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Nov 30 – The last day of the month. 11
of 12 gone. 2008 almost a memory. If they haven’t already started we
will all soon be subjected to the interminable “year in review”
anthologies – news, sports, movies, music etc. I can hardly wait.
Hockey Pool – I can officially announce that
I have been trashed. Over the last week I believe all of my guys went on
a work to rule campaign while Andrew’s guys went on roids. Omnipotent
has become Impotent and skidded to second place. Out of the lead for the
first time this season and not looking good to get back. Clearly I have
a cease and desist on the smack talk.
You Play, you’ll pay – GTHL bashing or
praising is always a popular Oakville pastime as parents or players take
advantage of the LOR opportunity to try the “G” as a way of _______
(reader fill in blank) Bill Lankof of the Toronto Sun started a series
today on the “G” that opens with a John Gardner quote - "We're a
non-profit organization. That is going to become more evident as the
year goes on. I don't know if it's going to be by $10,000, $100,000 or
$200,000, but we're going to finish in the red." Some interesting
initial comments and a cute Johnny G video but we’ll see where it goes.
Check it out here.
Burke- “The New Era” – The game is on with the
Leaf’s first win and the aligned euphoria – the Cup lives here! Burke
has already started the dissemination of his CYA program by no changes
likely to the new year, I was lucky in Anaheim etc. type comments. How
long will this honeymoon last. Unbelievably the Leaf Nation is ahead of
the Capital Clowns (Ottawa not Washington). But don’t worry folks, there
are not two moons in the sky and that won’t last.
New Extreme Sport – Shopping at Dixie Value
Mall. That in and of itself is an oxymoron, but I risked life and limb
there yesterday to support Canadian Tire Corporation and buy some stuff
at Mark’s Work Wearhouse. Love those “special” days at Mark’s or maybe
I’m just cheap but Saturday was a) their warehouse outlet, b) extra 20%
off everything and c) my “employee discount. They almost pay me to buy
clothes there – plus I like their stuff. There is nothing like having
fleece lined jeans to sit in cold rinks. However, that mall is something
else. You need a battering ram to get through the aisles and running
into people with carts, kids, strollers and other offensive weapons
seems to be a requirement. Shop Mark’s – boost my stock price –
check the site.
Today in History the stogie smokin’
statesman Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was born in 1874. “Disgraced
in WW I, he is credited as being the iron will behind England’s
resistance to Hitler Germany and the pivotal Battle of Britain.
Sir Winston had a lot of great quotes in addition
to his “never have so many. . . . “
-
Success is the ability to go from one
failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.
-
However beautiful the strategy, you
should occasionally look at the results
-
History will be kind to me for I intend
to write it.
Andrew and Dad Contractors – Must cut off
today’s posting as the boss has some internal construction to deal with
and needs his faithful sidekick – moi. I foolishly thought I did not
have to wok on Sunday.
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Nov 28
– Headline Hunters – Not the Jim Perry game show but a
smattering of what made today’s headlines from various sources. As a
take off from earlier, there are 1 good, 1 bad and 2 ugly - you choose.
Wal-Mart worker trampled to death
Shoppers stampede as Long Island store opens
Nov 28, 2008 11:28 AM
COLLEEN LONG
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
NEW YORK– A Wal-Mart
worker died after a throng of unruly shoppers broke down the doors and
trampled him moments after the Long Island store opened early Friday for
day-after-Thanksgiving bargain hunting, police said.
Shopping as a contact sport. Sorry guys – I don’t think saving $50 bucks
on a TV or whatever is worth killing someone. Looks like “Black Friday”
deserves its name.
Total
tear-down of Leafs Burke's only real option
With Brian Burke's signature all that's left to be acquired before he's
introduced as the club's new president and GM at a press conference
tomorrow afternoon, he will inherit a team that is, in the words of a
senior NHL executive with another team, a "train wreck."
What a surprise and
revelation – the only question is – “What is there to tear down?”
blow-up may have been better but less politically correct phraseology.
'Very
humble' Orr finally takes a bow in Oshawa
DAVE FESCHUK Nov. 28, 2008
It's been nearly half a century since Bobby Orr, 14 years old and 125
pounds, arrived in Oshawa and began to bloom into hockey's greatest
genius.
Ya think! Good thing they
did not rush into it. Maybe Roy and Clark ceremonies triggered the idea.
Ex-hockey coach Frost found not guilty
By Allison Jones, THE CANADIAN PRESS
LAST UPDATED: 28TH NOVEMBER 2008, 1:23PM
NAPANEE, Ont. — Former NHL coach David Frost was found not guilty Friday
of sexual exploitation following a trial at which his defence argued
group sex is common in hockey but that Frost was never involved in such
acts with his players.
Regardless of “the facts”
this type of trial and media coverage does not do the game of hockey any
good but rather gives a lot of people a black eye and raises spectres in
peoples minds. Being found “not Guilty” does not prove you are innocent
– you may be, but it does mean the prosecution has not met the burden of
proof. This individual has quite the media scrapbook.
Thanksgiving Turkey(s)
NFL Style– AKA Detroit Lions and, or any game they participate in.
Other than being 0 – 12, the Lions only claim to fame is that to date
they have a tradition of being in the US Thanksgiving NFL game (now
games). Based on yesterday’s “turkey”, look for that to change.
‘mericans love their football and what the Lions are playing is not
football. Guess I can understand why my brother intends to “surrender”
his season’s tickets after this year. The only question is “Jerry – what
took you so long”? (20 some years).
Ford bombers – In 1942 Ford produced their first bomber – the
B-24 Liberator. One could say Ford has produced a number of bombs since
then (edsel, Maverick, Pinto) , but they did bring assembly line
technology to war production, gearing up to produce over 500 bombers per
month and over 8.500 for the war.
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Nov 27 – The Xmas season is now
official. We went out for our first “seasonal dinner with friends” so
that is the starting bell. With 28 days to go it will be a mad rush from
now until the 25 (28 days). That means I still have 27 days before I
have to start my Christmas shopping so I still have lots of time.
Sesame Street – In all the excitement I had
forgotten to post the answers to my Sesame Street character quiz - as if
anyone cares. Since it is a slow / weak blog day, I have decided to
stick them in today to fill space. Anyone who knows more that 25 is a
certified whacko!
Black Friday – tomorrow is the US #1
shopping day of the year. The Friday after their Thanksgiving. This year
it will pose an interesting proxy for individual’s assessment of their
comfort with the economy and hence their willingness to spend. The
oracles are calling for severely restricted spending levels which will
drive another stake into the retail economy. You never know, the fickle
consumer may fool us yet with “desperation” spending.
History – Today in 1965 Geordie Howe scored
his 600th goal (told you it was a slow news day – other than
the Mumbai horror, but I never miss a chance to plug Mr. Hockey). He
retired from Detroit in 71 after 25 seasons, came back to play with his
sons Mark and Marty in the WHA and then back into the NHL. He finally
retired at the unbelievable age of 52.
In 1924, this was also the day of the first Macy's
Thanksgiving's Day parade.
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Nov 25 –
I’m back! I did not mean to imply in my
Nov 22 “6 month anniversary” post that I was pulling the plug but
apparently someone from Cogeco decided that such should be the case. I
was tagged with “exceeding my bandwidth” and cut-off. It is amazing how
isolated you feel when you “lose” access you take for granted.
Fortunately the Wily Wireless Webster could piggyback on some unsecure
signals to pick up email and surf. However, I did not have enough signal
to publish. I have a temporary parole, my counter will be reset Dec. 1
and hopefully I can keep things active for the intervening 5 days!
The big question is why? I
believe that I got nailed by continuing fall-out from my virus attach
where my IP address may have been hijacked by terrorists and used for
all types of nefarious purposes. As Cogeco apparently rations bandwidth
to a monthly quota, this spam attack may have put me over the top and
attracted the attention of the Internet Police. Just what I need –
another disgruntled constituency! How dare they keep me from my loyal
subjects, don’t they know who I am?
My internet use should be
nowhere near the limits so this had better be the case and over with or
there will be trouble in River City. This may be a situation requiring
investigation by Jack Bauer and CTU. Heads will roll. (A Music Man, 24
and French revolution reference in two lines – sometimes I scare
myself).
Look at some of the good stuff I
missed the chance to vilify by being discombobulated (must be a word as
it did not come up on spell check).
v
Big three corporate jet joy rides to
Washington – an extension on the Dumb and Dumber movie – add “Dumbest”.
v
Obama’s new limos that will be even
more bulletproof / blast proof than George W’s fleet. I hear the death
threats are up and I guess that they feel he is worth more than George –
hard to disagree there.
v
Patrick Roy’s family challenges and the
large slice of humble pie he ate in Montreal after leaving the way he
did. Another example of how we have confirmed you can be bought – all
we’re negotiating is price.
v
A rant at Home Depot for advertising a
product and then not having it AT ALL for the event. Recognize that as a
Canadian Tire employee I was risking excommunication if even seen in HD
(and I don’t mean High Def).
v
Wendel Clark – o – mania sweeping ACC.
13 seasons, no cups - #17 recognized as an honoured sweater. Perhaps
Wendel’s biggest contribution to the Leafs (although heresy to say so)
was leaving in the June 94 trade for Sundin – one of the two most
lopsided trades (pro Leaf) in history (ask Doug Riseborough about the
other)
v
Complaining about not going to see
Bond, James Bond. Some people just don’t display the requisite amount of
dedication.
“Miracle on Bay Street” –
According to Damien Cox it is now a done
deal. The newest rendition of the Saviour of the Leaf Nation has arrived
in the form of the much touted Brian Burke. While I don’t wish to do the
gentleman a disservice, there is an old adage that says “you can’t make
a silk purse out of a sow’s ear “- and there are lots of porkers at the
MLSE trough. I guess we will have to wait and see him reach into his bag
of magic tricks and zesto presto – a contender.
Slapshot 3
– This one slipped under the radar screen. Slapshot 3 is being released
, Including the Hanson brothers.
This will serve as the tie
breaker for those of us with base humour. The original Slapshot was an
enjoyable and now somewhat of an “adult” cult favourite (but nowhere
near the Rocky Horror Picture Show – toast please). Slapshot 2 was
awful, no matter how you looked at it. Who knows where #3 will fit, but
as a “hockey” movie it is a must see – preferably at home with the big
screen, recliner and cold beer – old time hockey – Geordie Howe - game
on! I hope the Leafs are screening it as they could likely improve their
line-up with some of the cast. Check
The Star blurb. I guess it has to be at home as it is a direct to
DVD release, no theaters and apparently “toned down” for the kids – not
a good omen. I was looking forward to growing my hair long again,
getting out my old big black plastic frame ‘coke bottle” glasses and
joining the Hansons but does not seem likely now.
Juvie
– Went to watch a couple of juvie games Sunday and
was disappointed. In both the first and second games, one team was sans
goaltender. This both spoils the game for the young men and can lead to
short fuses and subsequent on ice silliness that is absolutely
unnecessary. One of the stories I heard was that goalies from later
games can’t be asked to play as a sub as this would not be fair to their
team! Give me a break. Lots of these young men would love to play two
games – give them the choice (we always used to). Maybe I was
misinformed.
Staying with juvie hockey –
hopefully it was not the local association that made the Q107 morning
show today about a “juvenile house league” coach going ballistic on a
timekeeper who ran the clock (as instructed) because they were running
late. Apparently this coach had the kid in tears over his verbal lashing
– even though the “kid” told him “I’m just a kid”. Whoever the “adult”
is, shame on him. I hope it gets dealt with – Make him timekeep for the
year (gratis) as penance.
RBMT
– I hear there are actually 131 teams not the 130 I
was told about and commented on earlier and this is an issue? – Sooorry.
My scheduling / planning comments still stand – how is the schedule
coming?
From the “I will not mention
it again” department. There is apparently
still a witch hunt on for anyone perceived or suspected of providing me
with any information on the doings of the MOHA cabal. You don’t have to
look too far folks to discover at least one of the sources. A member of
the executive is one of the guilty, or should I say careless offenders –
why am I not surprised. Thanks for sending me the suspension list.
Based on what the board wanted to accomplish with this information,
someone should take a basic course in data management based on this
document’s layout.
So – FOR THE LAST TIME.
vphl@cogeco.ca is ME. MOHA - Please go to YOUR website and
change the email links before you go around accusing other people of
“leaking” information. The good news for you is that it is such a mess
that few people use it anyway. By the way, what are you so concerned
about hiding and covering up (there are some dandies) in the open and
honest communication environment that was your platform?
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Nov 22 -
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly- a short
retrospective post today while I load up for more.
Happy Anniversary to me
- It has been 6 months since I was turfed
in the MOHA elections. As with any change there are always pluses and
minuses from a personal viewpoint. Without spending a lot of time on it,
I have tried to think about a few of the items that I have categorized
as the good, the bad and the ugly. It helps that I am a Clint fan and
have seen all of his spaghetti westerns several times.
The Good
·
The time I have had to spend with my
own family – especially my two young men who got short changed for years
with the time I spent worrying about 4,000 non relatives.
·
The time I have had to spend doing
things that got put off because I was too busy - it is amazing how
“work expands to fill available space”..
·
A schedule that’s not regimented from
6:00 AM until 10:30 or 11:00 PM every day.
·
The people who have come up and thanked
me for my contributions over the years – not all of whom were always
happy with what we did.
·
The fun I am having with my blog (which
I know infuriates some folks)
The Bad
·
Missing the time and interactions I had
with some very good, dedicated and genuinely nice people who shared a
common interest – providing a great recreational outlet for Oakville’s
kids – not just their own.
·
Missing the time with the volunteers
and kids at the rink – especially the Timbit program which is ‘what it’s
all about”
·
The way I have been dropped or snubbed
by folks who were buddy buddy. Now that I’m “out” and can’t do anything
for them I don’t exist. It is amazing how fast some so called friends
disappear.
·
Seeing things that we worked hard on,
dropped, changed or ignored for whatever reason.
The Ugly (or as another Eastwood movie is titled “The
Unforgiven”)
·
Seeing and hearing about some of the
flat out wrong stuff that is happening, because members of the cabal
either don’t know, don’t care or don’t have the capacity or capability
to plan, understand or deal with things. Some things that folks are
desperately trying to keep under wraps but that are coming out or will
come out.
·
The lies insinuations and arena gossip
that has been spread about me and what I supposedly did or did not do as
a way of deflecting criticism, avoiding blame or rationalizing actions.
Not once has anyone had the intestinal fortitude to make these
accusations in writing as they know that they are lying.
·
The way Jane was treated by the new
(and some members of the old) Executive and the way they were let away
with it. To a lesser extent this also applies to people who have been
declared guilty by association when all they have ever tried to do is
support the kids.
So 6 months later I have not
gone away, and I understand that is a real thorn for some folks – too
bad!
History
– I would be remiss if I did not mention that today is the day in 1963
when JFK was assassinated. This is another of those “moments” you can
recall where you were and what you were doing. In the US, coming off of
the “charismatic” reigns of Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy was a
breath of fresh air in the political arena and an expected “new
generation” kind of guy. From the “Camelot” comparison to the social
impact of the “new” president, the response to his assassination was and
continues to be phenomenal. I can not think of any single historical
incident that had this level of focus and attention - Warren Commission,
Conspiracy Theories, Family Analysis, Movies, Books etc., etc., etc.
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Nov 20 – Markets, stocks, crude prices all
continue to slide. No good financial news from anywhere other than
gas prices will be going down again. Crude closed below $50 at $48.65 so
to make matters worse I have now officially lost my bet.
Pardon – Tis the season to petition good old
George W. as the President can issue a bunch of Presidential Pardons (as
he sees fit) when he leaves office. Interesting to note that the ever
versatile Connie Black is rumoured to be lobbying for the Get out of
Jail Free Card. Would not surprise me if he makes the list. Maybe I
should drop him a note for a pardon on some of the content I’ve had
here.
Moorehead’s Tech Shop – The Family rags on
me about my collection of PC odds and ends and why do I need that / keep
that etc. Often they are right (I have a bunch of Zip disks but someone
tossed my drive). Anyway I also sometimes get the last laugh and enjoy
one-upping Number One son, the now non-resident propeller head. Last
night he calls to see if he had given me a VGA to HDMI adaptor as he now
has this humungus monitor from HP as part of his home office
requirements and had swapped out his 21” to Becky to go with her PC.
Picture this folks, Shaun now has two monitors hooked up to his PC – a
25” and a 19”. Becky now has a 21” and I think a 19” as well. Two
monitors on each PC – how ridiculous does it get and consider the real
estate here for apps – how can you watch two big screens at once. I
remember getting my first 14” VGA (800 X 600) and thought that was
great. Anyway I told him he had not given me any adaptor – that I had
got one when I got my new video card and it was VGA to DVI. Then he
wanted to know if I had an HDMI to HDMI cable when it turns out what I
reminded him he needed was a DVI to DVI. Which by the way I just
happened to have in my warehouse. I just love it when you get a chance
to show up the youngsters. Looks like he was humiliated as he snuck over
today to pick it up when I wasn’t home.
SharePoint – Took some SharePoint Services
training at the office. Really neat tool. One great application would be
league stats and Microsoft actually has a canned freebie application
(baseball but modifiable) that they will give you to promote their
SharePoint Server application and related collaborative services.
(opportunity for some comments here but I’ll pass for now) Don’t know
why I got trained as last I looked I am not responsible for CTC Web
updates but it is an awesome collaboration tool. We are moving to 2007
desktops so there may be some workflow advantages for me. Let’s see, if
I reconfigure my desktop as a SharePoint server I could have lots of
fun! Getting a little too propeller headed here.
Cal beats Stanford – remember the classic
video on this when the band came on the field early, got involved in the
play, Cal completed five laterals around the band and won with a last
second touchdown. Still one of the best sports videos I have ever seen –
right up there with the crash and burn of the skier at the beginning
clip of ABC’s Wide World of Sports. The Cal – Stanford game – way back
in 1982!!
Short post places to go, meetings to attend. Maybe
tomorrow I’ll post my Sesame Street answers.
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Nov 19 –
Happy Birthday Andrew, Typical 23 year old
As they say it seems like only
yesterday. All of us have “those moments” that a) we will never forget
and b) we hope that everyone else does. One of mine was in the delivery
room with Jane when Andrew was born, when my response to a comment
directed at me by our doctor was on immediate hindsight so stupid and
inappropriate that even I wondered how it came out of my mouth. I don’t
think anyone else really remembers it and I will never tell. Think about
that for a while – it was 23 years ago and I can still play it back
verbatim. I did not have that challenge with Shaun as I was barred from
the delivery room. We had just moved back from Alberta, we had a new
doctor and I did not take any of that prenatal stuff. So I was forced to
sit out in the Dad’s waiting room with another guy whose preparation was
much more detailed than mine. He had brought in a case of beer to drink
while waiting! And before you ask – yes I had one and no it was not
redneck country – it was North York General Hospital.
Anyway, I rushed home early to
get birthday boy and see if they wanted to do the dinner thing but
arrived only to find Andrew had been shanghaied by one of his friends
and was gone – destination and timelines unknown.
Snow Tires
– with current Quebec mandatory requirements there is now a potential
shortage of snow tires as manufacturers apparently did not gear up for
increased demand. Regardless, in the time tunnel, you grabbed a couple
of cheap rims, a pair of snowies, were good to go and had lots of change
left from $100. Transport yourself to the present. Recommended – 4 snow
tires and for all the practical reasons that means four ‘winter” rims.
Plus we were foolish enough to trade in old Malibu for new Malibu which
means gadgetry to the forefront – we now have sensors to monitor the air
pressure on an ongoing basis in each tire. That means disconnect the
sensor (GM probably goes into palpitations and voids all warrantees) or
get sensors installed in the new rims @ $50 - $100 per rim. The simple
plan of putting on even reasonably priced snow tires is now a $1,000+
opportunity. With mostly local driving and Andrew’s 4WD Jeep as back-up,
is it worth it?
Oil Prices
– I can virtually guarantee that oil prices will continue to come down
in the balance of November since I wagered a colleague one of our
favourite beverages that crude would NOT close below $50 before December
1. Watch this – Nov. 28 $49.99 NYMEX. Besides, gas in the 70s has not
happened since 2002. Enjoy. But buy more at CTP – I can always use the
volume to pay off my beer bets.
Sundin
– talks and stories picking up / piling up – YAWN!
Lincoln
– (not the car – the Abe guy) One of the most famous speeches of all
time was delivered today in 1863 – Lincoln’s Gettysberg Address.
Lincoln’s speech which was just 272 words long and lasted two or three
minutes came after the “keynote” cemetery dedication speaker “Edward
Everett” who had just droned on in miserable weather for over two hours.
The Gettysberg Address while rather unremarked at the time has become
known as one of the best visions of democracy ever presented.
Snow
– it’s here – supposed to be more coming so get ready. So much for my
snow tires issue.All the loony tunes are out on the roads. Every year
with the first snow it seems like everyone has to learn to drive all
over again. Either they seem to want to go faster to see if they can
(usually not) or they decide 15 kph is fast enough. Trick is – get home
and stay there.
Duck and cover
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Nov 18 -
Steelers and the NFL. Who says gambling
isn’t the root of all evil or the bread and butter of the NFL. A late
Steeler touchdown – inappropriately disallowed led to an 11 – 10 Steeler
win instead of a larger score (of course when there is controversy it
has to involve my team). Big deal you say, the “right” team won anyway –
yes Grasshopper – but the spread was 4 and guess who is howling. This
leads to NFL pondering rule changes on video replay. This of course has
nothing to do with gambling – Hah!
Toskala attacks escalate.
Leaf fans go to DEFCON 3. Solid goaltending was supposed to be the
strength of a young but building team – Hmmm. Just what does anyone
expect Burke or some other dude to do. Trade all the stars for prospects
– who would that be? Trade all the prospects for stars – who would that
be? Blow up the team – for what? I am not sure BB wants to put himself
in that position regardless of what the Leaf paparazzi say.
Don Cherry on Ric Mercer
Report for a fashion makeover. It’s is / was on tonight but I don’t
think I’ll catch it and its too late for PVR instructions. Likely can
catch it on web cast. Mercer is enough of a lunatic without a Cherry
wardrobe!
Furniture
– It seems I was not a value add to the weekend furniture shop as it
appears that there has been a purchase made in my absence. Apparently
there will be a bounty out on “THE CAT” as the purchase is leather (I
hope it is heated). Poor old Tenabi could lose some body parts with
inappropriate behaviour. While I am just as happy to be excluded from
the “drag him around to 8 zillion stores to compare colours, textures,
materials, sizes, manufacturer, warrantee, softness, height and on and
on”, I was not aware that kitchen sets or “suites” were part of your
normal sectional package. Apparently they are as I understand I now have
a new kitchen set to go with my new leather sectional. It’s not bad
enough that you discuss cup holders and storage capacity when buying
cars, you now have to take this into consideration for couches as well.
I hope someone thought to measure the room before they bought this thing
as sectionals are notoriously large and you can't stretch the room.
Hockey Pool
– This could be my last mention of the family hockey
pool as my lead is evaporating faster than Toskala’s save percentage or
my input on family decisions. I think I have lost something like 60
points of my lead over the last three days. I have requested drug tests
on my players and an investigation of whether any of them are in contact
with the Tampa Bay Tochet.
Koufax
– Today in 1966 my favourite pitcher retired. Sandy
Koufax was a fireballing lefty for the Dodgers – first Brooklyn and then
LA with the move to the left coast. Koufax and Drysdale plus Podres were
quite the line-up. Koufax when he was on was almost impossible to hit –
as per Willie Stargell "trying to drink coffee with a fork."
Koufax retired at 30 after an exceptional season in view of concerns
about an arthritic elbow in his pitching arm. A devout Jew, Koufax is
also remembered for refusing to pitch the first game of the 1965 World
Series because it fell on Yom Kippur. Drysdale started and got shelled
prompting him to quip “I bet you wish I was Jewish too”. At 36 Sandy was
elected to the Cooperstown BB Hall of Fame – the youngest inductee ever.
As an added bonus I will tell you that Tommy Lasorda was also in the
rotation with him and Jackie Robinson played third base.
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Nov 17 –
Low key – stay out of the weather and
lounge week-end. No hockey, but the Barbarians are approaching the Gates
in our hockey pool. My guys have gone flat and my lead is evaporating at
an alarming rate. Smack talk opportunities may be short lived and this
will disappear as a topic,
Bond, James Bond.
No I have not gone to see “Quantum of Solace” yet as I do not do opening
weekends. That involves line-ups, jammed noisy theatres and often lousy
seats. Not for me, but they did OK without us picking up $70 million
already. The plan is for Andrew and me to take in the show next weekend.
So – if you see me and have seen it I DO NOT WANT TO KNOW. It is tough
enough dodging media bumpf. I have done my homework and re-watched
Casino Royale (the real one) – Thank you On Demand. Yes, I know the new
show is a sequel that picks up approximately one hour after the Casino
Royale ending. I also know it is the shortest Bond movie ever. Don’t
tell me more.
Over the weekend one of the
movie channels was running non stop Bond. Various movies interspersed
with Bond programming – interviews, anthologies, period pieces etc. Some
interesting stuff.
Are there any adult males who
have not at one time or another suffered from “Bond envy”? As a kid, I
remember the country bumpkin (me) visiting an urban uncle (big city
Brampton) who like me was an avid reader and let me mooch his collection
of Bond paperbacks, the oldies, Dr. No, Goldfinger, Moonraker, From
Russia with Love, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Thunderball etc.
these novels, which plot wise are not necessarily reflected in the movie
treatments were great reading for a kid with a very fertile imagination.
Needless to say Sean Connery is the real Bond. However, give Craig some
time and a few movies and he has potential. I was impressed by his
portrayal of Bond in his one flick, the remake of Casino Royale. Thank
whatever that the farcical Peter Sellers verson has now been replaced
with a real movie (and I like Peter sellers – Pink Panther – not Bond).
P Brosnan and T Dalton get honourable mention for their portrayals but
Roger Moore gets two thumbs down from me – he should have stuck with
“The Saint”. Lazenby did OK in his one appearance (he regrets bailing,
but he deserved it, he let his wife get shot).
You can play the “favourites
game – favourite Bond, Bond Girl, Name, Book, Movie, Gadget, Car,
Villain, Scene, Action Sequence, Music, Double Entendre, Evil Scheme,
Set and on and on.
Cell Saga – Round Three.
The laundered phone is still dead but it has made some interesting
gasping noises and teased us with hints of recovery, charging, screen
cleared, menus appear but it operates not according to any sense of
“input” but rather as a random series of actions. The fat lady has sung
– it is over. Anticipating this I was waiting for my “new” phone to come
to life after my Friday service calls. By noon Saturday still no
stirring which I figured was more than enough “reboot” time. So, back on
the horn to Bell (Im)Mobility and menu navigation until I finally got a
live tech. We determined that the phone itself had to be reprogrammed
with the secret code numbers and after he dug them out of the vault and
relayed them to me to key in we achieved lift-off and now the “unnamed
member” is wireless again. Kids don’t try this at home – don’t wash your
phone – dirty is good!
Random Musings
Prince Chuck is 60. Heck
of an apprenticeship. How many people have waited that long for a job -
No one! As an added "kicker" - you only get the job when Mom passes on
as she does not appear to have any wish to addicate. Edward was enough.
Space Washrooms
– the shuttle has rendezvoused to assist in doubling
the occupancy limit (3 to 6) for the International Space Station by
adding an additional sleeping compartment and bathroom. One has to
wonder how a bathroom works and essentially “looks” in 0 G? not a pretty
image.
Leather Furniture
– Seems that the leather look is in for furniture. Do
people not have pets or are they better behaved than our idiot cat?
Anyone want a slightly demented cat or do I need to consider quadruple
amputation/
Bronfman Jewellery
– This case should be easy to crack without the recent reward offer for
info leading to the recovery of the stolen baubles. Just look for a Leaf
under 65 wearing a Stanley Cup ring.
Pirates
– Where and how does one quietly fence a 338,000 ton (bigger than 3
aircraft carriers) supertanker with a cargo of over $100 million in oil
(not to mention how you steal it in the first place)? I know where you
can unload stuff on 42 St. in New York but this is a bit over the top.
Maybe the pirates need the oil for the tanks they stole on another
hijack.
Feeding Frenzy
– Next target – Toskala – 9 shots – 4 goals - .555 save percentage. On
the Leafs rotating rent-a-blame wheel Toskala is now in the crosshairs –
Team is fifth in goals for, 30th (read last) in goals
against. He is not getting a ringing endorsement from Wilson either.
Let’s see how things unfold when the Beaners hit the ACC tonight.
Burkeitis
– Who really cares
History - "The Heidi Bowl"
- In 1968, the Oakland Raiders scored two touchdowns in 9 seconds to
beat the NY Jets. Nobody saw it because with 65 seconds left to play,
NBC felt it was safe to cut away to preplanned programming - a made for
TV special of the little Swiss girl and her family in the Alps. It had
already been a classic game with 8 lead changes and the cut-off lead to
such an outcry that NBC learned a lesson they’ll
never forget: "Whatever you do," one said, "you better not leave an NFL
football game." Shortly after the Heidi debacle, the NFL inserted a
clause into its TV contracts that guaranteed that all games would be
broadcast completely in their home markets. For its part, NBC installed
a new phone--the "Heidi Phone"--in the control room that had its own
exchange and switchboard. Such a disaster, the network assured its
viewers, would never be allowed to happen again.
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Nov 14 – Balloons and Brickbats
Balloons to Poppy Power. A colleague of mine
shared this story with me about his recent trip to Washington over
Remembrance day. As a first time visitor to Washington, he and a travel
companion were visiting the sites (wearing their poppies. They viewed
the Viet Nam veterans memorial and were just across from the White House
when he got a call on his cell. He reaches into his pocket and as he
answers gets a somewhat forceful tap on the shoulder. Turning around he
meets the steely-eyed, stone-faced features of two Secret Service men
who want to know “what’s that red thing you are wearing on your jacket
and is the black centre a camera or recording device of some type. Once
he explained what it was, they were fine with the situation – Moving on
from there in their session the next day, two of the presenters were
U.S. Military (a captain and major) seeing the two Canucks in the
audience sporting their poppies they complimented the two on the respect
they were showing and explained the custom to the group. As a nice
gesture, the two guys gave their poppies to the officers who were
extremely touched by the gesture and wore them for the three days of the
program. Well done!
Brickbats to Bell Mobility – Customer (dis)Service.
I carry a Bell Mobility cell and crackberry as my “office” links and
have been on the network for years. I also got a cell phone for an
“unnamed household member” a number of years ago on the same service.
For whatever reason this unnamed member decided that the phone needed
cleaning so rather than simply wiping it off, this individual decided to
put it through a full laundry cycle. Unfortunately this was too much
water for a non swimmer phone and despite heroic CPR efforts it was
pronounced DOA. Silly me, I thought I would just call in and arrange for
a replacement phone. NO! First before I even got to explain my call I
got a rep with a bad case of I hate my job and don’t want to talk to
you.
When I explained my problem and asked what they
could do, I got a well thought out and concise response “Nothing”.
When I explained that this was not acceptable and
that I needed a phone and was not going to pay for no service the answer
expanded to “let me check your file” – “You will qualify for an upgrade
on Jan 10 if you extend your term to three years and we can get you
something then” “It’s only two months”.
Again down the not acceptable path and a new
suggestion pops up – “if you get a phone” we can transfer the ESN. – Of
course it must be a Bell Mobility phone that is not currently being
used”.
And that was basically the customer service support
plan to a customer at a major account with a personal account as well –
not to mention my land line services over the years. Given I was at work
at the time I chose not to prolong the debate with this very helpful
individual and after mentioning that my other household members had Fido
service where they actually seemed to want the business I hung up.
So I did track down a defunct phone, called and got
a more approachable rep, got the ESN changed and now so far have been
waiting 5 hours for Bell network to catch on. I may have a new windmill
to tilt at.
Halloween Treats – Sick minds abound and
most assuredly that is part of why the “turn-out” of trick or treaters
is down and paranoia is up. If you have not heard, “doctored” Smarties
were found in a Burlington child’s bag of goodies where a Tylenol DM
cold tablet was found. Very funny prank – Ha Ha!
Melrose bounced – back to the broadcast
booth. Barry lasted 16 games with Tampa Bay and is number two head coach
(out of 30) to hit the chopping block. Clearly, it is Melrose’s fault
for not leading that all star team to first place. I mean, they only had
the league’s worst record last year – what did they expect? Go figure!
Tochet gets bumped up to be the top banana – I wonder if that has any
bearing on the terms of his probation. J’ai Alai anyone – get your money
down. Who’s next? I’m thinking you might want to consider the home of
the Beaver Tail. With the election there’s a lot of moving going on
there anyway. Maybe I should send in a resume.
We are Marshall – Today in 1970 the plane
carrying most of the Marshall University football team, staff and
prominent boosters crashed on a hillside just two miles from the
airport. A huge tragedy for the town, the story of how the Thundering
Herd was rebuild is told in what I consider a quite good movie – “We are
Marshall” released December 2006. While no one ever wants to test the
case, what is the right thing to do under these types of circumstances.
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Nov 12 and
13 – Potpourri day(s) I goofed and did not have access to
post yesterday so today’s is long and boring
Remembrance Day in the
workplace. While not wishing to over
dramatize the issue, it is disappointing how little or casual the
observance of Remembrance Day is. Most organizations are lucky to even
provide notice of the day and the traditional two minutes of silence at
11:00 AM. Even if some folks take the time to observe the two minutes,
there is no shortage of co-workers who blissfully carry on either
ignorant of, not caring or disrespectful of the event. Sorry folks but I
feel that is unacceptable. We can have a full day holiday to celebrate a
Queen’s pseudo birthday and blow off thousands and thousands of dollars
in fireworks but we can’t take any time to recognize our fallen
soldiers.
Sundin
– give it up. He has sold the house. Pundits are still dumping on him as
a traitor to the Leaf Nation. Get over it. Since he is apparently
“working out”, the huge joke would be if he wanted to play in Toronto.
Does TMLSE take him? I know it’s ridiculous but I thought I would just
stir things up. Maybe it’s part of a major conspiracy / master plan with
Brian Burke – none for the price of two.
KHL heart problems
– I keep forgetting this is sort of a hockey blog so I need to
occasionally comment on hockey issues (Sundin doesn’t count) The KHL
(new Russian Hockey League) have introduced a league managed (not team
with their own interests at heart – sort of) medical testing program .
After Cherepanov’s death (young Ranger draft pick) the league is
introducing testing for all players and has apparently already
discovered five situations in the first 46 of the 67 players under 20
they have tested to date. If you count that as 6 out of 47 then 13%
of the tested group have had medical (heart) issues raised. That is
a scary number
Kudos to the league for bringing
forward this type of initiative and second, would the NHL or other
leagues Junior, AHL etc. in Canada be any different. With Oakville’s own
tragic losses, I would hope that this situation generates more profile
and activity within Canada generally and hockey specifically.
Richard Bell Tournament
– “Warning – Highly Technical and Boring but important educational
content – not recommended for young children or readers under 120
60 IQ (don’t want to eliminate all the hockey brass).
As many of you know the Richard
Bell Memorial tournament - RBMT is the annual MOHA (minor age) Rep
tournament held between Xmas and New Years – Dec 27 – 30. It is a great
tourney and recognizes a super hockey friend lost to us too early. Last
year was very successful with around 120 teams. Those of you involved
may remember the hoops we jumped through for Day 2 to get enough ice –
we did not have enough available in Oakville and had to get some in
Mississauga and still had to stretch out a division to days 1,3 and 4
instead of 1,2,3. At the end of last year’s event I reminded the
tournament team that for 2008 “Get the maximum ice you can for Day 2
and let that determine your maximum entries”. My condolences to
this year’s scheduler as apparently people don’t listen, never learn,
and the new super scheduler doesn’t handle this – it’s the old tried
and true paper and pencil (AKA Excel worksheet process). By the way it
takes about 2 minutes to figure this out.
Here’s the scoop! Apparently
after my blog’s team count mention things perked up.
MOHA has attracted 130 teams
into the tournament – I don’t have exact numbers or the division
breakdown as a hated outsider but let me lay out the hypothetical
challenge that has been created. Refer to the following charts
|
Venue |
Pads |
|
Day 2 |
Teams / Games |
Game |
Total |
|
Ice Sports |
4 |
|
Total |
130 |
|
|
|
Joshua's Creek |
2 |
|
Minor Atom |
32 |
1.25 |
40 |
|
Glen Abbey |
2 |
|
Older |
98 |
1.5 |
147 |
|
River Oaks |
2 |
|
|
|
|
187 |
|
Oakville |
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maplegrove |
1 |
|
|
Hours |
Pads |
Total |
|
Kinoak |
1 |
|
Each Pad |
|
|
|
|
Pads |
13 |
|
8 AM - 8 PM |
12 |
13 |
156 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Variance |
|
|
-31 |
On the surface (130 Teams),
that’s good news – BUT - In the preferred and historical format, the
Minor Atom and Minor Peewee play on days 1 2 3 and the Minor Bantam and
Minor Midget on days 2 3 4, Therefore all teams are playing on day 2 and
with a four game guarantee that means 2 games each for day 2 or 130
games.
Now move on to ice. I hear that
MOHA got more Town ice - good – but guess what? It AIN’T enough!
Presuming that MOHA has ALL four pads at Ice Sports and ALL
ice in Town from 8:00 AM through 8:00 PM a simple calculation says they
are still 31 hours short. That’s using Kinoak (MM AAA Oh Yeah!) and
presuming no down time for Tim Hortons Xmas ice or any Town or other
contract user programs. So even if you say you will go later 10:00 PM on
all sheets and NO ONE else has ANY ice, you are still at
least 5 hours short with perfect ice utilization.
That leaves only 2 real options
– find more ice out of town and, or put a down day in one or more
divisions e.g., 1, 3 4 instead of 1 2 3 or 2 3 4. The down days are not
ideal but can work provided the teams in that division are “local” so
you don’t cost them an additional room night – many will already be
booked based on “normal” expectations.
A humourous adjunct – the
schedule was due to the program publisher November 10 and I believe the
scheduling “opportunity was handed out on the 9th! Any idiot
can turn this around in 24 hours – RIGHT!
There are probably two of us in
Town who understand this having done it several times and I wish my
colleague (the other guy) good luck. In support of my colleague – make
sure several people review the work game by game in proofing the
schedule as it MUST NOT be released until you are sure it is 100% right
or Maxwell Smart’s dreaded enemy C.H.A.O.S. will take over. And before
you dump on the scheduler – try and do it yourself and proof it yourself
and see how easy it is. Think I’m gonna be hearing about some special
tournament meetings coming up.
Timbit pictures and sweaters
(from the Sidney Crosby commercial shoot a while back) - for those of
you who have contacted me or tried to contact Tim Hortons or their
associated Agencies – relax – the pictures and sweaters are coming. I
contacted Tims and they apologize for the delay but plan to have them in
their hands by the end of November. Those of you who have any experience
with the TDL group know that they are very conscientious about these
things and follow through on their commitments. Sometimes “stuff
happens” (politically correct phrase) to mess up timetables but ideally
they will be in your hands pre Xmas so you can use as an Xmas gift –
save money and buy me a coffee instead. Stayed tuned and please stop
with the chase calls and letters to the folks!
Palin hanging in,
just like a Timex (takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’) or the Eveready
Bunny that just won’t quit. Seems she has now enlisted God as a team
member in her go forward plans for 2012 – 2016 or whatever. She has also
invoked the SOGDIT defence) Some Other Guy Did IT) to explain away the
loss. Maybe she is a politician after all. Some suggestions for her to
improve her chances: take geography lessons, pre-plan your wardrobe,
hide the family and learn to stay on script. Winging it is not a good
idea. I must admit, some of her antics were entertaining so we will see
where this goes. She is doing everything she can to stay in the
spotlight. Maybe Hockey Night in Canada should bring her in for a
face-off with Don Cherry with all proceeds going to Minor Hockey – I
would buy a ticket for that. .
Obama
– While the honeymoon is in full swing as per approval ratings, some
interesting items. First the market still sucks. However, we can still
blame that on George W and it seems that BO (new short form for him) is
staying clear of the disaster areas. Wouldn’t want any tarnish to rub
off until at least the big January “I” day. More intriguing is news that
“gun sales are up” big time in the U.S. Especially on semi-autos and
handguns that the NRA is convinced or is convincing people that BO is
planning to take aim at (pun). Hard to fathom that the US does not have
enough guns already. The corollary is an increase in ammunition sales as
conjecture is that potential tax increases will quintuple (that’s 5X for
the non Latin types) prices under BO’s administration. Now you can buy
or own your gun, but you won’t be able to afford the bullets to shoot
each other. Looks like a potential smuggling exchange – ship your cheap
illegal smokes to Canada in exchange for beaver bullets.
Sesame Street characters
– answers next week – I don’t want to make
it too easy for you and I may need some filler.
Jeep - For all you Jeeps
owners - including our house, today in 1939, the Willys-Overland company
completed the first "Jeep" prototype for the US Army. With conventional
wisdom claiming the Jeep name came from from the use of the GP acronym -
short for General Purpose vehicle, over 600,000 were produced for WW II
use and lead to the 1945 Jeep CJ-2A, the first civilian Jeep vehicle. I
remember (vaguely) in the late sixties the Canadian army was selling off
"mothballed" crated "new" WW II Jeeps for $75. My brother and I almost
bought one but didn't. Wonder what they would have been like.
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