No, I'm not giving up already.
I've decided to amalgamate blogs with my friend Terry (and possibly a few others).
From now on, you can look forward to high quality and intriguing items at The Sentient Deli. Also, I will still be posting things.
http://sentientdeli.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Trip From Hell
I don't normally talk about my personal life much in this blog but I feel for once I have to stand up on my soapbox and rant a little. I figure if I had to deal with this crap for the last few days, the interwebs can deal with me writing about it.
As most people know, I travel a lot for work. I'm usually out of the country at least once every couple of months. Because of that, I tend to feel rather lost/naked when I don't have my passport on me. In preparation for an upcoming trip to Nigeria, I had to send my passport off to the Nigerian High Commission in Ottawa to get an entry visa. This is a pretty normal practice. Unfortunately the application process is a little...convoluted. For example, they require a signed copy of the online application form. However, there is no way to print out the application after you have finished it. In addition, the online application consists of 4 separate pages of information. So I ended up having to re-fill in the entire form, print out each page, sign them, and send them off. Thankfully we use an immigration/visa consultant who is familiar with these sorts of things and can act as a liason between ignorant people like me and foreign consulates.
Unfortunately, I was also scheduled to go to Houston this week for training. After not hearing back from the Nigerian High Commission by Wednesday of last week, I talked to my immigration consultant and asked her to get the Nigerian High Commission to send back my passport, with or without the visa. Thursday I was notified that my passport was on its way back and would have my visa. Again unfortunately the Nigerian High Commission will (for whatever reason) only ship using Canada Post. They had shipped my passport using Canada Post's Next Day A.M. Priority Courier.
However, Friday morning came and went. No passport. Apparently they had missed the cutoff for Next Day A.M. service by about 45 minutes and my passport had been received in the collection for Friday Next Day service. But this is Canada Post. They don't work weekends. Next Day A.M. meant Monday morning.
So the only option available to me was to head down to Canada Post's main sorting depot on Saturday morning. I arrived to find a mostly empty building. Not counting security, there were approximately 4 people working. One of them managed to tell me that they were shutdown until Sunday afternoon and had approximately 1.4 MILLION pieces of unsorted mail. I was told that the odds of finding my passport in that pile was almost nonexistent.
This meant it was time to try rebooking. After 2 hours on the phone with the company travel agent, the hotel I was booked in, and the limo companies transporting me to/from the airports in Edmonton and Houston, everything was rebooked for Monday night. I would go to work and hope that my passport arrived in time.
So Monday morning arrives. After spending Sunday night packing and preparing to travel, I was hopeful that I'd actually get to go. Slowly the morning passed away and no passport arrived. I all but gave up on my chances of going. Just after lunch, Canada Post's tracking website was finally updated and showed that my passport had been put on a truck in Edmonton at 10:50 am. But where in the city was it?
My ride to the airport was booked for 2:30. Finally, at 2:00, I found someone able to provide some real help. Our receptionist mentioned that Canada Post sometimes just drops courier packages in our mailbox. I stood at the window with baited breath as she walked across the street and returnee with an armful of mail. And in that armful my passport was waiting for me. I couldn't believe it. One would think that for something as important as a passport, a signature would be required. But I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. I finally had my passport with 30 minutes to spare.
Naturally, my ride to the airport was 5 minutes late. Thankfully I allotted some extra time. At 3:00 I finally arrived at the airport. I finally started to think that I'd actually make it. I went to check in. The desk agent couldn't find my booking. I pulled out my itinerary. Somehow my travel agent had rebooked me for Sunday night and not Monday night. Perfect.
So I call up the travel agent as fast as I could. Fortunately there were still seats available and it was relatively easy to make the change. Or so she said as she put me on hold. 20 minutes later it's getting to be questionable as to whether I could make the flight. So I head to the ticket desk. The ticket agent tells me that she can see my travel agent is in the process of changing the ticket but isn't finished. So she issued me what was essentially a conditional ticket, put my luggage on standby, and told me to run for the gate. I was still on hold. So I put my on-hold phone through the x-ray machine and hoped I wouldn't miss anything. I got through security, picked up my phone, and within seconds heard "Mr Constam you're good to go."
I run up to the gate just as boarding was starting. Of course this means the gate agent is too busy and can't verify my ticket. After another agonizing 10 minutes, she finally gets to me and checks me in. I'm set. Except that my departing flight to Calgary was leaving out of a gate where they dock small planes at lettered gates. I was told to go to door H. Door H is near the end of the right side of this long hallway. I get there and there's no plane. I run back to the start of the hall, head down the left side and just run as hard as I can. Th plane was at door E, at the end of the right side. I'm the last one on board. I look at the flight attendant and ask "Will this plane actually take me to Calgary?" She replies "Why wouldn't it?" I quip "You have no idea the day I'm having..."
I'm finally in my seat. I'm set. I only now have to manage to collect my luggage, pass through US customs, and get through security in my hour and five minute layover in Calgary. Then the pilot comes on and says that we'll be delayed a few minutes because Calgary's airspace is busy. Great.
I arrive in Calgary 13 minutes late. I start running again. Seriously, if running through airports was an Olympic sport, you could give me the gold medal right now. I get to the American departures area and stop to wait for my luggage. I had no idea if it even made it on the plane due to my temporary stand-by status. Ten agonizing minutes later, my suitcase appears. I manage to fly through US customs and manage to get through security with only a quick full body scan and minor bag search. (Seriously, for me, that's a good deal.)
With 15 minutes to spare, I jogged up to my departure gate for Houston. Suddenly, it occurs to me that since my ticket was a last minute purchase, I might be in a good enough class to get an upgrade using a normally useless blue system-wide upgrade certificate. I was right.
So after what was a rather insane day, I was rewarded with a big comfy seat, a row to myself, an ice cold beer, and a wonderful dinner of chicken curry and rice.
As much as I am still angry with Canada Post, I do have to thank some amazing people and companies: my travel agency BCD Travel for acting so fast, Air Canada's ground crew in Edmonton and Calgary for being immensely accommodating, and my wonderful flight attendant Barry on AC8106 (YYC->IAH) for making my day end on a good note.
I never want to apply for a visa again. I think I'd rather stay home...
As most people know, I travel a lot for work. I'm usually out of the country at least once every couple of months. Because of that, I tend to feel rather lost/naked when I don't have my passport on me. In preparation for an upcoming trip to Nigeria, I had to send my passport off to the Nigerian High Commission in Ottawa to get an entry visa. This is a pretty normal practice. Unfortunately the application process is a little...convoluted. For example, they require a signed copy of the online application form. However, there is no way to print out the application after you have finished it. In addition, the online application consists of 4 separate pages of information. So I ended up having to re-fill in the entire form, print out each page, sign them, and send them off. Thankfully we use an immigration/visa consultant who is familiar with these sorts of things and can act as a liason between ignorant people like me and foreign consulates.
Unfortunately, I was also scheduled to go to Houston this week for training. After not hearing back from the Nigerian High Commission by Wednesday of last week, I talked to my immigration consultant and asked her to get the Nigerian High Commission to send back my passport, with or without the visa. Thursday I was notified that my passport was on its way back and would have my visa. Again unfortunately the Nigerian High Commission will (for whatever reason) only ship using Canada Post. They had shipped my passport using Canada Post's Next Day A.M. Priority Courier.
However, Friday morning came and went. No passport. Apparently they had missed the cutoff for Next Day A.M. service by about 45 minutes and my passport had been received in the collection for Friday Next Day service. But this is Canada Post. They don't work weekends. Next Day A.M. meant Monday morning.
So the only option available to me was to head down to Canada Post's main sorting depot on Saturday morning. I arrived to find a mostly empty building. Not counting security, there were approximately 4 people working. One of them managed to tell me that they were shutdown until Sunday afternoon and had approximately 1.4 MILLION pieces of unsorted mail. I was told that the odds of finding my passport in that pile was almost nonexistent.
This meant it was time to try rebooking. After 2 hours on the phone with the company travel agent, the hotel I was booked in, and the limo companies transporting me to/from the airports in Edmonton and Houston, everything was rebooked for Monday night. I would go to work and hope that my passport arrived in time.
So Monday morning arrives. After spending Sunday night packing and preparing to travel, I was hopeful that I'd actually get to go. Slowly the morning passed away and no passport arrived. I all but gave up on my chances of going. Just after lunch, Canada Post's tracking website was finally updated and showed that my passport had been put on a truck in Edmonton at 10:50 am. But where in the city was it?
My ride to the airport was booked for 2:30. Finally, at 2:00, I found someone able to provide some real help. Our receptionist mentioned that Canada Post sometimes just drops courier packages in our mailbox. I stood at the window with baited breath as she walked across the street and returnee with an armful of mail. And in that armful my passport was waiting for me. I couldn't believe it. One would think that for something as important as a passport, a signature would be required. But I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. I finally had my passport with 30 minutes to spare.
Naturally, my ride to the airport was 5 minutes late. Thankfully I allotted some extra time. At 3:00 I finally arrived at the airport. I finally started to think that I'd actually make it. I went to check in. The desk agent couldn't find my booking. I pulled out my itinerary. Somehow my travel agent had rebooked me for Sunday night and not Monday night. Perfect.
So I call up the travel agent as fast as I could. Fortunately there were still seats available and it was relatively easy to make the change. Or so she said as she put me on hold. 20 minutes later it's getting to be questionable as to whether I could make the flight. So I head to the ticket desk. The ticket agent tells me that she can see my travel agent is in the process of changing the ticket but isn't finished. So she issued me what was essentially a conditional ticket, put my luggage on standby, and told me to run for the gate. I was still on hold. So I put my on-hold phone through the x-ray machine and hoped I wouldn't miss anything. I got through security, picked up my phone, and within seconds heard "Mr Constam you're good to go."
I run up to the gate just as boarding was starting. Of course this means the gate agent is too busy and can't verify my ticket. After another agonizing 10 minutes, she finally gets to me and checks me in. I'm set. Except that my departing flight to Calgary was leaving out of a gate where they dock small planes at lettered gates. I was told to go to door H. Door H is near the end of the right side of this long hallway. I get there and there's no plane. I run back to the start of the hall, head down the left side and just run as hard as I can. Th plane was at door E, at the end of the right side. I'm the last one on board. I look at the flight attendant and ask "Will this plane actually take me to Calgary?" She replies "Why wouldn't it?" I quip "You have no idea the day I'm having..."
I'm finally in my seat. I'm set. I only now have to manage to collect my luggage, pass through US customs, and get through security in my hour and five minute layover in Calgary. Then the pilot comes on and says that we'll be delayed a few minutes because Calgary's airspace is busy. Great.
I arrive in Calgary 13 minutes late. I start running again. Seriously, if running through airports was an Olympic sport, you could give me the gold medal right now. I get to the American departures area and stop to wait for my luggage. I had no idea if it even made it on the plane due to my temporary stand-by status. Ten agonizing minutes later, my suitcase appears. I manage to fly through US customs and manage to get through security with only a quick full body scan and minor bag search. (Seriously, for me, that's a good deal.)
With 15 minutes to spare, I jogged up to my departure gate for Houston. Suddenly, it occurs to me that since my ticket was a last minute purchase, I might be in a good enough class to get an upgrade using a normally useless blue system-wide upgrade certificate. I was right.
So after what was a rather insane day, I was rewarded with a big comfy seat, a row to myself, an ice cold beer, and a wonderful dinner of chicken curry and rice.
As much as I am still angry with Canada Post, I do have to thank some amazing people and companies: my travel agency BCD Travel for acting so fast, Air Canada's ground crew in Edmonton and Calgary for being immensely accommodating, and my wonderful flight attendant Barry on AC8106 (YYC->IAH) for making my day end on a good note.
I never want to apply for a visa again. I think I'd rather stay home...
Monday, September 13, 2010
Vatican Fashion Police?
The Vatican City has been generating more interest than usual lately with last week's public discussions of how the Sistine Chapel's high volume of human traffic is damaging the building's famous frescoes. However, the Vatican has already easily topped themselves. This week, Jaunted picked up a story that the Italian wire service ANSA reported on the dress code inside the Vatican City this summer.
For anyone who has never visited a major church in Europe, there are usually some loose rules on what clothing is and isn't allowed. In general, midriffs, shoulders, and knees must be covered. Shorts are generally allowed but must be at least knee length. Similar rules apply for skirts/dresses. For (mostly) women with bare shoulders (it's hot in Europe in the summer!), a shawl wrapped around them is almost always acceptable. In fact, some churches provide free paper ones for this reason. In other places, small vendors can often be found within a short distance from the entrance of the church that will be very glad to sell a cheap shawl for a few Euros. This is all very normal in Europe. You'll see it at the Basilicas of Notre Dame in Paris, St. Mark's in Venice, and St. Peter's in the Vatican.
I have never had a problem with these type of rules. You are entering (usually) an ancient and (always) sacred site. A certain modicum of decorum and respect is fair to be expected. However, the Swiss Guard have been reportedly stopping "unsuitably dressed" people from even entering St. Peter's Square or any other part of the Vatican City. ANSA reports of the Swiss Guard hassling a 70-year-old Roman woman attempting to enter the Vatican who was stopped because of her sleeveless dress. After eventually being let in, she quipped "Given all the scandals the Church has been involved in, what possible right can it have to be preaching about the morality of sleeveless dresses?"
Although there aren't exactly strict requirements on crossing the border between Italy and the Holy See, it is definitely its own independent nation. Other than St Peter's Basilica, the Papal residences, and other church buildings, the Vatican City also contains a post office, pharmacy, and a small store. The pharmacy offers a wider range of medication often at lower prices than the pharmacies in Rome. As a result, many Romans frequent the Vatican just to fill their prescriptions.
Although St. Peter's Square often serves as an amphitheatre for Papal addresses and other official ceremonies in the Vatican, it is not itself a holy site. I'm not sure I understand the need to prevent people who are "unsuitably dressed" from entering the country and just enjoying the magnificent architecture. If they choose to enter St. Peter's Basilica, the Vatican museum, the Sistine Chapel, or any of the other holy buildings contained inside the Vatican, then that is a completely different story. I foresee a booming business in small vendors selling their cheap shawls in the area around the Vatican if these rules continue to be strictly enforced.
For anyone who has never visited a major church in Europe, there are usually some loose rules on what clothing is and isn't allowed. In general, midriffs, shoulders, and knees must be covered. Shorts are generally allowed but must be at least knee length. Similar rules apply for skirts/dresses. For (mostly) women with bare shoulders (it's hot in Europe in the summer!), a shawl wrapped around them is almost always acceptable. In fact, some churches provide free paper ones for this reason. In other places, small vendors can often be found within a short distance from the entrance of the church that will be very glad to sell a cheap shawl for a few Euros. This is all very normal in Europe. You'll see it at the Basilicas of Notre Dame in Paris, St. Mark's in Venice, and St. Peter's in the Vatican.
I have never had a problem with these type of rules. You are entering (usually) an ancient and (always) sacred site. A certain modicum of decorum and respect is fair to be expected. However, the Swiss Guard have been reportedly stopping "unsuitably dressed" people from even entering St. Peter's Square or any other part of the Vatican City. ANSA reports of the Swiss Guard hassling a 70-year-old Roman woman attempting to enter the Vatican who was stopped because of her sleeveless dress. After eventually being let in, she quipped "Given all the scandals the Church has been involved in, what possible right can it have to be preaching about the morality of sleeveless dresses?"
Although there aren't exactly strict requirements on crossing the border between Italy and the Holy See, it is definitely its own independent nation. Other than St Peter's Basilica, the Papal residences, and other church buildings, the Vatican City also contains a post office, pharmacy, and a small store. The pharmacy offers a wider range of medication often at lower prices than the pharmacies in Rome. As a result, many Romans frequent the Vatican just to fill their prescriptions.
Although St. Peter's Square often serves as an amphitheatre for Papal addresses and other official ceremonies in the Vatican, it is not itself a holy site. I'm not sure I understand the need to prevent people who are "unsuitably dressed" from entering the country and just enjoying the magnificent architecture. If they choose to enter St. Peter's Basilica, the Vatican museum, the Sistine Chapel, or any of the other holy buildings contained inside the Vatican, then that is a completely different story. I foresee a booming business in small vendors selling their cheap shawls in the area around the Vatican if these rules continue to be strictly enforced.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Flying Machines
I haven't posted in a while, but I think it's time for my first real nerdgasm in this blog.
For the last few months I've been watching the progress of the AR.Drone by France's Parrot wireless engineering company. The AR.Drone is a revolution in remote controlled helicopters. Usually RC helicopters are nefariously difficult to control and take a lot of time and dedication to actually be able to use them effectively. Parrot has tried (and apparently succeeded) to fix this with their quadricopter design.
Using a combination of four evenly spaced blades, 6 MEMS DOF sensors, an ultrasound telemeter, and a moderate amount of processing power, the AR.Drone is capable of hovering by itself.
But that isn't the really cool part. The AR.Drone is not controlled by a standard RC controller. It is controlled via WiFi using an app running on an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad. This is further enhanced by an on-board camera which is streamed to the Apple device. Parrot has used this to create what they call "augmented reality games". Using the camera, the display on the Apple device, and a few real-world reflectors, the AR.Drone software creates targets and virtual opponents which you can fly your real AR.Drone against. This is probably better explained in a video.
After a very lengthy development cycle, the AR.Drone is finally being released around the world this week. However, there are two downsides. First, the $300 price tag really does take the AR.Drone out of the "just a toy" category and more into the land of "only rich people with money to burn" category. Secondly, the fact that you only get 12 minutes of use out of a single charge really bursts the bubble for me. It looks like a really cool device to play with, but only getting 12 minutes of play-time and then having to wait 90 minutes to 2 hours to charge is just not worth the price tag.
Still, it's nifty...
For the last few months I've been watching the progress of the AR.Drone by France's Parrot wireless engineering company. The AR.Drone is a revolution in remote controlled helicopters. Usually RC helicopters are nefariously difficult to control and take a lot of time and dedication to actually be able to use them effectively. Parrot has tried (and apparently succeeded) to fix this with their quadricopter design.
 |
| Image from Wikipedia |
But that isn't the really cool part. The AR.Drone is not controlled by a standard RC controller. It is controlled via WiFi using an app running on an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad. This is further enhanced by an on-board camera which is streamed to the Apple device. Parrot has used this to create what they call "augmented reality games". Using the camera, the display on the Apple device, and a few real-world reflectors, the AR.Drone software creates targets and virtual opponents which you can fly your real AR.Drone against. This is probably better explained in a video.
After a very lengthy development cycle, the AR.Drone is finally being released around the world this week. However, there are two downsides. First, the $300 price tag really does take the AR.Drone out of the "just a toy" category and more into the land of "only rich people with money to burn" category. Secondly, the fact that you only get 12 minutes of use out of a single charge really bursts the bubble for me. It looks like a really cool device to play with, but only getting 12 minutes of play-time and then having to wait 90 minutes to 2 hours to charge is just not worth the price tag.
Still, it's nifty...
Friday, August 27, 2010
The 'Bulin Wall Crumbles
Today Oilers fans received the news that they've been dreading for months: Khabibulin is going to jail.
For anyone not up to date, Edmonton Oilers goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin was pulled over on February 8 near his home in Scottsdale, Arizona. His blood alcohol level was found to be 0.164. That's over twice the legal limit and probably enough to kill a small animal. I won't even bother making the stereotypical drunk Russian joke. Today he was found guilty and could face between 30 days and 6 months in jail.
This is a huge hit to Oilers fans. Khabibulin was supposed to be the big goaltender that was going to bear the weight of a shaky team. After his back injury last November, the Oilers struggled to find a way to win, ending up a very distant last in the NHL by the end of the 2009/10 season. For the sake of the younger and more impressionable hockey fans in Edmonton, I hope he does serve most of his jail term if only to show that no one can getaway with a DUI. But of course the hockey fan in me just wants to see him back between the pipes in an Oilers jersey.
I think the whole affair is best summed up by Oilers GM Steve Tambellini's post on Twitter today: "Nikolai Khabibulin - the aging goalie I signed longterm for $3.75M per year - is going to jail. No punchline needed here folks."
For anyone not up to date, Edmonton Oilers goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin was pulled over on February 8 near his home in Scottsdale, Arizona. His blood alcohol level was found to be 0.164. That's over twice the legal limit and probably enough to kill a small animal. I won't even bother making the stereotypical drunk Russian joke. Today he was found guilty and could face between 30 days and 6 months in jail.
This is a huge hit to Oilers fans. Khabibulin was supposed to be the big goaltender that was going to bear the weight of a shaky team. After his back injury last November, the Oilers struggled to find a way to win, ending up a very distant last in the NHL by the end of the 2009/10 season. For the sake of the younger and more impressionable hockey fans in Edmonton, I hope he does serve most of his jail term if only to show that no one can getaway with a DUI. But of course the hockey fan in me just wants to see him back between the pipes in an Oilers jersey.
I think the whole affair is best summed up by Oilers GM Steve Tambellini's post on Twitter today: "Nikolai Khabibulin - the aging goalie I signed longterm for $3.75M per year - is going to jail. No punchline needed here folks."
Fertility Tourism?!
How can this be a thing people do?
Jaunted, one of my favourite travel blogs has a post today about how Spain has surpassed India as the hotspot for couples trying to get pregnant. Apparently Spain has a large surplus of donor eggs (because they pay their donors around €900) while the UK has an 18-24 month wait time.
If I was ever having that trouble trying to have children, I think I'd consider adoption first...
Original article was from The Guardian.
Jaunted, one of my favourite travel blogs has a post today about how Spain has surpassed India as the hotspot for couples trying to get pregnant. Apparently Spain has a large surplus of donor eggs (because they pay their donors around €900) while the UK has an 18-24 month wait time.
If I was ever having that trouble trying to have children, I think I'd consider adoption first...
Original article was from The Guardian.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Only in Canada - I
Let me start this post by saying outright that I am a proud Canadian and I love this country.
Now that I've said that, there are events and things reported in the news that could only possibly come from the Great White North. This is a country with major newspapers that often devote more space to hockey than world events. I'm not complaining or saying that's a problem, but it's a fact.
I've labelled this post with a roman numeral because I'm quite sure there will be a large quantity of items filed under "Only in Canada"...
Anyway, on to the irrelevant news.
A herd of bison escaped from their pen near Camrose on Aug 24. Not a huge deal right?
As you can see here, here, here, and here, this has been fairly major/headline/front page news in Edmonton for two full days. I expect it to last at least another three. Now, I do admit that a herd of fairly large, wild, and potentially dangerous animals roaming around places like local golf courses is definitely something to let the public know about.
Still, I can't help but muse that Only in Canada would this still be the top story on the news after 3 days...
Now that I've said that, there are events and things reported in the news that could only possibly come from the Great White North. This is a country with major newspapers that often devote more space to hockey than world events. I'm not complaining or saying that's a problem, but it's a fact.
I've labelled this post with a roman numeral because I'm quite sure there will be a large quantity of items filed under "Only in Canada"...
Anyway, on to the irrelevant news.
A herd of bison escaped from their pen near Camrose on Aug 24. Not a huge deal right?
As you can see here, here, here, and here, this has been fairly major/headline/front page news in Edmonton for two full days. I expect it to last at least another three. Now, I do admit that a herd of fairly large, wild, and potentially dangerous animals roaming around places like local golf courses is definitely something to let the public know about.
Still, I can't help but muse that Only in Canada would this still be the top story on the news after 3 days...
Obama vs Harper
In general, world leaders are not seen as fun people; But some are definitely more serious than others.
Let us take, for example, recent events with American President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. An hilarious picture has been circulating around the internet (from the White House's official Flickr page) of President Obama pranking Trip Director Marvin Nicholson on a trip to the University of Texas in Austin. Meanwhile in Inuvik NWT, Prime Minister Harper was filmed dancing (if you can call it that) with traditional Inuvialuit dancers.
Both of these are very likely pre-scripted photo ops. But I really do have to give credit to Obama. Personally, I think a good leader needs to be personable and actually have a personality. Obama seems like a guy you could just sit down and have a beer with. Harper seems more of a wine-and-cheese night type of person.
However, I will concede a point to Harper. I would likely look as awkward and out of place in the same situation. I don't think "traditional native dance" falls into the skill set of the average western Canadian white male. But, I do think he just need to stick to playing the piano...
Let us take, for example, recent events with American President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. An hilarious picture has been circulating around the internet (from the White House's official Flickr page) of President Obama pranking Trip Director Marvin Nicholson on a trip to the University of Texas in Austin. Meanwhile in Inuvik NWT, Prime Minister Harper was filmed dancing (if you can call it that) with traditional Inuvialuit dancers.
Both of these are very likely pre-scripted photo ops. But I really do have to give credit to Obama. Personally, I think a good leader needs to be personable and actually have a personality. Obama seems like a guy you could just sit down and have a beer with. Harper seems more of a wine-and-cheese night type of person.
However, I will concede a point to Harper. I would likely look as awkward and out of place in the same situation. I don't think "traditional native dance" falls into the skill set of the average western Canadian white male. But, I do think he just need to stick to playing the piano...
An Inauspicious Beginning
So I've decided to start blogging again.
Why? Who knows and who cares.
I'm going to use this space to share the random tidbits of the internet and the rest of the world that I somehow manage to find. To be honest, I don't really have a target audience for all of this information. I just think that I manage to locate a reasonable amount of interesting/irreverent/irrelevant stuff and I figure the rest of the world need to see it...for some reason.
You can expect to see posts on everything from tech to music, hockey to world travel. I'm good at diversifying.
Anyway, on to something interesting...
Why? Who knows and who cares.
I'm going to use this space to share the random tidbits of the internet and the rest of the world that I somehow manage to find. To be honest, I don't really have a target audience for all of this information. I just think that I manage to locate a reasonable amount of interesting/irreverent/irrelevant stuff and I figure the rest of the world need to see it...for some reason.
You can expect to see posts on everything from tech to music, hockey to world travel. I'm good at diversifying.
Anyway, on to something interesting...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)