Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
Let's Get Something Straight
This has been a pet peeve of mine for a while and I would like to take a moment to clear things up.
If you are, for example, unfazed as to how someone else feels about something than the proper expression would be:
"I couldn't care less."
As in, you care so very little about their opinion that it would not be possible for you to care any less than you already do. You do not care at all, therefore you could NOT care less.
Now this seems fairly straightforward to me, yet I continually see/hear "I could care less." This makes no sense!!! This phrase signifies that you ARE able to care less about the given subject than you currently do. Which means that no matter how little you care about it, you do care about - which defeats the whole purpose of the proclamation! If you COULD care less then why don't you?!!??!
Now don't get me wrong, this is all about the context in which the phrase is used. If I were to say about my friends "I could care less," this would be true, because I care very much for my friends and it is possible for me to care much less for them. However the context in which I hear people saying it is "I am a fan of (band xyz) and I could care less what other people think." To reiterate: that means that you DO care what people think as you just stated that it is possible for you to care less than you currently do. ARGH!!!!
All right, I apologize for such a high and mighty rant, but populist bad grammar frustrates me.
UPDATE: History of caring less.
If you are, for example, unfazed as to how someone else feels about something than the proper expression would be:
"I couldn't care less."
As in, you care so very little about their opinion that it would not be possible for you to care any less than you already do. You do not care at all, therefore you could NOT care less.
Now this seems fairly straightforward to me, yet I continually see/hear "I could care less." This makes no sense!!! This phrase signifies that you ARE able to care less about the given subject than you currently do. Which means that no matter how little you care about it, you do care about - which defeats the whole purpose of the proclamation! If you COULD care less then why don't you?!!??!
Now don't get me wrong, this is all about the context in which the phrase is used. If I were to say about my friends "I could care less," this would be true, because I care very much for my friends and it is possible for me to care much less for them. However the context in which I hear people saying it is "I am a fan of (band xyz) and I could care less what other people think." To reiterate: that means that you DO care what people think as you just stated that it is possible for you to care less than you currently do. ARGH!!!!
All right, I apologize for such a high and mighty rant, but populist bad grammar frustrates me.
UPDATE: History of caring less.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Ok...CRAZY!
This story was just too good to pass up.
If ever there was a good argument against constitutional monarchy, I think this is it. But then I've always been of the opinion that royalty are a waste of money.
And yet, I'm still going to do my Masters there...
If ever there was a good argument against constitutional monarchy, I think this is it. But then I've always been of the opinion that royalty are a waste of money.
And yet, I'm still going to do my Masters there...
Friday, July 20, 2007
Shoe sale
I was in the mall today, and saw a sign hanging above a bunch of shoes that read something to the effect of:
"Massive summer clearance! Two for the price of one!"
And I thought to myself "Isn't this how shoes are normally sold?"
"Massive summer clearance! Two for the price of one!"
And I thought to myself "Isn't this how shoes are normally sold?"
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Friday, June 15, 2007
Memories of Oxford
Never thought of looking for Slam Poets on YouTube, but here are two videos of what are, in my opinion, Taylor Mali's two best poems. I saw Taylor perform at the first slam I ever went to and he is fantastic. Rich has even had him over for supper I believe!
Friday, June 08, 2007
A 3am Thought
Human beings are designed with great redundancy. We have two eyes so that if one is damaged, we still have the ability to see. We have two arms so that we can still function if one is incapacitated. And yet, we only have one set of reproductive organs. Surely this is the part of the body which is most intrinsic to our survival as a species, so why not two each? Or 4?
Comments encouraged.
Comments encouraged.
Monday, June 04, 2007
Us Kids Know
I've been listening to No Cars Go by Arcade Fire a lot lately. It was originally released on their debut EP, but they retooled it for Neon Bible and it sounds incredible. I'm not entirely sure what attracts me to the song so much...I'm sure part of it is that they closed their set at Coachella with this song, during which the band visibly poured their heart and soul into it. Chanting the end part along with 50,000 (or so) other people was pretty amazing too. But then I realized tonight, I think that a large part of my attraction is a lyric that is repeated toward the end of the song:
"Between the click of the light and the start of the dream."
I guess I kinda feel like that's where I am these days. I'm in that liminal state again - I'm not quite awake and I'm not quite asleep. Not that it's a horrible thing. In fact, in many ways it's quite comforting to actually KNOW what I'll be doing for the next 2 years of my life. And it's exciting to think that I'll be a student again, living abroad and learning a whole new language/people/culture. And it's not like I'm in a bad place right now either - it's summertime and Guelph is a great place to live. I've got friends here and I'm making new ones. Life is actually pretty sweet, but I guess it's just that sense of not wanting to invest myself entirely, knowing that I'll be taking off in 2 months time, and the anticipation of starting another 'new life.'
By the by, for those not on Facebook, my Coachella pictures can be seen here.
"Between the click of the light and the start of the dream."
I guess I kinda feel like that's where I am these days. I'm in that liminal state again - I'm not quite awake and I'm not quite asleep. Not that it's a horrible thing. In fact, in many ways it's quite comforting to actually KNOW what I'll be doing for the next 2 years of my life. And it's exciting to think that I'll be a student again, living abroad and learning a whole new language/people/culture. And it's not like I'm in a bad place right now either - it's summertime and Guelph is a great place to live. I've got friends here and I'm making new ones. Life is actually pretty sweet, but I guess it's just that sense of not wanting to invest myself entirely, knowing that I'll be taking off in 2 months time, and the anticipation of starting another 'new life.'
By the by, for those not on Facebook, my Coachella pictures can be seen here.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Wanderlust
"Lust for comfort suffocates the soul
This relentless, restlessness
Liberates me.
I feel at home whenever
The unknown surrounds me.
I receive its embrace
Aboard my floating house.
Wanderlust!
Relentlessy craving wanderlust.
Peel off the layers until you get to the core.
Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for,
Or will I want more?"
And you wondered why I loved Björk so much...
This relentless, restlessness
Liberates me.
I feel at home whenever
The unknown surrounds me.
I receive its embrace
Aboard my floating house.
Wanderlust!
Relentlessy craving wanderlust.
Peel off the layers until you get to the core.
Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for,
Or will I want more?"
And you wondered why I loved Björk so much...
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Up and Coming
I know I haven't blogged in a long time. I'm trying to devise a smooth transition back into the blogging world.
This is not it.
This is not it.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Symantec Redux
If you scroll down and read the comments for the post entitled "Bollocks" (I would include a link but its not very easy from this terminal) you will find a very respectful dialogue between myself and Ron Bowes, who is the editor in charge of the bloggers at Symantec who wrote the original post that the CBC article is based on. I really respect him for responding and appreciate his perspective on the issue. Go read it!
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Oslo-bound
I received an e-mail this morning from the University of Oslo in Norway stating that I had been nominated for the M.Phil in Intercontextual Theology and that my letter of acceptance was in the mail, so it looks like I'll be headed to Norway mid-August sometime!
I'm not entirely sure when orientation week is or when classes start yet, but I will definitely try for a stopover in England, and, if I can swing it, a trip to Greenbelt ;)
As well, 24 hours from now I will be in San Francisco. Woo hoo!
I'm not entirely sure when orientation week is or when classes start yet, but I will definitely try for a stopover in England, and, if I can swing it, a trip to Greenbelt ;)
As well, 24 hours from now I will be in San Francisco. Woo hoo!
Monday, April 16, 2007
Bollocks
I hate articles like this one.
"This illusion of privacy leads people to be a little freer in their disclosure," Symantec Corp. security researcher Nick Sullivan wrote in a post to the company's security response weblog on Friday.
Of course, no where in the article does it mention that Symantec is arguably the largest purveyor of computer security software (a little program you may have heard of called Norton AntiVirus), and that it is in their best interest, financially, to spread FUD about identity theft and computer crime. It's like writing an article about a study some guy did complaining how long it takes to walk between places, and then you find out he works for a car company.
The concerns he lists about Facebook are blown out of proportion -- he says the danger comes from Facebook sending e-mails including links for users to click on. His argument is that identity thieves could send e-mails with fake links and try to steal information from people. Well then the problem isn't with Facebook, it's with idiots who don't pay attention to what links they're following. This isn't a danger specifically with Facebook, but rather with the ENTIRE INTERNET. People should know by now that just blindly clicking the 'Yes' button and not paying attention to what you're doing on the Internet can lead to spyware and fraud. He only brings up Facebook because it's a popular site and will get people's attention.
This frustrates me on another level because it panders to the consumerist mindset. People feel like they shouldn't actually have to think for themselves, and that everything should be safe and easy from the get go. And while I agree with making laws to curb illegal schemes and the dangers of using the Internet, I also think people who don't exercise caution on the Internet deserve what they get. After all, just because we have lanes painted on our roads and light signals hanging above them doesn't mean I should expect to be able to cross the street with my eyes closed and end up still in one piece. We still need to take basic precautions to protect our own well-being. It almost seems to me as if people today, more and more, feel the 'entitlement' to ignorance. Like they have the right to not be bothered with details. Well, if one can't traverse a regular highway blind, then I don't see why the information highway should be any different. But I think that the general populace would rather have an easy, cookie-cutter solution (like, oh say, I don't know, purchasing & installing a computer security software program) than actually taking the time to pay attention to what they're doing. This doesn't just go for computers and the Internet, but many aspects of Western living. Like rather than hanging out with the poor and getting to the bottom of the problem of poverty, people would rather just write a cheque and then walk away and think about something nicer, but I digress...
At any rate, back to the original point, I would expect shill articles like this from American media companies, but I have a higher standard for the CBC....disappointing.
"This illusion of privacy leads people to be a little freer in their disclosure," Symantec Corp. security researcher Nick Sullivan wrote in a post to the company's security response weblog on Friday.
Of course, no where in the article does it mention that Symantec is arguably the largest purveyor of computer security software (a little program you may have heard of called Norton AntiVirus), and that it is in their best interest, financially, to spread FUD about identity theft and computer crime. It's like writing an article about a study some guy did complaining how long it takes to walk between places, and then you find out he works for a car company.
The concerns he lists about Facebook are blown out of proportion -- he says the danger comes from Facebook sending e-mails including links for users to click on. His argument is that identity thieves could send e-mails with fake links and try to steal information from people. Well then the problem isn't with Facebook, it's with idiots who don't pay attention to what links they're following. This isn't a danger specifically with Facebook, but rather with the ENTIRE INTERNET. People should know by now that just blindly clicking the 'Yes' button and not paying attention to what you're doing on the Internet can lead to spyware and fraud. He only brings up Facebook because it's a popular site and will get people's attention.
This frustrates me on another level because it panders to the consumerist mindset. People feel like they shouldn't actually have to think for themselves, and that everything should be safe and easy from the get go. And while I agree with making laws to curb illegal schemes and the dangers of using the Internet, I also think people who don't exercise caution on the Internet deserve what they get. After all, just because we have lanes painted on our roads and light signals hanging above them doesn't mean I should expect to be able to cross the street with my eyes closed and end up still in one piece. We still need to take basic precautions to protect our own well-being. It almost seems to me as if people today, more and more, feel the 'entitlement' to ignorance. Like they have the right to not be bothered with details. Well, if one can't traverse a regular highway blind, then I don't see why the information highway should be any different. But I think that the general populace would rather have an easy, cookie-cutter solution (like, oh say, I don't know, purchasing & installing a computer security software program) than actually taking the time to pay attention to what they're doing. This doesn't just go for computers and the Internet, but many aspects of Western living. Like rather than hanging out with the poor and getting to the bottom of the problem of poverty, people would rather just write a cheque and then walk away and think about something nicer, but I digress...
At any rate, back to the original point, I would expect shill articles like this from American media companies, but I have a higher standard for the CBC....disappointing.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Update
Wow, has it really been 3 weeks since my last post? How about that...
Well, my blog has always served mainly two purposes:
Next Wednesday I will be arriving in San Francisco for the first time in my life and spending a few days there, followed by renting a car, heading down the coast, hanging around LA and then off to Coachella. The day after I return, two of my Scottish friends that I met in Russia are coming to visit and I'm going to show them around this great country. After they leave, my mom is talking about heading to florida or north carolina or somewhere warm for a week or two and taking me with her. Following all of that business, I will be moving to Guelph and living in a home with some kinda-old-but-actually-new friends and their two young boys. Somewhere in there I should find out whether I'm going to school in Norway in the fall or not.
So, comparatively, you can see why I haven't really been posting anything exciting lately...all the exciting stuff is just around the corner, and I'll make sure to share all of THAT when it happens...
Well, my blog has always served mainly two purposes:
- To keep my friends overseas up to date with my daily life
- To share my thoughts on stuff with people
Next Wednesday I will be arriving in San Francisco for the first time in my life and spending a few days there, followed by renting a car, heading down the coast, hanging around LA and then off to Coachella. The day after I return, two of my Scottish friends that I met in Russia are coming to visit and I'm going to show them around this great country. After they leave, my mom is talking about heading to florida or north carolina or somewhere warm for a week or two and taking me with her. Following all of that business, I will be moving to Guelph and living in a home with some kinda-old-but-actually-new friends and their two young boys. Somewhere in there I should find out whether I'm going to school in Norway in the fall or not.
So, comparatively, you can see why I haven't really been posting anything exciting lately...all the exciting stuff is just around the corner, and I'll make sure to share all of THAT when it happens...
Friday, March 23, 2007
Japanese Philanthropy
I think that this story is worth commenting on. I'm not entirely sure what my comment is yet, but I do think it's positive. Hmmm...check back tomorrow for more...
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Under the Category of: Things I Wasn't Expecting Today
At work this morning I pulled a mug out of the communal kitchen cupboard. I started to fill it up when I noticed it was one of those personalized mugs where you get one of your own photos printed on the side. This mug had a picture of someone else's kids. In the bath tub. Naked.
I'm not sure that sort of thing belongs in the company cupboard. In fact, I'm not even sure it belongs on the side of a mug in the first place...
I put it in the sink and pulled out a generic "91.5 The Beat FM!!" mug instead.
I'm not sure that sort of thing belongs in the company cupboard. In fact, I'm not even sure it belongs on the side of a mug in the first place...
I put it in the sink and pulled out a generic "91.5 The Beat FM!!" mug instead.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
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