Sunday, January 30, 2011


If you're up for a movie, go see "Barney's Version".

Saturday, January 29, 2011


Incredible, but true.

Thursday, January 27, 2011


And then I backed out of my parking space and drove away.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Monday, January 24, 2011


It's been non-stop rain around here. Which, however, means that all's right with the world. It's -12 back East and +7 here, and that's how it's supposed to be.

Sunday, January 23, 2011


Yeah, I know - not terribly exciting. Neither was "The Way Back", which I saw today. A seemingly endless journey turned into a seemingly endless movie.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Monday, January 17, 2011

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Saturday, January 15, 2011


You know what? Fencing is exhausting!

Friday, January 14, 2011

Thursday, January 13, 2011


Let's face it, when it comes to loony behaviour, America's an easy target. I mean, this is a country that won't let people bring Kinder Surprises (teeny toys packaged in plastic eggs) across their border, but will let someone obviously totally insane buy a high-powered automatic weapon and a giant clip of bullets. And their politicians fall all over themselves kow-towing to a bunch of paranoid delusionals (a.k.a. the NRA) who feel that no home is complete without enough weaponry to start a minor world war. Sure, that's sensible. On the other hand, wouldn't it be nice to see a politician with more spine than the average earthworm tell the NRA to go fuck themselves? How hard could that be? "NRA nitwits? Go fuck yourselves." See? Nothing to it. Still, don't go holding your breath waiting for it to happen.

But, what brought all this to mind is a somewhat less serious act of lunacy here in my Home and Native Land. Today our keepers of public morals have banned the Dire Straits song, "Money for Nothing". Why, you ask? Because it uses the word "faggot" and that's just not nice. Never mind the the lyrics are supposed to represent the thoughts of an imbecile (come to think of it, someone who might be right at home in the NRA), that the song is meant to satirize the thought processes (if that verb can actually be used in this case) of bigots. Hell, no. The song uses a naughty word, and context is irrelevant. And never mind that the song came out 25 years ago, meaning that an entire generation has been poisoned by these awful lyrics. No! Plug your ears, Canadians!

Where do these people come from?

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Monday, January 10, 2011


Ah, it's nice to be prescient. As expected, the Right Wingnuts are in full "Who? Me?" mode.

Well, for my next prediction....Americans will let them get away with it. And you know what else? It'll only get worse.

Sunday, January 09, 2011


Red's generally acknowledged to be the colour of warning, of stop. How 'bout when it's blood? Do you think the Republicans and their Tea Party Twits will get the hint? They're sure running for cover, aren't they? John Boehner and John McCain decrying the shooting of Giffords and others as ever-so deplorable, wicked, and generally all around mean....after, of course, encouraging such actions for the past two years. And Sorry Palin with her map of targeted politicians? Well, she's taken it down, and offered condolences to the families of the dead and injured (as well as denying, through her press shill, that the symbols represented crosshairs in the first place). Yeah? Cry me a river. Wouldn't it be great if just one of these weasels had enough spine to say they were sorry for encouraging the nuts to show up at political rallies packing heat? Well, that ain't gonna happen. So, wouldn't it be great if Americans simply demanded their resignations? Yeah, well, that ain't gonna happen either. How 'bout demanding stricter gun laws? Hah! Give me a break.

Of course, the terminal irony is the fact that Giffords herself is a strong supporter of gun "rights". How, if I may be so bold as to ask, is it that guns can have rights? Especially rights that trump those of actual human beings.

God bless America. Land o' Grim Entertainment.

Saturday, January 08, 2011


Wowee. Went to hear the Vancouver Symphony do Beethoven's 9th tonight. If the human race disappeared from the universe tomorrow, leaving nothing but this one piece of music, any intelligent species from elsewhere (should such actually exist) that stumbled across it would undoubtedly say, "Rats! We've missed the best the universe had to offer." Pick any 20th/21st century musician you like - they can't measure up. This guy didn't play an instrument, he played an entire symphony orchestra! And, in this case, a choir to boot. A-fucking-mazing.

Friday, January 07, 2011


You know the old saying, "There's never a real naycher photographin' camera around when you need one". But, this is one of the inhabitants of the community golf course behind the college where I work. Seemed to think there might be some mice hiding down in those tussocks of grass.

Thursday, January 06, 2011


Ahhhhh.....a lot of time for these for the next little while.

Wednesday, January 05, 2011


More from my trip to the Frozen East.

Tuesday, January 04, 2011

Monday, January 03, 2011

Sunday, January 02, 2011


Shot this while killing time before seeing "True Grit". Sort of fits, doesn't it?

Saturday, January 01, 2011


Went to see the Coen brothers' version of "True Grit" today. Good movie. The one thing that it lacks, however, is the historical weight that John Wayne carried in the original movie. Jeff Bridges does a good Rooster Cogburn, no complaints there, but his version stands isolated in time. When John Wayne played the role, he was fully believable as a washed-up old fat man because, though he was far from washed up, he was an old and fat version of his younger self. Anyone growing up in the 50s and 60s was familiar with the younger, fitter version of John Wayne and so could see, as well as feel, his slide into old age. This, I think, added a greater depth and sympathy to the role.