(March 20th, 2003) - The US is now officially at war. To be honest, I'm not sure what else to say. All other news seems trivial by comparison. Since everyone has been so vocal in their arguments either for or against this war, I thought I'd throw my thoughts into the ring as well. You can find it in my Rant & Roar section. I don't know if the rant really does justice to how I feel or what I think, but it gets my basic points across. All we can do now is hope this war ends quickly and with as few deaths as possible.
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(January 9th, 2003) - I walked home from class today in -17 degree weather. Why, you ask, did I walk home from class today in -17 degree weather? Because the 162 bus is the WORST DAMN BUS ON THE FACE OF THIS PLANET! I just missed it walking out of class and since it was a 25 minute wait for the next one, I figured I'd just walk it. What can I say? I'm not particularly bright. I hate the cold. I mean I REALLY hate the cold. I mean I REALLY REALLY REALLY hate the cold. This might sound a bit harsh, but I think anyone who says Montreal winters are good should be chained to plank of wood and dragged face down along a gravel road by a Buick going 50. I realize that sounds a bit extreme, but if you'd been outside in -17 degree weather, you'd be pretty irritable too.
In GOOD news, all three of the profs who agreed to write me a letter of reference for grad school have sent them out. That means I've got nothing left to fill out (except for McGill's application, but that's a whole other story). Nothing to do now but sit back and play the waiting game... .... .... the waiting game sucks; let's play Hungry Hungry Hippos!
In television news, Fox cancelled Firefly. I was really starting to LIKE that show dammit!
Before I forget, I have a new rant up and running, so feel free to mosey on over and read it if you're bored (dear lord, did I just use the word "mosey"?!).
That's about it for now. Take care all!
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(December 18th, 2002) - Well, another semester has come and gone. That leaves just one more semester before graduation and then (HOPEFULLY) grad school. Of course, with Christmas break in full swing, I'm back to full-time work at Coles. Man, I forgot how much I loathe working during the Christmas season. There's more costumers, more complaints, and worst of all, we have to play non-stop Christmas music EVERY SINGLE DAMN DAY. Look, if people don't know that it's Christmas time yet, then playing Little Drummer Boy on an endless loop certainly isn't going to help.
In What-the-Fuck-is-Wrong-With-People-News, David Ahenakew, a senator with the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) said on Friday that Hitler did the right thing when he "fried" 6 million Jews (check out the article here). Ahenakew made his colourful comment after giving a 45-minute speech at an FSIN conference. Now, I understand that Mr. Aboogachew must have had a rough life looking like a monster from some kind of potato planet and all, but that's hardly an excuse for him to go all uber-racist. Mr. Sniffedtoomuchglue then dazzled people again with his brilliant wordplay when he went on to say that "The Jews damn near owned all of Germany prior to the war." While Mr. Obviouslynevermetajew's view of reality is clearly the goofy fruit from the haha tree, I think it's worth pointing out that he hates LOTS of minorities, not just Jews (he's very inclusive in his hate): "When reminded the Nazis committed genocide against a variety of ethnic and social groups, [Ahenakew] said "exactly, they were trying to clean up the world."" And the best part? One of the main themes in his speech was how bigotry was still a problem in Canadian Societies! So.... many... jokes... brain... overloading....
In Site News, I've added two new sections to my webpage. The first is my Shrine to Calvin and Hobbes. This really isn't a new thing since it's always been accessible from the "A little bit about me" section of the site. I figured I'd make it more prominent though. The second is a link to a new website I created. This website is dedicated to my love of Philosophy. It contains suggested readings on a variety of philosophical issues as well as some of my own personal thoughts. I'm still tinkering with it, but I'm also unspeakably lazy, so I haven't decided if I'll change it around or not.
I used my ability to link words and sentences together to create a new rant, which you can read here. It's actually a column I wrote for my Advanced Reporting class this past semester.
Well, that about covers it for me. Take care all!
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(October 19th, 2002) - I have a cold. I hate colds. This toads the wet sprocket.
On the plus side, I got to see The Hip the other day at Place-Des-Arts. Sweet merciful crap I forgot how incredible The Tragically Hip are in concert! There were a few songs I was hoping they'd play that they didn't, but considering how many freakin' amazing songs they have, I guess that's to be expected. It certainly made coping with my cold easier. Sam Roberts, the opening act, was fairly (as in unspeakably) mediocre however. He kept trying to get the crowd motivated, but since he's not Gord Downie, no one really cared. Every time he tried to get the crowd to stand up or to clap, no one moved. Occasionally someone would shout, "We want The Hip!" It reached a point where Sam Roberts replied, telling everyone to be patient. Of course, when The Hip DID come out, everyone went nuts. They rock beyond words.
Well, being a Concordia student is interesting as always. Rallies, violent protests, bans, demands from our student union that the rector of the university resign... and this is all in the first MONTH of school! Never a dull moment at Concordia. I swear, I'm getting really freakin' pissed off with our student government and their 'causes'. You know what would be nice? If our student government actually did things the benefited the students in some way. Also, I'd like my University to be in the news just once for something other than a violent protest that required the use of riot police.
In Work News, we got a new book in at the store that's so idiotic that I'll be forced to physically harm anyone who actually tries to buy it. It's called "Dear Echo..." and it's written by Echo Bodine, a self appointed "ghostbuster". Personally, I don't know how anyone could call themselves a ghostbuster if they don't have a proton pack, Bill Murray, or a large ape, but I digress. The book contains all of Echo's responses to actual letters people have written her concerning their experiences and questions about ghosts. One of the most asked questions, so much so that they actually mention it on the dust jacket is (and I'm not making this up) "Can people have sex with ghosts?" This is one of the most asked questions?! Of all the things you could ask an 'expert' on ghosts, people don't ask how ghosts exist despite the problems of substance dualism, how the existence of ghosts impacts contradictory religious beliefs or how ghosts are capable of violating the known laws of physics, but they do feel compelled to ask "Can we fuck 'em?!" Is this a common thing to ask when unexplained phenomena or new breakthroughs are discovered? "We've discovered a new treatment that may help cure cancer!" "Yes, but can it bring me to orgasm? If not, then I ain't interested."
In Site News, I took down the movie section of my page since I haven't updated it in forever and have no intention of updating. In it's place, I put a link to my Online LiveJournal. I also have a new rant uploaded. It's actually something I wrote for my Opinion and Editorial Writing class. It has to do with the 9/11 anniversary overkill. I wrote it before the anniversary of 9/11, so it should be read as such. I was planning to upload it some time in September, but I'm lazy, so I didn't. Enjoy!
Well, it's time for me to blow at high dough. Take care all!
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(September 8th, 2002) - Well, I've begun my 4th and final (hopefully) year as an undergraduate student at Concordia University. I've got to start applying for grad school in the next month or so. If anyone out there has any idea which Canadian Universities have a good philosophy program, please let me know. And while you're at it, could you guarantee my acceptance? Maybe throw in a fellowship as well? Maybe some beautiful models who want to spend their lives pleasing me? How about a new car? A lifetime supply of Pez? Maybe just some pizza then? I'm kinda hungry.
It's been almost one full year since the events of September 11th. At work, we've gotten in like 3 separate magazines devoted completely to the anniversary of 9/11. It seems like most major magazines are doing remembrance issues. I'm curious to know at what point we forgot about 9/11? It seems like every issue of every magazine has been covering the consequences of the Twin Towers attack ever since last year. If these special September issues had been published as regular issues, I doubt anyone would have noticed. I think a moment of silence or a small respectful ceremony would be more appropriate than turning it into a big thing. This continual onslaught of images and talk about 9/11 is starting to desensitize us to the tragedy of the event.
Before I forget, I'd like to wish all you wacky fellow Jews out there a Shana Tova! This weekend was Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. As a result, I allowed my parents to drag me to synagogue for the morning. As I sat reading the English side of the prayer book, I couldn't help my philosophical wheels from turning (Their "off" switch is temporarily out of service). The result is this week's rant. Kinda philosophical, so be warned. I've also updated my AFA Review section.
In Music News, Lorin (who is the greatest older brother on the face of this earth) was kind enough to help me acquire tickets for the upcoming Tragically Hip concert in October. Both Adem and I were working the day the tickets went on sale, so Lorin agreed to go online and get them. To him I say: Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you. You rock the Casbah!
I'm in the middle of reading the book The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan and I have to say, it is a FABULOUS book! I seriously recommend it to anybody who is even remotely interested in science, religion or new age.
Well, that about covers it for now. Take care everyone and remember, if it itches, then you're probably gonna make it worse by scratching.
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(August 14, 2002) - With my 22nd birthday only a few days away, I finally began to realize just how lucky I've been. I've been a dreamer my entire life. I've always dreamed of ideal situations to be in and ideal places to visit. I always tend to think about the things I don't have or the things I've always wanted to do but never have. It's not easy to pull yourself back and objectively see how good you've got it.
After this coming year, I plan to go study Philosophy in Graduate School. I always felt I could help make the world a better place by doing this. If I could teach people to think and understand things, I could help reduce the prejudice and the hatred in the world. More than a few people have told me time and again that I'm naive and idealistic for believing this. I've always considered that to be a compliment. The truth is though, I can be idealistic and naive because I've lived a life that has allowed me to be naive and idealistic.
I've lived a very sheltered life. I've never been the victim of hatred or anti-semitism. I've never had a life threatening illness. I'm not poor. I've never been assaulted or abused. I have amazing parents and an amazing brother. I have great friends. I have plans for the future. Now, this doesn't mean my life hasn't had any downs. When I was very young, I had many eye operations which were necessary to keep me from going practically blind. The fact that my parents did everything humanly possible to get me those operations, which includes going to a hospital in Boston for me to get treatment, only shows how amazing I have it though. I've encountered a fair number of assholes and jerk offs in my life, but so has everyone. The fact is, I've had it really good my whole life.
A lot of people have been hurt in this world... hurt more than I could ever even imagine. There are people who have survived things I can't even fathom. I've had the luxury of pitying those who've had hard lives. I've had the luxury to forget about horrible disasters or diseases simply because I didn't want to think about them. I've come to realize that people who go through those kinds of traumatic experiences and who have the strength to move on are true heroes in every sense of the word. It's easy for me to talk about changing the world and reducing prejudice when I haven't experienced any of those things. It's a lot harder to think you can change the world when the world has changed you. I always thought that by reducing fundamentalism, we would be getting rid of so much evil. No matter how much pain fundamentalism causes, things like hatred, greed, selfishness and suffering will still exist. These are problems I don't know how to solve. These are problems I try to forget exist. Those who have experienced these things firsthand cannot forget them however. Those who have been in pain because of them and who still believe they can change the world are the ones who are truly brave. They are the ones who set examples for the rest of us.
I have a great family, and friends whom I consider to be the best on the face of this earth. I'm damn lucky and I'm damn grateful for everything. I've lived the kind of life everyone should get the opportunity to live. I want to change the world so that people can have a life like the one I've had. Everyone deserves to be loved and to be happy. I actually get to be loved and happy. Anyone who asks me what I want for my birthday will get the same answer: I already have it.
In site news, those who've been here before will notice that I replaced my "remember back in the 80s..." section with a link to my LiveJournal. I did this mostly because my 80s section was... well... stupid. Also, I update my LiveJournal way more often than I do the site (although still not as often as I'd like to). I update this site less often mostly because I try to update AFA Reviews, Rants and My Two Cents all at the same time and that can take awhile. Also, I'm unspeakably lazy.
Well, I finally got my driver's license. Yup, it took me to the age of 21, but I did it! I have that small plastic card which means so much to so many. I can now officially join the rest of you psychopaths in the wonderful world of tailgating, drive through windows, and parking meters. Also, it makes running people down a hell of a lot easier.
As expected, I updated my Rants and AFA Review sections. Actually, I wrote both like 3 months ago, I just never got around to uploading them. My AFA review this time is very different from my usual. It's not actually a review of an AFA article. I decided to be creative and created my own "AFA Action Alert." My rant is my usual bitching though.
That pretty much does it for this update. Toodles all!
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(April 1, 2002) - Happy Passover and Easter everyone! You know, it's during this time of year that I'm always left wondering why it is Jesus got reincarnated as a rabbit that can lay eggs. I mean, wouldn't laying eggs really hurt a rabbit?! Anyhoo, it's been almost 3 months, but I've finally gotten around to updating. Lots of stuff has happened with me since last update, but typically, none of it is particularly interesting. Mostly class work and actual work. Exciting, huh?
I was in Boston a few weeks back for a Great Big Sea concert and SWEET ZOMBIE JESUS I forgot how amazing their concerts are!! I swear that about 50-75% of the audience was Canadian. When they mentioned the Olympic Hockey game, you could tell by the ratio of cheers to boos how many Canadians there were. They played quite a few songs off their new CD Sea of No Cares, which rocks the CASBAH. GBS truly is one of the greatest bands to ever walk this fine earth!
While I was in Boston, I decided to cover a pro-life protest outside a Planned Parenthood clinic for a journalism assignment. These religious wackos really go all out for their protests. Tons of signs with pro-life slogans, pictures of Jesus, pictures Mary and pictures of dead fetuses. To top it all off, a mob of about 70 protestors were actually holding prayer services outside the clinic. There was this one pretty 15-year-old girl who kept running after any woman entering the clinic shouting "Don't do it mother! Don't kill your baby!" You know, this pisses me off so much since I bet if this girl had been raped and became pregnant as a result, I doubt it would be so damn easy for her to condemn these people. While watching her yell at the clinic's patients and occasionally leading the mob in prayer, I actually began to feel sorry for her. I mean, will she ever be able to have a real life? Will she ever be able to think critically about anything or truly make her own choices and decisions? I can't help thinking that soon she'll no longer be her own person. Her thoughts and feelings and very identity will be so wrapped up in a belief she'll never question that it'll be impossible to tell where her mind ends and her potentially fanatical beliefs begin. The area of Boston I was in has had two shootings at abortion clinics. Maybe at the next rally, she'll be holding a rifle instead of a microphone. The protest wasn't all crazy religious freaks thankfully. There were counter-protestors there also who held up signs which said "Abortion is Legal, get over it!" and the like. It took a lot of will-power not to forget about my assignment and join them.
In Movie News, I saw Jeepers Creepers the other day. I found it to be kind of a bellow average monster/horror film. I mean, the premise is pretty standard. You've got your unkillable demon/monster that goes around chasing a couple of teenagers and killing anything that stands in its way. The monster looks like your standard evil demon with wings. If you really don't want the movie spoiled for you, then I'd suggest you skip the rest of this paragraph (and get mental help). Now, the thing about this particular monster is that it likes to go around eating body parts. Every body part it eats then becomes "part of it." So, for example, at one point the two main characters run over the monster with their car, crushing its legs. As a result, it has to eat someone else's leg so that it can walk again. Now, not just ANYONE'S body parts will do for this monster. To find out which people have the body parts it needs, it has to smell their fear.... which is the most moronic thing I've ever heard. They never explain why it needs to smell people's fear, or even how smelling fear would tell you about body parts. Anyway, it's not important. The important thing to know is that the monster only eats certain body parts from certain people (hey, if I were it, I wouldn't want to have any republican parts either). Here's where things get even more stupid. To get people scared, it doesn't do something simple, like walk up to people. I would imagine that horribly disfigured monster which are unstoppable tend to inspire fear in people. This monster likes doing things the difficult way however. Instead, it decides to drive along a highway in an old truck honking at teenagers. WTF?!? This monster, which can FLY and which doesn't seem to care that people know it's a monster, is driving a beat up old truck along the highway?! Not only that, but the truck has been fixed so that it goes much faster than it should according to one of the main characters. This monster must have eaten a few mechanics to pull that one off. Anyhoo, the fat psychic lady (isn't there always one in these movies?) makes some offhand remark about how it doesn't want anyone to know it's not a man, but for the entire friggin' movie, it's flying around KILLING and EATING people without any attempt to conceal its identity, so I can't imagine this is a big deal to the creature. At the end of the movie, we see that the monster has killed one of the main characters and eaten his eyes. I'm not quite sure why it does this though, since it already has eyes and can see just fine throughout the entire movie. Maybe it had trouble seeing subtitles on foreign films or something. Either way, kind of a silly movie.
I've added some new pictures to my "Friends" section. To save space though, I took down a few of the old ones that were there. Also, I re-did my "A Little Bit About Me" section. The format of the section is pretty much the same, but I re-wrote most of the text. I also have a new rant up and running. No new AFA Review this time. There were a few articles on their site I was thinking of reviewing but I was lazy so I never got around to it. Also, I put my religion rant from last time's update in my rant section, where it belongs.
I kept trying to come up with something to say about the current conflict in the middle east, but I haven't been able to really put into words how I feel or what I'm thinking. Expect something on the subject from me soon though.
Only a few weeks left until the end of the semester. If anyone else out there is stressing out over end-of-semester term papers and exams, you're not alone. It's almost over though, so just hang on a bit longer. I guess that's about it for this update. Take care everyone and remember, if looking at something causes your eardrums to explode, you probably shouldn't be looking at it.
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(January 3rd, 2002) - HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!! And all the best in 2002! I hope you all had a fun New Years Eve, despite the fact that it was colder than a witch's tit out. I really need to move to a warmer climate. And while we're on the topic of milestones, this site has been officially going for over 2 years now! Now, while that in itself isn't really very impressive, the fact that I actually still update it every so often is something that's worth celebrating I think. Of course, it doesn't say much about my social life, but that's not the point.
In Movie News, I saw the movie Promises a little while ago. If you haven't seen it, then I highly suggest you do. It's truly a remarkable film. The passage I wrote last time about my thoughts and feelings concerning the current war can easily be summed up in this film. My belief that people on both sides of a conflict always think they're doing good, my belief that hate spreads because of ignorance, my hope that things will all work out if we just teach our children to understand and accept others... all of it is summed up so perfectly in the movie. It's touching, it's sad, it's happy, it's amazing in every single way. Please see this movie.
Well, I FINALLY got my guestbook up and running again. Turns out Geocities changed their guestbook system a while ago, and I forgot to change with them. As a result, I had to create a new guestbook. I have it set up so you can read my old entries if you want to, but there is a new guestbook for signing. Thanks again to everyone who pointed out the problem with it.
As the winter semester draws ever nearer (4 days and counting), I'm starting to get more and more frustrated at Concordia's lack of posting my grades! I don't yet have a SINGLE mark back. I'd kinda like to know if I PASSED any of my classes before taking new ones! One of the classes I took last semester is required for a class I have to take his semester. It would be nice to know if I can TAKE the new class or not. I mean, if I was missing some of my marks, that would be understandable. I don't have ANYTHING back yet though. Nothing, nadda, zip, zero and every other word that means "nothing". Sorry for that, but I just really needed to vent.
And speaking of school, I had one remarkable crappy exam week. The day of my Psych exam, I caught a TERRIBLE flu. I don't think I've ever been that sick before in my entire life! Vomiting, stomach pains, nausea, the whole nine yards. I just could not get out of bed. I ended up having to get my exam moved. My options were either to take the exam in April, or to take it 2 days later... an hour after my Epistemology exam. I ended up taking it after my Epistemology exam, but not before having a nervous breakdown the day before as I tried to cram for 2 completely different exams while trying not be sick. Not fun. And don't even get me started on the student politics problem. That's a rant for another time..
Well, I have a new Rant and a new AFA Review online. I was actually planning on writing a serious rant for this update, but every time I started, I decided that I didn't like what I had written or that it wasn't a good topic. Anyway, I just figured "screw it". As a result, we have a silly rant I wrote during the summer but never got around to posting. And just so as we're all clear, I mean no insult to anyone who lives in a small town! It's just me trying to be silly, so please don't be offended. As for the AFA article, I saw this one only a few days ago, but I HAD to write about. You've probably read about the situation in the news, but it's just so insane that I had to write about it.
Well, I guess that covers everything for the moment. I keep planning to update more than once every month and a half, but things keep coming up. Ah well, here's hoping that next time's update comes this century! Take care everyone and remember, if the cow doesn't speak, it shouldn't go into orbit.
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(November 17th, 2001) - Hello all! I hope everyone is ok out there in Internet land. In an attempt to put off doing any actual work, I figured it was time for another update. I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween! And for you religious weirdoes who don't let your kids actually HAVE fun and who don't give out candy or anything, I hope you had a good night praying and condemning all our souls to hell. Hey, whatever floats your boat, right?
I really want to thank everyone who was kind enough to send me an e-mail regarding my last update. I didn't actually expect a response (didn't think anyone stopped by). The kind words really meant a lot! I decided that it sort of belonged in my rant section, so if you're looking for my thoughts on the current war and the events of Sept 11th, you can find them there. I've decided that that will be my rant for this update (I'm lazy). Also, I want to thank those who e-mailed me to let me know that my guestbook is down. I've been trying to fix it, but I'm not quite sure how to do it without resetting it.
In Actual News, I can't help feeling that this latest plane crash in New York has happened at the worst possible time. Now don't get me wrong, there's no 'best' possible time for a plane crash. But with all the paranoia and fear going on in the US, this crash is just going to make things worse. Robyn was saying yesterday how she thinks that if this was a terrorist attack, the government probably wouldn't tell the public for fear of starting a panic. You know, that got me thinking. The scariest thing wouldn't be if this was a terrorist attack, but if it wasn't and everyone thought it was. How far off are we from that situation? I keep feeling that we're not far enough. To live in fear like that would not only make life hell for everyone in North America, but would also make people scared to the point of hating anything even remotely different. THAT is why it is important for us to continue our daily lives. THAT is why we have to fight terrorism by getting back to living a normal life. If we don't, hate and fear will rule out lives, and then the chance for peace and acceptance will be even father than it is now. On the other hand, I don't think I'll be flying anywhere in the next little while either.
In Music News, The new Barenaked Ladies CD came out today! It's strange, there's a new BNL CD out, and I haven't yet bought it. This is a situation which will have to be rectified as soon as possible! Also, I was in Toronto a few weeks ago for the Music Without Borders concert. It was AMAZING! Barenaked Ladies and Tragically Hip in one show? Just add Great Big Sea and Counting Crows and it would be the greatest experience one could have! An interesting thing the concert taught me was that if Alanis Morissette goes into convulsions while on stage, no one would actually notice. She is one WEIRD dancer.
In TV news, Family Guy premiered last week! Sweet lord how I love that show! Also, I saw the much hyped Buffy Musical episode and practically fell to my knees in appreciation of its chocolaty goodness! Anyone who saw this episode and still doesn't think Buffy is one of the best shows on TV shouldn't be allowed to watch TV. I've also seen a couple of episodes of this new show called Smallville. It's actually not half bad. The show is kind of like equal parts Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dawson's Creek with a bit of X-Files mixed in. Jeez, I watch way too much TV...
I've decided to update my AFA review section again. Instead of going on and on about how narrow-minded and hateful these people are, I've decided to just have fun with their articles. They really are wacky!
I REALLY don't want to go to work tomorrow. *grumble grumble*
Well, I guess that covers just about everything. Take care everyone!
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(October 11th, 2001) - When I was younger, I used to think that war didn't actually exist anymore. I thought that after World War II, all the wars in the world had ended. As I got a little older and a little wiser, I knew this wasn't true, but I still believed that world peace was attainable and that we were close to it. After all, all we need to do is teach people not to hate others simply for being different. We could teach people to share the things they have with others, and these two things alone would be able to change the world for the better. These are lessons we learn in kindergarten, and they are lessons which can change the world. One month ago today, I saw my belief and my dream of a soon-to-be world at peace come crashing down. Peace never seemed so far away at that moment.
The U.S. is calling this war "a battle between good and evil". People should know by now that things are never so simple. The sad truth is that the people responsible for the death of so many thousands believed that what they were doing was right. Issues like politics, the U.S. posting troops in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War, the belief that Western Society is corrupt, the trade embargo on Iraq and having religious fundamentalists who feel justified in committing horrors in the name of their religion make this issue more complicated than simply "good versus evil". The terrorist act on the 11th was an act of evil committed by people who believed they were doing good. The people that committed it were not sci-fi aliens or horror movie monsters. These were regular people, just like you and me, who were taught to hate, and were taught that murder was the way to make people listen. I don't know about you, but I find this far scarier than any monster that Hollywood could produce.
President Bush says that the best way to fight these terrorists is to try to resume our daily lives, but it's hard to do that when the safe bubble we've created for ourselves here in the Western World has been popped. Living in Montreal and not knowing anyone living in New York has given me a somewhat detached feeling from the whole event, and I'm not comfortable with that. This disturbing sense of normalcy in my life after the events in New York and L.A. make me feel hollow. Everything in my life may seem normal, but deep down, the dream that we might all live in peace someday seems dimmer than I ever thought it would. My petty dreams of being a writer are dwarfed in the knowledge that many will never get the chance to live out their own dreams. I refer not only to those killed in the attack on the 11th, but also to those who live in countries where they don't have the freedoms that I do. As we try to resume our daily lives after this attack, so must they, and for many innocent Afghanistan civilians, that is not something which will be easy. America needs to find and punish those responsible for the needless murder of so many, and I support that, but we cannot forget that this war will kill more people and elevate the hatred in the world, making this increasingly naive dream of mine even dimmer.
While my belief in the possibility of world peace is dim, that doesn't mean it has died. All it takes to change the world is to not teach the next generation of children about hate, or prejudice or religious intolerance. All it takes is for us to learn to respect everyone else and judge them for who they are as individuals and not as the group we label them as. So please, teach your children to accept instead of hate. Teach them that we're all equal, no matter where we are from or what we believe. We can change the world if we try.
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(July 13th, 2001) - Hi everybody! Well, this being Friday thee 13th, the Dark Lord has risen again to bring about the apocalypse, and you know what THAT means... that's right, it's once again time for me to update my webpage! How has everyone been? Enjoying the summer I hope!
For anyone who doesn't yet know, I finally got my Learner's Permit! That's right, I'm actually learning to drive! About friggin' time, huh? Yesterday, I had my first driving lesson. I figured it would be a real simple lesson on how to kick the tires, adjust the mirrors, flip people off, you know, the usual beginner stuff. Instead, the instructor decides to bypass all these steps and go right to the Me-driving-all-over-the-fucking-city step. I mean, I was even going up and down Mount Royal. While the instructor gave me practically no feedback, I didn't hit anything or anybody (except for when I killed that one guy, but he was looking at me funny, so he deserved it) and no one honked me for driving on the wrong side of the road or anything, so I figure I did great!
It looks like there's finally something good on TV again! Family Guy has returned to Fox! It's on Wednesdays at 9:30 and I couldn't be happier! Family Guy is without a doubt the funniest show on television. If you've never seen an episode, then you're missing out! It's TV at its finest!
In Movie News, I've seen Pearl Harbor, Shrek, Crazy/Beautiful, Tomb Raider, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, A.I, and lots of other stuff that I can't remember. Pearl Harbor was kind of a cross between Top Gun and Titanic. I was also pretty much just Americanized Crap... with lots of special effects. The best line in the movie comes when Pearl Habor is being bombed and one of the main characters yells "I think World War II just started!" I wonder if that's arrogance, or just stupidity. Now, on to Shrek. I loved this movie! Shrek is just plain fantastic. It's hilarious on so many levels that kids and adults will laugh all the way through it. SEE THIS MOVIE. Next, we've got Crazy/Beautiful. This movie has been made about 8 bajillion times already. It's your basic "girl had a bad childhood and so becomes rebellious and then meets a nice guy who believes in her and changes her life" kind of story. Crazy/Beautiful does differ from other movies of the same type in one significant way though... it has a "/" in the title. Who the hell came up with that anyway? Ok, so now we've got Tomb Raider. Fun, but pretty brainless. Stupid plot, no acting, stupid characters, etc, etc. I liked the stunts though and Angelina Jolie definitely made the movie easier to watch. As for the next movie... yes... I actually saw Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, or as I've come to refer to it lately, Sister Ass 2: Back on the Crapper. This movie is BAAAAAAAD. It's my firm believe that any movie which has Rapping nuns in it should be shredded into pieces, burned and then launched into space where it can be safely bombarded by nuclear missiles. One character, a white teenager who's trying his best to be a black stereotype, demands to be called Fran-K and actually Raps to Mary Had a Little Lamb (oh, how I wish that weren't true). Needless to say, Fran-K spends the entire movie looking like a giant Dor-K. Last but not least we have A.I.. I thought it was good, but not great. The effects were really nice and the concept was good, but it seemed like they side stepped the major issue of what it means to be human. Also, I thought the ending just didn't fit well with the rest of the movie. It seemed to drag on endlessly. Overall, not a terrible film, but not absolutely fabulous either.
Well, I've decided to stop updating my AFA Review section. I think I've made my point that people who use religion as a reason to hate other people are bad. I don't need to continue to beat a dead horse (well, it depends on the horse I guess). If I ever visit their site and stumble upon a particularly funny/silly/absurd/twisted/weird article, then I'll review it. Other than that, I'm gonna lay off them for a while. I DO have a new Rant up and ready for viewing however. Feel free to check it out!
Well, that's it for this update. I'm on my to Boston for a few days next week, so if I have any strange adventures, I'll be sure to let you all know! Oh, and speaking of trips, I want to wish Robs and Mary a blast on their trips! Have fun guys! Take care all and remember, spanking a donkey only counts for points in overtime.
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(July 13th, 2001) - Hi everybody! Well, this being Friday the 13th, the Dark Lord has risen again to bring about the apocalypse, and you know what THAT means... that's right, it's once again time for me to update my webpage! How has everyone been? Enjoying the summer I hope!
For anyone who doesn't yet know, I finally got my Learner's Permit! That's right, I'm actually learning to drive! About friggin' time, huh? Yesterday, I had my first driving lesson. I figured it would be a real simple lesson on how to kick the tires, adjust the mirrors, flip people off, you know, the usual beginner stuff. Instead, the instructor decides to bypass all these steps and go right to the Me-driving-all-over-the-fucking-city step. I mean, I was even going up and down Mount Royal. While the instructor gave me practically no feedback, I didn't hit anything or anybody (except for when I killed that one guy, but he was looking at me funny, so he deserved it) and no one honked me for driving on the wrong side of the road or anything, so I figure I did great!
It looks like there's finally something good on TV again! Family Guy has returned to Fox! It's on Wednesdays at 9:30 and I couldn't be happier! Family Guy is without a doubt the funniest show on television. If you've never seen an episode, then you're missing out! It's TV at its finest!
In Movie News, I've seen Pearl Harbor, Shrek, Crazy/Beautiful, Tomb Raider, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, A.I, and lots of other stuff that I can't remember. Pearl Harbor was kind of a cross between Top Gun and Titanic. I was also pretty much just Americanized Crap... with lots of special effects. The best line in the movie comes when Pearl Habor is being bombed and one of the main characters yells "I think World War II just started!" I wonder if that's arrogance, or just stupidity. Now, on to Shrek. I loved this movie! Shrek is just plain fantastic. It's hilarious on so many levels that kids and adults will laugh all the way through it. SEE THIS MOVIE. Next, we've got Crazy/Beautiful. This movie has been made about 8 bajillion times already. It's your basic "girl had a bad childhood and so becomes rebellious and then meets a nice guy who believes in her and changes her life" kind of story. Crazy/Beautiful does differ from other movies of the same type in one significant way though... it has a "/" in the title. Who the hell came up with that anyway? Ok, so now we've got Tomb Raider. Fun, but pretty brainless. Stupid plot, no acting, stupid characters, etc, etc. I liked the stunts though and Angelina Jolie definitely made the movie easier to watch. As for the next movie... yes... I actually saw Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, or as I've come to refer to it lately, Sister Ass 2: Back on the Crapper. This movie is BAAAAAAAD. It's my firm believe that any movie which has Rapping nuns in it should be shredded into pieces, burned and then launched into space where it can be safely bombarded by nuclear missiles. One character, a white teenager who's trying his best to be a black stereotype, demands to be called Fran-K and actually Raps to Mary Had a Little Lamb (oh, how I wish that weren't true). Needless to say, Fran-K spends the entire movie looking like a giant Dor-K. Last but not least we have A.I.. I thought it was good, but not great. The effects were really nice and the concept was good, but it seemed like they side stepped the major issue of what it means to be human. Also, I thought the ending just didn't fit well with the rest of the movie. It seemed to drag on endlessly. Overall, not a terrible film, but not absolutely fabulous either.
Well, I've decided to stop updating my AFA Review section. I think I've made my point that people who use religion as a reason to hate other people are bad. I don't need to continue to beat a dead horse (well, it depends on the horse I guess). If I ever visit their site and stumble upon a particularly funny/silly/absurd/twisted/weird article, then I'll review it. Other than that, I'm gonna lay off them for a while. I DO have a new Rant up and ready for viewing however. Feel free to check it out!
Well, that's it for this update. I'm on my to Boston for a few days next week, so if I have any strange adventures, I'll be sure to let you all know! Oh, and speaking of trips, I want to wish Robs and Mary a blast on their trips! Have fun guys! Take care all and remember, spanking a donkey only counts for points in overtime.
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(May 17th, 2001) - Hello all! Yup, I finally decided to update my website. No no, hell HASN'T frozen over. I just finally got around to it. Anyway, summer is here and I hope everyone is enjoying their break from classes! Don't forget to stop and smell the roses and all that other crap! That's right, the semester has finally ended and some of us are now officially finished second year university. My God, is that creepy or what?!
Ok, before I forget, I wanna plug something. A little while ago, I was feeling... what's the word.... "wacky" (others prefer "fucked up", but you get the idea). Anyhoo, I wanted to do something creative, so I created another website. It's kinda weird and borders on stupid (ok, so maybe not so much "borders on"). The point is, I had fun making it and I plan to update it occasionally. You can check it out by clicking HERE.
In Movie news, I saw a whole crap-load of movies in the past two months. Since I can't remember all of them, here are the ones that stuck out in my mind. Recently, I remember seeing Along Came a Spider, The Mummy Returns, Enemy at the Gates, Heartbreakers, One Night at McCool's, and Josie and the Pussycats. First, let's start with the stuff I didn't like and move our way up to the stuff I did like. I found Along Came a Spider to be pretty lousy. The plot twists in the movie were so moronic that I just got frustrating watching. This is one STUPID movie. Next, we have Heartbreakers. Cute, but nothing particularly great. Probably wouldn't have seen it if it didn't have Jason Lee. Then comes One Night at McCool's. This movie fits quite nicely in the "dark humour" category. It's not extremely dark or anything, but darker than most comedies. I give it 3 out of 5 stars. Enemy at the Gates was good, but I must say, I don't think I've ever seen so many close up shots of people getting their heads blown off by snipers. Not that that's a BAD thing or anything. This movie also has the most gratuitous and unnecessary sex scene I've ever seen. Once again, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's just that it's so completely out of place. It's like someone thought the movie needed at least one sex scene, so they found the one scene that didn't have someone's cerebral cortex being splattered and inserted it there. Now, Josie and the Pussycats I liked a lot! It was actually much better than I thought it would be. The ending was a bit too childish, but I found the majority of the film to be quite clever. Lots of jokes about the entertainment industry and the music business. Lastly, we have The Mummy Returns. This movie is exactly what I expected: Mindless action and special effects. It's pretty much everything you could ask for in a summer movie! It's lots of fun and doesn't require any thinking. I do find it strange that everyone was making a big deal about The Rock being in the movie though. He's only in it for like 5 minutes and has one line... and it's not even in English.
As anyone who's been here before might expect, I have a new Rant and AFA Review up and ready for inspection. You can take a look at them if you're bored and have nothing better to do.
Well, I guess that about covers everything. I'll try to update more regularly from this point on, but we'll see what toll laziness has on me. Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well and be sure to have a great summer break! Bye bye!
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(March 10th, 2001) - Hello all! Well, there's so much to taalk about that I don't even know where to start! I mean man, I've got OODLES of stuff to talk about (and I don't use the word "oodles" unless I mean it!). As many of you know, I went to Israel on a free organized trip about two weeks ago (from February 14th 'till the 25th). A lot of interesting stuff happened during the trip. I figured I'd share some of my adventures with you (I hear you groaning in the back! That's right, I'm talk to you! If you don't want to hear about it, you can leave!.... No wait!.... Don't leave!.... I get so lonely sometimes *sniffle sniffle*)...
The flight from here to Israel was not a direct one. We left Montreal and went to New York to picking up some passengers before heading off to Israel. On our way from Montreal to New York, we hit some turbulence. Now, this wasn't REGULAR turbulence. This was clearly TURBULENCE FROM HELL. At first, it was just kind of bumpy. Then, it went from "kind of bumpy" to "really shaky". That's when the plane dropped. For about half a second, the plane was just falling. The guy sitting a few seats over claimed afterwards that we dropped a hundred feet or so (there were monitors on the back of each seat that told you the altitude of the plane, how long the flight was, what the temperature outside was, etc). No matter what actually happened, I swear that for a split second, we were in free fall (ironically enough, I was listening to the Tom Petty song Free Falling at that exact moment). It scared the living shit out of everyone. The girl sitting beside me took out a barf bag after that and refused to eat anything for the rest of the flight to Israel (which is about 10 to 11 hours direct. Was a couple hours longer with the stop in New York). We eventually did make it to Israel with minimal deaths though, so that was good.
It'd take forever to go over everything we did on the trip, so I'll just go over some of the basic stuff we did. We hiked through the desert. We hiked to the top of Masada (a mountain) before dawn to see the sun rise. We went to the Dead Sea. We went to Ein Gedi (not to be confused with "Spaghetti". One's a tropical paradise-like oasis in the desert, the other is a pasta). We explored the un-excavated ruins of a 2000 year-old underground city (crawling on your hands and knees through caves is actually a lot more fun than one would think). We went to the northern most Kibbutz in Israel which is RIGHT on the border of Lebanon (we actually drove on a road surrounded on both sides by mine fields. REALLY creepy). I even ran into Sari, who was on a different Israel trip (it really is a small country)! The trip was an amazing experience. Of course, not everything on the trip was amazing however. There were a bit too many annoying people on my bus for my liking. We did some activities that ranged from boring to just plain strange. Also, some of the speeches we got from our tour guide were a bit too biased my taste. Generally however, the trip was good. And I've got to say that Israel is truly the most beautiful place I have ever seen in my entire life. Everywhere you look takes your breath away. I would very much like to go back with friends.
In Movie News, I saw "Meet The Parents", "Bait", "Saving Silverman" and "The Mexican". None of them were really good to be honest. Kind of disappointing. Meet the Parents I saw on the plane going to Israel. Frankly, I didn't really like it. It's one of those movies where anything that could possibly go wrong for the main character does. There are SOOO many embarrassing moments that it becomes painful to watch. It did have some funny moments, but overall, I didn't much like it. Bait I saw on the plane coming back from Israel. I didn't much like it either. Of course, I had a terrible cold at the time, so I wasn't in a good mood. If you ever want to experience what it's like having your head implode, then try flying with a cold. It ain't fun. Anyhoo, back to the movie. It was ok, but nothing special. It was one of those "the villain is super smart and is always 10 steps ahead of the good guys at all times until the very end" movies. It kinda reminded me of In the Line of Fire in that respect. Next we have Saving Silverman. This movie was funny, but I was expecting something a bit wittier. The movie was a bit more slap-sticky than I was expecting. Don't get me wrong, it was funny! Just not the kind of funny I was expecting. I'd give it about 3 out of 5 stars. Lastly, we have The Mexican. I saw this movie last night. I didn't like it much. In fact, I fell asleep through part of it. It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't boring... and stupid... and just plain bad. You know, a lot of movies are like that!
In Music News, I just got the Tragically Hip CD, Fully Completely. Holy crap, this is one AMAZING CD. I've had more than one person suggest it to me, and I have not been disappointed in the least!
In "What the Hell?!" News, Mountain Lake Television apparently aired a frozen image of a vagina FOR FOUR STRAIGHT HOURS last night. I'm not making this up. Turns out that they were airing a PBS documentary about pregnancy late last night when one of their transmitters lost power. This caused the last shot which was aired to be frozen on the screen. Now, as it turns out, this shot just happened to be of a woman's vagina. Now, the shot was only supposed to last a couple of seconds, but thanks to good old electricity (or lack thereof), the shot lasted from 2:00 am to 6:00 am. Apparently, Videotron got something like 100 complaints about it. What I find weird, is that there are people out there who are actually WATCHING Mountain Lake Television from 2:00 am to 6:00 am! You'd think that anyone watching TV at that hour is TRYING to find a vagina on TV, not someone who would complain about it.
I've managed to once again pull a new Rant and a new AFA review out of my magic hat (or out of my ass, whatever term you prefer). Both can be found in their respective sections.
Well, this update seems large enough as it is, so if there is anything worth talking about that I forgot to mention, I'll try to remember to mention it next time. I hope everyone had a great reading week/spring break! Take care everyone and remember, exploding goats make the best pets!
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(February 14th, 2001) - Hello all! I wrote this update a couple of days ago, but didn't have time to upload it. Unfortunately, I've been so bogged down with work lately that I haven't really been able to think about anything, especially my Israel trip, which leaves today. Last week was nothing but a blur of midterms and assignments and the past two days were more of the same. Ah well, hopefully this trip will be relaxing!
In Movie News, I saw "Antitrust", "Snatch" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". They were all ok, but nothing particularly fabulous. Anititrust was entertaining, but man, have we seen this story like a gazillion times before. I don't mean to sound pretentious or anything, but you could call everything that was going to happen before the opening credits ran. Maybe I just watch too many movies.... Anyhoo, next we have Snatch. Snatch was pretty good. It had some really great funny bits and I really had no idea where hey were going with everything most of the time, so it was fun to watch. A little hard to keep track of who was who at times, but generally good. Last, we have O Brother, Where Art Though. This one was weird. It was suppose to be based on The Odyssey by Homer, but I never read The Odyssy, so I have no idea how close to the book it is. I'm pretty sure the book doesn't have a machinegun-wielding bank robber being given the electric chair for murdering cows though.
Well, it looks like insanity has decided to spread itself through my University. The Link, one of our independant campus newspaper is being accused of being biased in favour of Israel concerning the Israel/Palestinian conflict because they did not cover one of the Palestinian rallies. So, Palestinian students have banned together and formed a petition to get the entire staff of the Link fired and replaced. Look, I don't know how biased the Link is, nor do I claim to know, but you do not fire the entire staff of a newspaper and replace it with people you want instead. Look, if you're pissed, then write in and complain. At the most, write a petition to show the Link that you feel important issues like that should be covered. You don't just try to GET RID of a newspaper staff because you don't agree with the fact that a certain event wasn't covered. That's not sane. And, to top off this insanity, the CSU, our beloved Student Union whom everyone can't stand, has taken this opportunity to voice their dislike of the Link as well. You see, the CSU doesn't like The Link very much since the Link tends to publish stuff about the CSU that the CSU would rather not have published. You know, I can't tell you how much I LOATH compus politics.
Well, since I've been so busy, I haven't had a chance to write a new Rant of AFA Review.
Ok, I've got to head off to the holy land! I hope everyone has a great Spring Break and I'll talk to you all when I get back!
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(January 20th, 2001) - Have you ever had one of those dreams where a woman made completely out of Cheerios convinced your best friend (who is only your best friend in the context of the dream and in reality is someone you've never seen before) to kill you but you defeat them both by blowing up an office building? Uh... me neither.
Well, I hope everyone is doing okay! I think we finally have to accept the fact that winter and the new semester are both in full swing. I finally got the form for my double major filled out and handed in, which means that I'm now officially majoring in both Journalism AND Philosophy. Ya, I'm fairly sure I'm insane too...
In Movie News, I recently saw 'The Emperor's New Groove', 'Castaway', 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' and 'Dude, Where's My Car?'. I've got to say, I really liked all of these movies. The Emperor's New Groove is without a doubt the best "David-Spade-turned-into-a-Llama" movie I've ever seen! And I say that without hesitating! Dude, Where's My Car? was stupid, but pretty funny. It's kinda like a much stupider and less funny version of one of the Bill and Ted movies (although without the dim-witted charm of Keanu "I love to get high" Reeves). Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was weird, but had good fight scenes (and what else does one really need?). Lots of things in this movie were weird. People seemed to be able to fly with no real explanation, the main villain is only in like 15 minutes of the movie and I still don't know what the hell a crouching tiger or a hidden dragon has to do with anything. But the fight scenes were really cool, as was the cinematography, so who cares? Lastly, we have Castaway. *Sniff Sniff* Is that another Oscar I smell for Mr. Hanks? Wait... nope... that's just my popcorn burning, hang on... ok, where was I? Oh right, Castaway! I liked Castaway a lot! Definitely one of the better movies I've seen recently. I did have trouble believing that Tom Hank's character was completely unhurt in the plane crash though. Not even a scratch. Branches hurt him when he tries to leave the island, a stick hurts him when he tries to make fire, and his tooth causes him horrible pain, but being in a plane that impacts at high velocity into the ocean doesn't scratch him. Man, he sounds like the kind of person who would survive a nuclear fall out, only to die three days later after tripping on a rock.
In "What the Hell?!" News, it turns out that Senator John Ashcroft, the guy Bush wants as Attorney-general, is morally opposed to dancing. So not only should we worry that this guy is a possible racist and bigot, but now we have to worry that he's one of the town elders from Foot Loose?! I mean, I've heard of religious fundamentalists being morally opposed to lots of things, but dancing? I guess he doesn't let his kids do the Hockey-Pokey then. And, in other weird news, it turns out that thousands of monkeys went on a rampage in the city of Delhi the other day. You can check out the article by clicking HERE. I never did trust those monkeys...
As usual, I have a new Rant and a new AFA Review online, but I'm not really very happy with either of them. I just couldn't get myself into a writing mood lately. Oh well, maybe I'm just being picky.
That does it for me boys and girls! Take care and remember, if the hippo is purple, then you probably shouldn't be eating it!
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(January 7th, 2001) - Hello all and welcome to the year 2001! I can't help feeling that 2001 will be a better year than 2000 was... mostly because 2000 was a remarkably crappy year. Robyn held a small New Years party at her apartment, so I figure bringing in the New Year with good friends must be a good sign for the upcoming year (at least I hope it is). I can think of no better way to celebrate a new year than with good friends, good food, and lots of laughs! Happy New Year Everyone!
While we're on the topic of good friends and parties, Rosie threw a Christmas party on the 23rd which was really nice! I wanna thank Rosie, Joanna and Sabrina for their Christmas... er... holiday cards. Being the only Jew there, it was really touching that they actually went out of their way to get me non-Christmas cards (and thanks for the homemade card, Rosie!). Thanks guys! I'm really not that picky though, so don't worry.
Well, the semester has started and I'm back in classes again. The worst part is that I *just* got into that vacation state of mind. Now I'll have to force myself back into work mode and that ain't gonna be easy (or fun). And, seeing as how Concordia loves to take its sweet time when doing anything and everything, I STILL haven't gotten my grades for 3 of the 4 courses I took last semester. It's been a MONTH already! It's time to post those damn grades already!
If anyone out there is a big fan of The Critic (and how could you not be?) then you'll be glad to hear that he's sorta kinda back... almost! They seem to be putting out some new short Critic episodes over the net. Check it out by clicking HERE.
As usual, I explored the dark corners of my twisted psyche to bring forth a new rant for my Rant & Roar section as well as a new AFA Review for my AFA Review section. Today's rant is a bit on the silly side, so don't go expecting some highly philosophical talk about euthanasia or anything (although one is probably coming at some point).
Anyhoo, it's 3:00 am right now and I'm kinda tired, so I'm gonna head off. Take care everyone and remember, goats are better skiers than they let on.
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(December 18th, 2000) - Definitely a lot to talk about today! Not quite sure where to begin so I guess I'll start with the big news. The United States of America finally has a president! Admittedly, it's a drunk driving, cocaine snorting president, but a president nonetheless! I've got nothing against the man though. He seems like he's one of the nicer Republicans. He doesn't seem to be one of those "You are going to burn in hell forever because your face isn't completely symmetrical" type of Republican. Speaking of Republicans, I find it funny that they always seem to conveniently forget George W's past 'events'. I mean, the Republicans blasted Gore for having the same morals as Clinton just because he WORKED with Clinton. Now, Bush HIMSELF snorted cocaine and was arrested MORE THAN ONCE for drunk driving. He didn't work with someone who did these things. HE did these things. Strange that they never bring these things up, don't you think? Oh well, who can understand those wacky Republicans anyway?
In music news, I saw the Tragically Hip in concert!! They were AMAZING!! It makes me wish I was able to see them when they were at Woodstock! It's a testament to their talent that they got the bigger stage at Woodstock even though they are barely known in the US. They are truly one of the greatest bands out there.
Now, while the concert was great, the trip TO the concert was... less so. While taking the train downtown, I got fined (D'oh!). I tried to use a bus ticket on the train, and apparently, you're no longer allowed to do that. So, what did my ignorance cost me? $20.00? $25.00? Try $100.00!! I was very unamused! I mean, I would have gladly spent an extra 15 minutes and taken the bus if I had known! The most frustrating part is that the fine itself was only $75.00. There was a $25.00 SERVICE CHARGE. Holy crap! Next time, I'll take the ticket WITHOUT the service please! So, basically, the Hip concert ended up costing me about $140. Oh well, at least it was a great concert!
I've got only one more exam to go before I can finally put this crappy semester behind me. I've got to admit, while the semester itself was comparable to getting teeth pulled, my exams haven't been that bad this semester. My Metaphysics exam last Tuesday wasn't as bad as I feared it would be. Of course, the fact that I'll likely pass my exams doesn't change the atmosphere that always surrounds exam time: stress, nervousness, paranoia, frustration and, of course, movie watching! Nothing numbs the fear of exams like bombarding your senses with split second images and sound effects loud enough to cause your eardrums to explode. Recently, I saw Unbreakable, The Skulls, Pitch Black, High Fidelity and the last half of Final Destination. The Skulls was pretty average as were the parts of Final Destination that I saw. Neither movie was terrible, they just weren't particularly good. Pitch Black was just plain awful. The plot was just a rip-off of the movie Aliens. The monsters were the worst part of the movie however. They were WAAY too obviously computer animated. They could have been giant 1s and 0s and I doubt people would have been able to tell the difference. On to the movies I actually liked now. I thought Unbreakable was really good! I liked it better than The 6th Sense. I saw the ending coming about halfway through the movie but it did take me longer to figure out than The 6th Sense. I think one of the reasons I liked the film was 'cause I used to collect comics, so it was fun picking up on some of the references. I also really liked High Fidelity. Very funny film! And any movie that makes reference to Evil Dead 2 automatically gets an extra star in my book! : )
As you might expect, I've got a new Rant and AFA Review online. The AFA's website has actually been down for the past week or so. They just put up their new site, which means that about half the links in my AFA Review section are down. I usually quote the passage of the article I analyze, so if you're reading a review with a broken link, you should still be able to figure out the gist of the article.
Well, I guess that's about it. I hope exams are going (or went) well for everybody! Happy Holidays to y'all! Take care and remember, if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it's probably not a mute elephant.
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(December 2nd, 2000) - Well, classes are finally over! It feels SOOO good not to have to write any more assignments or term papers. I still have finals mind you, so I'm not completely out of the woods yet, but at least I can relax for a few days. And to everyone who hasn't finished yet, just hang on! It's almost over!
In relevant news, last Monday was election day. I had to cover the Liberal campaign headquarters in my riding for a Reporting Methods assignment. I've got to say that it wasn't exactly the most exciting few hours of my life. I am glad the Liberals won though. I'm not a huge fan of our Prime Minister, but the Liberals still seem like the best choice out there for the moment. Seeing as how the Bloc Quebecois want Canada to be destroyed, they probably aren't the best choice for leadership of the country. I really like the NDP, but I'm not sure how capable they really are. The Conservative Party isn't terrible, but they aren't great either. Then, we have the Canadian Alliance. The Canadian Alliance seems to be kind of... well... evil. They're like Canada's version of Republicans. Also, I get the feeling that they aren't an extremely bright party. These are people who originally called themselves the Canadian Reform Alliance Party and didn't realizing that their name spelled CRAP when abbreviated. I mean, Stockwell Day is a young earth creationist for crying out loud! This is not someone I want in charge of Canada. I found it rather scary that the Alliance had the majority of votes in both BC and Alberta. Remind me not to move out west any time soon. This leaves us with all the fringe parties. I don't really want to go through them all, but needless to say, it would have been a wasted vote. Any bets on if the Marijuana party got the date of the election wrong? :) "What do you mean the election was yesterday?! Man, I should have voted!"
If you ever have some free time on your hands and are in need of a good laugh, then be sure to check out the website X-Entertainment. I don't think I've laughed so much at anything in my entire life. This is some seriously funny stuff! The site is also full of great 80s references! You can download the ultra-cheesy X-Men cartoon Pryde of The X-men as well as old episodes of the Transformers and other great but useless stuff. You can read some of their funnier articles by clicking HERE, HERE and HERE. I recommend going through all 13 pages of their site (you can access the other pages by clicking on the numbers at the bottom of their main page) and just checking out any article that catches your eye.
In movie news, I saw Shanghai Noon the other day. I'm not sure if I liked it as much as Rush Hour, but it was definitely a great film! It's always fun to see Jackie Chan kick ass and pull off insane stunts.
In music news, I can't wait to see the Tragically Hip at the Molson Centre on Thursday! They are suppose to be unbelievably amazing in concert. Also, there's no opening act, which means 3 straight hours of the Hip!
As always, I put a new Rant and AFA Review online so that more and more people can learn just how annoying and irritating my opinions truly are.
I guess that's about it. Take care everyone and remember, no matter how friendly the giant is, he could still swallow you whole in under 3 seconds.
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(November 23rd, 2000) - Well, exactly one year ago today my website got to experience the wonder of the web. That's right, it's the one year anniversary of my webpage! It's hard to believe that what started out as a creative outlet for me to do some non-academic writing evolved into... well... a creative outlet for me to do some non-academic writing. Ok, so maybe it's not THAT hard to believe. It achieved exactly what it set out to do though! Anyway, to celebrate, I added the "Hey, remember back in the 80s when..." to my main page. This way, I can show off my useless inventory of stupid 80s pop culture references that I absorbed when I was a kid. I was thinking of adding some other new section I could update regularly, but it's hard enough to update my "Rants" and "AFA Reviews" sections every few weeks so I decided against adding anything big.
Well, this has been one lousy week. The city had to fix a burst pipe on the street so they shut off the water with no warning on Tuesday and Wednesday. It is remarkably hard to wake up in the morning when you have no access to running water. I am not a morning person, so the only way I wake up for classes is if I'm in routine. Unfortunately, this lack of water threw me out of wack and gave me a nasty headache the entire day. I had a Radio News exam tonight which was unbelievably stressful. A stupid mistake on my part got me an 'F' on a Reporting Methods assignment I worked hard on. And, to top it all off, it's DAMN COLD OUT!!!! I H-A-T-E the cold! Walking home from class at 9:00 pm in -19 weather is not my idea of fun. Come to think of it though, I've had a really lousy semester overall. My marks are going to take a considerable dive this semester in comparison to last. As mean as this might sound though, it was remarkably comforting to know that I'm not the only one who's been having a crappy semester. Almost everyone I know isn't exactly pulling off fabulous grades. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one who's been having a hard time lately!
In movie news, I saw The 6th Day, Charlie's Angels and U-571 recently. The 6th Day was good, but not amazing. I loved the philosophical aspects of the film and it definitely did have some great moments but overall, it wasn't Arnie's best movie ever. I give 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. I REALLY liked Charlie's Angels. It was lots of fun. I haven't seen a good FUN movie in quite a long time, so it was really enjoyable. The action was definitely Matrix inspired to say the least. As for U-571, I thought it was pretty good, but nothing to write home about. It's definitely no Crimson Tide.
In music news, I really really like the new David Gray song Babylon. Frankly, I think it's by far the best thing currently being played on the radio. Everything else on the radio is lousy and overplayed so much that it can cause your ears to bleed.
Today's Rant is all about this stressful part of the semester we all hate. Oh, and just a warning, my latest Rant and AFA Review are probably not my best work. I've been really stressed recently, and frankly, I've had better things to do than work on my site, so they could probably use some more thought or need a little work. When the semester is over and I have more time on my hands I'll be able to put some more effort into the site.
Well, that covers everything. I hope everyone is surviving! Just remember, the semester is ALMOST over! Just a little longer and we're all home free! Also, be sure to dress warmly. It ain't summer outside. Take care everyone and remember, just because it's blue, doesn't mean it's edible.
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(November 11th, 2000) - Well, it's Remembrance Day today. I hope everyone paused for a moment to remember those who gave their lives for our freedom. I get thefeeling that with every new generation, it gets a little bit easier to forget those that came before us. I think it's important never to forget those who sacrificed their lives so that we could live free. I would not be here typing this message if it weren't for them. So, if you haven't given any thought to Remembrance Day, then please just take one moment to remember those who died so that we could live.
As of this update, the US still has no president. Many people are saying that this election shows that one vote really can make a difference. I just can't help thinking that there's got to be some poor sod who voted for the first time this election and at this moment thinks that his vote crippled the leadership of the entire country. He keeps thinking: "I finally voted and not only is the president I wanted not in power, but we don't have any president at all! I wasted valuable beer drinking time casting that vote!" Personally, I hope that Gore wins. Not that I have anything against Bush. He seems like a nice enough guy and the stupidity thing doesn't bother me too much. I'm just against the Republicans getting into power. The Republicans have this nasty habit of being pure evil and clearly the servants of Satan. There was this great saying I heard the other day which goes "A minority who is a member of the Republican party is like a deer who is a member of the NRA."
Let's move on to a less political topic. For anyone who hasn't already heard, I've been accepted to the Birthright Israel Trip! This is a free 10 day trip which allows those of us who are part of the Jewish persuasion to experience Israel for the first time. The group organizing the trip draws a certain number of names randomly from a list of people who live in North America, who are between the ages of 18 and 26 (I think), and who have never been on an organized Israel trip before. I'm really excited to go, but a little nervous considering the situation there.
In "a higher power is clearly mocking me" news, it turns out that the Barenaked Ladies concert is going to be here EXACTLY when I'll be on the Israel trip. I really wanted to go to that concert. They are also playing in Toronto, but I'll still be in Israel then, so I'm extremely frustrated. Even when I win, I seem to lose. Oh well, no use complaining about it. After all, I'm unbelievably lucky for getting accepted onto this trip. I just wish the timing was better.
I finally put my second publication for the Concordian online. You can find it in my Academic Stuff section. I'm not sure if I'm gonna keep it online though. The scan of the article takes up lots of room on my geocities account and the article deals with campus politics, so most people aren't really going to understand it.
To save money, instead of going out last weekend, Robyn held a games night at her apartment. Boy, all it takes is one game of twister for you to realize just how completely out of shape you are. I also discovered that I suck at the game Outburst. Rosie and I did manage to dominate in Win, lose or Draw, or Pictionary, or whatever that game is called where your teammate has to guess what you are drawing.
The X-Files premiered last weekend. The premier brought back Gibson Praise, which I very much did not see coming. That kid really seemed to grow up since last time we saw him 2 years ago! The gory operation scenes with Mulder were... well.... gory. I can't imagine Mulder was having lots of fun. As for Robert Patrick's character, I think he's pretty good so far. Not much of the character's personality was revealed in the premier, so I guess I need to hold off before I make a judgement about him.
As always, I created a new rant and AFA review and brought them to life by strapped them to an elevated metal table and watching them get struck by lightning.
I guess that's about it. Take care everyone and remember, "don't feed the cows" isn't just a motto, it's a way of life.
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(October 29th, 2000) - When I looked out the window this morning, I noticed that a blanket of whiteness had embraced the ground. I, of course, assumed that either an extremely large plane full of vanilla icing had exploded, or it was snowing. After coming to the conclusion that it was most likely snow on the ground and not frosting, I was disappointed for numerous reasons. First, I like icing, and second, it meant that our recent heat wave here in Montreal has probably come to an end. That means it's time to get ready for cold weather. I hate the cold.
I've been in a mid-semester funk lately but I managed to pull myself out of it when I finally finished my radio assignment on Friday. That thing was a bitch to do. Scripting, recording, sounding editing, everything. Boy, did I feel great when I got the blasted thing finished. Also, another reason to celebrate is that the vending machine in the Bryan building has now been restocked with Lipton's Lemon Iced Tea. That means my addiction is back in full swing and I've never been happier! And, to top it all off, the water bottle machine in the Bryan building which has been broken since I first arrived at Concordia over a year ago has been moved and is now working! Clearly these are signs that some major event will be taking place in the near future which will effect all of mankind. Either that, or it's just good news.
Yesterday I went to Joanna's Bat Mitzvah. I can't believe David's kid sister is already 13 years old! Where the hell does the time go?! The morning services were very nice and the speeches were beautiful. The night party on the other hand, was your typical Bat Mitzvah party (a dance floor, lots of bad music and an unbelievably irritating DJ). I learned the hard way that there is only so much Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync and Jennifer Lopez a person can listen to before being driven to the brink of madness. The dancing was rather interesting to witness. Normally I'd be on the dance floor, but last night, there were really only 3 kinds of people who danced: those 15 years old and younger who were awkwardly trying to dance but who were uncomfortable on the dance floor, those 75 years old and older who were awkwardly trying to dance but who were disturbingly TOO comfortable on the dance floor, and David. David seemed to be the only 18-25 year old actually on the dance floor and I'm fairly sure he was drunk. I say this only because no one sober would "dance" like he did in public. Now, I've been friends with David for years now and I'm well aware that he's definitely the type who would develop his own "unique" style of dancing, but he could have gone into convulsions on the dance floor and I doubt anyone would have noticed. The two dancers who were hired to motivate the crowd tried to match David's dancing style at one point, but gave up after a few seconds when they realized that he didn't actually have a style. Joseph and I were laughing so hard that Joseph made sure to get the whole thing on tape. Of course, my dancing technique as about as good as a flogged yak's, so who am I to talk?
In Movie News, I saw The Ladies Man last weekend. It was rather disappointing. This is too bad because it was the only Saturday Night Live skit in the past few years that I actually enjoyed. The movie seemed to be lacking part of the humour that made the SNL skit great. It did have a few laugh-out-loud moments, but they were too few and far between. Oh well, at least Tim Meadows is finally getting the chance to leave SNL and branch out.
In Music News, my Tragically Hip tickets finally arrived in the mail. I can't wait for the concert. I've wanted to see The Hip in concert for quite a while now. In other concert related news, I STILL don't know when the tickets for the BNL concert go on sale. With my luck it'll probably be exactly when I'm in an exam or something.
As usual, I've released a new rant and AFA review into the wilderness that is my website. Today's rant is kinda silly but is in the spirit of Halloween.
I guess that's about it. Take care everyone and remember, the flying cows are all liars.
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(October 20th, 2000) - Greetings all! Welcome to the all new, all different Eric's Page! Come to think of it, it isn't really ALL new, 'cause most of the stuff is the same. It also isn't really ALL different. OK, let me start over.... Welcome to the kinda new, sorta different Eric's Page! If you've been to my page before, you might have noticed a few changes. I've decided to try a new layout for my page. My main page is now much shorter. Instead of having so much text, I just created a small menu and put some explanations about which section is which at the bottom. "A Little Bit About Me" and "Links" are now their own sections instead of just being small blurbs at the top and bottom of the page. I also added some backgrounds to some of the sections.
In ACUTAL news, I went to the pro-Israel rally on Monday which took place downtown. To be honest, I'm not particularly happy with either side in this conflict. Don't get me wrong, I'm proud to be Jewish, but both Jews and Palestinians are responsible for what is happening in the middle east now. I'm sick of hearing "This wouldn't have happened if...." and "The media is biased in favour of...." from both sides. I was, however, extremely happy with the direction the rally took. This was a rally for peace, not for war. Most of the speeches were very thoughtful and elegant. There were prayers said for all the victims, both Jewish and Palestinian. The only part I didn't like was Rabbi Poupko's speech. His speech was less about peace and more about blame. He claimed that the Israeli army has done nothing wrong in this conflict that all the deaths are because of the Palestinians. This kind of stupidity is not going to help anyone and is certainly not promoting peace. Other than Poupko however, I was extremely happy with the way things turned out. Unfortunately, this desire for peace does not seem to be shared by both sides. I don't want to point fingers nor do I want to blame Palestinians for this ongoing conflict, but the fact is, the Palestinian rally which took place 2 weeks earlier involved the burning of an Israeli flag and shouts of "Death to Jews". I pray that their next rally goes from a message of hate to a message of peace.
In a completely non-related topic, my friend Alix is turning 21 on Monday! Now the next time he gets wasted, it'll be legal! Happy Birthday Alix!
In Movie news, I saw the re-release of the Exorcist, which was amazing! The Exorcist is a true classic. I haven't seen the original in about 2 years, so it was hard for me to tell exactly what the added scenes were. I know for a fact the "walking-downstairs-inverted" part was new, and it was really creepy. I think they also added stuff at the very beginning, but I'm not positive. Anyway, if you've seen the original or not, I heavily recommend you go out and see this movie while it's in theatres!
In music news, according to CHOM FM, the Barenaked Ladies are going to be at the Molson Center on Feb. 22!! I was only half listening to the radio when the announcement came. My head snapped up and I almost fell out of my chair when I heard. Definitely some of the best news I've heard in a while! I can't wait!!!
As usual, I've given a new rant and AFA review the opportunity to enjoy the vastness of cyberspace (i.e. I updated those sections).
I guess that's everything. Take care everyone and try not to hurt the donkey!
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(October 13th, 2000) - Hello all! I know, it's been quite a while since I last updated, but I've been busier than.... uh... some guy who's been really busy (I'm not very good with analogies)! Assignments and term papers and mid-terms, oh my!
First, I want to mention how glad I am that Rosie is up and about again. Her back operation left her couch-bound for about a week. She's now up on her feet again and doing fine! It's good to know you're ok Rosie!
In other news, I've been published in the Concordian! Yup, it's my second ever publication. I wrote a story about all the bickering that's going on between the CSU and CASA (both student organizations). I HATE campus politics. They just seem so irrelevant to students. Also, campus politicians have huge ego problems. The president of the CSU is harder to reach that Rush Limbaugh at a gay rights parade (hey, these analogies aren't easy for me to think up! Can't you at least give me points for effort on that one?). For my Journalism assignments, I've been able to reach the mayor of Montreal West without a problem, the Mayor of Cote-St-Luc without a problem and the President of Alliance Quebec without a problem. The president of the CSU however, is apparently 'too busy' to talk to students. Since no matter how hard I tried, I wasn't able to reach the CSU's president, it took me forever to write the damn story. Eventually, I got an interview with the CSU's VP: external. I handed in my story ten minutes before the deadline. I almost had a heart attack. I'll scan the story and post it up in my Academic Stuff section soon.
In music news, I got Road Rage, the new Great Big Sea concert CD! It's unbelievably amazing, fabulous, incredible, great, super and a lot of other words which mean "very good". I've been listening to it non-stop since I got it. The only downside to the CD is that it makes me want to go to a Great Big Sea concert and none are coming to Montreal any time soon! Also, the Barenaked Ladies were on behind the music a few days ago. Even as a BNL fan I learned some stuff about them that I didn't know. The show had an extremely Americanized view of BNL however and acted like Stunt was the only CD they ever sold which made money. Stuff like that made it kinda frustrating to watch at times. Overall it was good though. Not to be missed by any BNL fans. Now, if only Barenaked in America would come to theatres here!
In movie news, I saw Almost Famous last weekend. I've got to say, it's probably the best movie I've seen in quite a long time. Truly an amazing film! I recommend it heavily. The movie is dramatic, humorous and touching but has a feeling of honesty to it. The movie never seems corny for one moment and is extremely well acted. There are also very few big name actors in the film. That makes it a lot easier to get pulled into the story (although I have to admit, it was great to see Jason Lee in the film). 4 out of 5 stars easily. I'm also off to see the re-release of the Exorcist tonight. I've seen the original, which is a classic, and I'm anxious to see the new scenes. Should be fun.
I was finally able to post some of the pictures from my 20th Birthday in the Me and My Friends section. Just a warning though, there are quite a few pictures on that page, so it'll probably take a while to load. Speaking of updates, I have a new rant and AFA review posted (as usual). I also plan to fix up my music page one day soon.
Well, I guess that's about everything. Take care and remember, no matter how high you throw it, that hippo just ain't gonna fly.
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(September 25th, 2000) - Hello all! I had planned to update the site a little earlier, but between being in classes, doing work, going out, and being a lazy ass, I haven't had lots of time recently. Before I talk about anything else, I just wanna say that I'm glad Robyn is recovering well from her leg operation and from the mistake that her doctor made (he accidentally hurt her spine... the bastard). Robyn seems to have this super power to both hurt herself and heal herself with amazing ease. Well, needless to say, I'm glad she's doing ok!
In music news, I got Maroon, the new Barenaked Ladies album. It's a fantastic CD! In typical Barenaked Ladies fashion, the more you listen to it, the better it gets. My favourite songs off the CD are Pinch Me (track 3), Falling For the First Time (track 5), Baby Seat (track 9) and Tonight is the Night I Fell Asleep at the Wheel (track 12). Oh, and while we are on the topic of Canadian music, I would like to say "thank you" about a hundred more times to Rosie. Adem and I have floor tickets to the Tragically Hip concert which is going to be here in December all thanks to her. The tickets for the concert went on sale September 15th at noon, but both Adem and I were in class at the time. Fortunately, Rosie didn't have class then, and she was amazingly kind enough to make the call. So Rosie, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, etc. I just hope you don't get any ideas now that you have my credit card number.... :)
I've decided that I officially hate the vending machines on Concordia's Loyola campus. For anyone who doesn't know, I've developed an addiction to Lipton's Lemon Iced Tea over the past year (see my Academic Stuff section for more details). Now, the machines at Loyola campus almost all stock this life giving substance. Unfortunately, none of them seem to be working! While between classes the other day, I decided to pick up a bottle. First, I tried the vending machine in the Bryan building. It didn't work. This wasn't much of a surprise, because it never works. I decided to try the machine in the CC building. It accepted the first 50 cents I gave it, but after that, it didn't seem to want any more of my money. It just spit it back out. I decided to walk on over to Hingston Hall. This vending machine worked, but it was sold out of Iced Tea. This was when the frustration started to set in. I thought I might as well try one more building. I walked over to the DA building, hoping that my Iced Tea withdrawal wouldn't have to continue. Unfortunately, this machine was ALSO sold out of the Iced Tea I craved. That's when my killing spree started. Things got kind of blurry after that. I hate those damn machines.
In movie news, I saw Nurse Betty, Romeo Must Die and the Ninth Gate recently. Nurse Betty was an odd mix of cute and dark. I found that it was really a strange combination. Those who would like the cute part, would probably find the dark parts much too dark. Those who would enjoy the dark scenes would probably find the cute scenes too cutesy. It seems like the film was trying to target two different kinds of people, neither of whom is gonna be completely satisfied with the movie. I thought overall it was ok. 3 stars out of 5. I was kind of disappointed with Romeo Must Die. I thought the action would be better. As for the Ninth Gate, it was weird. Very weird. Did I mention the weirdness?
I've scanned some of the pictures from my Surprise 20th birthday. I've got to say that they actually came out really well! This is surprising because I usually picture badly... very VERY badly. I'll add them to the Me and My Friends section in the next little while. Sari actually has some of them online in the Friends section of her website. If you're at all interested, you can check them out there.
As usual, I have a new AFA review and a new rant up and running. Today's rant deals with the recent events that have been going on around here in Montreal. As is typical of my rants, I loudly express my arrogant opinion of the situation. I just hope I'm not the target of a fire-bomb as a result!
Well, I guess that about covers everything. Take care all and don't let that invisible monkey boss you around! Ciao.
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(September 9th, 2000) - Well, the first week of classes have finished and it's starting to feel like I never left. Better than that deep funk I was in while I was working during the summer though. Unfortunately, I'm headin' back to work part time starting this Monday. *Sigh* the things we do for money (no, that's not what I meant you sicko!). My classes this semester consist of:
Reporting Methods: This is my main Journalism class. We're gonna learn how to cover stuff like court cases, how to file access to information requests and stuff like that. To train us in meeting deadlines, the teacher is gonna cut down on the amount of time we have to give in each assignment. At one point, we're going to have a news conference in class and by the end of that class, have to hand in the good copy of our 500 word story. It's gonna be intense. Sounds fun though.
Sociology of Leisure: This is pretty much my elective which I hope will be easy and not very stressful. So far it seems kind of interesting, but not particularly useful in any way. We're learning stuff like how Leisure was relevant to the Ancient Greeks and stuff like that. Not a bad class. I guess I'll find out how stressful it really is after the first mid-term though.
Radio News: This is my required radio journalism class. I've heard not great things about it. Apparently the teacher I have is suppose to be quite the hard marker. Fortunately, they updated all the equipment over the summer so instead of using those old sound editing machines from the '60s, we get to use Mini-disc players and computers for our sound editing. Hopefully that will make things easier.
Intro to Ethics: This is my 3rd Philosophy class with the same teacher in 3 semesters. I wonder if he thinks I'm stalking him? It's a fun class and I already know what to expect so it's a pretty safe class to take. The teacher (Jack Ornstein) believes that morals are absolute, and I happen to be at least a partial moral relativist, so that makes listening and having arguments with him quite frustrating. It's a fun class though.
Intro to Metaphysics: This is my other philosophy class. It's required for both a philosophy major and minor (and I'm still trying to decide between the two). I absolutely LOOVE Metaphysics. It's my favourite kind of philosophy. I'd read the text book on my own time just because it interests me (am I loser or what?). I'm really looking forward to the class. I just hope the teacher doesn't turn out to be really lousy (so far he seems ok).
In movie news, I saw The Art of War recently. It's nothing new or original. You can see the plot twists coming from a mile away and the story has been done a million times. The action was better than I thought it would be though, so that was a plus. Considering all the crap that's out now, this is probably one of the better things in theatres for the moment. I'd give it 2 and a half stars out of 5.
Today's rant could probably have been longer and more in-depth, but I was lazy. My new AFA review is pretty long though since I wrote it before classes started. I just forgot to upload it.
I hope everyone is well and surviving classes with minimal harm (and I hope Joanna and Mary are able to avoid those freaky guys that always seem to be checking them out or hitting on them).
I need a haircut.
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(August 30th, 2000) - As the summer draws to a close, I'm starting to realize just how far I've come. Other than Jennifer who is a year behind, the entire CEGEP gang is going into their second year of University. Guys, has it really been over a year since we spent our breaks on the first floor windowsills at Marianopolis? Time is passing WAY to quickly for my taste. I'm not ready to enter to the real world in only 2 years from now!
Well, enough depressing talk. My trip to Boston was a lot of fun. I got to hear Alix's band play, and they are incredible! They sound better than most of the stuff currently being played on the radio. Alix also gave me a tour of Lynnfield (the town he lives in) and I've got to say, I'm way too much of a city kid. I don't know how Alix lives in a small town without going crazy. We went to see Bless the Child on Tuesday (last Tuesday, not yesterday), which was alright, and on Friday we saw the first Nightmare on Elm Street (which I had never seen). It was really good, but a bit dated. I was surprised to learn that it was Johnny Depp's first movie. It's pretty funny to see him with an '80s haircut.
Last night Sari and I went to the Live/Counting Crows concert, which was amazing! Probably the best concert I've been to after Great Big Sea. While I'm not a huge Live fan, I AM a massive Counting Crows fan! The Crows played some of their best songs like A Long December, Mrs. Potter's Lullaby, A Murder of One, Mr. Jones and more. The highlight of the show was when they brought out Live to help them sing Hangin' Around. I must say however that I was rather disappointed that they didn't play Round Here which is my all time favourite song, as well as Anna Begins and Rain King, which are incredible songs. Live put on a great show too, which I really enjoyed. There were a couple of songs that I didn't know, but in general, they played my favourite Live songs and even brought out Adam Duritz wearing a Canadians Jersey with "Duritz 1" on it to help them sing The Dolphin's Cry, which was great! Sari and I got a great view of it since we were right up against the stage. Now I've finally seen my three favourite bands in concert!
Speaking of Sari, she's given her website quite the facelift recently. I think it looks much better than her old page. Check it out when you get the chance! I've got to say though, that while I can't put my finger on it, there is something about her page layout that looks kinda.... familiar somehow.... =) Anyhoo, now I feel I need to fix up MY site just to compete (my laziness will, of course, keep that from ever happening however).
While I'm too lazy to completely re-make my page, I HAVE added a new section to the website. It's called The American Family Association. The American Family Association (or AFA for short) is a group I found while looking on www.stopdrlaura.com. They are a bunch of religious fundamentalists who support Dr. Laura and who pretty much use their religion as justification for their hatred of anything different. Needless to say, I can't stand them. They often post articles on their website, www.afa.net, to promote and defend their views. I've decided to look at one of these articles every so often and to post my response to it in my AFA section. I figure this is a healthier outlet for my anger than just keeping it inside and constantly being pissed off at them.
Since university classes start in less than a week, I wanna say Good Luck to everyone in the CEGEP gang. Hope to see you all a lot during the year! And Jennifer, don't worry, you'll have a blast!
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(August 19th, 2000) - A lot to talk about today! Despite what David thought, time did not stop on Thursday keeping me in my teenage years forever. As of yesterday, I am now 20 years old. To celebrate, the CEGEP gang threw me a surprise party, which I have to say, was the most fun I've had in a long time. So I wanna thank everyone for being there: Rosie, Mary, Jen, Joanna, Sari, Adam, Amanda, Laura and Nick. Thanks guys! I also want to give a special thanks to Jen for leading me blindly into the surprise party, and Rosie for organizing it. It really meant a lot to me and I love you all =) I also wanna thank Robyn for mentioning me in the Birthdays section of her webpage! I wish you could have been there Robyn!
While we are on the topic of Birthdays, I wanted to wish John a Happy Birthday in my last update, but I forgot. Sorry about that. John turned 20 on the 1st. Happy Birthday John!
While surfing the net the other day, I found the rant on "Rage" that Dennis Miller wrote for the season finale of this season's Dennis Miller Live. Part of the rant puts in words exactly what I was trying to say in my Instant Gratification rant. I thought I'd quote the relevant section for you. Now, I don't know what the legal situation is for me quoting Dennis Miller, so if I'm breaking any copyright laws, then just remember, the following material is copyrighted by Dennis Miller, or HBO, or God, or Satan, or Bob, or whoever it is that owns the material:
"During the past two decades we have become inundated with money and technology that allow us as Americans to become accustomed to everything going our own way, which means we've got very little tolerance for frustration. The difference between the rage we see today and the rage of the 60's is, road rage and air rage are the rage of the haves, not the have-nots. The people flying off the handle today are the people who have no reason to be upset about anything. Their rage is the byproduct of an overfed, overindulged society of spineless, blathering crybabies. And it just makes me want to kick their fucking teeth in." - Dennis Miller
Amen Dennis! And feel free to substitute 'Americans' for 'North Americans', because believe me, it's not limited to the US! If you want to see the entire rant, you should be able to find it on HBO's Dennis Miller Live website.
Last weekend I was in Toronto visiting Nick at U of T. I like Toronto. It's like Montreal in a lot of ways... except, of course, for the moose statues. For some reason, there are painted moose statues scattered all over the city. From what Nick has told me, the government seems to think that the statues will inspire people's pride in Toronto. All the statues seem to be placed in front of some company's building, and it is then up to the company to paint the moose as it sees fit. I'm still not quite sure HOW these statues are suppose to make people proud of Toronto. I do have to admit however, it's something that makes you sit up, take notice and say "What the hell are they thinking?"
This Tuesday I am heading off to Boston for about 5 days to visit Alix and help Lorin move into his new apartment. I really want to hear Alix's band play live. Their first CD comes out soon and his band Even-Tide just got their website up and going. You can check out a couple of their songs in the 'Sounds' section of their webpage. Be warned though, you need Internet Explorer to download the sounds properly. Netscape Navigator won't work. And when I get back, Sari and I have 3rd row tickets for the Live/Counting Crows concert on the 29th!
I thought I'd warn everybody that today's rant is LONG (ok, so I had too much time on my hands, sue me!). I figured it was time I dealt with a really controversial subject, so today's rant is all about abortion. Just so everyone's clear, I'm not ranting AGAINST abortion, I'm mostly giving my defense for it. Chunks of my rant is actually taken directly from a philosophy term paper I wrote for my Biomedical Ethics course last semester. If I give myself permission, does it count as plagerism? =)
Robyn, you're right, the summer went by way too fast, but we should all try to make it go out with a bang!
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(August 7th, 2000) - First, I want to send out a HUGE congrratulations to my friend Jennifer for getting accepted into Concordia University in the Child Studies program! I knew you'd make it in Jen! You really should stop worrying so much =)
Well, Sari and I went to see Tonic in concert Saturday night. I really like their singles and I have their Lemon Parade CD (although I only really listen to a few songs off it). I have to say though, I was quite unimpressed with the concert. I mean, it was pretty good, but nothing fabulous (although since the last concert I went to was Great Big Sea, it might not be fair to compare the two). Tonic is the kind of band that you really don't have to spend a lot of money to see in concert. They sound exactly the same on the radio and they don't really go all out or put on a particularly impressive show in concert. Overall it was good but not great. The opening act was a band called Stir, and I thought they pretty much sucked. Sari seemed to like them though. We were literally right up against the stage for the entire show, and we couldn't make out a single lyric that these guys sang. It's my opinion that if you can only get the audience going by raising the volume, then you're not a very good band. The drummer and guitarist weren't bad, but overall, I didn't find them to be particularly good. The tickets were only $17.00 after tax though and we WERE right up against the stage, so I guess I shouldn't complain.
Well, the countdown has begun for me. Only 11 days until I leave these teenage years behind me.
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(July 22nd, 2000) - Greetings all! It's taken me longer thhan I thought to update my page, but here it is, all bright, shiny and updated (well, updated anyway). Last weekend I was down in Cowansville with Mary and Robyn for a Great Big Sea concert. Let me just say that there is no more doubt in my mind that Great Big Sea is the best band to ever grace this planet we call Earth! This was my second GBS concert and it still blew me away! No one puts on a show like they do. Robyn, who had never really heard much of their music before, is now a huge fan.
Speaking of Robyn, she has started to update her webpage, so go check it out! You can also find a link to her page in my links section at the bottom of this page.
For today's rant, I've decided to take a break from the whole Provincial Government thing and turn my attention to something even more evil (if you can believe it). So, what can POSSIBLY be more evil than the Quebec government? Well, there aren't many things, but Dr. Laura Schlessinger definitely manages to come even closer to pure evil. So, if you also share my hatred for Dr. Laura, you might also want to check out the website: www.stopdrlaura.com. As I'm sure you can deduce from the domain name, the site is dedicated to pulling Dr. Laura off the air-waves and trying to stop her television show from being released.
For any X-Files fans out there who have not already heard the news, they have found an actor to play the role of Scully's new partner for season 9. It's none other than the T-1000 himself: Robert Patrick. Bruce Campbell was also in the running for the role and I would have LOVED to see him get the part, but I'm still pumped to see Robert Patrick in the role.
I had a chance to see the X-Men movie this week. I collected the comics when I was younger so I was looking forward to the movie's release. I was rather nervous walking into the film though for fear that they would ruin the comic I loved so much in my younger years. Fortunately, I was rather surprised at how good it was. It was truer to the comics than I ever thought a movie adaptation could be. I applaud the great Bryan Singer for being able to pull off such an amazing feet!
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(July 3rd, 2000) - I hope everyone had a Happy Canada Day! To my fellow Montrealers, I hope you managed to have a great July 1st evening despite the large amounts of rain and wind we received. While I don't have any birthdays to mention this time around, July 1st was the day my parents celebrated their 29th wedding anniversary! Happy anniversary Mom and Dad and many more!
Speaking of July 1st, it turns out that Great Big Sea opened for The Tragically Hip at a FREE Canada Day concert held in New York! Why in the world they chose to hold a Canada Day concert in the US is beyond me but I would have loved to go had I not heard about it too late. Oh well, maybe next time they will actually perform in the right country!
I want to mention a little movie a saw again the other day which many people probably don't know. It's called Mumford. It didn't exactly make a big splash when it opened and was not in theatres for very long. I'm not even sure you can find it at Blockbuster (or at least very many copies of it). I really liked the movie however. It's a movie that's really hard to categorize however, and that might explain why it had a hard time finding an audience. It's a comedy/drama that doesn't go far enough in either direction to be labeled as one or the other. The movie stars Jason Lee whom I've become a big fan of ever since watching Kevin Smith's movies. While his role in Mumford is very different from the ones he plays in Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma, I thought that he did a great job. It's a really enjoyable movie that I recommend to anyone who's in the mood to watch something light but entertaining.
While trying to decide what to write about for today's rant, I came to the conclusion that it was about time I ranted about the Quebec government. Unfortunately, I realized that there is no conceivable way for me to fit all I want to say into just one rant. So, I've decided to break up the various aspects of the Quebec government and rant about them separately. You can consider today's rant to be Part 1 of my Provincial Government rant. I don't know if I'll continue this government rant next time, but I will eventually cover all I want to say about the various topics.
Oh, and to any American readers, have a Happy Independence Day tomorrow!
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(June 14th, 2000) - I've got some Happy Birthdays that neeed handing out today (a lot of people I know seem to have their birthdays around this time of year). First, I'd like to give one of these Happy Birthdays to my friend David who just had his 18th birthday on June 4th. Since this is Quebec, pretty much everything is legal for him now. Enjoy the freedom Dave! Second, I wanna give Elena a Happy Birthday for turning 20 recently! Sorry I wasn't able to make it to the celebration! Last, but certainly not least, I want to wish a big Happy Birthday to my brother Lorin who is turning 24 on June 20th. Happy Birthday Lore!
It looks like the site for Arniefest 2000 has been noticed! Schwarzenegger.com, the official site of a certain actor with the first name of Arnold, has named the Arniefest site as its Fan Site of the month! David and Joseph are both mentioned (which I think is cool) and will receive a free T-shirt. Joseph is determined to make sure that I get a free T-shirt as well for being a partial owner of the site, but seeing as how I haven't helped out much with the site yet, I don't really mind. I am going to write the descriptions for some of movies in the "Arnie Movies" section at one point this summer though.
Some people may find the topic of today's rant to be a little odd. The idea behind it came from my friend Amanda. Before she moved to Newfoundland to start her new, really big and very important sounding job a few weeks ago, she had a dream that I had written a rant about Potato Chip Flavours. I don't know if she dreamt about me WRITING The rant, about her READING the rant or about the rant itself, but either way, I found it to be a really odd thing to be dreaming about. I figured it was as good a topic as any to write about, so today's rant is pretty much my way of showing Amanda that dreams really CAN come true =)
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(May 25th, 2000) - Well, for all you Late Night with Conan O'Brien fans out there, I hope you got your VCRs ready because tomorrow is Andy's last day as our favorite couch dwelling sidekick! Personally, I'm saddened by his departure from the show. It was Andy who originally got me hooked on Late Night in the first place. Andy's comments were always hilarious and the show won't be the same without him. I wish him luck in his acting career and hope that, if it fails, he will return to sit beside his red-headed friend.
Before I forget, I want to wish my good friend Robyn a Happy Birthday. It was her 20th birthday on Monday. She claims that that's the REAL reason there was no work on that day (as all Canadians know, Monday was Victoria Day). While we're on the topic of friends and celebration, I want to wish my friend Amanda the best of luck with her new job as Layout Editor for some big publishing company in Newfoundland whose name I can't remember. She was one of my main influences for going into Journalism. She's moving out there on Monday and I hope she has a blast!
Well, it took me longer than I thought to update my rant section, but I do finally have a new rant online. Whether it's a GOOD rant is another question altogether though.
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(May 13th, 2000) - Well, this site has now officially gotten more than a 1000 hits! Yay! I know it's not a big deal, but it's nice to know that people out there have visited something I created. I wanna say thanks to everyone who has stopped by for a visit! Thanks =) Now, despite this hit count, no one seems to ever sign my damn guestbook! Even my Father managed to find my page and figure out how to sign the guestbook. Common' guys and gals, get with the signin'! Like the site, hate the site, just let me know! Anyway, I thought I should take this opportunity to thank people who helped me out with the site (I make it sound like I'm receiving an award or something...). I want to thank Joseph for creating the simple but rather nifty 'Eric's Page' graphic you see at the top of the page. I want to thank Sari for helping me work out some of the bugs. I also want to thank Brian Borowski for linking my page to his and for letting me use one of his BNL animations on my music page.
Speaking of Brian, you may have noticed that I have added a new link to the bottom of the page. The link is to Brian's Barenaked Ladies Page. This is none other than Mr. Borowski's page from which he let me borrow his animation. It's one of the funniest sites I've seen in a long time and it's got great BNL info and tons of other interesting stuff! It's worth checking out for the humour alone.
On a completely separate topic, I just learned a few days ago about an online cartoon from (I believe) the animators of the Simpsons called Zombie College. It's about a student who goes to a college where some of the students just happen to be zombies. I haven't found it to be laugh out loud funny so far, but it is pretty funny and it's definitely worth a look. As of this posting, there are 6 episodes online and at least 10 are planned (I have no idea if it's an ongoing thing or just a mini-series thing).
Well, that's about it for now. Take care all!
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(May 2nd, 2000) - Well, first thing's first. I have a few birthdays that need mentioning. I have to wish a very large Happy Birthday to my good friend Sari who turns 20 today. She can now leave those irritating teenage years behind her! I also want to wish a belated Happy Birthday to my friends Mary and Joanna. It's a little late, but they Iknow I love them. I also want to wish my friend Adem good luck with his summer courses which started yesterday if I'm not mistaken.
Rosie and I just got back from our little road trip to Ottawa today. It was definitely an experience. We got lost about 8,000 times. We got lost going to Ottawa, we got lost in Ottawa, we got lost leaving Ottawa (we must have passed the parliament building like 6 times) and we got lost on our way back home. We also managed to lose the car antenna when we took it through a car wash (we got a good laugh out of it though).
The whole trip was great fun. We had a great time listening to the Barenaked Ladies with the volume way up. I doubt the people in cars beside us had such a great time listening to the two of us sing the wrong lyrics to each song horribly off key, but hey, at least WE had a good time! The highlight of the trip was finding a sign which read "No Dumping" (hehe, I STILL think it's funny).
Well, that's all I've got to say for now. I haven't updated my rants page as of this posting, but I'll get to it at one point. Take care all!
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(April 25, 2000) - Here it is, the newest addition to my website! I've decided to add another section to my website that requires updating every few weeks or so. I guess 'cause it gives me a chance to write expressively and non-academically more often.
Some of you might think this section will be similar to my rant section. Hopefully, that won't be the case. My rants are limited to bitching, moaning and trying to make some kind of point. This section isn't going to be so negative. It'll pretty much just be my comments on things that are going on in the world or in my life (hey, I never said it was going to be interesting). Some stuff might be rant-like, but it won't be limited to that. I will try to update this section whenever I update my rants (which should about every two weeks or so).
Check back here in a couple of weeks for a new update!
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