Good shopping day

Who would have thought it possible!

Firstly, I was going to 'manly' stores which made me feel all manly, walking around canadian tire, home depot, and revy.

On thursday I browsed around, and got some shelves at home depot, but got two different colours to see which looked better, knowing I'd have to return one. Friday I went to canadian tire to get a medicine cabinet I'd been comparison shopping for. Got it, and got a free 8-pack of lindor chocolates (which I mostly gave to my parents)! Then, went to home depot to return the bad colour shelf and get more good colours, and discovered the prices had all dropped to 50%! Lucky me! I also discovered a technology I want but didn't know if it existed: blinds that open from the top-down instead of just bottom-up. I'd never seen them before, and thought I might have to use that engineering degree to figure out how to design some. Which might have actually been interesting to do, maybe I'll still do it and see if I can mod my existing blinds.

Biggest recycler award

Heard on the news, some people who already do recycling are complaining about the mandatory curbside recycling, cause it's essentially forcing them to pay to do something they already do. That's understandable.

So some are saying there should be compensation, or perhaps rewards of some kind. The news article told how some cities have rewards once a week/month/year for the people who recycle the most amount of stuff. That's gotta be one of the stupidest concepts I've heard of lately. Do people realise that in order to recycle the most, you have to consume the most and and produce the greatest amount of waste in the first place?!

Cost of electricity

2 kWh * $0.07/kWh = $0.14 of electricity
total bill = $16.86
So the various administrative charges were about TWELVE THOUSAND percent of the electricity cost.

Photos

Finally the photos from my field rotation are online. http://members.shaw.ca/scottfieldrotation1/photo_toc_fieldrotation1.htm

Kindof took a long time, not sure if it's worth doing next time.

Snow and old games

I was pretty excited at first, being outside and little bits of snow coming down on me for the first time this winter. But the excitement only lasted a few minutes before starting the several months of waiting for winter to end. Started driving to a friend's house, but only made it partway there before I had to turn back and go home. Well, I didn't have to, but I saw the probability of me with a smashed car rising higher and higher. I was already slipping when stopping and starting at intersections and when turning. Put me in a bad mood cause I'd been really looking forward to getting together with her. I was mad at her for living way the hell far away, I was mad at the weather for being snowy, and I was mad at myself for having procrastinated and still having the summer performance tires on which are super slick and useless on snow. Well no, mad isn't the right word, frustrated is more like it. But I knew there was nothing to gain from that. With the stressful driving (and I slid into the curb pretty hard once) by the time I got home I was suddenly very tired.

Still stayed up late though, got chatting with chris. Through a weird string of topics, ended up talking about really old computers and old games. Watched a youtube video about all the different ways to die in Kings Quest III (1986) (and there are videos about many old sierra games). Those mid-80's Quest games (King's Quest, Space Quest, Hero's Quest, Police Quest) from Sierra were great games! (ok police quest maybe wasn't that great). Forced you to be creative too, had to type in things like "ask about ship" and "rub ointment on self" instead of everything being point and click and answers/options just given to you like in later games. I bet I'd have a lot of trouble completing that game now without the creativity of childhood. I would try with an emulator, but my mind would rebel against the two-decade-old graphics, and would be weird without my brother and childhood friends I shared the adventures with. Hmmm... one of the weirdest things I noticed was how a computer or a program back then could be designed/created by just a couple people, rather than requiring teams of programmers which are of course necessary today. Ooo now thinking of Alternate Reality (1985), that game was really a pioneer. Pretty amazing, way ahead of its time. Though it was designed as a series of games and the sequels were never completed so the initial game essentially became endless.

Coconut Rice

Is it a Canadian thing?

Here, it's like a fundamental of Thai restaurants, I don't think I've been to a Thai restaurant here that doesn't serve coconut rice.

In the US, I went to a few Thai restaurants, none had coconut rice.

Maybe it's a local invention... like ginger beef...

Apologies

With the weather cooling, I picked up my big winter coat from my parents, and put it in the closet at home. When I opened the closet later to grab something, I was amazed at the strength of the stench that billowed forth to assault me! Might have been a little smoking monkey hiding in there for all my nose could tell. I'd hereby like to issue an apology to anyone who's had to be close to me prior to a few months ago, I didn't realise I was such a carrier. In fact, I'm somewhat surprised that since moving out, noone has said "Hi Scott. Wow you smell not bad!"

Week in Edmonton

Spent the week with Chris in Edmonton, Monday afternoon through to Sunday night. Was originally going to come back a couple days earlier but kept extending it by a day. Was having lots of fun, and didn't really have much reason to be in Calgary. Mostly we played video games (literally staying up all night a couple times) and watched some movies, I'm now partially caught up on my list. We did some archery, something I've been meaning to do for quite some time, and Chris has his own bows and such. Maybe I will end up doing it more often, take some lessons or something. Later in the week we created a balloon out of 16 jumbo black garbage bags, but unfortunately when we tried to fly it we had a bit too much wind, and lacked the sun for solar heating. Took the dog out a couple times, it's a chihuahua which is not my thing, but I was very surprised at how obedient and intelligent it seemed, a testament to it's trainer (Tara). Another recent addition to the list of many lifeforms inhabiting their place (poison dart frogs, chameleons, various fish, praying mantises, etc) was a bright yellow budgie. I didn't think I was a bird person, but I really liked this guy, he was really cute, and liked sitting on my shoulder (allowing me to be a pirate, arrr!) and sometimes groomed my hair or ear. Another highlight of my time in edmonton was getting to spend a little time with Janet, which happens far too infrequently.

Maybe I'll go up again sometime soon, gotta take advantage of the opportunity, before I'm back at work and before Chris starts a new job.

Many evenings with G&E

Four to be precise.

Thursday there was some movie and talks related to Burma. But we all showed up late and didn't really get much out of it. Oh well. It was nice to see them after being away a while.

Friday Evelyn had invited me to dancing at VRRI. Even used Jen as 'bait' as she has done in the past :), but that probably won't work anymore, we barely even danced and when we did she wasn't really dancing with me anyways. Hadn't danced for close to a year, and barely danced for a long time before that... I essentially didn't recognize anyone when I showed up. Geoff was the only one from my 'original' dance group who was there. Melissa was also there, I think I met her pretty early in my dancing days, it was good dancing with her cause she could follow whatever I lead. Boun showed up. Cora and Tim also appeared, though I kindof stopped talking to Cora some years ago. Miss those times though, I had extraordinary amounts of fun together, and thought I had a real friend. Oh well, long overdue to drop any negative feelings left over, but memories will always be around. Lets see, Mike from dragonboat was there. Henry also showed up to the dance just as we were about to leave, he's one of my 'original' dance friends too.

Saturday, helped Evelyn with some True Vision Ghana stuff, just simple stuff like powerpoint slides, photos and info about TVG and Aids, etc. Got dinner out of it. Played some Wallace and Gromit, and saw some of Geoff playing WoW (looks addictive!).

Sunday was dragonboat wrap-up dinner, yes, several weeks after dragonboat ended. Was weird seeing so many familiar faces again who you're with a few times a week for the whole summer then suddenly don't see at all for so long. Was good to see her again, or, maybe it wasn't, I'm not sure. There were some people I felt bad to have forgotten their name. And tried to continue a topic of conversation with someone then later realised that topic had been with someone else! I stuck around till everyone left, it was kindof sad how quickly everyone cleared out after dinner and presentations ended. Just like at most events I suppose. I like hanging out with people, have lots of fun with them but am not really close enough to get together outside of dragonboat, don't get much response if I do try to organize something. But there are a few official things happening that a few people go to that I can tag along to.

So, haven't reached the 'bored with my time off' stage yet.

Hotels, cars, stats

Some brief reviews:

Hotels:

Doubletree, Grand Junction. Very nice. Two double beds with 5 pillows each, as chris said if I brought home 10 women, I'd have to call the front desk and say "one pillow please". Went to the pool every time I could (3 times). Wireless internet. No microwave. Pay for breakfast.
La Quinta, Pueblo. Pretty nice, just one bed with 3 pillows. Weird shaped desk, no wireless internet made things a real pain, and it was quite slow. Main pool was cold and hot tub part was closed for health reasons. Decent breakfast (waffles!) included.
Residence Inn, Portland. Like a new condo, very nice, kitchenette, tables, sofa, separate bedroom/bathroom. One bed with 5 pillows. Quality wireless. Jumped in the pool (hot tub only) my last day so I could say I did. Good breakfast with good variety included, and "happy hour" with some food and pop/beer/wine included (I rarely attended).

Rental Cars:

Ford Mustang: Sounds sporty, but isn't really. Feels like a big-ish car but with no trunk space and very poor visibility. Good TCAS (inside joke).
Ford Taurus: Awful boat, even heaves in the turns like a boat, I was uncomfortable doing switchbacks on one road. Cheesy interior styling. Crazy panic seatbelt warning chime.
Hyundai Elantra: Weak, but my fav cause it's a small car, feels so much better.
Chevy HHR: Aka Uglymobile, I was embarrassed to be seen with it. Awful styling but you can pile a lot of crap in it. And has some power. Had to move to peer around the centre mirror.
Camry: A really great car, very refined. If I was about 20 yrs older I'd totally consider getting one.

Misc stats:

Number of hours logged in October: 362 (two mon-fri 8-5 jobs in oct combined = 368)
Number of restaurant meals in October: approx 90-93 (aka every single meal)
Number of times doing any exercise: about 5, lots of walking but started getting weird aches and pains from lack of real physical activity
Number of lbs gained/lost: gained ~5 lbs, not bad considering
Number of times I turned on the TV in my room: 0
Number of times getting laid: 0 (someone kept jokingly asking... though for some of those field guys it's probably not a joke)
Number of 'rewards' programs signed up for: 7 I think
Number of people I actually disliked: 2 / ~10 (sad considering it's been about 0 / ~40 or more in the office over a couple years)
I dunno, any other interesting stats?

Cell phone calls/texts were invaluable for work, have yet to see if it will have much usefulness outside of work. Skype is working well for calling people (US$30/year from north america to phones within north america... make sure you pay in US$, dumbasses want $35 if you use canadian).

Still sorting some photos, will post soon.

Departing Portland

Well I did it. I went to the FBO in the morning before I left, and gave gorgeous some flowers in a vase. I even wrote a refreshingly blunt yet poetic note. Well that was fun, hope she likes them, worst case scenario her coworkers tease her about it and they all have a laugh.

Didn't bother asking her name.

Bye Portland!

And goodbye "1 3 6 Delta Hotel", for now.

Another good day

Had another great day yesterday, and again it revolved about being outside. In the morning ahd some meetings etc, but in the afternoon, knowing that I wouldn't be flying that evening, I headed out of town. Along the columbia river gorge. Got off the main highway onto a scenic road, and there were some great views, and it was meandering through the forest, and passed by a few waterfalls. At one I went for a walk along forest paths, not knowing how long they'd take, and had a great time being buried in green-ness and smelling the fresh forest air with that extra twist of waterfally taste.

There was an interpretive centre at one lookout point, and one of the paths near a waterfall had some of those signs. It reminded me of being a kid, camping with my family. It was a great time back then. And I was into those signs and stuff too, I was pretty smart and quite curious and such. Sometimes I really wonder what happened, how I lost those traits, and how the mind could reverse so much.

By the time I got to the most famous waterfalls (which was my original destination though I got repeatedly distracted) it was dark. But still lots of people there, it seemed like -the- place to go. I took some photos, and soon felt pretty arrogant about my photo skills. Sure I may have looked like an idiot to do so, but I do pretty good with my compact and lacking a tripod. I felt contempt for the fools who had the flash on and would never see the waterfalls, or those who didn't and would have nothing but a blur. Actually, just joking contempt, I actually felt a little sorry that it is hard to get a good photo in low light conditions, especially getting people as well as background scenery. Oh well, can't capture it all!

In the evening restaurant, I touched a girl. No, not like that! Actually, I essentially elbowed her in the stomach. Or more precisely, she walked her stomach into my elbow. Not hard, she barely even noticed. But it triggered one of those moments where you realise something that seems a bit strange. Like when I was unemplyed and my parents were on vacation and I realised I hadn't spoken a single word for a couple days. Here I realised I hadn't had any contact with a girl for over a month for sure, don't know how long. Had minimal contact with guys, but at least shook a couple hands. I dunno, seems a little weird. Like we're supposed to have some contact with other people, even just like the pat on the shoulder or tug on the arm.

Today, last full day here, I wanted to go out and enjoy the autumn for a bit, cause tomorrow it'll turn to winter. Just go back to the big park in the middle of town where the japanese and rose gardens and arboretum and soo are. But things didn't work out, got delayed, so I got out but it got dark and cool soon after and I had to leave soon. Driving around portland really sucks, there's mega-traffic, and things are very poorly posted. The worst is when it says "I5 turn right" so you turn right, and that's the last ou ever hear of I5, as you soon come to a T-intersection or something with no hint on which way to go. Happens all over the place. Oh and the signs that would tell you which way to go are generally just after the intersection, so most of the time you miss it anyways. Oh, and there's a road called "interstate" which isn't an interstate, that's stupid. Yeah, I'd definitely have to say that's Portland's primary flaw.

A highlight of today... I decided to label a new set of disks as "DrDOOM". It gave me some giggles.

Leaving tomorrow early afternoon, got something I want to do before I go but we'll see if I actually do it.

Happy day

After a morning meeting, there wasn't a lot to do (well there's infinite stuff I could be doing, but was nothing critically urgent) so I decided to go to the Japanese gardens in portland. They werer incredibly nice! I was so happy wandering around there, so scenic. And I bet this may be the best time of year too, there is still a lot of green dominating, but there are also many areas of yellow and some reds. And the weather was perfect. It's nice being somewhere that actually has an autumn. There was a guided tour, but I didn't know about it till it was almost done, but I kindof listened in on it a bit, the lady seemed very nice and motherly sounding and was a good guide, would've liked to hear her talk about all the parts of the gardens. Afterwards, wandered around some paths on the foresty hill, I think it's part of a large area called washington park. I had a big smile on my face, it's nice to be outdoors, in the forest with ideal weather. There were some people around, but not so many that it was unpleasant. Wasn't sure where the forest paths lead so eventually returned along a road to the gardens. The rose gardens, right by the japanese gardens, were pretty nice, though blooming was mostly over. But they were still nicely laid out. There's a big amphitheatre which reminded me of watching a play with Steph in High Park in Toronto, though I think that one was better than this one, more buried in the park. I would have loved to just hang out around that area more, but had to return to dinner and work. At least Daniel is here from the Calgary office so there's someone good to have dinner with.

After the flight, the previous night and last night, there was a friendly looking girl at the front desk, so I stayed up and chatted for quite a while both evenings. Probably nice for her, someone to chat with for part of the boring night shift, and nice for me, I haven't chatted much for a few weeks and it's mostly guys talking like guys. I prefer to have a nicer conversation with a girl.

Not sure what's up today, don't know if I need to go on tonights flight. Kindof want to, kindof don't.

Home soon

I'd happened to drive through an area that must be the vietnamese part of Portland, so I went back there to eat. The restaurant I had been at previously barely qualified. This one I had a big smile at, there was vietnamese music playing, the food was good, and there was green tea! I haven't had green tea for a month! Yeah, I shouldn't be that excited, but I was.

Unfortunately this is what I did before on a long trip, as I was preparing to return from Africa, I was so looking forward to eating certain types of food back in Canada that I hadn't had my whole time away. But then I stopped in Dubai on the way home and spoiled myself, so there wasn't much to look forward to upon returning home.

Actually, that's how it is right now. I'm returning home pretty soon (schedule seems to have changed) but I'm not particularly looking forward to it. Partly I'm used to being in hotels where everything's done for you, and eating in restaurants almost every meal. Partly the weather's nicer here. But partly there just isn't that much in Calgary to look forward to, especially in winter. It's home, and will probably always feel like home, but a kindof empty home. My close friends aren't even in Calgary except for Evelyn.

I've noticed I don't like change. And yet, I'm often bored and want change. Also, I adapt very quickly to changes. Ummm not sure where that thought is going.

Last night something was still on the stove when I went for my flight, and I only realised when I entered my room 6.5 hours later and it smelled very burny. I'm so glad nothing terrible happened. Actually it was on medium-low heat, cause when I put it on I thought "I'm an idiot and might forget this, better not put it on high."

Maybe today I'll get to go to the Japanese gardens and rose gardens that I've been trying to go to for the past 3 or 4 days but keep having a bunch of work to do instead. Wasn't sure if I should ask to stay a day or two after my work rotation ends, to do things around ere, haven't really figured out what there is to do around here.

Halloween

Yesterday, took a walk down memory lane. Wandered around downtown portland... saw some things I still remembered, saw some things that made me remember things I forgot. Was kindof lonely though. And kindof cold. Then decided to look for a vietnamese restaurant. Asked people on the streets, noone knew of one. Asked a hotel, got directions to a couple, walked towards one. Walked the wrong way, first, eventually got to the location. It wasn't there. Asked people, noone knew. Asked a hotel, got a different location for the same restaurant. Walked there. It wasn't there. Asked some more people. Got directions again, walked there, it wasn't there. Then, walking a block over, finally found it. And then, it wasn't really that good. Oh well. Wandered to the riverfront and along there a while, way later than I should have. Was tired and wanted to go home, but after walking all over the place for hours, I didn't know where the car was. Somewhere in downtown. Somewhere within a couple blocks of a building with a fish on it. Which was somewhere on Salmon ave. So I found the ave, found the building, then walked around hitting the lock button on the car remote until I heard the car beep. Well, it's not even really a car, it's a chevy HHR, it's an incredibly ugly thing that I'm embarrassed to be seen in. Maybe that's why gorgeous snubbed me, maybe saw me in that vehicle. But I guess it's good for what it was rented for, carrying loads of crap (no I didn't mean to metaphorically refer to hauling me around, though it seems to do that too).

This morning, our flight got diverted to Yakima. Nothing too exciting. Got back and briefly saw gorgeous again then she was stuck in my head all day. Tomorrow's flight's cancelled then I'm switching back to evening shift so probably won't see her anymore. Realised I was stupidly obsessing but couldn't help it. If you could've seen her smile though...

This evening, it's halloween, with no 4AM wakeup tomorrow, I joked that we should all (8 or 9 of us) wear our pilot and flight crew uniforms and go out trick or treating. I think it would look pretty funny actually. Other people didn't seem so into the idea. Would have been nice to somehow go out and be around people having fun on halloween, like that time I was in montreal for a couple days happened to include halloween and the bus and subway rides and just walking around downtown were fun cause of all the people out and about having fun. Oh well. As far as the stores are concerned, a few more hours and it'll be christmas season.