Archive for Evil Things
November 16, 2007 at 12:36 pm · Filed under Evil Things
Since coming back to Canada I am continuously having timing conflicts with events that are important to me. Not that there are non-stop events but just, the things I want to do always happen to be scheduled in pairs. A networking event and a concert on the same night. A Halloween party and a tournament the same weekend. Another tournament and a conference on another weekend. Dinner with some people or going to a movie with others.
Okay that’s probably about it. My social calendar is not exactly full.
But the killer one came yesterday when I found out they are doing belt tests on the evening of December 19th - the night I fly back to Regina for the holidays. They only do them every 3 months. I really want to do that test. Badly. Cost of changing my flight to the next day: $127.something something. Is it worth it? I feel like it would be, but money is tight.
October 2, 2007 at 1:44 am · Filed under Evil Things, Experiences
Home at last. It’s been a long day. I was going to write about several events. But I am tired. It took me too long to get home: a bus, a 2 block run, another bus, a walk uphill, and then another bus. Really…finally home…but not completely…I am sans U-PASS * booooo *.
Yes I lost it somewhere downtown. And all those buses I took…because I thought the 17 would be going to UBC but it was the Oak 17. Oh Aaaaand the same thing happened on the way downtown. Instead of catching the 17 going downtown I caught the Oak 17 by accident. Twice in one night, not realizing my mistake until seeing the big Toys ‘R Us sign.
Not the day for me to be taking buses. But at the same time I feel like this was all a learning experience. Maybe because it was rainy and wet outside and everything seemed eerie and surreal.
At the bus stop on W 4th near the Granville Bridge:
A man asked me if I knew when the 17 would be coming. I didn’t. He said thanks and then introduced himself as “Rockin’ Robbie from the boatyard”, motioning towards the island. I shook his hand. Then he told me that he could tell I was a sweet one and I thought, “I can’t not look lost and innocent can I?”. He was wearing a baseball cap and kneepads. “Yeeeaah….you look like Olive Oyl…” (took me a moment to imagine the face not the fluid) “…and that’s a compliment!” Then the bus came. He got on first and went to the back. I stood at the front.
You know…he might be right about who I resemble. Too bad I’m not into bulging muscles and pipe smokers.
September 20, 2007 at 5:40 am · Filed under Dreams, Evil Things
Woke up from my 3 hours of sleep with a small cry. Did you guys in the house hear it? It may not have been loud, maybe only a voiced gasp. It was that kind of cry that, in your dream cannot escape and only begins to leak out as you being to gain consciousness. Then, when your eyes fixate on something in the darkness of your real room and your brain imagines that as the thing in your dream you are (waking up) (running away) from, the scream receives a sudden final push from your mouth.
In my dream I was hanging out by rivers in Japan. Initially there were people. Later the river seemed to be in the middle of nowhere but surrounded by cement. The stage of my dream was in front of a large cement wall - an area that could be under a bridge but I don’t recall there being a full bridge built over the river. Maybe only the wall and an overhanging slab, the rest of the bridge broken off. I had knowledge that there was a city in the not so far distance. I had to make this my home and hide that from the authorities of the city.
A structure was built on the cement bank in front of the cement wall, dividing a large square area into two with a frame running diagonally to join the enclosing frames and from these frames (I don’t know what else to call them) sheets and panels were hung, gaps between them. I made my resting grounds in one area and an old homeless man was in the other.
(Possibly my first night sleeping there) I awoke with an uneasy feeling. I looked to the “doorway” of my area. I could see the upper left corner of a pair of glasses frames peeking from the doorway wall. I moved forward and caught a glimpse of the side of a face which then retreated backwards. I threw something at the doorway and tried to scream but could not. A pair of legs stepped through the doorway, moving a body towards the right side of my “bed”. Half my mind tried to scream again and the other half went for safety but as my eyes opened in the real world it saw a jacket and towels hanging in front of me, creating shadows like those of a body standing over me. A dream figure jumped from those shadows and landed besides the mattress I was sleeping on (which is on the floor). Then I woke up completely.
For a long time afterwards I felt really uneasy and even now if I remember the image of those glasses peeking in the doorway I get freaked out. I think I’ve already had dreams like this one - ones where I am being watched and often by someone who is peering through a doorway. Are these dreams an effect of any specific mental state?
September 3, 2007 at 8:51 pm · Filed under Evil Things
The University of British Columbia – June 20, 2007 – The University of British Columbia is discontinuing the use of credit cards by domestic students for tuition payments. The annual savings of $2.5 million in transaction fees will be used in support of teaching and learning for undergraduate and graduate students.
Should I have guessed this from the email telling me my payment options? Oh…I see…second paragraph at the end: “Online credit card payment for tuition is only available to international students.” A subject line “BE PREPARED YOU CAN’T PAY TUITION WITH A CREDIT CARD ANYMORE SO FORGET ABOUT COLLECTING THOSE AIR MILES FOR A TRIP HOME AT THANKSGIVING” would have been more appropriate.
Now tuition is due in 2 days. Do they think I actually have money in a Canadian bank account?
I’m a little hooped - what do I do?
I guess for starters I should stop wasting time trying to figure out how I can close my hotmail account.
July 22, 2007 at 11:15 pm · Filed under Evil Things, Japan
Japanese mosquitos are ninjas. Compared to the Saskatchewan variety. In Saskatchewan mosquitos use numbers as force. The ones here travel alone and you rarely see them. But they are there and they bite and they leave a big mark.
Just…if you ever come here…watch out!
June 15, 2007 at 2:26 pm · Filed under Evil Things, Lists
What limits us in urban space? What makes us uncomfortable?
- fatigue
- not knowing people
- knowing too many people
- not being able to find needed services
- indecision, having too many choices
- finding places to take care of personal things (toilet, cleaning, rest, etc.)
- time (transit, waiting)
- space (crowds, seating space)
- weather
- boredom (options do not seem like options)
- noise pollution
- feeling alienated from people, culture around
- feeling pressure to spend money
- impulse spending
- fear (crime/not understanding cultural norms)
- self consciousness (how do people see me?)
- (…)
Continue the list in the comments or share your related story.
April 19, 2007 at 3:18 am · Filed under Evil Things
The phone rang just around 10am this morning. Not too early but the house was still quiet. Maybe it is my mother - I remembered that she had called the other day. Which reminds me I should try calling back tonight.
I picked up the phone:
“Hello”
“I’m sorry, that is an incorrect response. Please press ‘1′ to learn more about how you can lower your interest rates.”
*steeeam* click!
Not only telemarketing but using a strategy that involves stating that the customer is incorrect! (Well…the word ‘incorrect’ may be wrong…I don’t have a memory for conversations but…it was something along those lines.)
April 13, 2007 at 9:36 am · Filed under Evil Things
Is it possible to start a no-talking-on-the-mobile-in-the-bus rule in Vancouver? Is it too late for that? Can they maybe put some signs up? Give people hints that it is a little intrusive? Yes now I am back in my own country so I can complain about the way things are. Maybe the no-calls-on-the-train standard works in Japan because people generally don’t like taking up too much of the public space (whether physical or the auditory space). I guess what surprises me is how it isn’t just people who take calls that happen to come during an inconvenient time. There are people who, instead of passing their time with a book or a sudoku, make sure that the social fabric of their life is always played by the breeze of their voice and occasional gusts of hearty laughter. Letting one person go they look out the window for 30 seconds, let out a long sigh and then open that address book once again. Why don’t people use SMS?
That’s my rant. I am grumpy right now because I had a trip to the dentist today. There’s another one tomorrow too and then crossing of fingers that I don’t require a root canal two months from now. Experiencing current pain. I don’t think it is completely from the fillings I received…but from needle wounds in the side of my mouth. Either that or while the left side of my face was frozen for half the day I accidently gnawed through my inner cheek. Time to lock myself in my room.
February 9, 2007 at 10:50 am · Filed under Evil Things
Maybe not allergic in the I could die sense, but my onion and garlic reactions have become increasingly harsher and harsher. Of course I love the taste of garlic and I don’t mind eating onions but when I do…I wake up in the middle of the night with a headache and feverish feeling. Not chilled or sweating but I feel this weird hotness, like it is right under my skin and trying to get out. It takes me a while to get back to sleep and when I finally do, it is a restless one.
This was tested last night. I made 親子どん (oyako donburi…I think that is right…translates to “parent & child rice bowl” so….bowl of rice with cooked chicken/egg on top) and the recipe calls for a lot of onion. Had a horrible sleep and I still feel off this morning. Had the hot skin crawly feeling while I was jogging.
This reaction makes no sense and it is only in the past few years that they have been like this. I tried to find information on onion/garlic and insomnia but in my shallow search only came across some blurbs about onions being a remedy for insomnia…to smell a cut onion before falling asleep and leaving it on your nightstand. No - not quite me.
Ugh I am tired and I think I might be the only person…oh no…there are 2-3 others in the office right now. Most people are on holidays or away at a forum. The weekend, when it comes, will be nice. On Saturday I go to a wedding party and on Sunday, a workshop on creativity. The wedding will be interesting and the workshop well…I don’t know what we will do but I was told to wear clothes that are okay to dirty and I like the sound of that.
Currently I have a puffed wheat square craving after reading Jen talk about them. Had not thought about them in the longest time and realized that I have not seen them here. Could they possibly be a Canadian delicacy? Tried to search Wikipedia for them and no…is there another term? I might have to find the ingredients, make them, share, and then write a Wikipedia article (it would be my first).
December 20, 2006 at 4:32 pm · Filed under Evil Things
Guests will be permitted to bring liquids, gels and aerosols through security screening at Canadian airports provided that the items are packaged in containers with a capacity of 100 ml / 100 grams (3.4 oz.) or less – instead of the previously required 90 ml / 90 grams (3 oz.) or less – and that the containers fit comfortably in one clear, closed and resealable plastic bag with a capacity of no more than 1 litre (1 quart).
Groan. No sake for anyone. I wish I could trust the baggage handlers enough to put it in my checked-in luggage but…*sigh*
July 13, 2006 at 10:01 am · Filed under Evil Things
Bell Mobility is EVIL. Okay, maybe that is a little harsh. But here is the deal:
- I left Vancouver but kept my mobile service going, it would be cheaper to keep on paying till the end of my contract (this month) than to cancel before I left
- I called to “pre-cancel” but they said that I couldn’t do that until sometime in May so I would have to call back then
- when you call internationally, you have to call their local Ontario or Quebec numbers
- they put you on hold for a god-awful-long time
- I just called and was on hold for 20 minutes (hmm…$5.00 wasted) to have it occur to me that the Bell Customer Service offices might not be open 24 hours a day
- I looked that up online and saw that yes, they do indeed close at 8:00pm ET…at the time it was 8:40pm I think. Why was I left on hold when the office was closed?
- I’ve searched everywhere on their website (which is awful) and cannot find any information on cancelling my service. Oooo I can’t stand it when companies do not let you know how you can break up with them.
- I was hoping that I could send an email but you can only do that through this stupid web form and I suspect (because they ask for a current number which must be North American) that it is a request for a callback.
Conclusion: the most horrible thing a business can do is not make it easy for people to go. I feel like I’m in a suffocating relationship with no way out that will not cost me.
Sorry if you work for Bell Mobility…I just…have issues with them.
June 7, 2006 at 4:53 pm · Filed under Evil Things
…or on what is on my face. Today I have a zit on my cheek. It is in the line of my right eye’s sight. I can see it as I type this. When I have talked to people today I have felt as though it is this agent between me and others, whispering in their ears, “look look! She’s a witch and a hag with that face knoll of hers!!” I think it has giving me a second personality. I may wake up tomorrow and it will be gone and I will not remember any of today’s events.
I went to the basement store for some juice. The woman at the counter gave me a free sample…”oh, what are these?”, she patted her face..”oil”…”ahhh, yes, arigatoo gozaimasu!”. Did she know? I had my own stash of blotting papers in my back pocket but maybe these ones will be more effective. That’s it! I just decided that I need to do an face paper experiment this summer! There are so many different brands and kinds. Actually (can’t remember if I mentioned this), there was a face blotting paper shop in Kamakura. That is all they sold and there must have been 100+ varieties.
Oh geeez…what is going to become of greasy me?
October 27, 2005 at 10:17 am · Filed under Evil Things
Wired News: How to Fight Those Surging Splogs
Just evil. Why? Does it even work?! That’s what I want to know.
October 21, 2005 at 6:42 pm · Filed under Evil Things, I am feeling...
Yeah that’s my supper. I was going to go to the uni town and get some delicious and addictive curry (have to fulfill my weekly craving…by the lineups at that place I’m not alone) but after a nap in the lab I was too cold and drowsy to get my act together. My knee is also feeling a little (just a wee bit) sore and my knees are like “my thing”. You know, that part of your body where as soon as there is some inkling of injury or pain you cancel all plans to spend the rest of the day tending to it and feeling sorry for yourself. My knees are that probably because they act up more than anything so it gives me plenty of “I should be easy on…” days. So the walk to get curry might have “irritated” my knee. Yeah…
I blame it on the roller bladder this morning. So I don’t know what the ettiquette is for being a biker and getting annoyed at roller bladders on a bike route. Is the biker supposed to appreciate the roller bladder because they too are using an environmentally friendly alternative method of transportation? Can the biker assume that they have right of way on the path (not even just a park path but a bike designated road lane) and that roller bladders being the slower ones should easy over to the side so that the biker may pass? This dude (or girl, couldn’t really tell) was taking up the whole lane. I was worried about passing him (her) because since I am so horribly unbalanced with inline skates I question the equilibrium of everyone on them. I finally saw an opening to the walking path and no pedestrians in site so I decided to scoot around him (her) that way and avoid pissing any drivers off. So get this, as I am about to get ahead of this guy (girl) which is proving somewhat difficult because I’m on the last leg of my trip, already cleared the 3 evil hills which turn my still weak legs to jelly and they can handly make me go anymore, this guy (girl) gets a sudden urge to increase his (her) speed to match mine (my legs are really sore) thus preventing my passing. I could have possibly really given ‘er but I was so taken aback that I actually stopped to let him (her) keep on going, waiting for another bike to pass, then got back on the road. Are some people just so competitive that they instinctual “go as fast”? This bothers me, mostly because of my warriness of biking around bladers - I am so scared I will make them wipeout. Anyway, that took a stupidly long time to tell and I’m not quite sure I have a point. I don’t want to say “bladders should not be in the bike lane” but I would like to know / decide that there should be some kind of courtesy or standard of what the bladder or biker should do in such encounters.
I should get to my presentation. I avoid these things like I avoided church in highschool. The upside being that I get all this other stuff done. I haven’t quite figured out what makes it so hard for me to whip up these slides but it just is. I’m making by the end of tomorrow my deadline. If I’m not done by then somebody please slap my hand.
October 11, 2005 at 9:29 am · Filed under Evil Things
Wired News: Big Car, Big Tax Credit
How do all these city folk justify their SUVs? SUVs make me angry.
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