A few random thoughts

yesterday I was working and had a few thoughts about how things have changed. It seems that everyone wants the quick fix now. Win the lottery, Get an inheritance, Not persevere and work hard for things. It seems the old standard of the 50's and 60's family life has been replaced. In those days Fathers worked hard and Mothers stayed home and found ways to stretch a dollar. Kids enjoyed what they had and made up games in the yard with what was available. Wow how things have changed. The paycheck was stretched for 2 weeks or you went without. Stock market was for the wealthy or the gambler. Mutual funds, RRSP's and Riffs, and Giff's, were never heard of.

Well today the theme still was with me as I heard the Song Soak up the Sun by Sheryl Crowe
I heard the words, It's not having what you want
It's wanting what you've got

Wow think about that for a bit. Wanting what you've got. Think of the blessings we have.

And also from my friend Ken, he sent me a email that explains why things are so confusing now. Ill let you read it . Well after that see you next time

An Obituary printed in the London Times........ Interesting and sadly rather true


Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.


Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).


His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.



Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.


Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.


Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.



Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers;

I Know My Rights
I Want It Now
Someone Else Is To Blame
I'm A Victim


Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Golf

Well with the return of Tiger to the PGA tournments this is a good way to celebreate. Have some fun with this. Something a bit different.

Here's your fun for the day.....Enjoy

Miniature Golf....

18 Holes...Addicting Golf Game! Go to this link and I promise, even if you're not a golfer, you won't be able to stop. Watch Out for #18 http://www.ibogleif.dk/spil/flashspil/minigolf/minigolf.swf

test drive crash

Well the test drive of the Linux from the CD did not work as intended. I tried to boot up from the CD that came with the book . My computer did not let me and I tried to go into settings to enable this but after many tries I could not accomplish this. So this experiment failed. Its not like I had to get this working as I only wanted to see how it worked.


If any of you have used linux, I would love to hear what you have to say about it. It was just something that intrigued me and I wanted to try it out. Oh well maybe another time. Well at least I didn't screw up the computer. lol.

OK till next time

Test driving

I was at the library today and was browsing. I came across a book that captured my attention. It was called Test Driving Linux (From windows to linux in 60 seconds).

Basically from what I have read its a way to try out the linux operating system on your computer without having to install the system and make all kind of decisions on your hard drive and then not like what its like. It will run from the disk enclosed. Has it's limits this way as in speed and saving anything would have to go to a usb drive. And it could be taken with you and used on any computer that you had access to.

So I am going to try it out in the next few days and hopefully on Thursday the 26th I plan to do my blog posting using it. So if you don't see anything on the 26 or 27 I had problems. If you don't see any postings for a while it means I had major problems . But saying this I don't expect to have any problems. Well time will tell. see you on the 26 th I hope.

first odd shot

Well my first attempt at the odd shot links. This is where on Monday I will try to post a odd shot of a picture and then link you to other blogs of odd shots. Not sure if this is that odd but just a pic from the moment on my desk. This is my xm satellite radio. I use this at home , in the car, and also on my mail route when I'm working. It has 170 stations that come in crystal clear. Music, news, talk , and sports. I love the sports but listen to music in my car and at home. Also has the ability to record up to 5 hrs at a time. I take this in as i record NHL, MLB , and college basketball and then listen at my convenience. All this for about 12 dollars a month.

Check out other odd shots at katneys kaboodle

Well thats it for now

Violence

I was just thinking of the Violence of the gangs in Greater Vancouver area in the last few months. With daily shootings of rival gangs. And bystanders getting caught in the crossfire. Where and when will it end. The government are striking up task forces to deal with this.

I started contemplating what the bible says about violence and did a few bible searches ( I love computers for this fast task). Here are some I came up with, and what does it tell us. That doing things not Gods way has consequences. But if we follow the Lord as a nation there is hope. Like in Noah's day it was filled with violence , and So it will be in the day of the coming Lord. So it hasn't changed we need God's rescue.

Genesis 6

The Flood

Genesis 6:11
Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was full of violence.

Psalm 73:6
Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.

Proverbs 13:2
From the fruit of his lips a man enjoys good things, but the unfaithful have a craving for violence.

Matthew 24:37
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.


What do you think? Comments?

Carry the torch

Well the Olympics are coming to Vancouver 2010 and with the expenses rising and other problems, It will happen. The one part other than going to the Olympics and watching, that I am looking forward to , is the torch run through Victoria. It starts in Victoria on and get this what a day. Oct 30, 2009. This is the last day of work I am planning on working before retirement.

Wouldn't that be awesome If I got selected to carry it. I have entered the contests with coke and Royal Bank . Now if anyone has any contacts pass on my name to get selected. What a way to end my 35 plus years as a letter carrier to become a torch carrier. Well that's my dream for now. Have to wait and see.

Ok later

Canucks Hot streak

Well the Canucks are now in a 6 wins in 7 games after coming off a long losing streak. Some of the comments in the losing streak were that the coach was shifting the personal on the different lines too much. Well now as we see in this current streak the lines have stabilized. basically the first three lines have remained intact through the whole winning streak.
1. D. Sedin, H. Sedin, A. Burrows
2. M. Sundin, R. Kesler, P. Demitra
3. K. Wellwood, T. Pyatt, S. Bernier

First the 2 line was hot with each player pilling up points. Now the 1st line is the hot one. Tonight the 1st line contributed one way or another on all the goals in a 4-2 win over Ottawa.

So I guess this proves that the concern about the line shifting was right.
Most player want to be comfortable with who they play with and constant shifting of lines might be fun and a challenge to the coach but in the end is a detriment to the team.

What do you think hit the comment button
Ok till next time

NHL 3 pt games

Well had this discussion with someone today. Should the NHL allow the 3 pt games to continue. If you don't know what I mean , here is what it is all about. When the game is tied after the regulation 3 periods, both teams get a single point. Then they play five minutes 4 on 4 overtime, followed by a 3 player shootout. The shootout continues with more shooters till someone finally wins. The winning team gets a second point. So its one point for the loser and two points for the winner.

The one side is that no other league gives a point to the losing team. It also creates standings that are jammed close together and teams play just well enough to get a single point and there fore rewarded for mediocrity.

The other side is the reason for the rule in the first place was to stop teams from playing for the tie and playing just dump it into safety. With 3 point games and points for losing we get a more balanced league where more teams are in the hunt for a playoff placement longer. After all you have to remember that people are paying big bucks to go to these games and If your like me I don't want to go home with no winner.

So I'm in favor of the status quo. I like the competition for playoff races and to make more games exciting. What do you think? Click on the comment below and argue for or against. You can even sit on the fence.

Ok till next time

Canadians pass in review!!

This sent to me by a faithful reader. What a honour for this young lad to get what is often just for dignitaries.

Subject: Canadians pass in review!!

A lone young Belgian boy is waiting to salute the Canadian troops as they pass by.

Such class from the Canadian troops - watch what they do for this little boy.

The "Eyes right" command is the biggest complement troops on parade
can pay and is reserved for dignitaries in reviewing stands.

Hope you enjoyed this and catch you later.

Comments How fast?

Well this post is to try and spark some comments on the blog. The start will be 830pm on Friday to see how fast it will take for someone to post a comment. Come on you be first. Lets see who wins and how many can be posted in a 24 hr period. I will try this again next month to see if this works in getting a few more comments on the blog. I would like to see it become a little more interactive.

Ok go post now. see you later

What you see driving home.

Last week while driving home from work and picking up my wife from shopping, I drove down a side street to go another way home. That is when we spotted this blimp. It was called photo blimp and i did a search on the Internet but didn't come up with a local company. I'm assuming that is it to take pictures of houses from the air. If you know anything about this comment on the blog and let us know.
The guy had a neat little trailer for the blimp too. You can see that He just puts it into the trailer ready to fly when he lets it out. Ok that's what I saw driving home. I used my cellphone to take this picture. A handy option to have you never know what you will see when your out and about.

I use to go to a website that posted pics from cell phones only. Here is the link , ThingsIShot.com
check it out and see if you can see any pics by me.

ok till later

My Blogger interview

From a fellow blogger a Toronto girl out west.

Okay here goes your blogger interview:

1. What is your fondest childhood memory?
Well my fondest childhood memory would be visiting each summer in Nanaimo at pipers lagoon. Spending a few weeks at a cabin on the ocean. with swimming , fishing, beach combing, and long walks to the store. What more could a young boy want.

2. If you were to retire tomorrow what is the first thing you would want to do?
Well my retirement is not too far away so I've thought about this a bit. The first thing I want to do is just relax and read the paper in the morning and have a few coffees. Just knowing that I don't have to get up early and not go to work would be great. And then it will be winter so not much planned just relaxing , getting ready for Christmas and then soon going to the Olympics in Vancouver.


3. If you could choose to re-live one year of your life which one would it be and why?
Well I really enjoyed my last year in high school, not counting the exams. I played basketball in the winter and golf in the summer and just had a great time with out too much responsibility. Of course knowing more about those sports now I m sure I wouldn't make as many mistakes.

4. Let's say you had an unlimited amount of money to spend on a new home. Where exactly would you want this home to be? Be as specific as possible!
Well this again is a easy one. I would build a very nice home right on Dallas rd in Victoria. Ive always wanted to live there and watch the ferry and freighters gently cruise by my window. And then to be able to walk there every day would be nice. The ocean is so great to be near as every day it presents a new view. Bad or good weather a awesome view. If that was not possible then any where else with a un obstructed view of the ocean and mountains would do.

5. What is the best sports game you have ever watched?

The best sports game I have watched would be the Canada Russia hockey series in 1972 where Team Canada made that terrific comeback . With Paul Henderson scoring the winning goal in the last 2 games. Now that was hockey at it's best.

If you want someone to interview you on your blog:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2. I will respond by sending you five questions. (I get to pick the questions).

3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

A few quotes

Here are a few quotes I read in the coffee news the other day. I thought they were quite good and thought prevoking. What do you think?

1. "A witty saying proves nothing." - Voltaire

2. "Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." - Albert Schweitzer

3. "When someone loves you,the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." - Billy (age 4)


Well till next time

Most Popular book

Have you read the most popular book? Do you know which one it is? If it was counted on the best sellers list it would win every week. It is of course the Bible. It has been read for almost 2 thousand years. I know some of you are saying yes Ive read it. But have you really read it or stopped part way through. I mean if it is what it claims to be the revelation of God then don't you think its important enough to read all of it. Or maybe read a bit more often. I'm sure there are books that you have read a few times all the way through. So I guess this is a challenge , pick it up soon and re discover why its the most popular book? Comments? I'm sure you have something to say about it. Well are you up for the challenge

Ok till next time.

Is this the new home computer ?

I got a video sent to me from a reader, thanks Shirley. And this maybe what the next home computer will be like. I found it quite interesting and can see people going for this concept. But then who knows. Let me know what you think.



Tabletop computer
Vezi mai multe video din Tehnologie »


Also if you have anything interesting that you think I might like to post on here send it along.

Ok enjoy

Wearing someones face

Heard about a interesting t-shirt company today. Its called Joy Apparel. The concept is to make good quality shirts made in Canada out of quality fabric. And to have someone else's photo on it that is hand drawn. You select someone that already has sent a photo and the company has made a drawing . Then when you order your shirt with their picture on it you submit one of yourself for someone else to select. There are many scenarios here. Like a older person selecting a younger. A white person selecting a black person, you get the idea kind of make a new friend. Each persons pic has a very short 2 line bio about them and where they live.
I'm thinking about doing this and was gonna try and get someone on the other side of Canada . I'm on the west so some one from the east. Other than that not sure what else. Cost is $30. I believe. Check it out at
www.joytshirt.com/

Pit stop

Well had a nice surprise the other day at work. As you know I work as a mailman, and at times trying to find a place to pee is difficult. As you have to know where the bathrooms are on your route and know how long you have till the next one. Unless you can find a bush somewhere. But on my route there is not many bushes.
Well about half way thru my route, There is some newly road construction with them putting in new water mains. They have brought in a Porta-Potty. And they have located it right next to my relay box that I collect mail out of twice on my route. Now I can use this also along with the workers. I hope they take a long time to finish the job they are doing . And also I hope they forget when they leave to take the Porta-Potty with them. But I'm sure all good things come to an end. Anyway I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Catch you next time

Glass in the walls

I was listening to a radio show today that I recorded. It was a local show about the history of Victoria. This one was about archeology in Victoria. Well it was very interesting and a couple things caught my interest. The first was they were renovating the Ross Bay Villa , a house from the turn of the century. And they found in two walls a bunch of glass stuffed in the hollow between the interior and the exterior. The interesting thing they discovered was around that time it was used as a buffer to stop fires. The chimneys got lots of cracks in them and a lot of times sparks would shoot out and connect with the wood and start fires. Well with the glass it would just burn its self out in the glass and no harm.

The other thing was a little piece of paper that was found in the glass . It only contained a handful of words and one of them was Lincoln. Well they did their research and it was from a magazine from the week before President Lincoln was assassinated.

Its amazing what they find and things we don't think of .......till next time.

Watching for planes

Today I was listening to my satellite radio and listening to a old broadcast of the Gunsmoke series. During it there was an old commercial for recruitment of volunteers to watch the skies for planes in the 1950s. It said that it was necessary for the help of the American people to fill in the void where the radar system missed. I hadn't heard of this before but I'm sure many of young men and boys loved to do this.

On getting home today I did a small search of the Internet to see what I could find. I didn't spend a lot of time searching but found an interesting article on it. Sentinels Of the Sky
The volunteers would make notes on planes they saw with criteria like
number of planes, types of planes,altitude , planes heard or seen,direction of planes, distance of planes from the volunteers post.

Just thought it might be of interest to you . Had you heard of this?
ok till next time

Some times it too late

I was watching the Super bowl today and they had a small segment on Larry Fitzgerald before the game. He really loved his mom but while he was in college he had an argument with her and the two didn't talk for a few years. His mother got sick and his father told him to contact her soon. He said he would but delayed it and you guessed it she died before he could contact her.
He is now haunted by this daily he says. He talks about how selfish he was and that he was not a big enough man to swallow his pride and connect again and start the relationship again. He wishes he could redo that one again. His father said that his wife would have forgiven him in a minute if he contacted her. Now I'm sure there are more details but one thing that sticks out is a relationship never got repaired.

This just goes to show that when we have these things happen in our relationships that we need to find a way to repair them. Some times we need to be the one to do the work even if we feel its their job to contact us. Once the relationship is restored and after time it really doesn't matter who did the first move. The important thing was someone did.
If your in this position .... maybe its your move or not but maybe you can do the move.

Ok till next time.