More change

Well I have a couple of quick little notes to share with all of you about a few friends.

For the second time in as many weeks it seems that I am announcing the engagement of a good friend, this time though the happy couple is in Toronto. Shane recently proposed to his longtime girlfriend, Marie-Pierre. For those who have not met either of the two, they are both among the nicest people I have had the pleasure of meeting. Shane in particular is a dear friend whom I have not had the fortune to spend enough time with since I left Quebec. Needless to say I wish the two of them the best and I look forward to the wedding.

So who's getting married next week? Anyone? I have an opening around Thursday if you want it?

Secondly on a note that has nothing to do with marriage, Chantelle, my legal council in Edmonton, a fabulous dancer and all around wonderful woman, will be moving to Belgrade. She is heading out for 6 months to help with refugee matters through some kind of organization (ok so my details are spotty, but it's probably really neat stuff, well at least more interesting than what most of you are doing right now...wait did I just insult myself? crap!). Since I don't really know the details I will let Chantelle tell you the story through her blog, which I look forward to reading.

So that's all the public service announcements for today. Tune in again tomorrow for more complaints, grievances and general malcontent musings that I will spew through your monitor.

I thought I had something to say...

This sucks, it seems that every night when I get home I have had these "great ideas" for blog posts, yet each day I cannot recall what it was that I was thinking of. Ok, so reading my previous posts it's rather obvious that even my "great ideas" aren't always so great, but still, right now I can't come up with a damn thing.

I guess part of what has me stumped is the throbbing in the side of my head. No it's not from the repeated shots to the head that I receive at dodgeball, though eventually that may take it's toll. Right now I'm in agony from a toothache. I don't know what it is about a toothache that makes it feel so miserable, but I've had some pretty horrid oozing wounds from bike accidents and I've felt way better than this. Hopefully things will be taken care of shortly, I have a dentists appointment at 5:00 pm. You know what the worst damn thing is about this toothache; normally I would literally grit my teeth and bare the pain, that really doesn't work too well now.

But as the pain is subsiding for the moment I have recalled one of the odd things I have seen lately, donation boxes for Minnesota military troops returning from Iraq. This isn't the only donation campaign on the go, a number of others have been set up to help the families of those in the military. Now I have no problem with all of this (I'm surprised Canada hasn't done it just to replace those damn SeaKings), I am highly supportive of anyone who is willing to defend his/her countrymen, I think it's quite noble and brave. However when you hear of how much money is being given to companies like Halibuton you have to wonder, perhaps they could pay the combat troops just a bit more? Instead it will be the poor helping to support the poor, while the rich shuffle around the money that they take from the poor. You know it's a hell of a system we have going on here. Now if only I could find my way to the top of it...

More and more people know

Well it seems that my blog is starting to gather some attention from the people that I know in Minneapolis. I figured that this would happen at some point, but now that I'm there it feels a bit odd. I guess the odd part is the question of whether or not I should censor what I say (or if I will do so somewhat subconsciously). It is rather funny that it was Friday that someone from work mentioned seeing the blog, a few minutes later I found out that some guys from dodgeball had found it as well, and possibly one of the members of the Birchwood cycling team (the group I'm riding with). So after a bit of thought I'm just going to say this: The blog will not change, I will still speak my mind.

That being said do realize that I will make fun of you if you do something particularly foolish. I will not use names in such instances out of courtesy, but that is all I will hold back. I have always said, at least to myself (yes I talk to myself a lot, I'm doing it right now) that I am an open book. I don't intend to keep secrets from the people I know, and if there is something about me that you don't like, tough, I have to live with myself, I don't have to live with you.

Now a more important question to all this is why the hell did I bother to tell you that nothing will change? I don't know, but it's a Saturday night and I have no social life, so this makes me feel like a big man! Actually I'm doing this in part so that you know that I know that you are reading (I check the site counter constantly, just hoping to see it go up ever so slightly, yes I know my life is sad, didn't you read the sentence before this one?).

So for those of you who came on here looking for some juicy details about my life, here you go, fell free to laugh derisively at me, I can take it (so long as the hit counter goes up, shit I'm obsessed with that damn thing). Friday night I had a very nice evening with a very lovely woman. She is a member of my bike club, though we have yet to ride together. She contacted me a little over a week ago after seeing my "new rider info" where I had listed dancing as one of my hobbies. She was interested in getting involved in doing some salsa dancing, so we agreed to take some courses but we also figured that we should meet at least once before. So Friday night she came over after a late bike ride and we went to the dance studio and then to a nearby bar/restaurant for a quick bite to eat. All in all we spent about 2 hours together and the time just seemed to fly by. She's quite charming and has done a lot in life and seems quite outgoing. Heck she's even going off to Spain at the end of September to do some biking. Oh yeah, she'll be riding with Tyler Hamilton, he's one of her friends! Ok, for the none cyclists that means nothing, but to a cyclist, that's just damn cool.

Anyway, I'm not one to rush into anything, and at this point I expect nothing to come from all this. Well that's not true, I expect to improve my salsa and hopefully make a few new friends along the way. But I obviously she has been popping in an out of my mind since last night, otherwise, why dedicate half a post to her.

Now a curious little question has popped into mind, is she the one from the club who found my web page? If so was it really that great of an idea to write this post after all?

People like this deserve to be shot

I'm not even kidding any more, I'm sick and tired of this kind of asinine behaviour. What has me in such a fuming state is news that a doctor is being sued for telling his patient that she is fat and needs to lose weight. Any guesses which country this happened in?

What the hell is wrong with people that they can claim to be offended by a medical diagnosis? Hell if a doctor told me to stop thinking about sex for the sake of my health I would not be offended (I would be seriously troubled but not offended). To me it is logically impossible, or at least irrational, to be offended by a fact. It's like being offended because I've been told that the sun rises in the east.

You know, I think I have a new solution to this whole mess. Ok, so it's not a good solution, but it's one that seems highly appropriate to me. From now on I am going to sue all people who file ridiculous lawsuits. My premise, I'm offended by their stupidity. It's about as valid as most of their complaints. I figure if this works I can sue them for whatever they get from their lawsuits, and maybe give half of it to some charity...the rest will be used to medicate me and pay for all the things I destroy every time I hear about one of these idiots in the news.

Odd encounters

Most of you have heard or at least read of my complaints about the encounters cyclists have with the rest of the traveling public. On the roads we will experience everything from being flipped the bird to having speeding SUVs come within inches of us. A few weeks back a friend was challenged by a guy with a pipe in hand! Seriously sometimes this shit is just scary. Of course the common thread with the motorists is that bicycles don't belong on the road. This stunning logic only leaves us the option of sidewalks in most cases. Where not only are we likely to hit cars pulling out of driveways without looking, but are also going to be yelled at by pedestrians, for going too fast. Cyclists really can't win, so we chose the safer route, the road, where we are the only ones in danger, but the nobility of this gesture is certainly not appreciated.

Last night I was out riding with some of the club doing cyclocross practice. This is a unique style of racing, in that you take a road bike off road (sometimes on paved roads/trails) and race a course where you invariably forced to dismount the bike (at full speed) to clear an obstacle. For the practice the club has found a local park that suites our needs perfectly, with a steep hill good for practicing our running, a fast descent to get the handling skills and a couple of low fences that we have to run over. All in all a pretty good course, except that it's in a public park. So in addition to the intended course barriers there are occasionally pedestrians, children, strollers and dogs to contend with. Fortunately there were only 8 of us, and we got spread out rather quickly during the 20 minute hard sessions. Just the same we had to alter the route a little to accommodate the other park users.

At the end of the second 20 minute session a woman we had all passed several times approached us (directly at me, damn red skinsuit, I'm always the target) with her dog. Immediately I'm getting ready to apologize for riding so fast/coming too close/spooking the dog, whatever the complaint is:

"Hi, I just want to thank you for riding your bikes here tonight."

Wait a minute, she must be really pissed, she's being sarcastic.

"Really?" (probably with an odd look on my face)

"Yes, it was good to see you out exercising. It's a good example for the kids to see people being active"

"Thanks" (less odd of a look now, just a bit stunned)

It seems that this woman was genuinely happy to have us tearing it up through the park. We were all kind of shocked at that, since we always get negative comments from non-cyclist. But thinking back we did have a bit of an audience, plenty of little kids were watching us from the playground with their parents, a bunch would cheer us on as we went past. A number of others on bikes were watching us clear the barriers and one kid with a football helmet in hand chatted with one of the guys on a mountain bike between our intervals.

It's good to see that we can do what we love, have a positive influence and not be yelled at. We also realized that the neighbourhood is not the best in the area so having us running around on bikes may be a pleasant distraction from the potential seedier characters that may frequent the park. And as the woman said, it is a good example for the kids, it shows them that even adults like to get out and play on their bikes (I doubt anyone was less than 25 tonight). But still it was just so shocking that she wasn't pissed at us, that was probably the coolest birthday present yet!

Engagment news

Relax, it's not mine, remember I'm the one who's chronically single and has yet to even get around to being shot down by the waitress (I'll take care of that tonight). No this is about the anonymous reply to my posting of good luck on Monday. After a couple of e-mails I found out who it was, and she has given me permission to spread the word as I see fit. So here's the news:

A few of you may know Kathrine Christou from the U of A dance club. Anyway she is the author of the anonymous post. Her boyfriend, Daryl, made the elegant proposal a couple of Fridays ago and obviously Kathrine accepted.

Congratulations Kathrine, here's to many, many years of happiness.

Birthdays

So those of you that know me should know by now that I don't tend to make a big deal of my birthdays. Hell the only reason I'm using it as the topic of this post is that I needed some material for a post and the trip to the DMV yesterday, though painfully slow, was not as humorous as TV would have you believe. Though I did know that I was in for a long wait when the first thing I heard when I got in was a woman at the counter trying for at least a minute to determine what year a client was born in. They had made it as far as the day, month and decade (thankfully the century and millennia were self evident). But hearing her ask for the year (197?) over and over and not get a response just made me shake my head. Oh, one more interesting point, though the US can fly a missile through a door halfway around the world, and watch you scratch your ass from space while getting the mail, they do not accept credit or debit cards at the DMV. They will however accept cash and paper cheques, seriously, what the fuck is wrong with this country?

Anyway for those unaware of the fact today is my 28th birthday, whoopee! I don't know why it is that I don't get overly enthusiastic about my birthday, but I just can't. I think in part is stems from the few times that I tried to get a gathering of friends together only to have it implode upon me. But either way for some reason the day seems to put me in an odd mood, mostly reflective though as a consequence somewhat melancholy. That being said, it's kind of hard to really feel that way today. One of my co-workers attacked my desk with ribbons, streamers and confetti, so it really has a very festive flair to it today. And I really do appreciate those acts of kindness, despite my reluctance to truly celebrate my birthday.

So to all of those that e-mailed me, thank you very much. To those that forgot, thank you very much. And those that didn't know, well now you know for next time, as you can see I'm easy to please so feel free to remember or forget the day as you wish.

In the end I guess the important aspect is that I have friends who care for me. And I know that I have plenty of them, even if they don't know my birthday, and whenever I get to spend time with them or talking to them I'm happy. In a way every day for me is a birthday (after all I did almost die at birth) so for me each day is a bit of a celebration, so cake or not, they are all good, particularly when spent with friends.

Tonight though I will be spending a good part of it on the bike, after all I must ride on my birthday, this year will be a first too, it will be on the cyclocross bike, lots of fun!

Full moon - good luck

So for those of you who are chronically afraid of the outdoors, don't ever look up from the sidewalk, or live somewhere that was very cloudy, Friday night was a full moon. Now I'm not one to give into superstitions and all that, most of the time I think we make our own luck. Though all things considered this weekend may have me rethinking that notion (or I just cashed in all my karma credits-yes I see the hypocrisy in that statement).

But Friday night seemed to present a change in the way my luck was turning. Now normally I have good luck and this week was not much different from any other, however things started to go my way in a big way late Friday night. After helping a friend move into a new place we went back to his old place (a few blocks away) for some pizza and a Friday night poker game. The first game wasn't so nice to me, but in the second game I just could not lose. I was knocking everyone out of the game, racking in more and more chips, it was all good. There was a bit of a disruption to the game around 2 am though. A friend was in a spot of trouble and needed me to help out, so after getting off the phone I was able to cash out, taking half the pot with me ($45). And knowing the way my luck goes when I'm big stack in poker, it may have been most fortunate that I received that call when I did.

The next morning despite only having about 4 hours of sleep I was still able to make it out for a nearly 4 hour cyclocross ride with the club. The ride was perfect, at one point it was just me and another well off the front simply flying through this great single track under the trees. We were both cornering great and just riding so smoothly. It certainly made up for the kilometers of trail that was obscured by the overgrowth of weeds, most taller than me, and the acres of stinging nettles under the trees, where the weeds were only knee high. Then despite being pretty wasted from the ride I took a quick break, about an hour and a half then I was off to play dodgeball for 2+ hours. Once again it was a great game, lots of people and lots of fun. Though on the down side of things I did manage to accidentally hit a girl that I like in the head with a shot she never saw coming (though she did accept my profuse apologies).

Then to top things off when I got home I found a couple of early birthday cards in my mailbox. One form a good friend in Vancouver, who's birthday earlier this month I forgot (I really don't deserve my friends most of the time). And one from my parents, with a bonus of some cash. This turned to be very convenient as that night I found a great couch for sale on Craig's list, for the amount in the card. Though since this isn't an auction site there was no guarantee that I would get the couch, but this morning before the ride I got a call from the guy and the couch was mine if I could pick it up that day. Fortunately I had just moved a friend who had a pick-up and owed me a favour...so now I have a great couch in the apartment(finally).

Some days are just nuts how well things can work out, who knows how long the luck will last, but I'm hoping it will carry over at least through Wednesday night. I figure I may as well ask the waitress out now, after all I finally have a couch to make...sit on.

Throw me a friking bone here!

Son of a bitch! I'm pissed off. I just found out that a key item that I need for my research wasn't ordered because nobody bothered to tell me that though I drop off a copy of the purchase order in the "purchasing department" they don't actually purchase anything, they just pay for it. I'm supposed to call or fax in the order myself.

Now I'm a big boy, hell I even got a Ph.D. so that is something that I could have done, had I been told that I needed to do it! But when I asked "So all I have to do is fill out the from and drop it off in the purchasing department?" the answer should not have been "Yes". It should have been "Yes, after you call/fax in the order." or some variant of that.

Now that I think of it I'm puzzled why there are 5-6 people working in that department if they don't actually place orders? Ahh, I hate having to adapt to a new system when nobody gives you the full information. Damn, I even asked 2 or 3 people about how to place an order, not one of them mentioned calling it in...(need to find something to crush)

Being checked out

Yeah, I know, it's another one of those two post days, what can I say, this was the post I intended to make, but the one about the jerk had to make it out as well. After all that seems to be the most popular topic with my readership, and I know how to play to an audience, I swear that I would make a great politician, except that I would use logic, so there's no chance in hell I would re-elected, I'd more than likely be assassinated by members of my own party.

Ok, enough demonstration of my ability to filibuster, on to the topic at hand, being checked out. It's probably happened to all of us, certainly it has to the women who read this, the guys are more likely to be the ones doing the obvious checking out. But it is interesting how the act of checking someone out can be quite varied. There are those who can do it just subtlety enough that you aren't certain you are being checked out (most men do not possess this trait). Then there are those that can make you feel as though you are being sold off and they want to literally check out the merchandise (I had one woman do that this to me, while I was in spandex, I felt really exposed suddenly).

I'm all for taking a look and being checked out in return, hell that's most of the reason for why I dress the way I do (not the spandex, that's purely for biking). One thing I learned living in Montreal is that you are always on display, so why not look your best, you never know who may be checking you out next. I have to admit that I enjoy being checked out, heck once a girl almost tripped while checking me out (at least that's how it looked to me) that just makes you feel good on the most basic and primitive levels (you know that warm fuzzy fealing). However as I stated above not all instances of being checked out are as pleasant, those that border on leering can become quite creepy, you know, the ones where the observer is almost drooling over themselves, visibly craning their neck for a closer look. Ok, so guys don't really know this one, but the girls certainly do. For the guys, next time you are at a strip club, check out the other patrons, I'm certain you will see someone like I mentioned above. If not check the mirror, it's probably you.

Well the reason I mention all this is because I get checked out on a regular basis. No, I'm not bragging that I get checked out a lot (though I probably do), I mean regular as in at 8:00 am weekdays while I'm waiting for my bus. Almost without fail each morning I can expect to be checked out by the driver of a scooter turning the corner where I catch my bus. And it is obvious, the scooter is going turning left, I'm on the right side, yet the drivers eyes are clearly turned right, checking me out for a good few seconds while the scooter scoots(?) by. Now I have to admit to being a bit flattered by the whole thing, just as I always am when I'm checked out, it's a natural reaction to knowing that you are desired. But really, day after day, I'm starting to feel like a lingerie model on a highway billboard, constantly stared at by the morning commuters. And anyway what am I to do about it? Maybe I could smile back, or maybe even flag the scooter down, or maybe I could make a sign...I guess I could do any or all of these, but I won't, after all the driver of the scooter is a guy.

I have no issues with being checked out by a guy, I know it's not the first time and it won't be the last. But I just have to chuckle each morning after he passes by and has checked me out, it's just kind of funny how routine it is now. Anyway at the very least I'm starting to realize more and more what women have to put up with when dealing with men, gay or straight, it would seem that in terms of desires a man will always act the same way.

Jerks: follow-up

This will be brief, in large part since I don't know the details of the story just yet. But as you recall I mentioned that I had a bit of a case study in women dating jerks. Well it seems that when I was on vacation the suspected jerk ended things, over the phone, when he was supposed to meet the girl and her friends at the bar, before she left for a two week vacation. All in all I would say that's up there as far as being a jerk about letting someone know it's over. I mean it's bad enough doing it over the phone, but doing it over the phone when you know she is out with friends, that's just damn cold.

Anyway as I said all this is second-hand knowledge, but still, it would seem that my initial assessment was right. Though to be honest this is one of those cases were I really take little joy in being right.

Sober choices in a bar.

So this is interesting, for the first time in a long time I have been pondering the idea of asking out a waitress from a bar. Imagine this, the last time I asked out a waitress (known only through her work) was when I was drinking, what a surprise. Sure it was the end of the night and she knew better than I did just how much I had to drink that night, but it was a good idea right?

Yeah, I know, I cringe at the blurred memory of the event, or maybe it was events, I really don't recall, that last summer in Montreal is a bit of a haze. So obviously since I've stopped drinking things are less hazy to me, most of the time, though I am occasionally cross eyed while racing my bike uphill, I'm generally not thinking of asking anyone out then. The snot hanging from my nose and the heavy breathing would probably work against me.

Yet now that I am lucid (most of the time) the thought has crossed my mind once again. But I'm always hesitant to even think about asking out a girl who is serving me at a bar. Hell, for the most part I assume that a pleasant demeanour will be guaranteed, which is why I didn't even realize a former student was "really flirting" with me until some friends pointed it out. It is true that any server will be polite and as charming as possible, after all they are hoping to get a good tip. So, how does one distinguish between potential interest and knowing how to play a guy for a bit bigger tip?

In my case I have no basis to make any real assumptions at this point in time. The only hint that I have is that while she was in the bar the other night (before her shift) she started to chat with me a little as I paid the other waitress. Yet it should be noted that she recognizes me as one of the chemistry people (we hit this bar every Wednesday after our softball games) and she pretty much has most of the chem guys wrapped around her little finger. Though to be fair just about any moderately cute girl that would give the average chem grad student the time of day could easily become his master if she desired. And seeing as I am a good tipper, I have enough friends in the service industry to know better than to tip poorly (hell just read waiter rant to understand some of the crap they deal with) I have no way of knowing what her motivations are. So it is also with that in mind that I am hesitant to ask a waitress out, plus I know that she is probably hit on several times a night by the various versions of my former self that frequent the bar, so does adding a sober fool to the mix help this in any way?

So for now I guess I'll just sit on it, as it is I don't know if I will even be back in that bar again. Though they do have a free poker tournament that same night each week, no entry fee and there are a few prizes for the top players. So maybe I'll just have to check out a game or two and see if she chats with me some more...humm is that starting to sound to stalkerish?

Multiple lives

Don't get overly excited, I'm not going to reveal my superhero alter ego on this page at this time, I'm simply referring to the feeling I get when I visit a city I used to live in. With the years that list has grown: Minneapolis, Edmonton, Montreal, Franklin Centre...ok, one of these things is not like the others, Franklin is barely a village, which may explain why I didn't have much of a life while I lived there. But in each place I have always found that returning makes me feel as though I'm visiting a vestige of who I once was. It's something that I actually enjoy, or at least have so far, that probably has something to do with a lack of emotional scaring throughout my life...so we will see what happens when I leave Minneapolis. But for me going back to a former home has always been a delight and the latest trip back to Edmonton was one of the best 'homecomings' yet.

Since most of you were there I don't see much reason to tell you what I did with you, but I will add some high points from the visit for those that weren't there. As I've recently seen in the posts and tracking stats I have a few consistent readers that I have never meet. So here are some of the interesting points from the trip:

• Breakfast get togethers, that's how busy I was, a few people I wanted to see I was only able to fit into early morning coffee reunions
• Really great coffee, on the same line I spent most mornings getting an espresso at Cafe Leva, truly the best coffee I have yet to taste, makes the stuff I have in the morning seem well shitty
• Hugs, it's a damn good thing that I'm the touchy-feely type (in the good way) because I was hugged by more people than usual, some of them simply upon meeting them (Kathryn's sister for example)
• More family, apparently I have now been adopted by Kathryn's family, her mom was even thinking of whom within the family I could be set up with (wait a minute...would that count as incest?). The really funny part about being 'adopted' by them is that many consider Colin and I to be twins, so it only makes sense that I would be welcomed by the in-laws as well.
• Crack (aka chocolate), it's a damn good think that the chocolate shop that was used for the wedding favours opened only after I moved to Minneapolis, because that is damn good chocolate and I don't know if I could afford to spend money on the bikes and chocolate
• Acting like a chipmunk on speed, at least that's the closest description I can give you for what I was like as best man, more than once Anthony told me to relax, which I did, for about a minute, total
• Families, I have to admit to being a bit stunned by how great both Kathryn and Colin's families are, they were incredibly friendly, charming, funny and just plain fun, I guess this explains why Kathryn and Colin turned out the way they did
• Maranoni custom bikes, ridding Aaron's bike was a great experience, even though the fit was a bit poor for my style it was a great ride, so there is one more thing I need to get eventually
• Getting all emotional at weddings, I can't say that I anticipated becoming as emotional as I was, but the whole thing really got to me and I was so happy to see two great friends get married (now for the rest of you, hold off for a while, I don't have time to get back for more weddings just yet)
• Friends friends and more friends, I'm simply stunned at how many great friends I have back in Edmonton, not only that but the number seems to keep growing, I managed to spend some time with a few that I had not spent much time with in the past, and I really enjoyed it, all in all it makes coming back here a little more challenging (thanks a lot)

So that's the briefest of summaries of my trip, there is too much to say to make for a good blog read. What I do want to say is that I was happy to see all of those that I could and I'm sorry that I could not spend more time with all of you. To be honest Edmonton feels like home in a way that no other place has. That is due entirely to the relationship that I have will all of my friends there, and thankfully it just seems to keep on getting better with time.

Last post for a while?

This post may be a bit redundant to those in the know, which includes: anyone who reads this blog, is subject to my incessant e-mails, or continual harassment on msn messenger (ok so really I mean anyone unfortunate enough to have been in contact with me in the past month) . But just the same I figure I may as well let you all know, yet again, that I'm coming back to Edmonton, in something like 9 hours.

Most of you probably realize that this is just me craving some attention, which I have been desperately lacking since moving to the states. But think of it, if I went back to Edmonton and ended up sitting on my ass for a week with nothing to do and nobody to see I'd be a pretty sad sight. After all, right now, Edmonton is my Nirvana, the place where everyone knows my name and is happy to see me (maybe that should be Cheers instead of Nirvana). Anyway if that realization doesn't come true then my life here will not be a simple lull in my social life but an accurate representation of how sad my social life has always been. So please, please, PLEASE, seek me out while I'm back in town, I'll buy lunch, hell I'll buy lunch for the friends that you really want to see, just let me tag along!

Ok, that being said I think most of you who know me should have been able to grasp the over the top exaggeration. As it is I think I will be rather busy, I'm more or less envisioning a re-enactment of my last week in town, though this time throw in a wedding, rather than a 140 km/h road trip to Calgary (sorry for those of you down there, I really don't think I can make it there this time). If you want to see me and we have yet to make any kind of plans, e-mail me, of call my new cell number, you have it if I love you (actually I posted it here about 2 months ago). Anyway I will be staying at my old place in my old room, how odd is that, it's like going back to my parent's place (except they don't charge $10/night, it's more like $100, and that's not the holiday rates).

So I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. I hope we all have fun. As for posts on here, well since I will be visiting about 95% of my regular audience I don't think that there will be a huge demand for posts, but we will see.

Democracy or Dictatorship?

Ok, so I don't know US law, particularly in respect to US politics, but I'm starting to wonder what kind of system they have in place here. For those that don't know John Bolton has been appointed by Bush as the US ambassador to the UN (and here I thought Michael Bolton was the worst Bolton to be unleashed on the world).

So why is this a problem, well there are a couple of things wrong with it. First of all the nomination of the UN ambassador apparently needs a 2/3 vote in the Senate, which Mr. Bolton did not get. But who cares about those little details, Bush certainly doesn't, that's why he went ahead and appointed him anyway...I wonder if I can use any of that logic when I pay my taxes?

The bigger problem to all this (apparently I don't really mind the undermining of political process, may have something to do with running a bike club for a couple of years) is that Mr. Bolton has in the past shit all over the UN. A choice statement taken from a CBC article back in April has Mr. Bolton saying "the peace enforcement operations and nation-building should be relegated to history's junk pile". So is this really the best possible candidate to be a UN ambassador? Hell this makes the choice to make Ginger Spice an ambassador look like an act of pure genius!

I seriously don't know what the hell is going on with this country. When someone who has open disdain for an organization as important as the UN is chosen to be the US representative something is seriously wrong. Anyway, I'm not a politician, I don't know politics very well, but even I can see that this is a stupid situation, and something that we will all have to suffer with for years to come. Thanks again Bush, by the way what other surprises do you have for us before you leave office?