I rode the Hellevator this weekend.

The Hellevator is a hair-raising rush of a ride, which differs from other tower rides in that riders experience an incredible accelerated rush from the ground up and then they are accelerated down towards the ground. Experience G forces of +4.5 G.

The "beyond free-fall" floating negative "G" experience is one which riders do not expect and is one which is totally unlike any other ride or attraction.

G forces of +4.5 ... I'm still smokin :)

Have you ever had crappy coffee?

Kopi Luwak

"It's not a fine coffee. That's not the point. The point is to experience the world's rarest and most exotically processed coffee."

Henderson has scored for Canada!

This is the 30th anniversary of that series winning goal. A defining moment that rocked a nation.

The nuts are running the psycho ward.

What on earth were 'they' thinking?

Friday Five

1. What are your favorite ways to relax and unwind?

I am unwound when I'm nestled in my favorite chair with a good book and a mug of herbal tea. A jacuzzi with decent powered jets can relax me in minutes.

2. What do you do the moment you get home from work/school/errands?

Get out of my monkey suit and into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

3. What are your favorite aromatherapeutic smells?

I didn't really have one in particular until last month when I purchased Escents Lemon Lift shaving cream. It's perky stuff, first thing in the morning.

4. Do you feel more relaxed with a group of friends or hanging out by yourself?

On balance, I'm probably more relaxed hanging out by myself.

5. What is something that you feel is relaxing but most people don't?

An intense cardio workout actually relaxes me mentally.

A&F Quarterly

See? It's the articles (and content).

Dear A&F,
My friend told me that if you’re 500 miles away from your boyfriend and you fool around with someone, it’s not really cheating. Can I get a confirmation of this rule?
Kendra, Berkeley, CA

Hey Kendra,
If you just saw your boyfriend yesterday, then you’re a bad girl. If you haven’t seen him in six months, then PLEASE be a bad girl.

This week's Thursday Threesome entry, in honor of the new Fanny Flagg novel, Standing in the Rainbow.

Onesome: Standing - Any particular issue you feeling like standing up on your soap box and discussing?

The impending attack on Iraq. The only question in my mind now, is when? Within the last couple of weeks, we have had President Bush's speech to the UN, Iraq's agreement to allow the 'unconditional' return of UN weapons inspectors, the US essentially calling that move a bluff, Prime Minister Blair's Iraq 'dossier', and now, US Administration officials linking Al-Qaida to Iraq. Most countries are not 'on board' officially but I don't see anyone offering to step in from the sidelines should the US decide to 'shoot first and ask questions later'.

Twosome: in the - Finish the phrase "in the ...". Now, what made you go there?

In the midst of it all. Isn't that usually where all the excitement is?

Threesome: Rainbow - What's at the end of your rainbow?

A lemon drop martini.

You Go Girl!

Congratulations to Nicola Wright, who jockeyed Cruising Kat to victory in Saturday's 57th running of the British Columbia Derby. At 40-1, Cruising Kat was the longest shot on the board. Over twenty years ago, in this very same race, my grandparents owned the 'longest shot' on the board. Lee's Craig Seven didn't make the winner's circle that day, but he did set the first two fractions. It was enough to make us proud and earn himself an extra bucket of oats.

Homestead's Site Builder

I spent more time than I had planned or expected to spend using this program. I'm more than aware that most of the formerly 'free' Net services are converting into pay-for-use ones. That was part of the reason, I migrated my homepage over to Geocities, annoying ads and all. I am still however, taking advantage of the storage space provided by Homestead, without which, there would not be the neato little buttons you find in and around this blog. The project today was to create a redirect page for my Homestead site and clear out the remnant files off the server there. In theory, that sounded simple enough. I had already drafted the page I had planned on using and thought all I'd have to do was simply upload the file and be done. Well, not at Homestead, unfortunately. In order to get anything into the root directory there, you have to create the the page using Site Builder. And for that, you have to download the program to your own system. At this point, Site Builder has already earned it's one and only star, for aesthetics. I didn't expect that the program to be the resource hog that it turned out to be and be anywhere as unstable as it was. For such a simple page, I think I had to reboot my system twice and restart the program itself at least a half a dozen times. Frustrating enough for me to rule out recommending this to anyone looking for a simple place to create a homepage. The end result, I created a page that links to the redirect page that I originally thought I could just upload.

(out of a possible 5)

"Shoes are like a piece of theater!"

Alright, I'm a shoe man and after watching some clips from NYC's fashion week runways and the red carpet at the Emmy's this past weekend, I was curious to see if I could find the male equivalent to, "I'm wearing Jimmy Choo" or "They're Manolos (as in Blahnik)". I had no problem finding men's shoes as expensive, if not more, at Gucci, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo and Cole Haan, but there just didn't seem to be that cachet, that certain 'je ne sais quoi' attached to any one collection. Maybe I'm still trying to live down the fact that I own Bruno Maglis, though not the same style as that used in the 'getaway', and wouldn't be all that jazzed if I was asked what I was wearing that day.

A few blog projects that I am currently working on offline, so to speak.

(1) the Mirror Project submission - I meant to snap something in Las Vegas but it's just too easy to get sidetracked in that town

(2) the 100 things list - thanks to J Dub at this ain't no freak show, whose list I first read

(3) the Coffee Cup Project - thanks to Coffee Corner for the link

(4) 101 things in 1001 days - this blogger made a list of 101 things 'to do' in the next 1001 days; thanks to Painfully Cool - Vertigo, who is jumping on the bandwagon

I'll report my progress here from time to time.

I found myself in one of the very same moods as the one that led to the creation of this blog, tonight. It was like a walk in the woods with no destination or goal in mind, come what may. I started by running through my list of daily reads, following a link here and there, into another, back tracking a bit, with only the occasional pause to ponder. Most of what I discovered to be interesting, enlightening or outright bizzare, may or may not be to you, and that's okay with me. You may not care to see the acorn, fern or clover that so captivated me on my cyber walk, and that's okay too. But, in an effort to keep my bookmarks under control, I will be rotating some links through the side panel as a reminder to myself of a recent 'walk in the woods'. Maybe you can find an acorn or two of your own, and that would be okay.

I will finish 'LOTR: The Two Towers' and 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' before watching any internet trailers.

More disturbing finds at the pig farm in Port Coquitlam, Canada. My parents live across town from that site and while it is generally considered a fairly sleepy suburb community, it's also the hometown to a true Canadian hero, Terry Fox.

All in a day's work

Yesterday, I typed 'SFCanuck' into the Yahoo! search engine just for kicks. Guess what, Blog? It came back with three hits:

(1) SFCanuck's Scribble Pad (ahem);
(2) Thursday Threesome entry for September 9, 2002, Autumn Soap Sale, and;
(3) Helquin: Chillicothe, Ohio 45601

And today, I found out that my rather innocent comment on the aka cooties site was a milestone, 1000th comment. Mike is the man behind the Pepys Project. Thanks again, for the link.

Friday Five

1. Would you say that you're good at keeping in touch with people?

Yes, in fact some friends might say I go overboard in that department.

2. Which communication method do you usually prefer/use: e-mail, telephone, snail mail, blog comments, or meeting in person? Why?

PDA reminders, then a combination of e-mail, telephone and snail mail for cards, mostly. I rely on the telephone to compensate for distance, time zone differences and the sometimes impersonal nature of e-mail.

3. Do you have an instant messenger program? How many? Why/why not? How often do you use it?

Uh yea, you can contact me on Y! Messenger, MSN Messenger or ICQ (see CHAT section for details). It all started at work, ironically enough. It's in use constantly, I'm afraid.

4. Do most of your close friends live nearby or far away?

My closest friends live in time zones different from my own.

5. Are you an "out of sight, out of mind" person, or do you believe that "distance makes the heart grow fonder"?

There used to be an inside joke about "distance making the heart go wander", so either way, I'm not an "out of sight, out of mind"person.

In case you were wondering ...

	You are Kermit! Though you're technically the star, you're pretty mellow and don't mind letting others share the spotlight. You are also something of a dreamer.
Take the What Muppet Are You? Quiz!

:-)

For anyone that is following my 'commenting' saga, my replacement for Netcomments has soured as well. The support board for Netcomments has not sounded a death knell so far, which I read as a positive development. Stay tuned.

Less clutch and grab

"A handful of attempts have been made at this before, some at the beginning of the season and some after the All-Star break. But every time, the good intentions only went so far. The playoffs deteriorated so much at times that there was more clutching, grabbing and tackling than on a Sunday afternoon at Lambeau Field."

If applied consistently, this rule should benefit the Canucks, particularly the top line of Naslund, Bertuzzi, Morrison. The 'Nucks were the league's top scoring team last season and the first line has both speed and puck handling ability. The rule change won't likely compensate for the departures of some key players to free agency over the summer, but hopefully someone in the current system will step up to the proverbial plate.

Out of town this past week, so here are my 'catch-up' blog entries for the Thursday Threesome and the Friday Five.

Thursday Threesome - In memory of September 11th - a prayer of sorts. No matter what your religion or beliefs, though, this is a sentiment we can all share ...

Instrument of Your Peace (The full prayer can be seen here.)

Onesome: Instrument - What is your favorite instrument to play or listen to?

I took organ lessons when I was child, but it didn't amount to anything, certainly nothing to blog about. My favorite symphonic/orchestral instrument is the violin. One of the musical highlights of my time in San Francisco, was attending Bugs Bunny on Broadway at the Davies Symphony Hall.

Twosome: of your - Time of your life? A moment? An age? An event?

Living and working in China was an experience that will fill an entire website (one day). The sights, the sounds, the smells and a different approach to life and work.

Threesome: Peace - Though we may wish for Peace on Earth, what gives you inner peace?

Knowing that I have done a good job and have accomplished something gives me inner peace. Over the years, I've relied less on the 'glory seeking' and attention grabbing. It's enough for me to know.


Friday Five

1. What was/is your favorite subject in school? Why?

Chemistry because I was fascinated with learning about nature's building blocks.

2. Who was your favorite teacher? Why?

My English literature instructor, Mr. Temlett, whom I credit with planting the seeds for rational thought and critical thinking.

3. What is your favorite memory of school?

My high school graduation ceremony at the Orpheum Theatre, where I made the welcoming speech.

4. What was your favorite recess game?

Tether ball.

5. What did you hate most about school?

Homework.

The Queen to drop the puck at a Canuck's game

"It took a visit to Vancouver's GM Place by a skeptical delegation of royal advisers, and some reassurances from Canadian officials that it could be done with dignity, grace and immeasurable public delight."

Liz taking in the game was announced over a week ago, but dropping the puck at centre ice, now that's big news.

I saw a billboard announcing a new intimate (read topless) Cirque de Soleil production opening July 2003, at the New York New York Hotel and Casino. Although Las Vegas is a city about excess, this may be stretching it. By 2004, there will be a total of six Cirque or Cirque-like productions in Las Vegas. Mystere at Treasure Island and O at the Bellagio have been playing for years, Celine Dion opens at Caesars Palace next March, this new one at NYNY, a new production for Le Reve when it opens and a production is in the works for the MGM to replace EFX. If you haven't seen a Cirque production and are visiting Las Vegas, you will have plenty of options.

9/11

Take a moment to reflect ... lest we forget.

Noam Chomsky answers a three questions on Iraq at zmag.

"He is as evil as they come, ranking with Suharto and other monsters of the modern era. No one would want to be within his reach. But fortunately, his reach does not extend very far."

"Saddam's worst crimes, by far, have been domestic, including the use of chemical weapons against Kurds and a huge slaughter of Kurds in the late 80s, barbaric torture, and every other ugly crime you can imagine."

"It's useful to ask how frequently the impassioned denunciations and eloquent expressions of outrage are accompanied by three little words: 'with our help.'"

"Suppressing the facts was an important service to the cause of state violence."

Mons pays, le Quebec

Quebec Premier, Bernard Landry issues this battle cry over the weekend, "1,000 days to sovereignty". This being conditional on the PQ being re-elected and the support for sovereignty ratcheting up. Neither of these seem likely, so anything for a round of applause. What I question is how different are these conditions from Bouchard's "Winning conditions"? Play to win, and if we can't win, then we're not gonna play. Ok boys, now's the time to take your ball home.

Surfing for dinner

A couple of years back I remember a website where you could key in what happened to be in your fridge at the time and the engine would return you a suitable recipe. I've since last track of that site but here's someone that puts a slightly different spin on that idea.

"...shortly before supper time I look around for some combination of foods I've got on hand and which seem like they might go together. Then I 'google' them and browse through the results until I find a recipe that appeals to me."

It's been two weeks now, and I am still holding out hope that Netcomments will somehow be resurrected. In the meantime, though, I have done some scouting around for an alternative. As far as another 'freebie' service goes, it was odd that each of the others had either some sort of service interruption or were not open to new accounts. Was this Murphy's Law in play or just an everyday occurence?

This week's Friday Five ...

1. What is your biggest pet peeve? Why?

Ring-around-the-Customer-Service. I hate being passed from one incompetent dolt to another, assuming you actually get through to a live person. Just last week, I went from two agents to a non-accepting e-mail address and then back to another agent who then directed me to another e-mail address. Let's put the 'customer' back in customer service.

2. What irritating habits do you have?

Uh, besides smoking, I'm a well adjusted person. :)

3. Have you tried to change the irritating habits or just let them be?

I haven't actually attempted to eliminate the nasty habit, yet.

4. What grosses you out more than anything else? Why?

Eggplant parmesan. I tend to eat with my eyes first and the sight of that usually makes my appetite go away.

5. What one thing can you never see yourself doing that other people do?

I've watched those bungee-like attractions up close a few times and there is still no desire on my part to have a go.

US Open finals wishlist

Andre Agassi versus Pete Sampras in a repeat of last year's quarter-final, a 'take no prisoners' slugfest, where Sampras prevailed in four sets 6-7, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6.

On the womens side, Venus Williams versus Lindsay Davenport, just for a change.

This week's Thursday Threesome, Autumn Soap Sale.

Onesome: Autumn - As the season changes, what changes for you? Your Daily Routine? Weekend Schedules? Your Mood?

Nothing too drastic with the summer into fall change for me. There is a slight modification to my gym workouts to gear up for the ski season. Sweaters, sweatshirts and long sleeve tops reappear in the dresser drawers. The book on the coffee table gets changed.

Twosome: Soap - Come now, fess up. Are you a squeaky clean kind of person - or are there dark secrets hidden in your closets???

I'm embarassed to say how much my bathroom is cluttered with personal hygiene products. As for the dark secrets, stay tuned as this blog unfolds ... heh.

Threesome: Sale - Have you ever bought something absolutely ridiculous or unnecessary, simply because it was on sale and "such a good deal"? Is it tucked away in the attic or a closet - or did you find it really useful?

In general, I'm a practical person, except maybe when it comes to shoes. Oddly enough, it was 'sale season' in Hong Kong where I picked up pair of loafers at Lane Crawford. It's been almost two years since that day and although I haven't worn them out of the house just yet, that day will come.

Ded kitty

Napster signs off.

An excerpt of my horoscope today from astrocenter.com:

This is a perfect day for organizing your home, dear Cancer. It would do you some real good to totally revise your system of organizing your paperwork, investing in new notebooks, folders, and color-coded files. You know how much you enjoy buying office supplies!

Color-coded files, ok, who blabbed?

Eight more 'sleeps' until I set myself loose in Sin City. Flights confirmed, hotel booked, car booked and the rest of the itinerary is starting to gel. I can border a bit on the anal side when it comes to scheduling. So, rather than bore you with an endless list of activities, most of which I won't have time to accomplish, I present my blog with a list of things I will try 'not' to do:

1) Do not get arrested
2) Do not puke in public
3) Do not eat at the Circus Circus buffet
4) Do NOT split 10's
5) Do not roll a 7 after the point
6) Do not forget my room number

Do you see what I see?

The answer would be no, at least for now. Add Google to the list of 'forbidden' sites when in China. According to the article,

"The government openly attempts to control Web content in China, where the Internet threatens Communist Party control over the media. It blocks several foreign news sites and frequently forces domestic sites to expunge content deemed unwholesome."

The Internet as the big, bad, scary monster, so unlike cable where a seven second delay can weed out all the bad stuff. I know, I was there.

Uh yea, I take it the 'racy' pics on my website were deemed unwholesome and therefore blocked. I've since migrated my site to a different server, so if anyone in 'that' country can confirm the page comes up, it would be appreciated.

"One ring to rule them all"

Add this to my wish list. And make sure it arrives before the Two Towers premiere.

I should have archives now and I did add a ring last week, not that 'they' noticed, but I'm still enjoying the ride. Unfortunately, I don't have an update on my commenting thing yet, and it's been a week so I may have to look into a 'Plan B'.