jan.1.2011 new year’s resolution…

Do you have a New Year’s resolution yet?  Late last night I was staring into a dark corner of my house and noticed my cobwebbed covered guitar, so…

• After trying really hard to master just ONE basic song on my guitar…
• After staring at my guitar leaning against the wall for the last three years…
• After cutting off the tip of my middle finger (left hand) and thinking I would never play again…

I resolve to pick up that guitar and do some learning.  I have been searching for a better way to learn since the last disastrous effort (got stuck learning to play ‘Every Rose has it’s Thorns’ and got no further).  I am going to try some online courses and see where it gets me… stay tuned.

dec.19.2010 really short book reviews…

Below you’ll find my really short book reviews… in the order they were read.

• W.E.B. Griffon: Behind Enemy Lines… VERY GOOD
• Phillip Margolin: Proof Positive… EXCELLENT
• Ted Bell: Pirate… EXCELLENT
• Michael Crichton: Pirate Latitudes… REALLY GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Wheel of Darkness… EXCELLENT (as usual)
• Clyde Phillips: Sacrifice… GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Book of the Dead… EXCELLENT
• Valerio Massimo Manfredi: The Last Legion… GOOD
• Mary Higgins Clark: Stillwatch… NOT BAD

dec.7.2010 really short book reviews…

Below you’ll find my really short book reviews… in the order they were read.

• Phillip Margolin: Proof Positive… EXCELLENT
• Ted Bell: Pirate… EXCELLENT
• Michael Crichton: Pirate Latitudes… REALLY GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Wheel of Darkness… EXCELLENT (as usual)
• Clyde Phillips: Sacrifice… GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Book of the Dead… EXCELLENT
• Valerio Massimo Manfredi: The Last Legion… GOOD
• Mary Higgins Clark: Stillwatch… NOT BAD

dec.4.2010 really short book reviews…

Below you’ll find my really short book reviews… in the order they were read.

• Ted Bell: Pirate… EXCELLENT
• Michael Crichton: Pirate Latitudes… REALLY GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Wheel of Darkness… EXCELLENT (as usual)
• Clyde Phillips: Sacrifice… GOOD
• Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child: The Book of the Dead… EXCELLENT
• Valerio Massimo Manfredi: The Last Legion… GOOD
• Mary Higgins Clark: Stillwatch… NOT BAD

nov.13.2010 one big province…

The Thunder Bay trip is over…

Made several stops along the way there: Temagami, Iroquois Falls, Cochrane, Kapuskasing, Hearst, Long Lac, and finally Thunder Bay… a two day trip.

Made many stops on the way back too: Marathon, Wawa, Sault Ste. Marie, Thessalon, Spanish, Nairn Centre, Sudbury, (a few towns too small to mention), Parry Sound, and finally home; Guelph… a three day trip.

I have been all over Ontario in my time but never driven the big ‘circle route’ up North.  The drive is fun, roads were excellent, food was decent and the weather was perfect (no bugs)!

One thing you’ll realize if you drive this route is that Ontario is big… really, really BIG!  Take the time to stop and explore the little villages along the way… you never know what you’ll find.  I was on a work-related road trip so couldn’t spend a lot of time at any one place… the upside is that it didn’t cost me a cent

If you like driving and exploring… this trip is for you!

nov.04.2010 thunder bay training…

Paul and I volunteered to go up to Thunder Bay to help support the northern Team in their new equipment launch.  We are to provide training and support.

We decided to drive up by the ‘North’ route; through Temagami, Cochrane, Kapuskasing, Hearst and Long Lac… finally arriving in Thunder Bay after two days of driving.  Distance travelled?  Approximately 1300km (1600km for Dan!).

We plan on going home by the ‘North Channel Route’; hugging the top of Lake Superior and driving around Georgian Bay.  More on this trip as we go.

This is only my second time in Thunder Bay; if ever in the neighborhood be sure to drop in.

aug.23.2010 paintball & paint cans…

Went paint-balling the other day with my son.  Let me dispel the myth; yes… it hurts.  I can see how people enjoy this though, we had a really, really good time.  When you know you will get hurt if hit you tend to take the game seriously.  We played at my buddy’s place near Perry Sound, ON… he has a beautiful place in the woods with lots of room to ‘battle’.

Back at home, I finally took on the task of cleaning up the basement… this is one big task.  We kind of put stuff down there and forget about it… sort of like the “Hoarders” only milder.  Several of those big heavy duty garbage bags later we can finally see the floor!  Many things were put on Kijiji for sale while others were simply tossed… we don’t like garage sales… sorry.

One thing we kept; you never know when you need to make a repair… was all our paint cans!

june.22.2010 boyz weekend…

Wow, I haven’t posted in quite a while… sorry.  My new job is taking a whole lot of my time these days.

I have just about recovered from the annual “Boyz Weekend”.  This year found us in Mattawa, Ontario… at a beautiful lakefront cottage (thanks Luc!).  As usual the weekend was full of fun, frolic and alcohol.  The latter figured heavily… the lake water was cold but we didn’t feel a thing.

Tried the “Insect Defend Patch” this year… a patch that is supposed to keep the bugs from biting.  I can report that it seemed to work!  I got one bite on the last day… 24 hours after it fell off in the hot tub.

Unlike last year, when the Jet Ski sank, we had some really good times being pulled on tubes and skis.  I even went for several rides where the goal was to dislodge me… the final verdict?  Jet ski 2, Dan 8.

Can’t wait till next year!

may.2.2010 sandpiper…

Saturday morning broke to clouds and rain… not a nice day to get the boat ready.  Josh and I went to the ‘barn’ to get our sailboat out of storage… a Sandpiper S565.  By the way the ’565′ means the boat is 5.65 meters long.  The idea was to bring the boat home, give it a quick clean, tie the mast on to the top (we leave the mast at our house, not sure why), and head to the lake.

At the lake the plan was to rig the boat (raise the mast, attach the boom, ‘rig’ the rigging, etc…).  Alas the rain screwed up our plans both at home and at the lake… we just didn’t feel like getting wet I guess.

This is when the “gee whiz” thing happened…

As we were leaving another sailor was arriving with his boat… a Sandpiper 565!  This might not sound like a big deal to you but the boat is not the most common, especially in these parts.  It turns out he was a “brand-new” owner that morning!  My son and I are going to meet up with him to help him rig his boat… his first time.

All aboard!

apr.20.2010 crackberry…

I’m sure you have heard the term “crackberry” many times… it refers to people who are addicted to their Blackberry devices.  I often thought; “is this a marketing campaign, a myth, etc…”, then I got one… a week ago… the Blackberry Bold 9700.

I haven’t gone to sleep with it yet so maybe I’m not addicted?  I do however bring it everywhere else… I love it!  It’s easy to use, extremely fast, and rugged feeling too.

I’m not here to promote the Blackberry… got mine for work.  As a work tool it’s probably one of the best tools I have ever had.  I’m in the business and have used many, many different phones… this one is hands-down the best.