Saturday, May 30, 2009
Time is ticking!
Can't believe how close we're getting to the wedding... (Ali, YOUR time is REALLY ticking!) Still lots of details to sort out, but I'm sure it'll all come together.
My folks are coming into town this weekend to meet Laura's extended family. On the upside, it'll be a BBQ.
As a result, we rented a car for the weekend. I was driving Laura into the gym this morning (and heading to St Lawrence Market), and this car came zipping past us at an intersection, passing us via the left-turn lane. What a dink. We were heading down Spadina Rd (the northern, residential part of Spadina, one lane in each direction, houses on both sides, etc), and the guy actually passed another car. The timing literally could NOT have been any better, as out from behind a bush steps a speed-trap cop, who totally nailed the guy. Laura and I both got a seriously good laugh out of it...it was genuinely perfect timing.
My other happiness this week - finally got the $150 worth of PC Points from the printable coupons I used back in March / April. Sweet sweet coupons, I do love thee so.
I'm listening to the new Hayden CD...thus far I'm not enamoured, but I'll give it time (the old 3 full listens policy). Also, watched "Strictly Ballroom" this week...really is one of my favourite movies. I think I've probably watched it 4 or 5 times now...it's got everything - mockumentary style laughs, a little romance, wonderful music, and impressive dancing!
My folks are coming into town this weekend to meet Laura's extended family. On the upside, it'll be a BBQ.
As a result, we rented a car for the weekend. I was driving Laura into the gym this morning (and heading to St Lawrence Market), and this car came zipping past us at an intersection, passing us via the left-turn lane. What a dink. We were heading down Spadina Rd (the northern, residential part of Spadina, one lane in each direction, houses on both sides, etc), and the guy actually passed another car. The timing literally could NOT have been any better, as out from behind a bush steps a speed-trap cop, who totally nailed the guy. Laura and I both got a seriously good laugh out of it...it was genuinely perfect timing.
My other happiness this week - finally got the $150 worth of PC Points from the printable coupons I used back in March / April. Sweet sweet coupons, I do love thee so.
I'm listening to the new Hayden CD...thus far I'm not enamoured, but I'll give it time (the old 3 full listens policy). Also, watched "Strictly Ballroom" this week...really is one of my favourite movies. I think I've probably watched it 4 or 5 times now...it's got everything - mockumentary style laughs, a little romance, wonderful music, and impressive dancing!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Weight Loss - The SECRET!
Clearly I've been doing it all wrong -- saw an ad in the Metro here for this event: Free Weight Loss Seminar & Free Buffett
Yup. It's all about the free buffet.
Yup. It's all about the free buffet.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
One of those weeks
I've had a rough week. On Thursday I had a meeting with the client from 10-noon that ran a bit long, so I figured I should grab lunch on my way back to the office. So I hit this joint on King St called "Reggies Sandwiches" that I've been hankering to check out for a while now.
I'm walking back to the office when the "Oh Crap" lightbulb goes off. (I believe I actually said "Oh Crap" out loud, and may have even smacked my forehead). One of the guys from the London office was in town and we were going to go out for lunch to a taco place in Kensington with a couple other guys.....so, ya, I totally went to Kengsington and had a SECOND lunch!
Today I went to Shoppers (20X the points day) and bought a good load of stuff...and was halfway home before I realized I was still pushing the SHOPPING CART. Ya, my head was somewhere else I think! This is a big Shoppers / Optimum week for me - it's a "Referral Bonus Day" on Monday-Wednesday next week - if you are referred, and you spend $30 you get 5000 points (and the person who referred you gets 5000 points too!) that's like $7 each in Optimum points!
Heading out to a bachelor party this tonight...2nd one in the past month and a half, and we're friggin going to the same dance club we went to last time! Oi.
I'm walking back to the office when the "Oh Crap" lightbulb goes off. (I believe I actually said "Oh Crap" out loud, and may have even smacked my forehead). One of the guys from the London office was in town and we were going to go out for lunch to a taco place in Kensington with a couple other guys.....so, ya, I totally went to Kengsington and had a SECOND lunch!
Today I went to Shoppers (20X the points day) and bought a good load of stuff...and was halfway home before I realized I was still pushing the SHOPPING CART. Ya, my head was somewhere else I think! This is a big Shoppers / Optimum week for me - it's a "Referral Bonus Day" on Monday-Wednesday next week - if you are referred, and you spend $30 you get 5000 points (and the person who referred you gets 5000 points too!) that's like $7 each in Optimum points!
Heading out to a bachelor party this tonight...2nd one in the past month and a half, and we're friggin going to the same dance club we went to last time! Oi.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Ka-ching!
Honeymoon tickets - BOOKED!
Plus, the whole fiasco with Aeroplan last night actually ended up working in my favour....found a coupon online this morning for Flight Centre for $50 off per person when booking an international flight.
We'd stopped in last weekend to the Flight Centre near our house to talk to them about some of our options, and the girl was super nice, so I figured it'd be nice to go back and book through her...I assumed that they'd charge like a $50+ commission above and beyond what the tickets would cost straight on Air Canada, but turns out that their commission was baked in already, so we got things for straight $100 less than we woulda otherwise! Ka-ching!
Also, while biking home today, I had a flash of inspiration:
"Stollen?", "Naw, I baked it myself!"
(come on, that's too darned funny!)
Plus, the whole fiasco with Aeroplan last night actually ended up working in my favour....found a coupon online this morning for Flight Centre for $50 off per person when booking an international flight.
We'd stopped in last weekend to the Flight Centre near our house to talk to them about some of our options, and the girl was super nice, so I figured it'd be nice to go back and book through her...I assumed that they'd charge like a $50+ commission above and beyond what the tickets would cost straight on Air Canada, but turns out that their commission was baked in already, so we got things for straight $100 less than we woulda otherwise! Ka-ching!
Also, while biking home today, I had a flash of inspiration:
"Stollen?", "Naw, I baked it myself!"
(come on, that's too darned funny!)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Emily & Co.
I frikkin hate the "interactive voice response" systems like Emily from Bell. Just had to "talk" to the phone for like 5 whole minutes to get through on Aeroplan...frankly, the systems WORK relatively well, but I just feel like such a dolt talking to a computer.
Laura and I were about to pull the trigger on booking tickets to Madrid for honeymoon (air canada seat sale ends tomorrow), but my name on Aeroplan is "Greg" and on my passport is "Gregory", and they need to match in order to use the aeroplan card...so needed to call Aeroplan to have them change it. Blarg....now that she's changed it, it'll still take 24 hours before I can actually USE it to book the plane ticket. I'll be soooo peeved if the price goes up tomorrow.
Laura and I were about to pull the trigger on booking tickets to Madrid for honeymoon (air canada seat sale ends tomorrow), but my name on Aeroplan is "Greg" and on my passport is "Gregory", and they need to match in order to use the aeroplan card...so needed to call Aeroplan to have them change it. Blarg....now that she's changed it, it'll still take 24 hours before I can actually USE it to book the plane ticket. I'll be soooo peeved if the price goes up tomorrow.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Sweet sweet long weekend
The rest of the training I was running last weekend up at Blue Mountain ended well! It's always a good feeling to wrap things up without there having been any major calamities, particularly with so many moving parts to the puzzle (Two different batches of people flying up from the states, some people coming up on the Friday, others on the Saturday, sorting out all the restaurant menus, the room lists, the schedule etc, let alone the actual content for the weekend!) Happy to have it all done with for now!
Had a busy week...went to Hooters on Monday with some guys from work, worked late on Tuesday, went out for dinner with Laura and one of her friends on Wednesday (got caught in one of the Tamil Tiger "protests" trying to meet them - more on this later), Thursday went out for dinner to Don Juans with work guys then went to see "Earth" with LT (cineplex mystery shop!). Aside - Earth was really gorgeous, and totally worth seeing on the big screen if you're at all into wildlife documentary kinda shows....really gorgeous photography, including some amazing time-lapse shots.
This weekend we went up to Laura's parents place - did a BBQ and wine tasting last night, then went for a nice hike today on the Seaton Trail for a few hours. Wine tasting candidates: Hillebrand Cab-Sauv, Jackson Triggs Cab-Franc/Cab-Sauv, Pelee Island Cab-Franc, and a red blend from Strewn. Blind taste test winner? Pelee Island, which means 2 of the 4 wines for the wedding will be Pelee Island!
Rant of the week - Tamil protests in Toronto. I've been a bit confused about this whole thing, since there have been BIG protests almost every day for the past few weeks. In a nutshell, Sri Lanka has had an ongoing civil war for the past 20+ years between the two main ethnic groups, one which is in power and one which is fighting for the creation of an independent state( the Tamils). The government has got the tamil rebels pinned in a fairly small area and have been shelling them into submission. The issue is that civilians have been caught in the cross-fire.
Canada is home to the biggest group of Tamil's outside of Sri Lanka, something like 250,000 or so...seemingly many of whom live in TO. The rallies/protests have gotten a lot of attention because literally thousands (like 5000-8000) have shown up, and while they've been peaceful, they've been a big pain closing down major streets for whole days, and even taking over the Gardiner last weekend, and Yonge / College / University this week. The goal is to draw attention to the situation and to try to pressure the government into leaning on the sri lankan government to stop their attacks on the rebels and to give the tamil's an independent state.
Here's the part I don't get. The protesters are all waving Tamil Tiger flags, wearing Tamil Tiger tshirts, and waving picture posters of the leader of the Tamil Tigers. I didn't fully realize until I did some reading, that the Tigers are a recognized terrorist organization according to 32 different countries, including Canada. They've been accused of/blamed for everything from using child soldiers and dressing in civilian garb while fighting, to using suicide bombers, to assisinating political leaders to drug / weapon smuggling, counterfeiting, piracy / hijacking, money laundering. ( Good ol' wikipedia)
On one hand it sounds like things in Sri Lanka have been very difficult, and no doubt many civilians have been negatively impacted by both sides. I'd be all for protests simply trying to draw attention to the situation...but waving the flags of a terrorist organization with an undoubtably sketchy history and track record? Just not sure I really get the whole thing.
Had a busy week...went to Hooters on Monday with some guys from work, worked late on Tuesday, went out for dinner with Laura and one of her friends on Wednesday (got caught in one of the Tamil Tiger "protests" trying to meet them - more on this later), Thursday went out for dinner to Don Juans with work guys then went to see "Earth" with LT (cineplex mystery shop!). Aside - Earth was really gorgeous, and totally worth seeing on the big screen if you're at all into wildlife documentary kinda shows....really gorgeous photography, including some amazing time-lapse shots.
This weekend we went up to Laura's parents place - did a BBQ and wine tasting last night, then went for a nice hike today on the Seaton Trail for a few hours. Wine tasting candidates: Hillebrand Cab-Sauv, Jackson Triggs Cab-Franc/Cab-Sauv, Pelee Island Cab-Franc, and a red blend from Strewn. Blind taste test winner? Pelee Island, which means 2 of the 4 wines for the wedding will be Pelee Island!
Rant of the week - Tamil protests in Toronto. I've been a bit confused about this whole thing, since there have been BIG protests almost every day for the past few weeks. In a nutshell, Sri Lanka has had an ongoing civil war for the past 20+ years between the two main ethnic groups, one which is in power and one which is fighting for the creation of an independent state( the Tamils). The government has got the tamil rebels pinned in a fairly small area and have been shelling them into submission. The issue is that civilians have been caught in the cross-fire.
Canada is home to the biggest group of Tamil's outside of Sri Lanka, something like 250,000 or so...seemingly many of whom live in TO. The rallies/protests have gotten a lot of attention because literally thousands (like 5000-8000) have shown up, and while they've been peaceful, they've been a big pain closing down major streets for whole days, and even taking over the Gardiner last weekend, and Yonge / College / University this week. The goal is to draw attention to the situation and to try to pressure the government into leaning on the sri lankan government to stop their attacks on the rebels and to give the tamil's an independent state.
Here's the part I don't get. The protesters are all waving Tamil Tiger flags, wearing Tamil Tiger tshirts, and waving picture posters of the leader of the Tamil Tigers. I didn't fully realize until I did some reading, that the Tigers are a recognized terrorist organization according to 32 different countries, including Canada. They've been accused of/blamed for everything from using child soldiers and dressing in civilian garb while fighting, to using suicide bombers, to assisinating political leaders to drug / weapon smuggling, counterfeiting, piracy / hijacking, money laundering. ( Good ol' wikipedia)
On one hand it sounds like things in Sri Lanka have been very difficult, and no doubt many civilians have been negatively impacted by both sides. I'd be all for protests simply trying to draw attention to the situation...but waving the flags of a terrorist organization with an undoubtably sketchy history and track record? Just not sure I really get the whole thing.
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Blue Mountain!
It's been a busy last few weeks:
- planning for this Team Lead Training I'm helping run this weekend up at Blue Mountain. 34 or so people total, 3 days of content. Good food, good people, good fun so far though! (and ridiculously nice hotel rooms)
- buying wedding rings...we finally pulled the trigger. The hard part...neither Laura or I have actually seen our rings yet. The store only had 20-30 rings in stock, so we ordered ours out of their catalog of 500 or so rings that all looked practically the same. I think we'll both really like them, just hope they fit properly etc. Think we're going to not do engraving.
- crate and barrel: finally some success with wedding registry stuff! we went to one of their early morning gift registry things...the store is closed to "regular" people, only about 10 couples were there, they had waffles, juices, snacks etc, and we managed to put 10 things on the registry!
- work...starting a new project at work for the same client. Should be an interesting next 6 months or so, but it's a bit of a weird spot right now since I'm doing the old and the new at the same time for the next month or so. Upside - we'll be launching a piece to the website that we'd originally worked on but that got shelved just before our April launch date...happy that it'll finally see the light of day!
- had dinner with sara/dave, ali and muriel's good intentions the other day. Definitely one of the best parts of toronto is having friends nearby! Looking forward to seeing everyone else TWICE in July!
- planning for this Team Lead Training I'm helping run this weekend up at Blue Mountain. 34 or so people total, 3 days of content. Good food, good people, good fun so far though! (and ridiculously nice hotel rooms)
- buying wedding rings...we finally pulled the trigger. The hard part...neither Laura or I have actually seen our rings yet. The store only had 20-30 rings in stock, so we ordered ours out of their catalog of 500 or so rings that all looked practically the same. I think we'll both really like them, just hope they fit properly etc. Think we're going to not do engraving.
- crate and barrel: finally some success with wedding registry stuff! we went to one of their early morning gift registry things...the store is closed to "regular" people, only about 10 couples were there, they had waffles, juices, snacks etc, and we managed to put 10 things on the registry!
- work...starting a new project at work for the same client. Should be an interesting next 6 months or so, but it's a bit of a weird spot right now since I'm doing the old and the new at the same time for the next month or so. Upside - we'll be launching a piece to the website that we'd originally worked on but that got shelved just before our April launch date...happy that it'll finally see the light of day!
- had dinner with sara/dave, ali and muriel's good intentions the other day. Definitely one of the best parts of toronto is having friends nearby! Looking forward to seeing everyone else TWICE in July!
