Eeek!

The wind blows as the light fades from the Halloween sky. I scury home to beat the ghosts and goblins that are sure to invade and terrorize. I put the key in my door and turn, thankful to have reached the safety and comfort of my home. "No zombies or alien creatures are going to terrorize me." Yet, as I open the door, my senses are assaulted. "This is not the home I left this morning!" Oh no! Worse than the undead, my house had been visited by.... PLUMBERS! The smell was not the pungent nectar of the pipe-fitter. Rather, it was the smell of the mysterious "stuff" that had blocked my drain pipe allowing only the few and the lucky to escape. The unlucky were banished from the drain pipe to my floor, throughout the kitchen and into the living room. So, it seems, the descent of the plumbers onto my unsuspecting home may have saved me, and that unlucky water in my drain, from meeting again (likely in the form of me stepping in a puddle in my house). I may just have to revisit my feelings about plumbers. I mean, when was the last time that a zombie did any home repair for you? Still, say no to crack.

Best thing ever!

No, I'm not going to write about the coolest car, camera or Mr. T bobblehead. Instead, I want you to think about how when you are completely "dying" for something, it can be the best thing ever. What immediately jumps to mind for me is a sandwich. Yes, a sandwich. It was the summer of '93 and I was in the midst of Educo, an outdoor leadership camp similar to, the more widely-known, Outward Bound. Details of the journey (both personal and physical) aside, we spent a number of days in the mountains near Lillooet, BC. An amazing experience, that didn't necessarily leave me wanting for anything. That being said, on the afternoon we got out of the mountains we went into town and got a bunch of veggies, cheese and bread and we made sandwiches. I swear, they were the best sandwiches I can remember (and that was 13 years ago!). That brings us to today. I played ultimate in what could politely be described as heinous conditions. The rain started last night so the fields were already completely soaked. The rain and win continued throughout the day. Still, we soldiered on. Well, when it was all over and I got home, I found what may have been, the best clothes ever! Super-thick fleece pants and a warm, cozy red-hooded-sweatshirt. Really, you can't go wrong with a red-hooded sweatshirt. Sadly, it is time to figure out some Halloween-type get-up for the evening's festivities. Oh how I'll miss my cozy clothes. Thankfully, barring some unforeseen catastrophe, they'll be waiting for me when I come back. They must really love me. ;)

The Joys of Celebrity

Yes, I can turn on a dime. I can go from discussing the fate of the world to the cult of celebrity in one quick post. In this case, I'm not going to rail against our attraction to the rich and the famous. Just highlight a headline (from CNN of all places) that made me smile. You know you've made it big when you get this sort of media coverage.

Brad Pitt gives wedgies to himself

Yams

I yam what I yam and that's all that I yam. Thanks to those of you who have voiced your acceptance of that. I sometimes wish that I could accept it myself as easily as those around me.

As Dave pointed out, even without a car it is easy to outstrip the resources of the planet. It seems sad that our ability to live the way we do, car or no car, is predicated on the majority of the world NOT living the same way.

China's rapid development is something that I've seen change drastically in my lifetime. A truly remarkable change and one that will have profound future effects on the world. As I watch, I am inclined to have a modicum of fear about what will happen as the world's most populous nation develops. Having said that, I know that I am in no position to make any judgments. "Pot to kettle, pot to kettle. You're black." Easy for me from my life of comfort to tell others that their efforts to do the same will bring about the end of the planet as we know it. What I'm doing obviously doesn't have any effect. ;)

On an unrelated note, it's shocking to think that I'm old enough to have seen such changes in the world. Many momentous changes have come on my watch. The fall of the Berlin Wall (and the Soviet Bloc), wars in the Middle East. The list goes on, especially since "momentous" is in the eyes of the beholder. Many other things have been momentous in the past three decades but it is as easy to ignore them as it is to skip some of the small changes that could make the world a (slightly) better place. Of course all those changes are inconsequential when put in the context of the whole world. I mean, if everyone on the planet walked instead of drove then, yes, that would likely improve things. But, if everyone owned cars, just so they could walk instead of drive, then we'd be in much worse shape overall. Oh what a tangled, yet comfortable, web we weave.

I am Bad for Biodiversity

The World Wildlife Fund just released it's Living Planet Report for 2006. Unsurprising to me, and perhaps to you, it doesn't look good. Canada ranks 4th in the per capita impact we have on the planet. This is not a list that we want to be at the top of. It appears that we need a few more planet earth's to fulfill our insatiable taste for stuff. Yes, I am personally a cause as I type this on my home computer (chock full of toxic metally goodness), after taking photos on my camera, driving my car and generally living beyond the means of the planet. I acknowledge my role and have a lot I should continue to change. Of related interest to me was how biodiversity has dropped over the past 30 years. I suddenly realized that I am personally a problem. Not because of my penchant for hunting endangered species or using too many resources but by the simple rules of math.

If the past 30 years were bad for biodiversity and I have been alive for the past 30 years then I must be bad for biodiversity. It saddens me to think I am destroying the planet, but who am I to argue with math? ;)

Sesquicenpostial (+4)

And the blogging continues. I let my 150th postiversery slide by in obscurity. Something didn't feel right about that so I'm having a belated Sesquicenpostial party. Ok, not so much party. Maybe I'll actually eat dinner. That sounds like a genuine celebration to me. For those of you who don't find that funny because you're worried I'm not eating enough, I'm just messing with you. I won't really be having dinner. ;)

Life continues on it's merry way. Still no word back on the photo (though I'm not getting discouraged, just waiting). It seems like winter is doing its best to supplant fall as the season that follows summer. Really, I might have to support it's claim. If it weren't for those great colours that fall keeps coming out with each year I might have to bench it. Maybe making it "ride the pine" (pun intended) for a year would make it get its act together. I shouldn't be so hard on autumn though. After all, I have been silently wishing for winter's arrival. At least since Saturday when I got snow tires put on my car. It would be a shame to have them and not use them. ;) While winter and snow are pretty cool (no pun intended there, I swear) I could at least handle them waiting until next week. This weekend is an ultimate tournament here in town. Goosebowl is a lot of fun. Being around Halloween, the costume theme really flies on the field and off. I had a great time last year but am a big enough person to admit that part of why I enjoyed it was that the weather was beautiful and warm. I don't think the field needs to be the site of two face-offs. One, my team against the other. Two, autumn v. winter, no holds barred. I'll let them save their cage match for a little later in the year.

Thoughts

Who's to say what the power of thought is? What is prayer if not thought? I don't really want to get into the details of it right now. Suffice it to say, I think that thought has some currency, even if it seems like a tenuous connection to what is going on in the lives of others. It is based on that belief that my thoughts are with those around me who have all too recently lost beloved members of their families.

Accidentally posted this in my photoblog. Incidentally, this is not a photo (but I bet your keen deduction skills helped you figure that one out).

300,000,000

Is it:

a) The number of cars Ford Motor Company built between their inception and Tuesday, November 18, 2003?
b) The population of the United States as of some time on Tuesday, October 17, 2006?
c) Approximate number of anti-depressant medication prescriptions issued in the United States each year?
d) The approximate exhaust velocity of a photonic rocket in meters per second?
e) All of the above?

60,000

Is it:

a) The number of people who die due to sun-related illnesses each year according to the World Health Organization (WHO)?
b) The number of movie titles at Blockbuster?
c) The number of kilometers on my car?
d) The value in GBP (£) of the Dylan Thomas Award, the World's largest literary prize?
e) All of the above?

Sunrise over Zipolite

Sunrise over Zipolite
Originally uploaded by jukerr.

You may have seen this photo before. I took it while in Mexico in January. As I commented with the photo, not a bad sight to wake up to on my first morning in Mexico.

Well, it seems the view is getting even better. I got a message yesterday from an Art Director at an unnamed magazine who found the photo on flickr. They are considering using it in an "advertorial" about the region of Mexico that I was in. It seems that as long as their clients like the layout then it's a "go". I'm well-chuffed about the whole thing. I guess this whole, "you should sell your photos" thing that some people have told me has something to it after all. I can see it now... travelling for a living. Mmmm. Or maybe more people need to invite me to their weddings in far-off places. Either way, I'll be happy.

Eureka!

Not only have I found "it" (in this case, what to do with my weekend), so too have many others. While I will be rewarded with an enjoyable weekend with family and friends, many others who found "it" were recently rewarded with Ig Nobel Prizes. Not to be confused with "The" Nobel Prizes for various research or great deeds, the Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded to people whose research "first make people laugh, and then make them think." This year awards were given for research into:

- "How many photos must be taken to almost ensure no-one in a group shot has their eyes closed" and;
- Why putting a finger in your bum can stop the hiccups, though more scientifically titled as: "The Termination of Intractable Hiccups with Digital Rectal Massage"

Previous winners include:

- the inventor of karaoke
- the inventor of an alarm clock that repeatedly goes off and then runs away to ensure people do actually get up
- research into how herrings communicate through farting

I assure you, the list goes on, and on, and on. Great stuff! Just don't confuse either type of Nobel Prize with the Darwin Awards whose mottos include "Chlorinating the Gene Pool" and "Culling the Herd". These awards are often given posthumously to those who have done things of magnificent stupidity to bring about their own deaths. Surprisingly, some live to tell the tale (and likely receive good-natured ribbing from their friends until they actually do kick-off).

What to do?

This weekend is a long weekend. I will be sure to give thanks for Thanksgiving. The question is: How do I spend it? I feel as though it should be an easy decision. Clearly, the fact that I've chosen to blog about it is evidence that it's not that straight-forward. I'm not so keen on this indecision. Maybe if this were the only case I wouldn't care so much. Again, the fact that I am discussing it can serve as evidence that this too, is not the way it is. I love trying to think things through from all sides but that can be debilitating if you're not careful. Thankfully, I have one thing I don't need to be unsure about. I'm exhausted and I've decided clearly, completely and without reservation, to go to sleep. Good night.