Archive: Pre-September 2002

----- 08.30.2002 -------
Man, have I been busy lately! Last weekend I went to Windsor for my Dad's 60th b-day party. It just so happened the "Tecumseh Corn Fest" was on. The corn fest is one of those events you go to every year and get good and smashed. The whole town's there! I haven't been in a few years since I'm in Toronto now, so it was cool going again. I ran into all kinds of people I haven't seen in ages. I ran into my old best friend too! I haven't seen him in about 8 years, so there was lots of catching up to do! Then, just when you're good and loaded and the beer tent's closing... parties! Every other house is having a party it seems! So, we just walked to a couple parties.... late nights! Oh well... it was a great weekend. Then, to top it off, my sister Laura drove back to Toronto with me to stay a few days. She left wed. morning to head back to Windsor. While she was here, we went climbing on monday night. That was fun, but I had a really tough time. I think I broke my pinky finger while I was back home, so as you can imagine, climbing was difficult and a little painful! All in all it was good though! Tonight I'm off to Guelph Lake to go camping. I'm meeting my lil sis and some friends there for some long weekend festivities. I can't wait to go fishing! I went fishing while I was back home, but didn't have any luck. You win some, you lose some, right? The website for Guelph lake states "Trophy-sized northern pike"!!! SWEET! Anyway, gotta run! I'll try and take some pics this weekend. Unfortunately the digi-cam I use got kind of busted on my trip to Vancouver. Stupid irresponsible airline didn't even do anything about it! I can tell my bag was run over by a baggage car or something. Probably an airplane! Anyway... till next time. Cheers and have a great long weekend!

----- 08.23.2002 -------
Another day, another update. Last weekend was great! Jim and I went up to Montreal for some partying. What a blast! I didn't get much sleep... but who has time for that?!?! So, I got some sun time, some swimming in, and went to a wicked house party. Today I'm off to Windsor. Train leaves at 4 so I'm just killing time. On sunday, my sister's coming back with me to TO. Should be fun... I just don't get to spend enough time with her. Hopefully we'll go climbing... I introduced her to it a couple weeks ago when I was in Windsor and she loved it. Speaking of climbing, I went last night with Mel. It was good... I climbed a few 5.8's and attempted some 5.9's with minimal success. I think I'll hit a 5.9 first next time when my arms are good and fresh. It's just too hard to climb them once your muscles tell you they've gone on strike :) And next weekend, I'm going camping for Labour day weekend. I think we're going to Guelph Lake. I'll get some pics of that for you, so stay tuned. Busy, busy. Anyway, I'm going to stop here because I'm in one of those moods where I could ramble on forever... and who really wants that??!? So, take care all and come back again soon for another update.

----- 08.16.2002 -------
Woo hoo! I wrote my CCNA exam this morning and scored a 910 (out of a possible 1000). And in Cisco's books, that's a pass! So... this week's boot camp sure paid off and I've got my Cisco certification to add to my Microsoft cert (MCSE). What can I say, I'm pumped! Party time! But where to party on a friday night? Hmmm... well, no better place then Quebec! So, I'm off on a road trip in about half hour with my buddy Jim to visit some friends just outside MTL. I'm in a great mood with a great weekend planned. So... I hope you all have a great weekend too and I'll update again sometime next. Later!

----- 08.13.2002 -------
Hey folks... as the title says I'm on course this week. I'm in an intense CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) boot camp. I had a 11 hour class day yesterday, and 10 hours today. On top of that is 1 - 2 hours of home work a night. I guess tomorrow's supposed to be the longest day: 12 hours. That's a LONG class! It's tough to keep digesting info for so long, especially material of this depth. But, so far I've been absorbing it all. Thursday is the last day of actual class with my ICND (CCNA) exam on friday. I'm really hoping I'll pass after such a short, intense period of time learning this stuff. The instructor's great and I find the material really interested, so I'm feeling pretty good about it. If I don't pass, I'll study more and write it again. The passing grade is somewhere around 82% - 85%. Wish me luck! So, if I haven't been around or emailing anyone... this is why. Anyway, onto other things, like this past weekend. I had friday off and Jamie and I went climbing. It was great! I did a couple climbs that really pushed my limits. Feel the burn! I love that feeling!!! After that, my folks were in town friday night on their way back from a trip out east. So, they stayed over and we watched Lord of the Rings... Great flic! Saturday we shopped around and had dinner, then they were on their way back home. Sunday, I went to the Beer festival with my buddy Sean. It was awesome!!! I will not miss it next year (or any other year if I can help it). I recommend you go next year! Anyway, after that is was back to school. Monday is back to work, hopefully with some more initials under my belt. Anyway... hope all is well with everyone. Until next update, taker easy.

----- 08.06.2002 -------
Well... it's been a week, so an update's definately overdue. I hope everyone (in Canada atleast) had a good long weekend. I did! I went down to Windsor to visit my lil sis. She had to stay home and take care of the dogs, so we couldn't go camping this year. So, I visited her. We had a great time too... went swimming, climbing (yes.. I FINALLY went again and it was great!!!), clubbing, shot pool, went shopping, met some friends we hadn't seen in a while, and most importantly, relaxed. Ah yes, a nice relaxing weekend in Windsor. OK, so it wasn't THAT relazing since we were running around keeping busy, but that's not the point. All in all, a great weekend! Thanks again Laura! And now for the update you've been waiting for... last week's 25dates.com night. How did it go? It was great! I had a lot of fun and met some cool people. Hopefully I'll meet up with some of them again, but if not, the night was still great and I would recommend it to anyone. Since I only had 3 minutes with each, it wasn't long before everyone was speaking in turbo. We were having 5-6 minute conversations in 3! If you get the chance to do one of these things... go for it! You never know what who you might meet. I know I've had so much fun before and after talking about it that the night itself was just gravy on the whole experience. Feel free to ask me about it via email or ICQ (my number's on my webcam page). Anyway, hope everyone's doing well... I am! And if you haven't had a chance to check out my pics from my vacation, they're in the pics section. See you next update, Ciao!

----- 07.30.2002 -------
Well, as the title above states, the pics are up! Yes, all of them, and captioned! So, be sure to check out all three sets: camping in Algonquin, a short work trip to Vancouver, and my trip out to St. John's, Newfoundland. I don't think I mentioned this earlier, but tomorrow's a big day for me. I'm a little nervous too... Why, what's tomorrow you're asking? Besides being July 31st, I have sometime planned in the evening. I'm going to a thing put on by 25dates.com. I'm really not sure what to expect, except I know I'll have 25 x 3 minute dates. The idea is that 3 minutes is enough time to judge whether there is chemistry or not with a potential date. So, after the 3 minutes, if both of you say "Yes" you'd go on a date, they exchange your contact info. I'm really not sure what to expect, and if nothing else, it should make for a great story. So... wish me luck! Geez... why do I get myself into these situations.... Come back in a few days and I'l let you know how it went :) I may not have time to post before this weekend. Speaking of which, I'm going down to Windsor to hang out with my sis for the long weekend. Should be fun and relaxing. We plan to climb, as well as get out in the boat and go fishing. Lake St. Clair's always treated me well with the fishing :) Later and have a great weekend! Oh ya, and enjoy the pics... feel free to email me with your comments.

----- 07.29.2002 -------
So I'm a little behind schedule on my pics.... so I've posted my Newfoundland pics from Noel and Gail's wedding... but I haven't really touched the pages. So, big deal, they don't match the site and there's no captions, but they're up. I was feeling bad, so I posted them as is. I'll get them sorted out and captioned soon, and add my Vancouver pics, I promise. I just thought I should give you something for those of you who are impatient, more importantly, to those of you I told I would have them posted. They're posted. Just come back for an explanation on them.... Oh ya, they're in the pics section (see sidebar on left), or click here. Later!

----- 07.22.2002 -------
OK, I've got the captions up on my camping pics. My next task is to get my Vancouver and Newfoundland pics up.... soon I tell you. Soon.

----- 07.21.2002 -------
Well.... I got around to posting my camping pics. I think that's all I'll do for tonight... come back later this week for my Vancouver and Newfoundland pics. As for the camping pics, I haven't added captions yet, but I will soon. Enjoy and feel free to send me any comments. Later!

----- 07.17.2002 -------
I'm back now. What an awesome vacation! I took all kinds of pictures, but you'll have to stay patient. I'm pretty damn tired, as you can imagine... so I'll get them posted when I'm a little more awake and have a little more time. Right now all I can think is bed time. Work's going well, but of course, it's tiring after being out of the office for a couple weeks. I want to end this here, but I also want to mention the whales I saw! Huge humpbacks... on a whale tour. It was awesome. In the distance, I saw a huge one jump out of the water and do a back flop. Very SeaWorld-esque! The pictures of the whales didn't turn out great, but some are alright. I'm hoping to get some pics from the others that went to add to the pics of my experience. One more thing to leave you with... and this was the slogan written on the Rob Roy (a bar in St. John's). It was written in script, like something off a hardware store: We install and service hangovers . Pefect for a bar... Anyway... catch ya later.

----- 07.12.2002 -------
Lucky me... I found me a computer here in Newfoundland. So, I'm sitting here in the Fairmont hotel goofing around on their guest computer in the exec lounge waiting for the wedding. I'm doing the video for it, so I really don't need the prep that the others need... which is a relief! Anyway, St. John's is absolutely beautiful! The weather's been fantastic and the view from the hotel is increcdible. Last night we had a great night out on the town.... after-hours and all. How did we find one? I dunno... Barry worked his magic and the next thing I know "last call" is a thing of the past. So, I stumbled in around 5 AM this morning. Somehow I managed to get up at a decent hour as well, which is amazing considering the time change effect I'm feeling. Someone owes me about 4 and a half hours I figure. 3 from VAN to TO, then another 1.5 to St. John's. I didn't even get a chance to adjust to VAN I don't think. For the short amount of time I was there, somehow I managed to put in about 22 hours of work. Considering I got to the office at 5 PM monday, after I landed, and didn't work due to travel on Wednesday, I'd say I done alright. Anyway... rambling is in full effect... I'm tired, buzzed, and have time to kill. Bare with me, will you. I guess I could ramble on about camping, which in my last update, although brief, already mentioned it was awesome. One thing that sticks out was an early morning canoe ride I took with my sister around 5 AM. I hadn't gone to bed and the sun was coming up so I figured I'd hit the lake. It was so beautiful. Not a single ripple and steam was rising off the lake. The water was like bathwater... I don't remember it ever being that warm. Anyway, because of the fire in Northern Quebec, the sky kept a strange haze. That's why my pictures, which you'll see, from the canoe trip and hike to the cliff are so bad. Anwyay, the sun looked like it was painted on the sky as it rose. Pink in color, and it was easy to look at. Strange, since I got even more sun to add to my burn, even though it seemed cloudy. I guess the soot in the sky doesn't block the UV rays. So, although that was the only day it wasn't completely clear, it actually was. Anyway, time to hit the wedding. I'll update sometime soon and get my pics up after I get back. So... the moral of the story is yes, I'm still alive... and doing well!!! Cheers!

----- 07.10.2002 -------
Just thought I'd write a quick update to say everything's going great! My camping trip in Algonquin (10 days) was fantastic! Not a drop of rain and beautiful weather. Unlike previous years with the rain and the cold, and the cold and the rain. Oygphhhh! Vancouver was also a great trip. In fact, I just got home from Vancouver and am flying out tomorrow morning to St. John's, Newfoundland for Noel's wedding. Should be a blast. Anyway, Vancouver was a lot of work and long hours considering the short time I was there, but I was able to pull off everything on my agenda. And trust me, I'm an idiot when it comes to agendas for work abroad. I always try to cram so much in to maximize my time there... and it feels great to accomplish it all. This is just a short update to let you all know things are going well and no, I didn't drop off the face of the earth. I've got lots of great pictures so far, and even more to comes for Newfoundland. The agenda I've got has us on a whale tour on sunday! Should be sweeeeet!!! Take care all, and check back next week for a more detailed update. I have tons of stories now, and more to come, but I know just like every other time, only a fraction will make it up here. So I'll try and deliver the goods. Cheers!

----- 06.27.2002 -------
Yesterday Mel & I went climbing again. It had been 2 weeks since my last climb, so I wasn't sure what to expect since I'm not maintaining that once per week minimum I'd like. I'm happy to say the climb went great. I did an easy one and then tried a tough one, which happened to be a 5.9 that I couldn't do last time. Since I didn't waste and strenght or energy bouldering this time, I was actually able to climb it! It took a while, but it was my first 5.9, which means I'm improving. And 5.8's? I was able to do the ones I tried :) Unfortunately they changed the routes and got rid of one I was stuck on a couple weeks ago and I never got a chance to retry, and then conquer it. Oh well... I'll just have to make sure I do them the first time and not have to return and chance in not be there. Much easier said then done! Anyway, other than that not much is new. Yesterday was Father's day and I made the call, but I really would have like to gone to Windsor to say it in person. Oh well, atleast I'll get to see my Dad at the end of the month when I go camping. Speaking of which, I've got a nutty July planned. First I'll be camping for 10 days, to return on a sunday. The next morning, I'm flying out to Vancouver for work and will return Wed. evening. Then, Thursday morning I'm flying to the other coast to see my friends Noel and Gail get married in St. John's, Newfoundland. It'll be busy travelling place to place, but I can't wait! It'll be a blast!!! Speaking of blasts, it's Noel's stag this friday! We're getting a limo-bus and everything! Should be an awesome night! Well... I guess I had more to say than I thought this update. See you back soon! Btw, after June 27th, don't expect another update until mid-July at the earliest. Who knows, maybe I'll be able to sneak one in, but I doubt it. On the bright side, it should be a great update with pics from Algonquin, Vancouver AND Newfoundland!!! Later!

----- 06.11.2002 -------
Well, I went to the eye doc and sure enough, I've got glasses now. I like them and think they look good, not to mention everything around me is crystal clear now. What I really like are my perscription shades! Polarized lenses and all. They're sweet for eliminating glare, plus everything is soooo clear! OK, those of you who wear glasses may or may not remember what it was like when you got them, but it's a cool experience. Atleast for a while, but dealing with the cases and stuff is a pain in the ass. I'm starting to see why you wouldn't want them. Anyway, I don't have too much to update, but felt I needed to throw my 2 cents in your face. OK, you came here on your own... I didn't really THROW it in your face. Did anyone watch the fight on Saturday? Tyson got rocked! He seemed slow... usually he comes out gang-busters style... but he was too slow. Sure, Lewis had the reach on him and all, but Tyson could have done better I think. I think this was just A) A pay-day for him and B) A way to change his image a little. Did he bite anyone? No. Did he slaughter his opponent? No. BORING!!! Why else would I want to watch him fight? Oh well... hope everyone's doing well. I'm doing well (with the exception of being at work until 3 AM last night). Damn deadlines.... Anyway, this weather is great, so HOPEFULLY I'll get out a bit more, but unfortunately the updates MAY be less frequent. No promises either way. See ya next time....

----- 06.04.2002 -------
What goes through the mind of a Barber? Really.... everytime I go to one, they all have some vision they want to project onto my head. And everytime, I walk out with an itch to shave my head. It's not their fault... I'm the idiot that keeps going back to them! Why?!?!? Because I can't find another. Sure, you think there are tons of barber shops... and you're right... but everytime I'm disappointed. The biggest thing that pisses me off is when they just won't go short enough. I want something that's no maintenance, and they want to give it a trim that will last 2 weeks at most before needing another. I get so pissed off... and what can I do? I eventually get frustrated saying "shorter, shorter" and accept what they give me. I don't want them to get too pissed off and "slip". "Sorry about that sir, I should be able to make it look even with the clippers....". OK... I'm feeling better already. Thanks for listening. I think part of my bitchiness is the fact I haven't had a smoke in a while.... back on the Zyban trying to quit again. It's not going too bad... until I get a pint or two into me and I can't seem to find any reason NOT to have a smoke. Grrr.... I hate being weak!! Oh well.... eventually I'll quit if I keep trying... Anyway, I'm off to play some squash. Later!

----- 06.02.2002 -------
Hey everyone, happy June! I can't believe it's June already.... time's flying! Work's been extra busy lately so I have no clue where the time is going. As for my life outside of work, it usually packed full of activities as well. Today I went climbing with my friend Mel. It was her first time and she did quite well. In fact, she was a super star on the wall! She had an hour intro lesson so I bouldered while I waited. I think that took a lot out of me because I wasn't too great on the wall. My grip was shot too early, but again, I'm blaming that on the bouldering. I guess we were there about 3 hours and I must have said I was done and couldn't climb anymore... but still had a few more climbs. I'll really feel it on tuesday. For whatever reason, 2 days later seems to be when I feel sore. The climbing was just a great way to end a great weekend. Went out and had a great time on friday night with some work mates, and then a buddy I haven't hung out with in a while came over on Saturday. It was my first weekend at home in a couple weeks so it felt good. I got Rogers high speed internet this week and like it a lot. I used to have sympatico, but got pissed off at them for their sneaky ways. Cable's faster anyway. One thing I have noticed is that sometime cable takes a while to wake up, but then it's really fast. Maybe Rogers has some slow DNS servers or something... And the digital cable's treating me well so far. More channels then I know what to do with and some of the movies are broadcast in 5.1 (Dolby Digital). It's no different then DVD which is great. Well, I guess that's all I've got to update for now. Seeya!

----- 05.28.2002 -------
Just thought I'd quickly update my site and change the heading from "Go Leafs Go!" since I just watched their defeat. What a shame... they've really been through a lot in the play offs and it just did't work out :( Better luck next year!

----- 05.27.2002 -------
What a great weekend! I'm not sure how the weather was where you were, but where I was, it was sunny and warm. I felt great to be able to walk around in a pair of shorts getting a tan. In my mind, saturday was the first day of summer. Where was I, you ask? My buddy Jim & I went up to Quebec, near Rigaud (about 30 minutes west of Montreal). We were dropping a couch off for our friend Belinda, who happened to be throwing a BBQ that night. It was a good party and worth the drive! It was a long drive though for just 1 night... but like I said, worth it. Let me back up a bit and tell you about my friday. After work, I finally went climbing again! I was starting to think it would never happen, but sure enough, Jamie came through and we went. It felt great to climb again. This time I grabbed some names and numbers from the gym of people looking for partners to climb with. My climbing pool of people may actually come together after all. It'd be great to go twice a week! I guess I shouldn't get too carried away... after all, it was a month since the last time I went! I've got a new section on my site... Tech Help (see the link on the side). As of this writing, the page is not there yet, but it will be. I created it in notepad on a laptop while driving back from Quebec. Tomorrow night a technician from Rogers Cable is coming to hook me up with high speed cable internet (I currently have DSL). Sympatico really pissed me off, as I mentioned in an earlier update. Their loss... As well, I'm getting Digital Cable TV. I'm looking forward to that! 5.1 audio is the big seller for me. And after I switch my local phone service over to Sprint, I'll end up paying the same per month, and have digital cable as a bonus :) Sweet! Well, that's about it. And no, I didn't forget the pics from last weekend, I've just been too busy or just plain not home to post them. Patience, young Skywalker. No, haven't seen attack of the clones yet, but it's on my list of movies to see... right up there with Spiderman, which I haven't seen either. Go figure, if it's on my list of movies to see. OK, I feel some sarcasm coming on... time to run. Ciao!

----- 05.22.2002 -------
I hope everyone had a good weekend, I know I did! To all of those that were at the Open Eye Festival... thanks! I had a blast and it definately couldn't be attributed to the weather! I mean... it snowed on sunday and monday!!! DURING MAY 24 WEEKEND!!! On another note, it was too bad about the Leafs last night... but we'll win. Go Leafs Go! Anyway, back to the weekend. I've got some pics to post... so check out the pics section. As of this writing, they're not there yet because I still have to email the pics here, then make a page and do all that crap, but most importantly, I have pics to post. And proof that it snowed :) I've got a bunch of links that I've found interesting, useful and/or amusing that I've been collecting. I'll get those posted on my links page. As some of you have noticed, I have a link (or should I say "what looks to be a link") on the side called Tech Help. I know there's nothing there, but there will be a form that you can fill out with any kind of computer or tech help. Anything from "why does windows crash when I -------" to "what's the best way to link my DVD to my stereo and still -------". These questions will come to me via email and I'll get back to you via email. I hope to get a good collection to post and hopefully be of help to you. Don't worry, no matter how silly you THINK the question may be, I'm sure you're not the first to ask it. Also, while posting this info, names will be withheld. On a squash note, it's all going well, but I regret to inform you the climbing hasn't. It's been a month and I'm really hoping to go tomorrow. I think I'll write down a bunch of names and numbers off the list at the climbing gym of people looking for someone else to climb with. I'd like to get a solid pool of people I can call when I get the urge to climb. As a bonus, it'd be great to get a call and drag me out... sometimes I just need a little push. Another update for you is my ugly smoking habit. It's back. Maybe it's because nobody likes a quitter, maybe I'm just weak. Anyway, hopping back on the Zyban-wagon to hopefully quit for good. It's really hurting the squash!!! OK... I've rambled on long enough... thanks for listening (assuming you got this far). Whether you're reading this or not, atleast I give myself the illusion of speaking what's on my mind right now. Well, I've got more pages to update, so catch ya later.

----- 05.15.2002 -------
You may have noticed the frequency of the updates going down... but fear not. I'm still getting atleast one per week. Besides, do you really want to read an update about nothing? I guess you do if you're a return visitor :) Anywho... still haven't been climbing. It's been 3 weeks now and I'm start to jones for a climb. Maybe next week. This weekend it's not going to happen because I'm off to Seaforth for the weekend. Remember... the Open Eye Festival. If not... look down a few posts and you'll see what I'm talking about. Well... best of luck to the Leafs tomorrow night. They may be a little battered and bruised, but they got tons of fight left in 'em. Well... I don't have all that much to post about. Oh wait.. ya I do. I recently ditched Sympatico as of a couple days ago. Did you know they will be forcing a 5 GB up and download limit? Starting June 2002? You mean you didn't get notice neither? They really piss me off. I sent them a rather lengthy email that they dodged and then I responded with the areas they dodged looking for some answers. Anyway, I've got the emails, and I'll try and post them soon... I'm just way too tired right now. Speaking of which... I better get to bed and rest up. I've been working out and playing a lot of squash lately... I'm sore and bed sounds really nice right now. So that's where I'm off to. I doubt I'll get another post in before the long weekend... so come back after and I'm bound to have something interesting to tell (or show). Hope you all have a great long weekend. And because I won't get an update in this weekend, Happy Birthday to my sister Laura! She's out in Saskatoon so I won't see her for her Bday this year... but last year I went up and visited. We camped at Duck Mountain in Saskatchewan, on the Manitoba border. Read more about it a year ago this time below (or in my archive section... which at the time of this writing doesn't exist). I hope the weather will be better! OK... bed time. Take care...

----- 05.09.2002 -------
GO LEAFS GO! It was nice to see our Leafs come through with the win last night. Sure, a little controversial.... consider I thought the Sens scored with 25 seconds on the clock... but I'm not the expert. The experts said no goal, giving the Leafs the victory. Had it been a goal, did anyone else really want to see another triple overtime game?!?!? Anyway, now that they're coming back home, we should take this series, and take it to the cup! Now that I've displayed my Toronto pride... I can continue. Monday night's pool game went well... I was the guy in the pressure position with the game all tied up, down to the very last shot to decide who was got 3rd, and who got 4th. 3rd gets $250, while 4th walks away with nothing. I made the 8... and we scooped the $250! Not bad for a team that went in 29 out of 32!!! And for a new team in the league, finishing is tough. That and we only had 5 players... so we lost 2 points right off the bat. Well... it didn't matter. We won and pool is finally over for the summer. I think I may captain another team in the fall, as long as I can get some players that are dedicated to playing the whole season. Well... I'm off to go play squash (what else) and I'm feeling rather lucky. I'm supposed to go climbing on Saturday, so I can't wait!!! It's been over 2 weeks since I've last gone... not quite up to my once-a-week dreams. Anyway, take care y'all!

----- 05.05.2002 -------
Hey folks, I finally got around to creating a 2nd spinning 3D head of myself. I think I did a better job with this one, correcting some of the mistakes from the last. Anyway, I archived the poll results on another page. Now I've just got to edit and compress the video I shot to add to that page. Now I'm stuck for a new idea. Another poll could be fun... but what to vote on? I'll think of something. I predict the next biggest addition to my site will be pics and info from the Open Eye Festival, coming up in 2 weeks during the May 24 weekend. I can't wait, it should be a blast. If you haven't already made plans for May 24 and are looking for something cool and unforgettable, check out the Open Eye Festival site and get your ticket today. Hope to see you there! I hope this past weekend went well for all of you. I had a good time. I checked out a band on Friday night called "Surface to Sound" at a bar called "C'est What". They were quite good and have a rather unique sound. If you get a chance to see them, check them out. Yesterday I played squash... and lost :( I guess I should have taken it a little easier on Friday night. Oh well... you win some and you lose some. I've got a rematch with her this Thursday, and Cara, if you're reading this... prepare for revenge :) Tomorrow night we play our last game of the pool for the season. If we win, we'll take 3rd place in the B half of the league. After that, I'll have my mondays free for squash league without having to rush off to shoot pool. I'm looking forward to the break and we'll start again in the fall. It's been about a week and a half since I've been climbing, so I'm hoping to go this week. Maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. Write me if you want to go. Well, off to bed for me. Until next time....

----- 05.01.2002 -------
I've got an interesting update for you this time. My Dad just emailed me a picture he found of my Grandpa. He thought of me when he saw the picture because I bear a strong resemblance to him. Anyway, click on the link or access through my pics page for a little more info. As for recent pictures (from this century, that is), I haven't got any ready yet. I have a pic of the new 'do, but I want to make another gif like the spinning long hair pic. Why? Because it was fun to do. Also, as I've been promising, I want to get some video up. I have the video in a digital format now, it's a matter of making some movie magic with an editor. I have no experience editing video, so it should be a fun, if not rough, first attempt. The format it's in now is raw .avi. Basically I have 5 CD's worth.... and each only holds about 4 minutes. I should be able to compress it all down to a very decent format at a mere fraction of it's current size. Anyway... on with current news. Monday we lost our pool game unfortunately, so we'll play this monday for 3rd or 4th. We still have a shot at money, we just need to win our game. I suspect we will... wish us luck! I didn't get a chance to climb tonight, but hopefully I will this weekend. I've found a couple interested people, so I've got my fingers crossed. This week I've been playing a lot of squash. I played everyday this week, and have a match tomorrow as well. I've won all my matches too :) Assuming I win my match tomorrow, and I think I will since I've beaten this guy before, I'll have beat everyone in my ladder. That means in a couple weeks, as the ladder league changes over, I'll move up a level, out of the basement :) Well, I guess that's about it. I urge you to take a look at the pics I posted of my Grandpa... they're historic if nothing else. See you all back soon...

----- 04.28.2002 -------
It's been a week and it's definately time for another update. So... I've got short hair now. It's such and improvement and so much easier to live with! I went climbing again on Wednesday with Jamie. I was thrilled to see my climbing has improved a bit. This time I could do a 5.8 and a couple half 5.8's. I cleared one point that I just couldn't the week before, and it felt great! A reall sense of progress :) This time I didn't need a hat to keep my hair out of my eyes. And it was much cooler... that hat gets hot! Just one of the benefits of a nice short summer 'do. I don't have any pics for you yet, but I will... and a movie! Yes, I borrowed my friend Noel's digital video camera and grabbed some footage. I went over to my buddy Steve's and we took a walk down to the park with the camera and a pair of scissors. It was there we made the sacrificial cuts. It was a mullet at first, so I've got some of that on tape (I think). Anyway... I'll do what I can to throw together an entertaining video... and sometime soon, I hope. I've been really busy lately (thus the less frequent updates)... but I promise, I'll try and have something soon. What else is new? Thursday I played my first squash match of the new ladder league. I won 3 - 0. Yeah! I think I can beat the other 2 in my ladder, and then I'm movin' on up. Last monday we won our pool match. That puts us in the final 4 for the "B" pool. So... if we win this monday, we're guaranteed 1st or 2nd place. If we lose, we'll battle it out the next week for 3rd and 4th. So... if we can pull it together in the end, we'll have some cash in our pockets. Always a good thing :) Well, I guess that's all I've got to report. Btw, this saturday I may throw a party. It's a last minute idea, so I'm not yet sure it will pan out. If I do decide to have the party, be sure to tune in as I'll have it live on my webcam. I guess that's about it for now. It's tax time, so I better get busy and finish mine off. I'm tired... bed time. G'nite!

----- 04.20.2002 -------
OK, so it's not the end of april and I'm closing the poll. The percentages have stayed the same for the month or so I had it running. Final vote count: 67. Thanks to all that voted. I'm just getting ready to see my buddy Steve and watch the Leafs game. Go Leafs Go!!! Anyway, the weather's beautiful and the "mop" has been bugging me while climbing and playing squash. So, I'll grab a camera and hopefully get some fun pics :) I'll get the pics up with my new look shortly. Any ideas for another pool would be great. I had a lot of fun with this, and I hope that you were atleast mildly entertained. Bye bye mop.... it's been fun! Later!

----- 04.17.2002 -------
More climbing... Have I mentioned lately how much I love this climbing stuff? My friend Jamie and I went... What a great workout! Unfortunately my fingers and forearms blew first... But that's alright, I was still good for 6 or 7 climbs. I should really feel the burn tomorrow and the next day. Probably friday the most since I'm playing squash tomorrow night. I was sore the last couple of days from monday's match. I feel I may have had my best performance... it felt great to take a game off someone a lot better than me. Sure, they won the set... but that's OK. Speaking of Monday night.... my pool team won our playoff match! So, we go on to play this monday. If we win this monday, we're most likely in for money. Pool league has been a pain in the ass this season... specifically this year. After New Year's, the team pretty much fell apart. I may or may not put a team together for the next winter league, starting in September. If I can find atleast 6 DEDICATED players that can make it every monday... for 8 months, I'll definately run another team. As for summer league... no way! If it's hard to get people in the fall and winter, I know from experience that it's next to impossible to get people out in the summer!!! Anyway, if you're a pool player and live in Toronto, send me an email and I can put you on my team. It doesn't cost anything (except for beers of course) and is a fun ritual for Monday nights. It'll be nice this summer to have only squash league on mondays and not have to rush off to pool after. I think I used "monday" more in this update than my entire page put together. Well... I guess monday (let's use it again) is the word of the day... Obviously I'm starting to ramble about nothing. Is because I'm drained from climbing? Or is it because I feel like saying something but have nothing to say? Who knows... but it's a good sign to end it here.

----- 04.13.2002 -------
55 votes and still counting. I really didn't know how many votes I'd get, but I guess I hoped for 50 by the end of April. Well, I passed that. Are 100 possible? Maybe! Do me a favour and pass my site off to a few of your friends to vote. Why? If nothing else, it makes for a good story about why I cut my hair... or why it's still long. Whatever, right? Anyway, this week was a pretty crappy one. I went out last Saturday and didn't get up until Wednesday!!! Not that Saturday was that crazy or anything, but my throat nearly closed up on me with a lymphnode infection. I finally had enough energy to get to the doctor on wed and got some antibiotics. Thursday I was back at work, and today I'm at nearly 100% again. And to think that last Saturday I was on a high.... I felt the best I ever have in a long time... maybe even the best ever! Who knows.... but sunday I was definately singin a different tune. Oh well... the week goes on and here I am again on another Saturday. Unfortunately I didn't climb today, but I've got my hopes up to go tomorrow with my friend Jim. He's never been before so I hope he really enjoys it.... he'll be one more person I can call when I want to go. As for squash, I'll be playing monday, but I haven't played this week, for obvious reasons. If I can't get out of bed, I'm sure as hell not going to make it to the gym, let alone get on a squash court! As I mentioned a while back, this tuesday I'm going to "Sneak Peek" at the Air Cananda Centre to see The Tea Party, Sloan, David Usher, The Headstones, The Mudmen, Edwin, Velvet Devils and Grindig. It should be a wicked concert! They've got 2 stages and my seats are really close to the second stage. Some of the bands don't interest me.... David Usher in particular. That black black heart song makes me want to jam a fork in my eye the way he whines. Oh well.... you get the good with the bad. Well, that's all for this update... I'm just getting ready to go out with some friends for a drink. Take it easy, and see you back here soon....

----- 04.06.2002 -------
I went climbing again today, this time at Rock Oasis. So far it's the best place I've been. I guess I'll have to try out Joe Rockhead's sometime soon. It's Canada's largest indoor rock climbing facility, so it should be impressive. Yesterday I bought shoes, a harness and a chalk bag. Today was the first time using my equipment and it all worked out great. I found my shoes to work better then those I've rented in the past. I was going to go another time before getting my gear just to make sure this is something I want to seriously get into but I figured there was no point in wasting money on 1 more rental. So... I've got gear and want to climb, just tell me when and I'll be there! I'm pretty sore right now and tomorrow and the next day I should be really sore. It's such a good sore :) I hope to start climbing atleast once a week... it's just so much fun and is really is rewarding. I tried a few walls today that I couldn't get up, so I've got some immediate goals. There were some hardcores there that blew my mind! This one guy jumped down over half of the wall.... over 30 feet! The tallest walls there are 60 feet... so it was a lot higher then I'd been previously. It was truly wicked! Well, that's about all I wanted to say for now. That and I wanted to thank all of you who've voted. It's been funny checking to see my mop's fate come the end of April :) See you back soon...

----- 03.31.2002 -------
Happy Easter everyone! I hope all of you had a good long weekend, I know I did. On Thursday I went down to Windsor to see the family and friends and came back today. What a great weekend... Xbox ruled a lot of it. Matt brough his Xbox over and we played that for many an hour! He has Halo & Dead or Alive 3, plus we rented Circus Maximus. The latter is a wicked chariot racing game. You can play 2 players as the same chariot... one to drive, the other to fight on the back. I highly recommmend it if you have an Xbox (or access to one). After we beat it... it was on to the other games. Yes, this is my idea of a good time :) Saturday, Matt & I went rock climbing. That makes climb number 2 for me and it was Matt's first time. Man, this climbing stuff is addictive. Everywhere I go I see myself sizing up things to climb. What can I say, I got the bug. The place we went to is called "Gibralter Cimbing Company". It was bigger than the place in London, but I don't think is as good as Rock Oasis (although I still haven't gone yet). This time I actually got a lesson and learned a few things, so I'm really looking forward to going again sometime soon. Anyway, Saturday night we went out to the Loop and then to the Honest Lawyer (Windsor bars). We had a blast! Today we had an early easter dinner with all of the family over and then around 5 Kristy picked me up and we drove back. I had a laptop with me so I watched a DVD while she drove. What a great way to pass time in the car! The movie I watched was Freddy got Fingered. I know most people hate Tom Green, but I think the guy's a riot. If you can appreciate his humour and haven't seen this movie... see it! It's nice and disturbing :) Well, that's about all I've got to say and I need to get to bed, so I'll end it here. Until the next update...

----- 03.26.2002 -------
Let me start by saying thank you to all of you who've voted. This is becoming more fun than I originally thought... I don't know how many votes I was hoping for by the end of April... I was orignally thinking about 50. Considering I'm at the 20 mark and it's only been up since the weekend, I want to see some higher numbers :) By the looks of things, I'm getting the scissors. Sniff sniff. Oh well... it'll be much cooler for summer. And long hair and swimming really don't mix anyway. I've mentioned it before, but I still do my site in notepad. Well... that is until a couple posts ago. You know it's time to create an archive section to shrink your page when you have to resort to wordpad because notepad chokes and runs out of memory. Is that an accomplishment maybe? I dunno..... Anyway, the point of this update was to mention that I've update my Links page. I may or may not mention every update elsewhere in the site, so feel free to click around every once in a while. You never know what you might find. Yes... be scared. Slow down! Not that scared! Well... bedtime. Take care...

----- 03.24.2002 -------
You've probably noticed I have my spinning head up for those of you that I haven't seen in person for quite some time. I had the idea to do it and pretty much did it just to see if it would turn out. And it did... without taking much time. Tim was nice enough to take the pics for me Friday evening, and then I threw them together today using a shareware Gif editor called "Gif Construction Set". It's not that great, but it did the trick. I also used Photoshop for the initial cropping & transparent sections. If you haven't voted, please do so. I think I've decided that I'll leave the poll running until the end of april. After that, I'll stick with the votes. My sister Laura suggested I donate it to "hairless". I guess it's a charity that collects hair for people with cancer who had to under go kemo. I did a little looking and couldn't find "hairless", but I did find www.locksoflove.org. If you know of any others or have done something similar, let me know. Well, I'm missing the oscars right now, so I better finish up. Before I do, I just have to mention the Wine & Cheese show I went to on the weekend. It was quite awesome, as it was last year. It's such a huge event. I didn't actually have any wine OR cheese... mostly stuck to beers, ceasars, and sushi. Yummy!!! Afterwards we ended up in a very intoxicated state at the Madison Ave Pub. What a great night! I have some pictures, but I haven't looked at them yet. Assuming they're not too incriminating, I may just post them. Come back soon and check. Later.....

----- 03.22.2002 -------
I've just added a poll and I hope you'll all vote. I still haven't decided a deadline, but I'm leaning towards the end of April. Anyway, when that deadline comes, you guys decide what I'm going to do with my hair. Do I cut it? Let it grow? I've already accomplished what I wanted... and that was to grow it long again (because it used to be long and I was forced to cut it for a job that never did pan out). Ya, I was quite bitter. I could go on with the details, but many of you have already heard the story. Well, I'm losing focus here. The poll... that's right. Anyway, I'll throw up a little spinning head soon so you can decide my fate. Be kind. Rewind. To get an idea of what I look like with shorter hair, just cruise through some of my older pics (in the pics section). They are sorted from newest down to oldest. Anyway, hope everyone's having a great friday (or whatever day you're reading this on).

----- 03.20.2002 -------
Let me just start by saying, no, I don't have any pics from St. Paddy's day. Besides, how could I top last years' pics? Speaking of which, those puppies should probably be archived soon. Permanently archived. This year's St. Paddy's day was fun. I didn't do anything crazy, just enjoyed the company of the bar downstairs. I took monday off (2 weeks in advance) in anticipation of a crazy night, and although it wasn't nuts, it was nice to sleep in. Sunday night was also Wrestlemania. No, I'm not a huge wrestling fan, but I do find it entertaining. Anyway, it was held at the Skydome, which is right beside me. The parking lot beside me was full by about 9:30 AM!!! The Skydome broke a new attendance record with 68,237 people!!! It was a zoo of people! Originally the plan was to have Wrestlemania on the big screen, but apparently Rogers' and their great new digital cable crapped out. Oh well.... the good news is the tables & chairs were cleared and the pool tables were moved back. And this time when someone wanted to play for a drink, hell ya! came to mind. So... a bunch of free drinks later, I may have finally lost a match. Really not sure, but it was a fun night. Well.. I guess that's all for today's update boys and girls. Tomorrow I've got another squash match, so don't get your hopes up for an update. Maybe this weekend, I guess I'll see how it goes. Speaking of this weekend, Saturday night I'm going to the Toronto Wine & Cheese show at the international centre. Last year it was a blast, so I'm hoping for a similarily fun time this one. See you next time.... and to lure you back, who knows, I may have some new pics posted. Sooner or later that line just isn't going to work anymore.... so I'll have to post something just so you know I'm not always teasing. There you go.... you feel for it again! ;)

----- 03.14.2002 -------
Hey folks... thought I should make another update. I've updated my links page with some new links. I've added some fun shockwave links at the bottom. Be sure to check them out. I think my favorite may be the slotcar racing. Ahhh.... memories of slotcar racing on the living room table :). Also, I've added an "Email Me" button on the side. I was told it's too hard to find my email address... and it's true. It's at the bottom of most pages, but as you've noticed with this index page... the bottom is not as easy to get to as it used to be. I've also been called on the bouncer story in New York that I never told. Sorry.... but you'll have to come back for that one. I'm just too tired right now, and I've got updates. I'll wait till a slow news day. I played squash again tonight against 2 people from the ladder league. One guy slaughtered me, and I slaughtered the other guy. Hey! I've got points! I'm on the board! :) It's rest time until I play again on Monday. Speaking of Monday, I have the day off. Why? In case you were unaware, St. Paddy's day is Sunday night. Sacrilicious! As you may have seen from last year's St. Paddy's day pics... I really like to do it up right. What else is new? I got a promotion to "National Network Co-ordinator" at work. That's something I'm really proud of! I've been with the company four and a half years and still going strong. Workwise this year has started out great. Lots of projects to keep me challenged and busy. I prefer busy days... it makes time fly! Do I have anything else to report? Oh ya... I got tickets to "Sneak Peek". It's a concert at the Air Canada Centre featuring The Tea Party, Sloan, Edwin, Simple Plan, Mudmen, Velvet Devils, Grindig and more performers to be announced! Should make for a great show!!! Well, I guess that's it for the updates. See you back soon....

----- 03.13.2002 -------
Hi Folks, it's update time again. These Wednesdays just don't come often enough anymore! OK, so I guess they do... but they meant less to me before. You see, I've got squash league and pool league on Monday night, then I play squash again on Tuesday night. By the time Wednesday comes, I'm glad to take a break and recharge. Tomorrow night I'll be playing more squash now that I've got started in a ladder league on top of the house league. Am I practicing for a tournament or something? No, I wanted to get in shape and squash has been a fun way to do it. I do want to get better though... I've been getting crushed on Monday nights. You see, in the beginning, when I signed up, you give them a rank. You choose a number from 1 to 10, with 1 being a pro, and 10 being a beginner. I thought 8 would be a good place to be... and has been, against other 8's. The problem is that everyone (about 32 people) got split into 2 groups. There were a lot of 5's, so some are up top, and others are in my group. A 5 and an 8 are not even close in skill... thus the butt-kickings. Oh well... it's been good for a game, and even a better workout playing someone better. But if they're that much better, there's not much of a game. How do you play a game if you can't return a serve.... let alone see it?!?!? I guess what I was leading up to was my big accomplishment on Monday... my first win! And it won't be my last either! Games go to 9 points and you play best of 5 games. Depending on how close the matches are, that can be quite exhausting! How did all this squash talk start? Oh ya... my relaxing Wednesday. With any luck, I'll be able to post another update every Wed., and get another in throughout the week as well. I've actually kept up with my promises to stay more up-to-date! As for the party on the weekend, it was a lot of fun. But no, I'm not going to post any pictures :( Sorry... maybe the next one. Well, I think I'm going to wrap this up... but one more thing first. I checked out my friend Matt's Page and it's come a long way from his first one he threw together. It looks quite good... nice and neat. Somehow I've got to make this page a little neater. The best way to do so is probably to start with an archive section so you don't come to an overwhelming wall of text that scrolls to the floor. But, when that day comes, this update will probably be in the archive section :) If anyone reading this is in or around Toronto and would like to play squash or go rock climbing, please send me an email. Both of those sports require 2 people... so it's tough for me to go alone. I can bring guests for the squash, so it won't even cost you anything. As for the rock-climbing, you're looking at under $25. Until next post... take it easy... and as previously mentioned, if you have a site you want me to link to, send it to me. Or ideas for this site... I can always use those!

----- 03.07.2002 -------
I've updated my NY pics pages to match the sites as well as added some captions. Be sure to have a look. Since today was Thursday, that meant it was Survivor night! I know, it's all hype and bla bla bla. I like it... so if I just lost a few of you, quit reading and come back for the next post. If you're lucky, it won't be about survivor. Anyway, back to the show. Momma got booted... I was glad. She doesn't have the breasts Sarah does.... I mean what else is there about Survivor that deserves my attention on a Thursday night? It's a warm tropical island... do I wanna look at big momma? No thanks! OK.... you can skip the jokes about me and older women ;) LOL... Should that construction worker have gotten booted instead, just cause he couldn't stomach that nasty fish? I don't think so... he ate his portion like everyone else. These people weren't too bright... if they had seen any previous survivors, they would have known what would have happened in the event of a tie. The other team pics who they want to challenge from the other team. Obviously they'll pick the one who had the most trouble. Would it have been so hard for someone like Hunter, who had no problem stomaching the fish, to pretend he did? Some fake gagging would have worked well. Hustling survivor is no different then hustling in pool. You don't run the table on a weaker player and then ask if he wants to play the next one for money. Speaking of which, now that I'm off topic... I went down to the Waterfront (the bar under my building) for a (singular) beer and some pool. I won 4 straight games against a couple guys who brought their own cues. I understand bringing your cue to a pool hall, or the bar on league night... but a regular night? The guy wanted to play for a drink or money. I guess I was intimidated by the fact he had his own cue. I should have taken him up on his offer because I didn't lose anyway. A little confidence and I'd be set.... or would that be stupidity? The reason I didn't want to play for a drink is simple.... I've been known to get in the groove. Then I'd end up getting drunk... something I don't need on a Thursday night! Well... thanks for your patience reading through another of my ramblings. Time to go to bed. And as I say in every other update, come back soon and see what's new. Oh ya... one more thing. I'm going to a party on Saturday night. I was actually asked to bring my sax. I'm sooo out of practice. Oh well... a drink or two and I'll sound just fine :) If you're lucky, I may have some new pics for you... that'll make you come back. Until then.... take care.

----- 03.05.2002 -------
Well, I got around to uploading my pics form NY. Please see them in the pics section of my site. As of this writing the pages are default from photoshop. When I get a chance I'll make them blend in a little more, as well as add some captions to the pictures. Most of the pictures are of Time Square. It seemed brighter than ever this trip! I'm tired.... so this is a very short update....

----- 03.03.2002 -------
Well folks, I'm back. My trip to New York was a success... But barely! The server that I had set up and shipped ahead of time didn't work when got there. Unfortunately I had to start from scratch! Anyway, I could bore you forever with this, so to make a long story longer, I will. OK... Just kidding. Onto the fun stuff, besides, this is not really the place to discuss work. Speaking of which, my purpose of this trip was "personal" and if you're contacted by any customs agents, that's what you tell them. And if you happen to live in or around NY, I was visiting you :). This trip was rather interesting since it was my first trip where I WASN'T alone. Dragan, our Sr.. Programmer, accompanied me on this "personal" trip ;) I can't stress that enough, this was NOT a work trip. :)
I arrived Tuesday around 11am... Dragan, unfortunately, got there around 3:30pm. Yes, we were scheduled on the same flight. There was a mix-up with his luggage and they wouldn't let him on the plane. So then, he was off to another airport on the 10am flight (instead of the 9am I took). Luck was definately NOT in his favour and his new flight to LaGuardia (instead of Newark) was an hour late. And to make this worse, he got a cab driver that didn't know where he was going. So... A 2 hour cab ride later, he finally arrived at the hotel. The wrong hotel as his luck wouldn't have it any other way, but at least it was Jersey City. The correct hotel was actually across the street. The hotel part was my fault. I told him the wrong one because that's where I had stayed last time and that's what I assumed was booked for us this time. Anyway, he finally made it and we ended up staying in the office till about midnight that night. Not working, of course, because again, the nature of this trip was personal. We did leave for a nice steak dinner during that time with others from the office. I had a great 24 oz steak done the way I like it... Black and blue. Mmmmm... Twitchy beef..... I watched as everyone drank their beer and I drooled for one myself... But I was good and only had water. The next night, I decided it was time to get off the wagon. So that's what I did...with 2 Heinekens.... The sweetest beers I ever did taste. I just finished 2 months drink free and am quite happy about that! I deserved a couple after that! As for the smoking... I smoked a little more, but not much. I consumed just over a pack for my full stay, which is quite good considering I could have easily smoked that in a night. So... All in all, it was a good trip. Yesterday we wondered around the city (Manhattan) and did some shopping. Dragan wanted to pick something up for his daughter so we went into "FAO Schwarz" on 5th Ave. For those of you unfamiliar with it, it's a huge toy store. In fact I believe it was the one featured in the movie "Big" with Tom Hanks. I felt like a kid in a toy store... Literally! There are some wicked toys out there for kids now! Also, we went to Macy's and did some shopping. A great day, and yes, I have pictures! So... Go on over to the pics section and have a look. They may not be posted RIGHT NOW, but they will be in the next couple of days. The guy (who's not me) shown in several pictures is most likely Dragan. Or that mysterious guy who followed me since I was released from the interrogation room in customs. I won't get into that... But it wasn't pleasant! And no, I didn't get the "glove" (thank God!!!). And just to recap, this was a fun PERSONAL trip. Well, I'm typing this on my RIM (blackberry pager) on the plane and we just landed in the big T-dot. So, I think I'll leave off here and hopefully slip through customs a little easier this time. Enjoy the pics and come back soon because I've got some funny stories to post. Like the one about the bounce who wouldn't let me leave Dive 75 (a bar) at 3AM... all because I wanted to card someone and sit in the bouncer's chair. That'll have to wait though....

----- 02.24.2002 -------
Finally, the gold is back in Canada for hockey! It's only been 50 years?!?!?! Anyway, As you know from the previous post, I spent this weekend in Windsor visiting with the folks. It was a good weekend, nice and relaxing. Relaxing time is over... Got in around 10:00 PM on the train... Gotta work tomorrow and tuesday morning I'm off to NY. Unfortunately I have squash and pool league tomorrow night! And I still have to pack and prepare for my trip, not to mention get up really early Tusday morning. I guess that's life. What I should do is cancel pool and get to bed early, but since most of the team has quit or just doesn't show up, what kind of example would I be?!?! I am the captain afterall! Anyway, onto the weekend. It was my buddy Kevin's birthday so we went on a pub crawl. We started at the Cabota club, then hit Howl at the Moon Saloon, the the Reactor, then Dante's, then the Honest Lawyer, then Amsterdam, and finally we finished at the Loop. I had an interesting perspective, being the sober guy. Around bar number 4 things started to get a little sloppy to say the least. By the end we were fortunate enough to witness the birthday boy ralph his birthday drinks.... What are friends for :) Well, that was the highlight of my weekend... And a highlight it was! What a great night! It's always a fun night back in the hometown. And the other highlight of my weekend was today of course... When Canada kicked USA's ass in hockey!!!! That's right, we hold the gold for men's and women's hockey. I AM CANADIAN !!!! Well folks, hopefully I can update once or twice from New York, but I doubt it. If I do, it will probably be on my blogger page (since I can update it via www). Come back in a week or so and if you're lucky I'll have some pics for you. Until then...

----- 02.20.2002 -------
GO CANADA GO! I just watched Canada beat Finland. Yeah! Hanna, if you're reading this in Finland... nothing personal, but we had to beat your country :) I guess that's all I wanted to say. Hopefully I can report a gold for Canada in my next post. I AM CANADIAN!

----- 02.19.2002 -------
Ouch... feel the burn! I just got home a little while ago from my squash match with my friend Bill. We play every tuesday... Anyway, I had squash league (and pool league for that matter) last night, and with the rock climbing the day before (sunday), I'm sore! It's a good sore, but sore none the less. So, what will tomorrow bring? I think I might run a marathon for the hell of it. I guess it really depends on the weather and the mood I'm in. Please.... read the sarcasm in this! Anyway, since my last post about rock climbing, I've had a few people tell me they were interested in going. That's great! The more people I can find that are interested, the better. Why is that? Because the more people I have asking me to go with them, the more I'll go. It's a great source of motivation! Anyway... after hearing from a few people, I started to wonder who all is reading this. No, I'm not worried about my privacy (obviously... or this wouldn't exist!), but it's more a matter of being an easy way to keep up to speed with what I'm doing. There are some people I haven't spoken with in a while, and for all I know, they're right up to speed with my day to day life. How fair is that?!?! Don't answer that.... I'm the one setting themself up for it. I guess if you are reading this and it's been a while since I've had an update in YOUR life, drop me an email or get in touch with me on ICQ or MSN messenger (robgirard@hotmail.com... but use it only for messenger... I don't check the email on it because it gets WAY too much spam). OK... let's move on. If you haven't already checked out my links page, take a peek. I'm just starting to have people send me links to their sites, and I'll gladly post them.... unless your site will make mine look bad ;) Well... like I said when I started... I'm sore, and tired, so it's off to bed for a fairly early night. Btw, there may not be an update for a while after this... I'm off to Windsor on Thursday afternoon to see the folks and coming back Sunday. Monday I work, and Tuesday morning I'm off to New York. Technically, Jersey City, but I'm sure I'll get into Manhattan. It's great there.... such a good vibe in Manhattan that I can't see how I won't make it over for an evening. Unless of course the work hours are nuts again, which they've always been on these trips. OK.... I've officially entered ramble-mode, so I better cut it here. Take care and see you back here soon.... ya bunch of spies!

----- 02.17.2002 -------
Well, I just got home from my weekend in London. It was a lot of fun. The party was alright, then off to a bar after.... pretty standard stuff. No, I wasn't drinking... I've still got atleast a couple weeks to wait yet... Anyway, I really wanted to post an update becuase I went rock climbing today! It was great! We went to IntenCity in London. There were 6 of us... Dave & Cindy (who I went down with) along with Annisa (who's birthday it was), Greg & Brian. It was really a lot of fun. I was extremely reluctant to go, mostly because I didn't think I'd be strong enough. I've been told before that I have a body that would be perfect for rock climbing... but who are they kidding?!?!? Well... they were right! I'm a frigg'in natural! I'm lucky because I'm tall, slim, & lanky. OK, so I'm not the best climber, but for a first time out, I could climb the same ones the others did.... and they've been climbing before! If you know rankings, I did two different 5.9 ranked climbs and some lower ones. It was tough! I think I may start climbing here in Toronto. Why not... "Rock Oasis" is walking distance from my place! Well.... time to watch the Simpsons (they're visiting Toronto!). If any of you want to go rock climbing... give me a shout! It's a lot of fun and I definately want to go more! Take care all, and come back soon. I've been pretty good with the updates, and I'll try to keep it this way. OK.... off to the Simpsons.

----- 02.14.2002 -------
Wow, I'm on a roll this week! Why the post? Why not! I just thought I'd give an update on the battle against smoking and my new Zyban addiction. OK, so I'm supposed to stay on it another couple months... atleast that's what the doc says. So am I addicted to the stuff? I don't know... I haven't stopped taking it yet. According to my doctor, I'll have to be weened off it slowly or my body won't be too happy. I wasn't told this before I started taking it!?!?!? Anyway, in an earlier post I mentioned that I quit completely. I didn't mean to lie... I swear. Truth be known, I have 2 per day. I don't smoke during the day at all and I've allowed myself 2 at night. Do I feel like I've lost the battle? Hell no! I'm quite proud of myself! Going from a pack a day (20 -25 smokes) to 2 is great! I found that the stigma attached to "quitting" blew things up to be a huge event, making it even harder. This way... I choose not to smoke all day. Knowing I can have one in the evening if I like really helps this. So... will I keep at 2 per day? For now, yes. Do I plan to eventually quit completely? I think so... but that's the tough part. You really need to WANT to quit smoking to be successful at it. I was told by my doctor to quit, for the sake of some stomach problems I've been having. With that said... no, I don't WANT to quit, but my body needs it. I told my doc I was now at 2 a day and he thought that was fantastic. Really! I was so happy to hear that. I told me it may be even tougher to keep with 2 a day then quit altogether, but that's where my will power will have to kick into overdrive. It's like a torturous game of hanging a carrot in front of me. Oh well. OK folks, I've said what I wanted to (my guilt was getting to me since I said I quit completely). Take care all, and come back soon to hear more jibber jabber. I almost forgot.... going to London (ON) this weekend with Dave and Cindy. House party! Wait a sec... that sounds like it'd be more fun if I WEREN'T ont the wagon. Regardless, should be a lot of fun! I guess you'll find out next update. Ciao!

----- 02.13.2002 -------
I've added a couple new pages to my site. These are my "blog" and a "links" pages. I think the links page is self-explanatory (but undeveloped), but what is a "blog". The term blog comes from weblog. Somehow the "we" got dropped to shorten things (like everything else related to computers) and the term was born. A blogger is the mechanism to post to your blog. Why bother? A blog is much easier to update then a site, and does not require any HTML knowledge. Currently I'm experimenting with "blogirard dot com". Ya... cheezy... I know :) Depending on when you view it, I may have made it better. As of this writing, however, I've got only 4 posts on it and it doesn't look anything like the rest of my site. That will change. My hopes are to use the blog in a frame on this main page for my updates (like the one you're reading). Technically, this is already a blog.... it's just harder to maintain and there's a lot of manual work involved. And if you're wondering, yes, I'm still using notepad. What else is new? I've changed the code behind my email address to cut down on the spam. You see rob@robgirard.com , but if you look at the source, you won't find what you're reading. How does this fight spam? "Spiders" crawl the web looking for email address to sell to the internet marketting slime. They look for the @ in your address. Because the code behind mine needs to be interpretted by a browser to read it, most spiders won't detect anything. Of course, like everything else, this unfortunately won't last forever. But for now... I'm trying to stay spam-free. So, just to get back on topic, check out the "blogger" link in the left sidebar. From there, you can link to blogger.com and check it out for yourself. It's quite impressive... and the fact you can update your page from their site just makes it too convenient! And they'll even host your page for free, if you like. You've got no excuse to atleast check it out. Their pro version will (but doesn't yet) support posts from email. Since I carry a RIM unit (blackberry pager), I'll be able to update from anywhere! As for the bit about the email address, here's a the link. Enjoy, and check back soon for more updates. Be sure to check the blogger page for updates as well until I've consolidated everything neatly into this page. If anyone has their own site or blog, I'll be happy to link to it on my links page. I need more links... it looks too empty. I've gone on long enough.... later!

----- 02.09.2002 -------
Hi everyone. That's right... another update. So far I've been keeping my promises on everything else going, why stop with my website? Anyway, the main reason for this entry is because I found something cool at google.com (which happens to be my favorite search engine). I've added a Google Search at the bottom of my page. I will make a search link on the side bar, but as I am writing this, I have yet to do so. Anyway, the google search is free and is a cool little gimic for your site. Heck, why not just give you the link so you can do it yourself? OK.... since I'm feeling rather generous today. Custom google sign up page. Make sure you choose the 2nd option: "Free Websearch", without the SiteSearch option or they'll try and ding ya for some coin. If you've got a site that you would like linked to from robgirard.com, please email me and I'll your a link to your site. I've just realized that robgirard.com is still very much in its infancy stage. Over the next year I'm really hoping to ramp it up, but of course you can't do that without content. So ya, if it's as simple as a link to your site, that's fine by me. I'd really like this site to take a turn in the more technical direction. Yes, now we're getting into the empty promises.... but I would like to have some tip pages to help you at home with any computer problems. I've faced with PC problems everyday... some are my own, but most are other peoples'. If you have any computer questions or my advice on something, feel free to write. I'll answer your questions to the best of my ability, and I'd like to post these questions a tech section. Your questions can be posted anonymously. Until next time...

----- 02.05.2002 -------
Is this really another post? So soon? It's only been a week and a half, not two months.... like last time. Yes, this year I will update this site more often. Is it too late for a New Year's resolution? Why should it be, after all.... I got tricked into 2!!! Still not a drink since New Year's eve, and I've cut out the smoking completely now. I'm feeling great! I just got back from playing squash and I'm not sure I've ever felt so good. In that resolution, (the one about the site, remember?) I will also get into shape. No, really. Anyway, since I'm feeling great and have a lot of energy, what better time to update this site? Hopefully I can get the hits back up to a steady pace like I had the before... of about 10/week :) Did I say ten, I meant ten thousand. Ya, that's it. If you're still reading, you obviously enjoy my ramblings enough to get this far. Or you're really bored. If it's the latter, stop here. Otherwise, read on and check back again in about a week. I hope to accomplish a couple posts/month... at a minimum. Where were we? Oh ya... last night I went and saw Creed with my buddy Dave. They were wicked live!!! Great pyrotechnics and effects, and the tunes off their new album "Weathered" are right up my ally. "Don't stop dancing" is the one in my head right now. I think it means the most to me, atleast right now. I've been on a bit of a roller coaster through january, and I'm getting back on my feet. I think I mentioned in my last post that I was using Zyban to quit smoking (yes, I could look below, but so could you). It's strange... I've been really fortunate (so far) not to have any of the side effects. Worse case scenario, I'm a little snappy around 2:30 or 3... but then I'm feeling better after my 2nd pill. If my doctor gets me off the smokes, but addicted to Zyban.... I won't be impressed! My lungs would thank me for it though :) For all you smokers who have tried to quit (or haven't for that matter), so far I would fully recommend (but will not be held liable) the use of Zyban. After being on it just over a week (before I attempted to stop), smoking started doing nothing for me. It was like having an ultra mild slim 100 or something when you're used to regular. You just don't enjoy it. So, I immediately dropped to 2 a day (over 2 weeks ago) with a max of 4 on the weekend. It's pretty wild how my craving just disappeared. Anyway... enough rambling, or I'll never have you back :) See you next post (OK, I won't... but you'll read what I have to say).

----- 01.26.2002 -------
Let me start by saying Happy New Year to everyone. Best wishes to each and every one of you in 2002. Although my year hasn't been off to a great start (for those of you who don't keep in contact with me often can email me for a run-down), it's going to get better! It's like waking up with a nasty hangover.... your day HAS to get better! Speaking of hangovers, I haven't had a drink yet this year and I'm working on quitting smoking. The no drinking has been relatively easy, but the smoking part's been tough! Although I can't truly say I've quit (yet), I only have 1 or 2 smokes a day. Much better than a pack!!!. Doctor's orders.... again, write me if you don't already know the details. Having said all that (and nothing at the same time :), I've actually added some pictures! Yes, no kiddding! These are the pics I've been promising but not delivering. Well, click on the pics link and have a look. You'll find 4 new links.... Floor pics, My latest trip to New York, my nomad upgrade, and some New Year's Eve pics (courtesy of Steve O'Halloran). 3 of the topics are self-explanatory, but "nomad" one may not be. This one's for my geekier friends... I pulled the 6GB drive out of my Nomad Jukebox (MP3 player) and replaced it with a 30GB drive. Yes.... over 20 days of non-stop, non-repeating music!!! Basically I had to pull the old drive out, mount it in a PC using an IDE adapter for notebook HD's, clone the first 65,536 sectors (32 MB) to an image, mount the new drive into the PC, dump the 32MB image onto it, put it back in the nomad, then format it. If anyone wants more info on the procedure, just let me know and I'll be happy to send you a document outlining all the steps. Anyone who knows me will tell you I'm really passionate about my technology! Anyway, back to the picture part.... I snapped a few shots of the inside of my nomad. Like I said, this is more for the geeks :) What else has been going on since my last update....? Oh ya, I almost forgot! On december 23rd I wrote my Windows 2000 Accelerated exam and passed! This exam is good for the 4 core of the Windows 2000 MCSE program. For those of you who don't know, I'm an MCSE on windows NT 4.0. The exam was an invitational only exam and you could only write it once, and it had to be by Dec. 31, 2001. It was 4 hours and brutal... but I came out with a pass! One more exam (design... probably network infrastructure or AD) and I'll be an MCSE on Windows 2000. I plan to get that last exam this year... preferably before the summer. Since my studying has all been self-study when I can find the time outside of work and everything else, it's tough to promise to write it by a specific date. OK... I'm starting to ramble which means I better end this here. Come back again soon.... hopefully my site will see more frequent updates this year! Btw, the webcam (which has been off for quite a while) is up and running again (most of the time). Take care and feel free to write me.

----- 11.27.2001 -------
October 20th to 24th I decided to tear out my carpet and install hardwood flooring. My Dad and Uncle came up to help and it turned out beautifully. Since I had the webcam going for it, many of you saw it in progress. Sorry I still don't have the pics up, but I thought I'd update anyway to let you know they are on their way. Also, I am going to NY thursday (Nov. 29th) until Wed. (Dec 5th). I'll try and get some pictures, since it is "Canada Loves NY" weekend. Unfortunately I'll be in the office all weekend, but I'll try and get out to show my support. Check back soon for A) my floor pics - a nice work in progress and possibly B) Some NY pics. See you back soon.

----- 10.18.2001 -------
October 12th to 14th, Cristina (my wonderful girlfriend... yes... that's news to most of you) invited me up to her family's cottage. Let me just say it's a beautiful cottage and I had a great weekend! We really lucked out, and although it was raining when we left TO friday night, the weather was great! Fishing, swimming (OK, so that was a little chilly), boating and of course relaxing... it was the perfect weekend getaway. Be sure to take a peek at the pics from our weekend on Dickie lake. For those of you wondering where that is, it's outside of Bancroft (ON). Anywho, enjoy the pictures, email me with your questions, and of course, come back soon to see some more pics. I'll see what I can do about creating some Halloween pics, for those of you who enjoyed last year's pics so much. See ya soon!

----- 09.16.2001 -------
I wanted to update my page sooner, but I was speechless (and still am in many ways). Tuesday, September 11th's disgusting acts of terrorism have really shaken me. I would like to send my condolences to those missing loved ones. Maybe I'll do another update, but right now the wounds are still a little too fresh. I really don't have much to say, so I was inspired to craft a picture offering my sympathy and support to our neighbours. Only time will heal us... let's be grateful for the limited days we do have. Live life to its fullest!

----- 09.02.2001 -------
If you've been checking back for Tugapalooza video clips, I have some bad news. Due to technical difficulties (mostly laziness and lack of time) I still have not digitized any of the footage. Not to worry.... I've atleast installed a capture card so I'm on my way to getting around to that, so keep checking. As with any bad news... I fortunately have some good news for you... I've posted pics from the weekend! I didn't take any myself, since I walked around with a camcorder in my hand most of the weekend, but I did get some from Laura. Click here or on the pics link on the left. Promises, promises... but yes, I will get some video clips up. I've got a great burning hand trick I can't wait for the world to see. It didn't turn out as great as I hoped... but it turned out well enough to amuse anyone! Until next time....

----- 08.20.2001 -------
Civic weekend (August 3rd - 6th) a group of tuggers (and tuggers-to-be alike) met up in a remote orchard outside of Seaforth Ontario for an unforgettable event. Fuzzy... but unforgettable. I left Toronto with Dave P. and met up with Matt and Laura before arriving. It was a great camping weekend complete with Band (The Peyote Kings) and music spun by various world reknown DJ's. Unfortunately I didn't get many pics, so if you have some, send them to me and I'll get them posted. I did however have a camcorder, so I plan to stream some clips, so check back. Yes, the key word is "plan", so if you look through my site more thoroughly, you will see broken promises (AKA plans) all over.... hopefully this won't be one of them. Anyway, I really felt the urge to add an update, even though I don't really have any real content (other than my ramblings). In other news, my site is now hosted by percominnovations.com. Need any hosting...? These are the guys to talk to for quality service and affordable rates! That means my email has changed (for the last time EVER!) to rob@robgirard.com , so be sure to update your address books. As you can see... I post my email address all over my site... could that account for all the spam I get?!?!? Stupid spiders! Anyway... check back soon for the video clips! Until then... go in peace.

----- 07.12.2001 -------
Another awaited addition to my site has finally arrived! Yay! Anyway, I've updated my Pics section to include my camping pictures from Algonquin park. No more shitty disposible cam for this one... I borrowed a digicam. So... these pictures are a bit better, even though I compressed the hell out of them to avoid hitting my space restrictions on my site. I do have larger pics if anyone wants me to email them to ya. Anyway, back to the camping part... I stayed at Pog Lake in Algonquin park from June 29th till July 8th. It was a great 10 days unplugged from the grid we call technology. Anyway, Click HERE to read more and view the pics... Enjoy!

----- 05.29.2001 -------
OK, so I never did get around to captioning those New York pics. I think they spoke for themselves anyway. Any, my latest adventure took me out west to see Shawn in Winnipeg for the long weekend. I spent a couple days there, then we drove to Saskatchewan to meet up with my sister for a fun May 24 camping weekend. What May 24 weekend would be complete without camping??? Click HERE to see the pictures and read more! Until the next update... Enjoy!

----- 03.19.2001 -------
Here's a sweet update for everyone! St. Paddy's day 2001 pictures... in NEW YORK CITY!!! Find them in the pics section on the left, or click here. Enjoy!

----- 03.02.2001 -------
Finally, another update. And expect more. More often. Anyway, for my latest ramblings, Click Here!.

----- 02.12.2001 -------
OK, so I haven't updated this part of my page in a while... but I've updated some of the links on the left. To see what's new, I guess you're going to have to click on them. Yes, some are still non-existent. Deal with it. OK, I just thought I'd let people know that I am still paying attention to my site and trying to improve it. Well, now that that's said... I can leave you to browse around. Oh wait! One more thing... my really crappy cam shots are much better. The focus was broken, but I fixed it. Think of it as laser eye surgery for my cam :)

----- 02.04.2001 -------
Finally.... a new look! OK, new structure, same look. Whatever. Soon this page will fit in a screen shot and you won't have scroll much. Due to popular demand, the funny balls on the cursor are gone. Why? They are too annoying. Get used to it. Anyway, check back often to see my progress. And yes, I'm still using notepad. Ya, and some of the links on the side don't work yet.... I have to make some pages to go under it. Patience! Until next time....

----- 01.29.2001 -------
OK, so my NY pictures didn't make it to the site.... sorry, but the pictures turned out really, REALLY bad and grainy. I should really stop buying those no-name disposible pieces of turd! Anyway, how can I make it up to you? A webcam? Is that what you want??? Sure! I guess I owe it to all my devoted fans! (I'd do a shout out to the 5 people who look at this site, but I think I'd embarrass you the reader, just as much as myself). Anyway, click on the thumbnail for a larger picture. Ya, my quickcam is shitty.... but believe it or not, these live pics are probably of higher quality that the ones that came out of the piece of junk camera I bought at the quickie mart in Jersey! OK, enough jabbering.

----- 01.15.2001 -------
Yesterday I got back from a week long business trip in New York city! It was my first time ever going and it was great! I'm pretty tired now, and don't have my pictures developed yet, but check back near the end of this week and I'll have them scanned in and posted. Also, I'll have a little more energy (I hope) to write about my trip in detail. But, so you have something to read for now, I can tell you about my arrival last saturday (Jan 6th). I got to the hotel around 5:30 or so, and had to hit the street. I was a bit nervous from all the horror stories I've heard about new york city, and needed to get over this fear right away so that I could enjoy my stay more. What better way to do so then jump into the heart of the city on your own! So, I grabbed a cab up to 6th Ave and Bleecker St. Bleeker is somewhere around 1st street. If you don't know NY, the avenues run North/South, and the Streets run East/West, starting around bleecker and ascend as you go north. 20 blocks = 1 mile (so I'm told from some very realiable sources). Thanks again Charlie, Kieran, Scott, John, Brendan, Irma, Maggie, and Yasmine (in no order). Anyway, back to my story... So I started walking along bleeker and found a great pizza place from some good, greasy, ny style pizza. I think the place was called the pizza booth. What I really wanted to find was a bar to hang out in, but the bars looked more like restaurants. I couldn't find a cozy bar to pull up to where I wouldn't go insane because I was alone. (ie, no hot bartenders to talk to :). Anyway, after that, I walked north, while zig-zagging between 3rd and 8th ave. I ended up walking up to 33rd street. The empire states building is on 33rd and as I stared up at it, I thought "What a big building!". I really had no idea it was The Empire States building until the next day when I was recounting my story and was asked if I saw it. That's when I realized I had. OK, I'm starting to ramble... So, I walk back and cross south of Bleeker towards my hotel (the Hilton Millenium) which was across form the twin towers (World Trade Center). Just south of bleecker, on Varick Ave, I found a little pub called Walker's. I walked in, rested my feet (I had been walking for about 2 and a half hours) and pulled up to the bar. A pint of Brooklyn Lager please. Another. Lenor, the really cute bartender, then bought me one. She must have felt pity on me since I was sitting alone. Who am I to complain about getting a free beer?!?! So, I started chatting it up with everyone when I found out that last call is at 4:00am!!!! Wicked! So, around 4:15am I head out (several pints later :) and head back to my hotel. The next day (sunday), I took the Path to Jersey City to get into the office to start terminating cables and getting the network up and running. Anyway, that's a breathy, not so brief story of a brief story. OK... check back soon for some pictures, and more stories. If you have any questions/comments/whatever, write me and I'll go into more detail.

----- 11.18.2000 -------
If you haven't already read the story from the 15th (see below), read it first. Here's the update for the rest of you who have already rean it and are dying to find out what happened: Well, I went back to the rental place and talked to the guy.... for quite a while. I even got to hear him scream at the guy who sold him the car (remember, it was brand new) on the phone. Didn't help me much, but it was humourous, to say the least. Bargaining was against me, considering the charges were all ready on my VISA from when I rented the car, plus he had another $100 charge that was temporary until the car was returned in good condition. So, I got screwed out of the money for the rental, but not the extra $100. If that were the case, I'd be off to small claims court with him, and I'd try my best to deface the rental place's name using web (not just my site), news papers, and TV as well. I'd have Silverman giving this guy a really bad rep too! But, it didn't come to that and I settled on a nice discounted rate for my next rental, and the rate can be applied to each day to a max of 3 (long weekend). Since the place is literally across the street from me, it is my rental place of choice. It's just too convenient not to be. So... I guess the car rental saga ends here. But don't worry... episodes like this seem to like me, so I'm sure something else will happen that will force me to "vent" on my site. So, check back soon, maybe something else exciting's happened in this soap-opera we call life. Later!

----- 11.15.2000 (Updated) -------
If you haven't read the story below yet, please read it before clicking on this link. I've posted your ideas on what to do about the car... and you can find them here
The feedback page is updated often, so click here again!

----- 11.15.2000 -------
What a day!! Well, I rented a car today, and it turned out to be a horrible experience! Here's how it all started... Me and 2 of my co-workers (Bill & Brian) had a "How to Handle People with Tact and Skill" workshop today. Btw, it was great! Unfortunately, it was pretty far from us, and hard to get to via the TTC (Toronto Transit). So, I rented a car, and picked up the two.... it made most sense, and was also the most economic solutions, versus us taking cabs. So, after the seminar which ran a bit late and ended at 4:15, it was time to go home. We get in the brand new Hyundai Accent I rented, and I start my way through the crazy Toronto traffic to get us back downtown. After dropping them both off, I patiently sat in the bumper-to-bumper traffic to get the car back by 6pm. The rental place is across the street from me, so it's very convenient. Heading south on York St., throught the tunnel just south of Front St., the brand new car, with 97 km's on it decides to die. And not start. Sure, the engine would turn, but it wouldn't take. So, I flipped on the hazards and fortunately I was in the right hand land of the tunnel. First thing I had to do was borrow a cell phone, and put up with the honking, of course. So, I ask a very attractive lady if I can borrow her cell phone, and fortunately she had one. If she's reading this, which I doubt, thank you VERY MUCH!!! So I call the car rental place [which will remain nameless for now, unless they don't refund my money] and they say they'll be there right away. Since home, and the car place is only about 1.5 km's away, I figured I should be set. NOT THE CASE! So, while waiting, and totally screw up traffic, for AN HOUR AND A HALF, I must have received the finger from atleast 100 people. Btw, if you don't know the area, it's right next to the Air Canada centre, where the Leafs play. And of course it's my luck that there's a game on and traffic's even worse! Fortunately there was a guy playing electric guitar on the sidewalk who was pretty good, so I got some entertainment. I even had several people joke that I was stopped just to listen to him. The bad news is, after you listen to him for a while, he plays the same song. Over and over and over and over and LOUDLY!!! At this point I'm smiling away while I go insane and contemplate jumping in front of the next car that screamed by. On a side note to drivers... when someone has their hazards on, don't pull right up to the bumper and get pissed off that they are not moving, and you didn't leave yourself enough room! I would feel bad if it were my car that broke down and was holding up traffic, but this was completely out of my control! A guy offered to help me push it out of the way, but unforutanely the car needs to be started to shift from park to neutral! So, anyway, a tow truck FINALLY came after I waited an hour and a half, with no heat, in the freezing cold. And I was hungry.... since it was 7pm and I planned on eating when I got home. So we get back to the car rental place, and the guy isn't even there! I hoped he would have atleast waited for me!!!! But no.... his shift is done at 6pm, and why would he even bother driving past his customer, who he knows is stranded, to atleast reassure me someone is coming. So I call his number from the tow truck and get his cell phone. He tells me sorry, then gives directions to the tow truck where to bring the car. I talked to him after the tow truck driver and almost assumed I wouldn't be charged for the rental. WRONG! Fucker's still going to charge me! After feeling like an ass, having atleast 1000 other drivers curse at me and wish I were dead and out of their way, I still have to pay for the piece of shit car that couldn't even get me back to return the piece of shit car!??!?!? Fuck that! So, I told him I'd call tomorrow. Fortunately, I've got "handling people with tact and skill" fresh under my belt. I've already identified his type, and know the preferred actions to take in conversation. Sure I'm rambling, but I just can't stress how shitty the whole situation was! Anyway, I'll talk to him tomorrow, and hopefully we'll work something out. If you've got any suggestions on how I can beat this bastard, I'd like to know, so email me: rob@robgirard.com . If things don't go my way, I'll let you all know the name of the rental place, and hopefully you can advise others never to use them! Anyway... I really hope you guys can offer me suggestions on pursuing my money back. If this story amused you even in the slightest, please pass my link to others... I could use the hits! And if any "media" are reading this, I'd love to give consumers the low-down on the shitty service. Unless they owe up to their mistake and make it up to me. Anyway, I'll keep you posted on what happens, so check back in a day or two! If you got this far, thanks for your patience!

----- 11.07.2000 -------
Happy Belated Halloween! On Saturday, Oct 29th, I went to the Docks for a pretty cool halloween bash with Noel, my friend and neighbour, and friends. Since I was too damn lazy to scan pics and make a page, and Noel wasn't, I'll link you to his page. Hey, he could use the hits! In case you don't recognize me with all the makeup, I'm invisible man standing in front of the guy dressed like Data from StarTrek! Enjoy!
Halloween 2000 pics

----- 10.05.2000 -------
I just returned from my trip to Winnipeg and I had a blast! For pictures and more about it, click HERE! I can already see that my site is going to need some restructuring in the near future as I add more pages to it. I haven't done so yet because I am still writing everything in HTML straight from notepad. It won't be long till I switch to Frontpage and make things a little fancier. Atleast by starting this site in notepad I wasn't tempted to use one of their cheezy templates :) I know the colours are a bit off which makes the links are tough to see, but bare with me. Anyway, enjoy the pics!
My trip to Manitoba

----- 09.06.2000 -------
Ya, I know.... there may not be much to this site now, and no I still haven't posted any pictures (like I said I will). But hang in there, and check often.... there will be pictures! Oh yes.... good drunken camping pics and the like. Even though I've had literally THOUSANDS of email requesting these pics... you'll just have to wait. Consider it a suspense-builder :) Anyway, just thought I'd post this link someone sent me today. The site is a fun one, full of online Flash games and stuff. Assassinate all those celebrities that piss you off! By for now...
Assassin

----- 08.31.2000 -------
What a keener! I'm actually updating for the 3rd time in a week! Anyway, I just thought that this link that someone (Shawn, my good ol' buddy out in Winnipeg, who I'll hopefully be visiting soon) sent me.
The Word processor that could have been, and maybe should be!

----- 08.29.2000 -------
Hey, time for another update. Since I'm quitting pool league, I thought I should take up a new hobby of takin it easy at home, coding my page. Yes, I could have used Front Page, and know it well, but I took some certified webmaster course a while ago. Lemme tell ya, it wasn't worth too much, but it reminded me how interesting it is to make the same site using notepad. Anyway.... The reason for the update is because I thought I should add a link to some site I've visited lately. It's got a pretty cool product. Check it out:
That site I just ran into recently

----- 08.24.2000 -------
Okay... don't get too excited, I've only got 1 page to link to, but I haven't had time to work on my site. Trust me... this is a good start. So, now that I'm rambling like everyone else does on the first page of their site, it actually looks like I have a paragraph of words! My god, I do! Anyway... enjoy the other pages: (If there's only one.... shhh, don't tell anyone.... more will come soon. So bookmark this page and return often... I love the hits!)
Some funny clips

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