in the US and, presumably had an (or several) unprotected affair. (Very common) This group finds that they are most at risk for all kinds of Sexually Transmitted Infections from their husbands who often leave the community for work (often for several years if it is to the US). The women want to know how to protect themselves. We find though that the real question seems to lie in the nature of relationships and the broader culture of machismo. A woman doesnt have the ready option of saying 'no' or demanding their husband use protection because she would be accused of cheating herself, beaten, raped -- the culture of machismo works in such a way that a woman's body is considered to be the rightful property of her husband. And that domestic violence, even rape, is not treated as a crime. So when it comes to education of HIV and STIs, in this case, it seems to me that the place to start is to with self-esteem, consciousness around gender, communication, and options for leaving her husband if she feels that she is in danger. At yet, I have to recognize, for a woman to leave her husband is extremely difficult - not only to make the decision because of all the ways in which the culture conditions her to feel shame, but also that she has very few safe places to go or means to make money to support herself and her children. This is an enormous topic that I could talk about for hours -- just to say that as I become more aware of the complexity of the cultural reality (also economic and political) around HIV and Sexual Health Education, I am really pressed to find approaches to educating on these topics that might really be empowering and, small as it may be, make a positive difference in people's lives.Most of the workshops we've done have been in public schools in Xela to pretty huge audiences, and short time periods (35-70 minutes). Even if it's just one class, there are 40-50 students, and generally they combined classes so we have between 100-250. A challenge to making presentations participative. There have been other variables that I have come to take into account - like lighting (often one 40 watt light bulb for a huge class with 1 or no windows), thin walls between the classroom and the outdoors where gym class is causing a huge ruckus... I haven't learned to anticipate all these things because I continue to be surprised when we go to new places, and at the same time I think I am getting better at thinking on my feet and being flexible and creative with our plans.

Last Friday I started my literacy class with a woman in Nuevos Horizonte's women's shelter. It was interesting for me to go through the first steps -- helping her to place the pencil correctly, practicing lines, curves, dots, circles, squares... (I should add, all while I thought - probably she too - that she was going to give birth any minute! She had her baby two days later.) I don't think I realized what a process adult literacy truly is. It is such an exciting process and yet I approach it with some cautious optimism because I really think that in the case of this woman especially (as is the case with many I understand) the chances of her being able to continue with her literacy classes to a point where she can be functional, and then the chances of literacy actually serving her in meaningful way in her daily life, are quite few because of the barriers imposed on her has poor, indigenous, barely fluent in Spanish, and female. I used to think of literacy as THE key for development and, in many ways, the base for women's liberation. I still think it is very important and an area that I want to continue to support -- I am also coming to understand how complex and strong the other factors affecting the life of women in this context are, and am still struggling to understand where the most effective, relevant, meaningful spaces for change are.

You'll see in the photos online that Nuevos Horizontes celebrated International Women's Day (March 8) with a cultural show at the Municipal Theatre. That afternoon women and men from the community were celebrated for their work in women's rights. That same day I picked up a pamphlet on 'Femicide' (the killing of women) in Guatemala. In 2005, 665 women were reported to have been murdered, and 2,300 since 2001. The population of Guatemala is 14 million. Women in Guatemala are subject to all sorts of forms of violence - physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, and economic. It continues to be accepted to blame a woman for the violence she lives, accusing her of provoking, 'asking for it', and ultimately, 'deserving it' for breaking the socially imposed gender rules that strictly apply to her: submission, obedience, and humility. Through work with adolescent girls in Xela, I am finding the silence, shame and total confusion around forms of sexual violence especially disturbing. We have recently noticed a pressing need to clarify the meaning of rape and also to help the girls understand the breadth of sexual violence - that it is ALL wrong, and never their fault. And then, there is the work with the adolescent boys -- last week at a workshop on Friendship and Dating, a teenage boy responded that the difference between friendship and dating is that when a guy date a girl, the guy has 'rights' to her body. RIGHTS.

I feel really strongly about focusing on the area of sexual health education (including non-violence) here and again, I realize that while education is extremely important, I see that it's not quite enough. There needs to be a social support system for women who suffer violence, community resources where they can feel safe to seek information and support, a LAW that protects them, and a government and law enforcement that actually does just that - govern and enforce law. I really respect the work of Nuevos Horizontes for providing some of these services to women who suffer violence -- and now I am hoping that they will continue their work and that others will be take up and continue the same battle. There is a very powerful and disturbing Boston Globe article written on femicide, sexual violence against women and impunity in Guatemala that I urge you to

Nick Cage is a badass mutha

2006-03-27T20:48:00.000+12:00

So I went back to see Snarl this weekend. I decided to drive back on Friday to hang with her on the weekend. It was pretty good, other than for the obvious reasons. We went for breakfast on Saturday morning and I ate the hugest omelet. It was so rad. Anyways afterwards, we did a little shopping, and went to a bbq at a friends place in the afternoon. I ended up catching the flu that was going around my old flat. I would get these dizzy spells...totally making me feel messed up. I think that I disappointed everybody that I didn't get rowdy, but really that wasn't the reason why I went. I am still trying to stop binge drinking as well. I haven't in a few weeks now and I am enjoying my weekends more because of it. Well we bailed and ended up going to the movies, you know those new moving picture shows that everyone has been talking about. I just kinda went with the flow and we went to "Lord of War". Well the movie was pretty kick ass. Nick Cages, who I regularly dislike, was supprisingly this awesome arms dealer. It really made me think about the economics of the whole world...People want to kill each other, people need weapons, someone needs to supply weapons. If there's a will, there's a way. I know that it is already out back at home but things take a long time to get to the bottom of the South Pacific.

I drove back yesterday later yesterday afternoon. I don't know why I do it but I always want to tempt fate and see how far I can go on my tank of gas. I am quite meticulous about filling up the car and always reset the odometer so I can gauge the mileage I get. Well I drove through a town with the arrow sitting on the E. I fuel light hadn't gone on, and I knew that it would be close since the next town was 30 km away. About 2 km outside of this shithole town the fuel light flickered. I don't know why but I said to myself "fuck it"lets go for it. I don't know why I get such a rush about that shit. I am so hard core...well for the next half an hour I was so pumped as I almost ran out of gas. I was sweating,cursing, with the tunes a blazing driving 80km an hour holding up traffic. So rad, so rad. As I rolled into the next town with the car shaking from burning on fumes for the last 8km I was so wired. I figured I would try to fill up and go the rest of the way on that tank. Zooooooooooom ahead 4 hours (fill in with whatever sort of montage you feel like) Anyways, sitting about 45 minutes from home I was in the middle of no where. I was on the freeway and no way to turn around to drive back to the nearest town. Anyways I saw a turn for a gas station. I pulled off totally scared shitless. I failed to realize that at 9pm on a Sunday night, gas stations in shit hole towns fail to be open. After a wasted 15 km I am back on the highway again, thinking that I am going to be jacked and my shit hole car is going to get burned. Out of no where, this huge truck stop pops out of no where. I pulled in and almost screamed. I have never been so pumped. It felt like I won the Stanley Cup...oh ya oh ya

Oh ya, how about 11 seed George Mason in the final 4. Who would have thought.

Walk the Line

2006-03-20T19:43:00.000+12:00

So I went and saw "Walk the Line" yesterday and loved it. I thought that the story line was outstanding and the singing of Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix was phenomenal. It is definitely a must see. I never thought that a biography of a country music star could be so captivating. It is really in the same genre as "Ray" but overall I thought the movie was better. Back when I was little I was a Johnny Cash fan...My dad used to play his songs on our 8 track player. Oh ya we had an 8 track. "Ring of Fire" was my favorite then and I still think that it is possibly his best song. I do really like his version of the NIN song "Hurt" too but I really can't say that it is a Cash song.

Well while I was waiting for the movie I picked up an icecream from I'm sure is the best icecream ever. The place is called Movenpick and the line up to get any service is ridiculous...You have to wait at least 25 minutes to get your order. Oh but it is worth it....That creamy goodness in a giant waffle cone...Mm I want some now.

My vow to not binge drink was all good this weekend. There were little devil Irish leprechauns hopping around on my shoulder tempting me to get plastered but it was all good. I had a few social drinks in celebration of St. Patrick with my flatmates. I forgot hard it is to socialize without being half cut. I really do like how it loosens me up but I waking up on the weekend all blazing and ready to go is great. Go Team Detox. On a similar note my early rising running routine is in full force. Oh ya I'm a machine. I have been getting up early and cranking out 8-10km 4 days a week. I think that I am through the first hurdle and getting into a decent routine but my calves are still screaming at me. I do like the pain though, it makes me fell like I'm actually working. So all you lazy bastards who have excuses I have two words for you.... "Get Hard".

Weekend that Wasn't

2006-03-13T21:01:00.000+13:00

So I finished last week on a high note. Work is going well. I thoroughly enjoy the projects we are involved in. Every day is a challenge that I am excited to attack. I would elaborate more but I can't due to the legal disclosure requirements of the position. Well, after Friday nights pleasant events I was looking forward with catching up with a few friends. Anyways, I met up with a couple of guys for some beers before I went into town. After too many drinks I went to town on another adventure. Well I really wasn't having any fun...I really think that the whole drinking scene has gotten old for me. I left early sick and spent much of yesterday laying and feeling sorry for myself. By the time I mustered the energy to get my car and ride my bike to get it, the afternoon was almost gone. So I trekked the 10 minutes of pure hell to get my car. Well after a half dozen wretches, a score of vulgar comments, and a fucking huge hill, my car was no where to be seen. Apparently the city of Auckland was sponsoring a bicycle race along that road, and parking was prohibited. Luckily, my friend's mother had spotted the tow truck and we were able to track the car down with not much effort. This experience has really embedded the fact that I really don't like drinking. Not the casual beer with friends or few while watching the game, but the binge drinking and going to clubs to impress people. Yah I'm over it...Fork in it...done. I guess I'm a grown up. I guess now I am going to change my behavior to match these comments but since I am not having fun and tired of the cost of the current lifestyle its time for a change.

However, I did see a cool highlight flick about how awesome Alexander Ovechkin is...even for those of you who aren't hockey players will like this.

I was also sent a clip of from a friend about an autistic kid who was the water boy of his local high school basketball team...well the short of it is he gets to suit up on the last game of the season and gets to play the last 5 minutes. Well the kid catches fire and scores 20 points in 3 minutes, including 6 consecutive 3's. While it is amazing, and heartwarming, the quotes from the kid will make you laugh...For the next week all your going to say is"I just caught fire, you know, I'm hot as a pistol".

Adventures in Babysitting

2006-03-11T19:04:00.000+13:00

Firstly, I am in love with Wi Fi....I have it at work and at home and it has become my new best friend. I am basically online all the time...oh the madness. Anyways settling into the new routine and I am really enjoying the flat. Most mornings before work I have been getting up early and running along the beach. I am really amazed as to how many people are up, but the view is amazing and the path its great. All of a sudden I have ran 8 or 9 km and not really known...the only problem is that I have to get up earlier and earlier to keep this up. But if this continues I am going to be one ripped mother fucker. Oh ya

So last night I got home after work, made some dinner and had a few beers. I really haven't seen that much of the neighborhood so I decided to go on an adventure. Well I found this little pub along the water and popped in and watched the rugby. The game turned out to be awesome and I met an English couple who have just moved to NZ. After the game I headed down to along the beach and found a movie theater, a few cool restaurants and a couple nice beach bars. Well I stopped in to one that had a live cover band playing. I wandered around and had a beer and then had one of the wierdest experiances in ages. Well this older couple walked up to me and asked me if I would dance with their daughter and take her on a date because she doesn't have any friends. Well, I said that I would dance with her and then headed to the dance floor. Apparently their family had just moved here from South Africa. I talked for a bit and the dad came over , patted me on the back and bought me a beer. We chatted for a few minutes until the Dad said "Well treat my daughter right" and then just buggers off. Well I thanked him for the beer but politely told them that I had to go...I was so wierded out. Who's father just goes into a bar and tries to pawn off their daughter. So weird, so very very weird.

In the land of the JAFA

2006-03-07T21:38:00.000+13:00

So I have no been in Auckland at my new job for a little a week...Things have been pretty good so far. For the first I was staying at a friends place. It was hard to find a place when I was in Palmy. I know that I wouldn't rent to someone that I had never met. So for the first time in my life I had to couch surf. Yup, for my first week as an investment banker I was sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor a small Auckland apartment. To be honest it really wasn't that bad. Gail lives with a couple of guys who are pretty sweet. Both of them are in the same position as me...you know, young professional in a first real job. However, these guys have exposed me to a subculture of pick up psychology. Well the OZZIE read this book called, "The Game-Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists" by Neil Strauss. Well they are obsessed with this book and, to be honest, it is quite intriguing. Its basis is based up developing routines to manipulate females. Me, being quite skeptical, really didn't think this sort of thing worked. However, we went out for drinks on the weekend and the decided to practice their routines. Well, to make a long story short, a woman was heart broken at the end of the night. I was fully amazed and now think that I may have to have a read and absorb the wisdom. Hmmm although I am already taken, I wonder if this kinda thing can work to maybe "Get me Beer" rather than "Take off your pants"...hmmm.

Also I ended up having a really weird conversation with a British dude who is on his round the word travels. He just left SE Asia (where, I do want t visit and not want to live) and started telling a story about a friend of his who worked at the resort he worked at who had been stuck in the SE Asian drug trade. Apparently, his friend was kept drugged up on heroine and made to smuggle drugs from Cambodia in the bodies of dead babies. It fucking blew me away. Ya, it blows my mind sometimes over the shit some people tell me after about 10 minutes of talking. While it is fully entertaining, sometimes I wish I just didn't know.

And....Adam Morrison from Gonzaga has the best hair and moustache around. I have a TV in my office and ESPN was playing the Bulldogs game today. It was rad.

Lets Crunch...Oh ya

2006-02-09T14:21:00.000+13:00

Man I watch "A night at the Roxbury" again last night...Man I always forget how utterly rad it is. Good old Will Ferral in his SNL days. You really can't beat it. I am definitely do a little leg dance humping next time I go out. I have had the great 90's dance anthem "What is Love" by Haddaway in my head all day. Just to remember how awesome this movie is...here is a little taste.

It has been sweet blockbuster has had some deals on and I have been catching up on the old movies that I haven't seen. I also have out "The Passion.." And "Anatomie". I am really looking forward to seeing those. I watched the start of Lost last night. I am totally hooked. The best thing about this show is the reason why many people hate it....it goes no where. So little happens each episode that you keep on going back for more. Its just so damn intense I can't get enough...Speaking of tense, things have been a little stressful for myself. I have accepted a job up in the big smoke...Auckland. Haha ya its nuts how a city of 1 million is treated in a rural country. Well I am excited/scared shitless/mind blowingly busy trying to get things sorted for the move in a couple weeks. It is going to be tough with Snarl down here but we have been together for a number of years now and we are sure things will be fine. There are just going to have to be a few road trips happening. Its really weird...I haven't been out of my comfort zone for a few years now and I guess it is time to challenge myself again. Its just hard though making the change. Once things get started and a routine is established again all fears and apprehensions seem to be alleviated.

I cracked up laughing over a news article I read this morning. "Canadian Government owed $170K by medicinal marijuana users". Really...Who allows people to buy weed on credit. Oh ya...I will take my 30 grams and be on my way. I promise I will pay you next week. Really, how dumb are these politicians. A slap on the risk and a call from the collection agency really must be minimal to a crack in the head with a tire iron and then being thrown down the stairs. I guess the government is getting all forgetful stoners...you know, the ones that normal drug dealers don't want to deal with. Hmmmm who makes the decisions around here.

Oh ya and how about Rick Tochett being the leader of a gambling ring involving professional athletes and celebrities. I can see this as some small time betting between friends getting out of control. But the involvement of a crime family really makes me think. I can see the film industry picking up the movie rights "Operation Slap Shot". But seriously, this is only going to get more and more interesting as the investigations furthers.

Dum da dum dum dum

2006-02-01T16:27:00.000+13:00

So I'm back at work...thesis is looking good. I am just about ready to send it off to Snarl's mom for some final editing. Hopefully next week it will be a book! The holiday was awesome. Snarl and I had a great time in Surfers. Went went to Australia Zoo (for those of you who don't know this is the crazy Steve Irwin zoo....yes yes the "Croc Hunter") that was rad. We saw lots of animals....as a note I spelt "lots"..."lawts" who am I and why did my mind do that initially. As soon as I was finished I was weirded out and pissed at myself for being an idiot. It is weird because I have no idea where it came from...I guess I can blame it on post holiday stress disorder. But away from the tangent, it is a great place to visit. The animals are treated well. They promote it as an educational and conservation park rather than a traditional zoo. It really shows in the way they treat all the inhabitants. Ayways, in all, its cool! We also went to this giant water slide park called "Wet and Wild". It sounds like a total porno name and thats all I can think about when I hear it. What made it better is that it is situated next to Australia's 2 huge theme parks "Dreamworld" and "Movie World". If it isn't porn name heaven, I don't know what is. Well, other than the peeling sunburn, I had a great time and came home with some awesome new clothes. My personal favorite is a retro Spiderman t-shirt. Shit like that just doens't come around every day. I am going to put up some pics from the adventure when I get some free time so stay tuned.

I also had a good job interview when I got back in Auckland. It is the perfect job for what I want to do but I am a little aprehenive over doing the long distance thing with Snalr. After living together for pretty much 3 years, moving away and coming down to see her is gonna be weird. I do need to get some experiance and the job is pretty much perfect. Definately some thinking is happening this week.

Holiday...

2006-01-19T13:37:00.000+13:00

Hey there blog nation. I am having a pretty mental week, hence the infrequent updates. The thesis loose ends are all getting sorted and it looks like I will be done in a week or so. It is going to be so good when I hand it into the graduate research office. On top of all this I have had to do all the holiday planning on my own since the Snarlotte hasn't been home for the past 3 weeks. Well Visas are sorted, plane tickets confirmed, hotel and car rentals ready to go, and some of the events all planned and paid for Booyaa. Everything went well, without that much of a hiccup. Our flight got pushed back about 6 hours so now we lose one night in Surfers. We have to fly out at 1145 pm, which is totally gay, and lose a nice evening on the beach. Since we have a 7 hour drive to get to Auckland, it makes it a little less hectic on Sunday morning.

Well here I go on a tangent....How about that Ovechkin goal. All I can say is JESUS! One on one, falls down , sliding backwards away from the net and flicks a backhand out of his ass to score. That really has to be the goal of the year, if not the highlight reel play of all 2006! I am going to say it now. To be honest, it is one of the most amazing hockey goals I have ever seen. Anyways, I am definitely ranting and extremely jealous over not having ability like that. All I ever wanted to be was a hockey players, and somehow I didn't get there....hahaha. As of now, I'm sorry Syd, you ain't getting the rookie of the year.

Haha Castro is taunting the US over the baseball World Cup. I can't wait for the Cubans to lay some smack down. All these guys have is baseball and the US isn't making any friends trying to ban them from playing. Castro has said that any money the Cuban government receives as a result of the tournament will be donated to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. I really think US government are really being idiots about the whole situation. If this tournament gets pulled because of US sanctions...shit is going to hit the fan.

Anyways, I have do a little work before I go and bask myself in the sunshine of the Gold Coast. This is the Miami of the southern hemisphere. We are planning on going to Wet and Wild water park, do a little SCUBA diving, go see Australia Zoo with the crazy croc hunter Steve Irwin, and a lot of swimming and chilling on the beach. We have a beach apartment for a week. Its gonna be fantastic! I really have to say thanks to Snarls parents for hooking us up with this. We really appreciate it. I will put up a ton of pics when I get back.

Cheers Mates

Shit Happens When You Party Naked

2006-01-09T10:05:00.000+13:00

This past week has been really busy. I had a meeting with my supervisors and the thesis and finally I can see the end. I should have finished another draft sometime this week...Sweet! Snarl has been away and I have had the house to myself but I haven't really been able to enjoy the piece and quiet. I have been invited over to dinner to friends place three times last week and I worked at the bike store 4 of the days. I do kinda like being able to do what ever I want though and I like that the house isn't a mess. I am really looking forward to getting a place of our own. I set up some online sales at the bike store and the response has been quite huge. The boss is trying to sell off some old stock and the demand has been a lot greater than expected. It is nice to do something different.

I guess I am kinda rambling here but I read today that an Australian woman was killed in a shark attack yesterday near Brisbane. I guess this lady was attacked by a pod of bull sharks which is quite weird because they usually only get aggressive during the mating season. The detail they talk about reminded me of the days when I was at UBC and would look at shark attack pics with Kristin...But lest I digress. Ya, to top this off, the attack happened at Amity Point near North Stradebroke Island. If you are wondering why this is weird it name of the fictional place in the Jaws movies! It is kinda worrisome though because Me and Snarl are heading there in 10 days! I was planning on doing a lot of swimming, surfing, and diving (to see sharks) but they have a lot of the beaches closed in the area for fear of another attack. It also Damn you Jaws...Why do you have have to make your return just when I am going on a holiday!

I wish it was a 300 yard drive...

2006-01-03T17:10:00.000+13:00

So instead of playing golf, working, or doing my thesis, I drove Snarlotte to Gisborne yesterday. It is a 400km drive composed of mostly corners...ya it takes about 6 hours and was kinda regretting it. She is workin on a sheep and beef farm and helping her friend get ready for her wedding. I am not going to see her for 3 weeks so I decided to be the good guy and take her instead of sending her on the bus. Well other than the cost of gas at the moment ($1.35/L) it turned out to be a rad day. We left bright and early and got into Gisborne at around noon. We dicked around town for a while. It is a really cool surf town that was bumping from this huge music festival it held over the new year. Well I dropped her off and then hit the beach for a while. I did a little swimming and surfing in the 30 degree heat. It totally got be pumped for OZ in 3 weeks. Well I hauled ass and got in at about 8pm. I dont know how I did it but made it back in about 4.5 hours ....sweet! Anywho I crashed as soon as I got in the door and slept for 12 hourse. Woke up this morning feeling like ass. I don't know what happened but felt totally ill. Since I have the house to myself now for a few weeks I cleaned up and mowed the lawn instead of working. The problem is I have a meeting with the supervisors in the morning and I have hand in a draft of the thesis....Its now 5pm and trying to get into it but since I feel like shit its making it hard...I guess it could be a long night.

Royksopp

2006-01-01T15:18:00.000+13:00

Wow, just chilling and doing some work and listening to BBC Radio 1's songs of the year. I was listening to their best live stuff and accidently clicked on the top dance songs of the year. The Swede got me into trance (sorry Brendon..I know you hate that shit) a few years back when we were at UBC and I was a huge Royksopp fan. Well I have a few of their songs on my minidisks (which I haven't listened to in a while) and since NZ dance scene is all about Drum and Bass (not my thing), I have kinda not really been kept up to date. To make a long story short I heard they new Royksopp single "What Else Is There-Thin white Duke Remix" and its rad...definately up there with my former favorite "Eple". This Norwegian electronic band is sweeeeeeeet!

So Its 2006 You Say

2006-01-01T13:45:00.000+13:00

So here in NZ its now 2006....That's seems kinda weird because it seems like only yesterday everyone was freeking out about Y2K. Hmm Oh how have these past 6 years flown by. Well last night Char and I went for dinner at Diddy and Sara's with Grandpa and Christina. Dinner was awesome and Diddy was cocktail making machine. I had a good time but kinda zoned out for a while when everyone was talking about weddings...haha. Anyways after dinner we went into town and Fur Patrol put on a free concert. It was mental..I think that half of Palmerston North was there. It was a dry concert in the city square which made it hard to find beer but really enjoyable because there wasn't really any idiots. They put on a great act but I really only new a couple of there songs. I am loving having a digital camera and I will be putting up some pics on my picture link if you care. They will probably get up there some time this week or so. After all the fireworks and Auld Lang Sign I came home. Snarl had gone to bed because she had to milk cows again this morning. That part time job has been a fun wrecker all holidays but we will reap the rewards in Australia in 3 weeks. I am really looking forward to catching some sunshine and having a great time. But I am going to be soooo busy until then. Hopefully now that the holidays are over I can get some more regular posting again.

Read in the news today about the US's apparent play to invade Canada to protect themselves from the Brits...hmmm what really would that have changed. I guess Celine Dion wouldn't have gotten so popular, and Wal Mart would have been there sooner but I can't really see the huge impact it would have made...I guess I would be hated here in NZ rather than being adored haha.

This summer I have been trying to learn to play guitar and so far it has gone to shit. I can play about the first 6 bars of nothing else matters and then nothing. But, since I am trying to learn from the internet I am a big fan of tabs and free lessons. However, apparently the music industry has now filed lawsuits to kill the website MX Tabs and try to stop people from printing off song lyrics. Seriously...Sometimes you just want to learn and this has gone to far.

Haha...Oh ya the news down here has been all over this guy who got the top of his head chopped off by a helicopter blade and didn't notice. "Getting whacked in the head by a helicopter rotor blade doesn't hurt Â but it probably means you've "mucked up", Johnny Lowe reckons. Jesus, how tough are you! Apparently it doesn't hurt as much as falling off your motor bike at high speeds (which he has done multiple times as well). Fuck, this guys gets the hard man of the year award from me.

Undie 500

2005-12-27T09:55:00.000+13:00

The holidays this year have been quite enjoyable. While we weren't able to make it back home for Christmas we decorated our place and made it the best we could. Snarl has picked up a part time milking job to put towards our holiday next month. While it is swee that she got a job between all her practical work at clinics, it meant that she had to work Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years! Yup this has left me doin all the cooking and setting up. I was able to put together a great Christmas dinner and I did score a my first digital camera. Guess who's joined the 21st century muhahahaha. The Boxing Day festivities in New Zealand entail going to the local horse races and what an event it was. A few thousand people acting inappropriatly in the sunshine...whatmore could you ask for. Well the downer was that I didn't win any money, got a hell of a sunburn, and broke my cellphone somehow. It guess too much Christmas cheer isn't good for anyone...Hahaha but the best part was the undie 500 put on at halftime. The organizers got as many druken men and woman to gear down and race 200 meters in their bra's, panties and whatever else they had going on. Let me tell you, there were a lot of male "self made" tbars. Corbett...you would be so proud. I will get some pics up later of the event.

Christmas week

2005-12-21T12:45:00.000+13:00

Hey peeps, sorry that I haven't updated this past week. Things have been really hectic here the past week. I have been slaving away trying to do as much thesizing as I can before my supervisors take off for Christmas. I just submitted my second draft and I think that things are looking pretty good. I guess I will find out for sure once I meet with them later today. I know that I have a little more to do but I am really kinda seeing the end of the tunnel....Sweet. I guess the bad thing is that I don't have a job line up yet. Hopefully something gets sorted out in the new year. It makes things hard to pay the bills when you have no flow, hmmmm. Anyways I watch King Kong last night and I thought it was pretty sweet. I am just really tired of how Peter Jackson has to make every movie of his insanely long. Ya..Whatever happened to a solid 2 hours. *SPOILER* I guess we wouldn't get the giant battles of Kong and a T-Rex if he did that. This could be the be a possibility if some scientist who have found full sections of wooly mammoth DNA, how cool would it be to own a mammoth. Overall though did really enjoy myself so really no complaints all around. It will be slotted into the list of very fun movies like Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park ect. I sill have to finish my Christmas shopping and I am waiting until I get paid tomorrow to try to get something for Snarlotte. I have always had my X-mas shopping done early but this year I get to be involved in the Christmas Eve madness, WooHoo.

Just read about how 116 whale have beached themselves here in NZ. Yes 116 whales dying on one beach. That is a fuck load of whales. That's so mental.

My last post was about the racist rampages that were going on in Sydney. So now there are posts all around NZ trying to get people to do the same here. Fucked I tell. I can't stand that shit. Ted Nolan, former sabers coach who was coach of the year ah la 2000, was chased out the arena he was coaching in for being native American. While teams need fans, people really have to grow up and quit embarrassing themselves. These actions have no place anywhere. In the words of my parents..."Some peoples children..."

Werd I'm Out

Earthquakes and Racism...not a fan

2005-12-13T10:18:00.000+13:00

Woke up at 2.55 am to an Earthquake this morning. It was only 5 on the Richter scale but it still scared the shit out of me. No matter how many of these thing I go through, I don't think that I can get used to them. I really can't imagine being in somewhere like Pakistan or India where the houses aren't built for them.

The coverage over the riots in Sydney for the past few days and to be honest and it is quite crazy. The racially charged violence all started over a volunteer life guard being attacked by a few youths of mid eastern decent. Consequently, the right wing extremist youth groups have organized and rampaged through Cronulla, one of Sydney's southern beaches, hitting people who look middle eastern and destroying shops owned by immigrants. While I do think that these kids who attacked the volunteer life guard should be persecuted, the people who have organized this mayhem are beyond comprehension. What really disturbs me is that these actions don't surprise me at all.

Over the past few years I have seen some of the most pronounce (and subverted) racism in New Zealand and Australia. When I was traveling the amount of people refer in derogatory terms towards immigrants and aboriginals blew my mind. I really thought that in a country that idealized western values and put on a such a fun loving face, could have such an inherit racist attitude. For one thing, the government of Australia didn't even consider aboriginals as humans until the late 1960s. While being here I have heard of lots of actions like "Abo Bashing", where the police would drive around Adelaide and whack aborigine's with clubs.

New Zealand, while it prides itself as being the eco-friendly, fun loving, people of middle earth (or Narnia), is no different. The National party in the last election wanted to eliminate all Maori seats within parliament and the department of Maori affairs. Also, the current Labor government has given the most racist politician "Winston Peters", the position of Immigration minister in order to form a coalition majority government. He wants to change the structures of immigration policy to limit "Asians" from gaining access to New Zealand and keeping "New Zealand for New Zealanders. What the F&CK! Apparently that means for white New Zealanders of European decent....

Also, I have seriously been numbed by the number of times I have been offended at work by a racist comment WARNING: The amount of times I have heard, "Fucking Asian" or "Fucking Maori" has numbed me. Within the university as well, the students seem to segregate the international students (Being a white Canadian I don't see it as much but I do get the odd Yankee comment). The business faculty has large problems because of the large number of Asian international students. When I supervise exams I was told to watch out for the Asians and cheating and to count the number of Asian students compared to Kiwi's. This has shocked me and saddened me because I know that if I had been born with a different color skin I would be lumped into this boat (no pun intended). I really thought that, while things aren't perfect in Canada, we are raised as a more accepting people and a real cultural melting pot. I know that when I was at UBC we always tried to meet some of the international/exchange students, while here it really doesn't seem to be the case. Things like this really can't wait to get home...

Anyways I just really had to get these things off my chest. Hopefully I will have something a little more happy next time.

Void Touching

2005-12-12T14:54:00.000+13:00

I had to work both days at the bike store this weekend. This time of year is usually mental but for some reason the whole store has been slow. The managers are getting a little anxious because they have hired a whole bunch of new staff for the season but there is really nothing to do. It drives me crazy being in a job where you have to look for things to do and try to look busy. Its so unproductive and stressfull trying to make your boss think that you are doing something when you are actually staring at the clock or staring vacently out the window....I guess I can't complain because I really don't have to be there. I still work at there so I can have some extra spending money. I have found that I don't do a lot on Saturdays so if I work for a few hours it can pay for my night time fun.

I rented a few movies over the weekend. I finally watched Metallica's "Some Kind of Monster". It was pretty good and it gave a good picture of the ego's those guys have. Lars Ulrich made me laugh the whole thing with all his temper tanrums and antics. I am also trying to learn how to play guitar. I have downloaded the tabs for "Nothing Else Matters" and I am obsessed with trying to get it right. I have only made it through about the first 10 secs before I skrew up. Haha I can see how addicting playing an instrument is. Char and I also watched "Touching the Void". While you may think that it is some kinky adult movie, it surely isn't haha. It is about these British mountain climbers who go through hell and back. I really can't believe how strong these guys were. Walking for miles through glaciers with a broken leg. It is really an outstanding film. Anyways I have to get back to my rewrite. CIAO

oh ya there is a new era in Canada hockey with Mario and Stevie pulling out of the Olympics. I am so glad I got to see them play in 2002 in Salt Lake. What an amazing experiance and their leadership qualities will surely be missed

Nobody Dies a Virgin, Life screws Everyone

2005-12-09T11:03:00.000+13:00

Hahaa thePhatPhree.com has an article about the 50 worst haircuts of all time. I am happy to say that I have only had 1 of those bad boys. I don't know how I made it through my childhood without a mullet. I come from a small town, and was able to know that the mullet was no good. My brother and cousin however, were not so lucky. I got a haircut yesterday. It was getting pretty long, hot, and annoying. I got it cut kinda back to how it used to be but a little more "trendy". You know, one of those new age Mohawk thingys. Ya it looks alright but I think that I was liking the shaggyness a little better. At least I know now.

I am going to watch Metallica's "Some Kind of Monster" tonight. I rented that, Touching the Void and some Kirsten Dunst and Britney Murphy, holocaust (made for TV) movie that I fell asleep to last night. I do like those kind of movies (hmmm like really I guess isn't the right words...I don't know if you can say your favorite movie is Schindler's List, or you favorite book is Night, even if they are one of the best pieces of art) but I really wasn't into it. They didn't have it on the tele here so I thought I should give it ago. It really wasn't my thing.

The Ling Ling the Panda takes off to Ausralia tomorrow so me and Snarl have the place to ourselves for a month. It should be nice. Having roommates is pretty sweet but when I have the place to myself I totally appreciate it. I just reading about eyetoy and I think that I want to rent it this weekend. I will give ya an update if I do. I guess this is Sony's way to help cutback obescity in kids. It blows my mind that kids don't know how to "play" anymore and use their imagination.

I am cranking the Beetles here in my office. It has been 25 years since Lennon was killed. I have really gotten into the Beetles the past few years. My parents really aren't into music so I didn't listen to much of them until later than most. My favorite song is Elenor Rigby and albumn is a toss up beteen the White Albumn and Stg Peppers.

Wow I just read my new favorite line. I might have to steal it and modify it for personal use..."We just blew your mind straight through your ass with awesomeness".

Boooya. I'm out

Spandex is a privlege..not a right

2005-12-07T13:28:00.000+13:00

Had my meeting with my supervor's yesterday. I got some good news and some bad. I have to redue one of my chapter's because they don't like the way it is structured, but the rest is good other than some small changes. I guess I have to be happy with that. I sorted out what I am doing for Christmas this year. The Mrs. decided to changed some of her pracitical work so I wouldn't have had to spend the week of Christmas to New Years by myself. That would have been gay. I could have seen myself getting pretty homesick spending that time of year alone. Anyways the Swede sent me a great article...totally reminds me of some people I know in the finance industry. All I can say is American Psycho. If you haven't seen the movie, see it, if you have read the book you understand what I am talking about.

I also found a new article about a man in his 30's who suffers from a disorder where he never went through puberty. Ya, he his now a specialist Dr. in his 30's and has never had an erection, had a crush on a girl/guy. He is now going through hormone treatment therapy and is experiancing life as 14 year old. Ya...it has to be hard to feel like a kid trapped in an adult body. I hated that time of life, I am glad I don't have to go through it again. Fuck, I wonder what age he went to the doctor. Ya I can see the conversation...So Doc, I have no pubic hair and I'm 27. Yes I'm virgin and yes my cock is only 2 inches. So what can ya do for me. No onder he is a doctor, while everyone else at college was chasing ladies and getting drunk, he didn't really have urge. Maybe he is going to be rebellious now later in life. I guess that would be the ulitmate mid life crisis.

So here are some tips to try to curb those cravings during this time of year. I know at home it is always hard when Mom has all the Christmas baking and snacks around at all times of day. I think last year I ate 10lbs of beef jerkey, 2 gallons of nuts and bolts, a lot of beer and wine. Shit, no wonder I gained 10lbs in 5 weeks. This year definately will be different...hopefully :).

Tis the season to be self indulgent

2005-12-06T09:38:00.000+13:00

My weekends seem to be over way before I am ready. I try to cram way too much in to each weekend and, by the end, I am ready to head back to work and give my body a break. Well this weekend was no different. It was composed of playing a little golf and having a few beers on Friday night, working at the bike store during the days on Saturday and Sunday, hanging out with the Mrs on Saturday nights after she got back from the trip with her sister, and going to my work Christmas party on Sunday night. For those of you in a power of influence who think that Christmas parties on a Sunday is a great idea because no one will get too drunk...STOP. All it does a make for a very unproductive Monday morning for those who indulged a little too much. Anytime work decides that they will pay for drinks, people will consume too much and, especially being a Sunday, makes for a hard way to start the new work week. Here are is an article on how to survive this year's many Christmas functions.

The Swede just sent me an article over the benefits of "self pleasure". Keeping your pipes clean has many cancer reducing benefits because many carcinogens accumulate in the prostate and need to be expelled from the body. The risk reduction is not the same when it is done with a partner because of the risk of getting an STD, which could increase the cancer risk. They found that those men who ejaculated the most between the ages of 20-50 were the least likely to develop cancer, and those who ejaculated more than 5 times per week were less likely to develop cancer later in life. Those old wives tales are wrong...You are not going to go blind and develop hairy palms, but live a long, and enjoyable life.

Another new finding on self indulgence. Moderate drinking is shown to correlate with lower waistline's. Having a drink a day is shown to be good for the body and the metabolism, however, if you take it more than that heavy drinkers had a 30% greater chance of being overweight. I think it has been drilled into us not to go overboard (not that I can talk) but at least keep it in check if you want to fit into your clothes after New Years. There is also a new Molson Canadian beer ad, this time its Guy the Quebecer....gotta love stereotypes.

Also check out Kyle McDonald. He started trading one red paper clip over the web to accumulate better items each time until he gets a house. He now has a snowmobile so anyone who wants to get rid of some stuff or wants to make him an offer. All I can say is I wish that I thought of it first.

Ok this is just a plug...I haven't seen many games here in NZ but seriously how about those Colts....Now 12-0. It would be cool for them to go undefeated this season. While Peyton's stats aren't as good as last season he is the man. All you can say is wow.

If I am going to do anything on a Friday afternoon..Why not go golfing

2005-12-02T14:25:00.000+13:00

Wow. Today has been hard. I am trying to get a lot of thesis writing done but I keep on getting distracted. For the past week I have had problems getting focused. After I did my presentation I think my subconscious wants me to take a break. Its weird, sometimes I think that I need some stress to getting me working efficient. Now that the pressure really isn't on, I keep on getting distracted by random shit. The lady has been gone now for over a week traveling with her sister on the South Island. It sounds like they have been having a good time and getting a lot of things done. When they get back I will put some pics up on my MSN myspace. It seems easier to upload pics too. Oh ya, I watched "The Worlds Fastest Indian" last night. Anthony Hopkins was outstanding. It is about Burt Munroe, the fanatical motorcycle legend and his trip from New Zealand to the US to take part in the world land speed championships on the salt flats in Utah. It hasn't been released in the US yet but comes out in limited theaters on December 9th. Hopkins may be a dark horse for the Oscars with his performance. It is a definite must see.

The Bruins of Boston have traded their franchise player to San Jose for basically nothing. If I were a Bruins fan I would be fuming. The Bruins now don't have a top first line center. I always think that whoever gets the best player in the trade, wins the trade. No matter how many quality players you get it still doesn't create a franchise player. However, haha I am missing out of the playoffs in my fantasy pool team right now. I am leading my other pool though.

So to update on some of the news I put up yesterday. Remember the lady who had the first face transplant. Well I guess the Dr. Didn't follow procedure and violated the ethics law and process to do this surgery. Apparently the woman who received the treatment is psycologically unfit to receive the treatment and the doctor didn't heed to the advice the the ethics committee. This could be interesting story over the next while.

Also, a Welch inventor has stopped loitering outside of convenience stores by playing high pitch Mosquito sounds to stop teenagers from hanging out and intimidating legitimate customers. Since younger people can recognize the higher pitch frequency, while older people can not, it seems to work effectively without harming business. I know that I hate the sound of a mosquito buzzing around your ear. For some reason those things know how to wake you up just before you fall asleep.

If you have ever been asked a question that you didn't know the question to. Men's Health has a rather interesting and usable column on how to wing it under those stressful situations. My the bullshiting begin.

I'm off to play some golf. It could be interesting since I haven't used my membership in months. Will let you know of the results later. Ciao

Shave and a Hair Cut

2005-12-01T09:26:00.000+13:00

OK I feel like a fat mess. These last couple week I have been so inconsistent about going to the gym. I have all this pent up energy that needs releasing. After going about 4 times a week all year, cutting back to a couple half ass visits makes me fell so gross. Also, it doesn't help that I have grown my hair since March when I shaved it. A bunch of us decided that we would do it and then grow it out until Christmas...Well I was the only one who had the dedication and will power to make it. It has been trimmed to look respectable when I had a job interview a while back so it doesn't look too much like a mop. Yup I am looking forward to getting it short for the summer. Its just to hot with too much maintaining...I am pretty annoyed today at myself. I got a call today saying that I got an internship at this investment bank. It was a 3 month contract with the former managing director of Goldman Sachs. So pretty much it was perfect. However (this isn't a happy story) its starts Monday and my thesis won't be finished until the end of December (if I work full time on it till then writing). I informed them of this and they told me it was Monday or nothing. After speaking to some friends, family, and supervisors I had to turn it down. I have put a lot of work into my thesis and if I don't finish it because of this internship I will have wasted a whole year of my life and a whole lot of money. I guess, "it wasn't meant to be". Na...It is because I played too much golf early on. I am kicking myself in the ass now but I guess if someone wants to give me a job...Someone else will too (I hope!). The finance industry is all about getting a foot in the door and it is tough having to let an opportunity get away.

Today must be weird news day. There is some golden stuff out there at the moment:

1. A women in France has had the first face transplant. Weird...I guess she got mauled by a dog and is getting a person who is brain deads face. I can understand the ethical dilemma involved in that. But, like any other transplant, there is the chance that her body will reject it. Hmmm what do you do when your body doesn't like your face...Do they take if off and leave with ???. Do you get another dead person's face. I can understand why this one has been debated.

2. Similarly, in New Zealand another woman will be getting her sense of smell back. A few years ago she got a cold and it totally fucked up her sense of smell so now everything smell "gross". I have no idea how this can happen but, it is a condition that affects only 20 people worldwide. I guess you can fart around her all the time and it doesn't matter..."What's that smell?.....umm Apple Pie".

3. Our friend Dick Cheney may be indibted for war crimes. Mr. Cheney apparently ignored the decision made by our friend W on the treatment of prisoners of war on terror. This is an interesting attack made by Col Lawrence Wilkerson who was a former colleague in the senior reaches of the Bush team. On another not Colin Powell has turned is back on this administration as well. Wow....These boys are going downhill fast.

Oh ya...I have now entered the 21st century and gotten a digital camera. Let the games begin.

Nothing Exceeds like Excess

2005-11-29T15:58:00.000+13:00

So I thought that I found the deal of the week yesterday. I was walking through this second hand book shop and found an original copy of Catch 22 for $4. I checked it over and it seemed great but a little too good to be true. So I gave away the 4 buck thinking that I had found the purchase of the year. Well I started reading it last night and the pages keep on falling out all over the place. It seems like as soon as I touch it "poof" 17 pages fall to the floor. The book isn't in perfect condition but if anyone knows of away to stop this or mend a 50 year old paperback book you should let me know.

Wax on, Wax Off

2005-11-28T18:01:00.000+13:00

So on Friday the Thanksgiving festivities were out in full force. Yup all the necessary requirements were there, turkey, mashed potatoes, friends. I don't what it is about the holidays where I allow myself to eat until it hurts...Not to the point where I enjoyed my dinner, but until it is physically painful to eat anymore. I don't get it. It is really a habit I probably should kick. I read an article that on average, most people gain 1lb between Thanksgiving to the New Year in every year of their adult lives, and that this extra weight is rarely lost. This is one of the results of an obese population. You think about it...1lb from 20-50 is 30 lbs over weight. Ya I think that I may try to eat less during Christmas. Hmmm, down here in the land of the Kiwi, the Christmas holidays coincide with the middle of summer, resulting in smaller dinners or lunches. I wonder if their have been any studies liking the timing of the seasons, holidays, and population health issues. Well if not someone should have a look. Well, other than being a pig, the dinner was really nice. The majority people who came were friends of ours who were away from their families while they were in NZ. It has been nice to relate to others who are going through the same thing as me and it makes my whole time here a lot easier. I might have packed it in and moved home by now if it wasn't the case. Anyways I'm off to the gym to get huge and work off those extra calories from the 3 helpings of dessert on Friday. Here are some helpful tips from Mens Health to help you keeping your figure from not turning into a muffin during the holidays.

Finally went and say the new Harry Potter movie. Since the 4th book is my favorite in the series I new that it was going to be hard to recreate on screen and keep fulfill my expectations. While it wasn't as good as the book it is definitely worth seeing. It is a more streamline version of the book and, while the climactic scene wasn't what I envisioned, I really don't think that it could have been done much better and is probably the best movie of the series as well. It has been tearing it up in the box office as well and is the first huge hit of the season.

It is a sad day for all Karate Kid fans as Pat Morita, aka Mr Miyagi, passed away. There were many moments as a kid play fighting in our living room trying to chick each other in the head, mimicking the Karate Kid crane. Yup, plenty of skinned knees and drop kicks off the couch were as a result of this movie. I might have to do one more crane for him....Sweetass I'm out of here!

Time for some turkey....

2005-11-25T10:20:00.000+13:00

While I am in New Zealand, I don't seem to forget the holidays from home. In Canada we celebrate Thanksgiving in October...I don't know why it is different from that of our American counterparts but the occasion is the same. Now that exams are finished and everyone is in a lot better mood, we decided to host a Thanksgiving dinner tonight at our house. Since this the number of Americans surely out numbers that of us Canadians (plus I live with a Blue Devil) the excitement over having Thanksgiving has been quite high. The problem with hosting a festive event here has to do with our friendly gobbler...Mr Tom Turkey. So these birds really aren't that popular here in the land of the Kiwi. I don't know if they aren't popular because of the sheer price tag ($40 bucks for a 10lb Turkey) or they are situated at that price because people don't like them...hmmm another chicken and egg situation I leave you to ponder over. Well we are going to have all the trimmings since everyone has gotten quite excited: giblet stuffing (check), sweet potatoes (hopefully check..They have been difficult to track down), cornbread (check)...Ya I am pretty sure we have everything covered other than football (or hockey, I am Canadian!).

On a different note I defended my thesis the other day and I was scared shitless. It is quite intimidating having to present all the work you have done for the past year and let some experts critique you and slam your research. I got quite scared before hand...I began to doubt myself and think that they are going to see through me. Its weird, I feel like sometimes the more I learn and the more I know, the less I actually know. I don't know how this contradiction works but sometimes I would like to go back to age 12 when everything seemed easy and I felt like I knew everything. Hmmm no I wasn't arrogant...Wow Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" just came on the radio. I always forget how good this song is. The best line is "like 2 lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year".. Anyways I read some few things today I'd like to share

1. The annual turkey eating contest was on today. The "Black Widow" ate a 10lb turkey in 12 minutes...That is crazy. The weird part is she is only 105lb. I always think of competitive eaters as either a huge fat guy or some crazy Japanese man. However, breaking the mold of traditional eaters, Sonya "Black Widow" Thomas is the #2 ranked competitive eater. I really wonder how they train...She is going to have to eat a lot all the time to practice but being so small she must be bulemic. Ya...The Black Widow must be the ultimate binge and purge.

2. There looks like there is going to be a no confidence vote happening in the minority Canadian federal government. While this will cause for a general election sometime in the new year I really don't think that it is going to change the government. The Liberal hold on Ontario really isn't wanning and Stephen Harper, leader of the Conservatives, is way too right wing for most people. Consequently, this vote will result in another minority led Liberal government. Yup, you heard it here first all the way from the land of the Kiwi.

3. Sucker....The first batch of X-Box 360 looks like has glitches and is freezing up on everyone. While I kind of want one, I am going to wait and see what the new Playstation is going put out. The PS3 apparently is going to have a little more under the hood. Hmmm its a tough call though, you can't go wrong with Microsoft. Even though I hate them, they seem to dominate everything they do but Sony has been great. I think that I really shouldn't think about it since I don't play my PS2 much right now anyways.

4. TO isn't coming back this year...For some reason I like the guy. I don't know, the flash, the arrogance really should be hated. But for some reason I really wish I had the balls to do that. In any respect, his antics look like they are done for the season. All he will be doing for the next few months is bitch and whine...hmm I guess nothing will change.

Defense (clap clap) defense

2005-11-22T17:36:00.000+13:00

So I have my thesis defense tomorrow....Ya a 30 minute presentation and then a whole bunch of questions to make sure that I actually know what I am talking about. Its weird, the more school that I take the less I feel I know about anything, let alone what I am supposed to be an "expert" about. For those of you who don't have a clue what I have been doing I will give ya a quick run down. My thesis is looking at the reasons why there are company takeovers, and how company's perform afterwards in Europe from 1997-2004. Europe is quite interesting because as a whole, the economy is as large as the US, but within it there is a diverse range of countries that have different legal systems, cultures, and a diverse range of economic development. In the end I am trying to find out why companies perform differently after a takeover in different countries. For those of you who care, a lot relates to the legal tradition of the country. Those countries with stringent enforcement and developed markets (ie English common law countries) have better performance because their shareholders are more protected. I won't bore you anymore but if anyone wants to here more about it just let me know.

Its going to be weird for the next couple weeks. Char char has gone on a trip down around the South Island of New Zealand with her sister, leaving me to fend for myself. I don't get much time to myself all that often so when she takes off it is a little lonely around the house. This time of year makes it worse because the roomates are taking off to see their families over Christmas. While I do like people around, having some space to yourself for a while is always nice. Ya, if I don't want to do the dishes or if I feel like running around the house naked, I can. Rad.

I have added a music video of the week. For those of you how think my taste in music is shit...I don't care and for those of you who do, enjoy.

So for the news....

1. Kara Bordon willingly left with David Luwig after he shot her parents. Wow, this looks like a modern day teenage Bonnie and Clyde. He has admitted to shooting her father and mother without remorse because Mr Bordon didn't want his 14 year old daughter dating a creepy 18 year old. Hmmm, I think that Dad was right and he probably wasn't that good for her. If she had anything to do with it she deserves everything she gets.

2. Zarqawi may have been killed in battle when troops stormed a house in the Iraqi northern city of Mosul. This could be a big blow to the Sunni's extremists if this is true. I guess we are going to have to wait and see.

3. For those hockey fans out there, here is a crazy hockey goal scored last year in a Major Junior All-Star contest. I think this may have been from last season but this is crazy anytime.

Keg Stands and Mullets

2005-11-18T19:23:00.000+13:00

Haha so last night me hockey team had our year end pary. All of the guys are done exams and were ready for a night of boozing. While my heart was into it last night, my head convinced me that I should not drink due to my upcoming thesis defense next week. While the boys were disappointed that I wasn't getting destoyed, they were happy that introduced them to doing kegs stands. Being 26 I haven't done a keg stand in years, and for some suprising reason, the guys had never even heard of one. While still being seasoned drinkers (as all Kiwi's are), and the majority under 21, they never experienced the thrill of a keg stand (if you can call it a thrill). As soon as I showed them how to do it, they guys were all over it like a dirty sheet. Since they all were a little bit drunk the repercussions (and concussions) of doing keg stands all night were thrown in the gutter and ignored until morning. Once I got the ball rolling these boys continued until the wee hours of the morning.

Massey Titans Highlights of the Year

1. Second Place in Lower North Island qualifying us to the National Championships
2. Only losing 1 game in the round robin with record of 1-1-3. Ok 3 ties is really gay but we kinda got screwed over...We scored against the eventual national champs with 30 seconds left to win. Goal was disallowed but EVERYONE knows it went in. Fans, players on both sides, and all officials except 1. That goal made us not get into the semi finals but we know we are the best 5th place team anywhere, hahaha. Well in NZ at least
3. 1 late night excursion to the strippers.
4. 12 cases and 4 bottles of whiskey consumed on the last night of nationals
5. 1 keg party which resulted in 2 concussions, 8 stiches, $12 worth of French fries, 1 frozen X-Box, an uncountable number of keg stands.
6. 1 mullet
7. A whole lotta shed

This past season was probably the enjoyable year of sports I have played since I was 16. It brought the passion for hockey back in me. I was a level where I had to work hard to stay in shape and brought out my competitive nature. While my days of living the dream are done, this season brought back memories as to why have played hockey for so long.

Some of the news that I have been reading about:

1. In the British Columbia provincial elections have been one by the Liberals. This is the first time since 1985 Bill Bennett Social Credit government that a Premier has won a second election. The nature of provincial politics in BC is very interesting. The lack of trust among the general population has caused for the popular vote to sway drastically between elections. While this is a repeat for Gordon Campbell, it has to be noted that he had only 2 opposition MP's as opposition. This election however was suprisingly contested by the NDP. For the next 4 years he is going to have to do some work this time

2. Conrad Black has been indicted for fraud. These charges accuse him of skimming $52 million from the Holinger newspaper empire. While he has been one of the greatest businessman of this generation his ego got him into trouble like the other leaders of Enron, Tyco, WorldCom. It is a long fall from the top of the empire he has created, and he deserves the punishment he is due to receive

3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire comes out this week. This is arguably the the best book in series (contested only by the newest one). If you are a Harry Potter fan you are definitely excited. The story line starts to get a lot darker then the earlier books and movies. Its going be rad.

The end of a long, dark, paper filled tunnel

2005-11-16T15:52:00.000+13:00

Well I am in the last of 1200 exam papers to mark...Although that is still a few hours worth of work the end is near. Two weeks ago I was ready to shoot myself in the face after seeing how much there was to do. Thank god it is almost over without much hassle. I did though have a small discussion with a bitch of a Professor over "giving away marks"...and making me go through about 200 again and remark one of her questions. I was being lenient over one of the questions because of the variety of answers. There were quite a few students who looked like they were going to fail badly and I figured that there really isn't much difference between 4/10 than 2/10. Really I don't think those "sympathy" marks would have been the difference to these students, Its not like I was writing B+ at the top of everyone's papers and hitting up the pub to watch the game. Anyways I am done marking for the death whore anyways so I guess I don't have to worry about that again.

Here are some of the things that struck me while reading the news this morning, enjoy!

1. Apparently I Pod porn is big business. Since I don't have one at the moment because electronics are obscenely expensive in New Zealand. I have failed to recognize the whole in the marketplace for viewing a Dirty Sanchez or and any moment. I think that while the screens on digital media devices like IPOD's and cell phones can view them, is it really all that enjoyable. I can just see it now, roid man at the gym getting pumped and warming down on the bike watching a little 3 way. "Oh my god those boobies are huge"

2.Condoleezza Rice arrived arrived in the middle east last week in a suprise visit and it has looked like she has helped string together a deal between Palestine and Israel. While this administration has met considerable opposition abroad, she has been one of the few people to gain clout. Hmmm could there be an all African American Presidential campaign in 2008 between Obama and Rice. Ya....I think I'm dreaming

3. Cool Mom gets 30 years for throwing parties for her teenage boy. She supplied her son and his friends with alcohol, drugs, and strippers (and having sex with at least 5 of his friends) over a period of a few weeks. According to the report she was self conscious and wanted her kids to be "cool" and not experience being a dork in high school. Well now she can be happy because she has raised children who are lack authority and morals but are "cool". Good work dumbass.

Hell week

2005-11-15T21:52:00.000+13:00

So the past few weeks my life has been really hectic . It is crunch time of the year and the workload just piles up. This semester I am marking at least one section of 6 final exams...For those of you who fail to understand the sheer volume, this is about 1200 exam scripts. Yes, I know plenty of people who have never read a novels that long even when it is entertaining and thought provoking (Random note: I have not finished the Lord of the Rings Trilogy...The last umpteen chapters detailing the trip back to the Shire and all the details of the King bore me. The book finishes when the ring is destroyed. The rest is, in the words of Dan hundreds of pages of foliage), let alone pages of chicken scratch detailing the ways to hedge a company's foreign exchange risk. I guess it is payback from all the years when the professors couldn't read my hand writing...I think that they followed the same method I have had to use. Ummmm I cant read that...(flip to front cover to see how they did on other sections)....hmmmmm they haven't done that bad on the other questions so I guess a 7/10 is fair.....The good thing is that I am on the home stretch and only have about 200 more to mark. Hopefully I will be done tomorrow.

Next week I have my Masters thesis presentation. I finally have some decent results that look great but now I have to get them in an organized form that people can understand. Its going to be a fairly intense week to get it all sorted out. After that I set cruise control so that my baby is handed in by Christmas. It is going to be so sweet when I hand it in.

So for some weird news I read today:

Ali G is threatened court action by the government of Kazakhstan...Apparently they aren't a country of drunk farmers who punch cows for fun. The foreign minister has stated that "Borat" has impacted the tourism of their large mid Asian country.
On a more seriousnote the teenage couple suspected of murder have been apprehended. The low down looks like an argument ensued between the 18 year old boyfriend and his girlfriends father after he failed to bring home his 14 year old daughter the night before. Consequently, the boy shot the father and mother in the head and took off with his gf. They were apprehended 200 miles away in a high speed chase on the wrong side of the road. It is a miracle that no one was injured in the process. Both of the kids came from Christian families and both the kids were home schooled. I don't understand why parents would home school their children. It seems to breed individuals who can't interact with the general population.

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavex

Ok here are the five words I probably say the most that really has to get cut back because it makes me look like a moron:

Word
Fuck
Seriously
Dude
Ummmmm

Honorable mentions: Like, Eh?

Anyways back to the marking...Au revoir

My eyes hurt

2005-11-14T16:13:00.000+13:00

Well I have spent the majority of the day marking final exams. For those of you who have never completed the task you aren't missing anything. To be honest it makes me want to go back in time and learn the skill of legible handwriting....Anyways I digress to inform you of some of the news I have read in between task at hand:

1: For those of you obsessed with political comment the Washington Post discussed the possibility of "Scooter" Libby of taking the blame for the CIA operative leak so that Mr. Dick Cheney wouldn't be in trouble...All the evidence points to fact that Cheney told "Scooter" about the CIA operative (reporters, Scooter's own notes) but for some reason he thinks he heard is somewhere else. Hmmm something doesn't fit here.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/12/AR2005111201085_2.html?referrer=email&referrer=email

2. While George W is willing to go to war around the world to implement American ideals and values he is neglecting many civil rights issues within the US. Since his administration was sworn in the civil rights enforcement took a sharp decline. The Bush administration has filed only 3 lawsuits (all of which are this year) under the voting rights act that prohibits the discrimination against minority voters. Coincidently, none of them involved black complainants. The initial case was the Justice Department's first reverse-discrimination lawsuit, accusing a majority-black county in Mississippi of discriminating against white voters!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/12/AR2005111201200.html?referrer=email&referrer=email

Ok enough with the political rants...how about those Canucks. They beat Detroit for the second time this season. Bert finally had the breakout game that he needed. Since he has been playing like a pussy so far this season a hat trick should be a good boast of confidence. From what I have been reading the media of Van has been ragging on him pretty hard. For him to be effective he has to use his size and strength to create opportunities for himself and the rest of his line. It must be difficult coming back and doubting the way you play the game. He just has to get back to using his size and strength to create holes, not to hurt people. Once he gets that in his mind day to day he is going to be the machine he was 18 months ago.

OK more tests to mark...woohoo