Friday, July 28, 2006

Sorry for the delay!

Well I have been wanting to update the ol' Blog for some time now but my Internet service provider (3web) has decided to not work a lot of the time! I'd say in the last week it's been down for about half of that time! Not good! A call to the "Customer Service" was not very inspiring either as it was a woman who I'm not sure even owns a computer just going down a flow chart

"Is your ONLINE light blinking? NO .... hmmm, okay then I go to question #4."

No lie, she was actually saying that. I could actually hear her finger dragging down the paper to the question she needed to ask next!!! So needless to say I'm hoping the internet stays up and running so I can get this very brief update posted!

Hey I had another Job interview on Thursday! It went well, but is only for a temp job until October. If I get it, it would at the VERY least make me a bit more money and get me out of the house for a bit.

And lastly (Sorry this is such a rush entry into the Bloggity Blog Blog, but I'm scared the internet will go down again) here is a photo taken by Moi of my brothers Jims family at Thomas the Tank Engine In Washington State! ENJOY!

Friday, July 21, 2006

Well I just saw my favourite film of the year....

Raunchier, funnier, filled with better acting, and with a much deeper emotional resonance than the first one (And that's saying something because 'Clerks' is in my top 25 films of all time). Clerks II did prove you can go home again and have an even better time during your second stay!

Now it must be said I have much more in common with the characters Randal and Dante than I like to admit (especially Randal), but sadly I do. This film made me laugh out loud and pee my pants but then it also made me get all quiet and think "Jeez I know exactly how that guy feels!" followed by a twinge of sadness for the Character.

Nowhere is this emotion in the film more prevalent than in a classic Kevin Smith scene of Dante and Randal talking back and forth after skipping out of work to race some Go Karts. After some well timed jokes and dialogue, Dante asks Randal why he needs to go to the Go Karts to calm down when he gets upset. Randal just responds something to the effect of "Cause it reminds me when times were simpler and everything was ahead of you, instead of now" and the look of sadness on actor Jeff Anderson's face is so full of emotion and sadness when he said it, it really got to me. Just an outstanding delivery.

If the emotion is what makes this film brilliant at times, it's the funny that maintains that level. Dick and fart jokes reign supreme, as well as the most shocking take on racist epithets that I have ever seen on film. And the beauty is after you see it, it kind of makes you think. And that is why Clerks II should be, and will be, set apart from your average gross out comedy. The man takes base subject matter and can make you think!

It wouldn't be a clerks movie if Jay and Silent Bob didn't show up and once again they do not disappoint nor are they overused or overexposed in the film. Smith knows when to bring them in and when to reel them back. The beautiful Rosario Dawson is fantastic as Randal and Dante's boss, but some of the best laughs come from Trevor Fehrman as Elias. The scene with Elias and Randal talking about a troll named 'Pillow Pants', it must be seen to be believed.

So is this film for everyone? Hell no. Will some say I'm crazy for liking it better than Clerks? More than likely! Will some say I'm crazy for liking it at all? I don't doubt it. But for me this film hit all the right notes and much like the first Clerks will be watched by me for years to come!

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

As promised...

It's been a year since I've been to England and I can't believe it! It honestly seems like yesterday since I've been there and I thought it would be nice to show a video of all my pictures from the trip! Honestly I hate carrying around a camera and I only caught about 1/10th of what I saw but here it is for all of you to see!

I miss everyone over there sooo much and I hope this video works!!!!

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

I'm back!


Helloooooo! Certainly been one of the busiest weeks I've had in a long time so you'd think I would have TONS to tell you! Well yes and no. I had a great time with my Brother Jim's family in Issaquah, Washington on the weekend. We went down for the Day out with Thomas the Tank Engine and it certainly lived up to the hype! They could have done a really lame job and just thrown up a booth here an there with Thomas tattoos, and sold some overpriced food, but they really provide a great Thomas experience for the kids and Adults! Ben freaked when he saw the life size Thomas for the first time. "IT'S THOOOOMAAAASSSSSSS!!!!". It was hilarious... Hopefully in the next few days we'll have some footage from Jim's Video Cam to post, as well as some photos!

Meanwhile on the home front, I'm going to the Gym and losing all the weight I had put on the last year while on Antidepressants! It's hard work but I've lost 20 pounds in the last month! Sounds like a lot, but I'm 6'7" so I've got quite a bit more to go until I feel normal again!

Also one week from Now It will be one year since I traveled to England to see the extended family! So in the next few days I plan on uploading a nice video collage of all my pictures I took on the big trip! So watch this space!!! As always if you've got something to say, don't hold back email me or leave a comment here on the blog today!

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

I'm going to Issaquah!

As faithful readers of my Blog know I get to go on a little trip tomorrow! My brother Jim and his family (Tanja, Ben, and Raili) are picking me up at lunchtime to head down to Issaquah, Washington to enjoy a Day out with Thomas the Tank Engine! Ben doesn't know about Thomas yet, as he may just get a wee bit too excited so everyone has decided to hold off and wait until the big day to tell him!

So since Ben asked me to come along I've got to go pack and get ready for a couple days of fun! Benny is a funny kid who's passion in life is Thomas the Tank Engine and the Thunderbirds (Here he is dressed up as Virgil captain of Thunderbird #2 although I'm not sure who the big goofy lookin' guy is beside him!!)

Oh and in case you missed it at my brother Sean's blog, my other Nephew Sam has also taken to dressing up like some (Pictured left) famous literary character, but god knows who he's supposed to be! Okay, Okay I'm joking I know exactly who Sam is.... He's dressed up as Atticus Finch from 'To Kill a Mockingbird'.

Been going to the Gym for the last few weeks regularly. OH MY GOD AM I SORE! As I type this I am so thirsty but my legs are so sore I don't want to get up to drink the last Orangina in the fridge! Ahhhh yes Orangina, the best darn drink known to man! Screw it, I'm ending this and gonna drink some Orangina!

Sunday, July 09, 2006

Bored and a little annoyed with my life,,,,,


I am sick of my apartment. I am sick of not having anything to do. I am sick of having nowhere to go. Now trust me when I say I am REALLY trying to get into a routine by going to the gym, and taking a walk a couple of times a day (But have you seen my neighborhood? Not exactly a walk through Yellowstone Park is it??).

In between walks and Gym visits, I feel like a contestant on the TV show Survivor with extremely long sessions of nothing to do in between challenges. Most of my friends are married and very busy with their lives during the summer, and that's fair, and I completely understand that. But it leaves me to my own devices, and while I've always been extremely independent it's really become far too much of a good thing. Honest to god it's times like this when I wish I wish I had a roommate again!

I know I'm to blame for most of this. I should be coming up with new hobbies and things to do (Why do you think I started a Blog?), but for some reason when I try and think of something new to do I just go blank. I don't have any money at this point in my life to do much. I don't turn on the TV anymore until well into the evening because there is simply nothing worth watching during the day, and since it's summer not much more on at night. I guess what I'm trying to say is... I've hit a rut. A BIG time rut, and it's starting to really become an annoyance.

I know all I have to do is get a job, and I will, hopefully very soon (I will get one right?). But this rut, or more correctly all this free time, is really starting to get to me. If I were wealthy I would travel the world, end of problem. But sadly, that is sooo not an option for me.

One bright spot however.... I get to go to Issaquah Washington with my Brother Jim's family this weekend. Really looking forward to seeing the kids! Last week my brothers wife Tanja told my nephew Ben about the trip to Washington State and that it was fun for kids and grown ups. Right away Ben asked Tanja , "Is it fun for uncles, too? Can Gregg come?" What a great kid! Love him, and all my nieces and nephews, to death.

Wow, how whiny and self absorbed was that post? Well, I'm allowed, it's my blog. I also worry when I get down if I'm having some sort of recurrence of my clinical depression. But then I realise that being healthy means I'm going to feel a full range of emotions including feeling down sometimes. Everyone feels that way every now and then, and it doesn't mean my sickness is coming back. So when I think of it that way, it kind of makes me happy, and relieved, knowing I'm just feeling normal human emotion, and I don't have to worry I won't feel happy ever again. Trust me, clinical depression isn't a normal human emotion, it's the blackest pit you can ever crawl into. That crap is behind me... onwards and upwards from here on in. No more being bored and feeling down about where my life is. But also, no more panicking that I'm back in the throes of depression when I do have a down day like I WAS having before I wrote this.

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Well at least I got the Interview!


Had a Job interview today! It was at a company much like the one I worked at before, and it was a job opportunity that I thought would be a lot like the one I had before. Well, at least that's what I thought it would be...

It was a nice interview and the people were great, but when they said I would be on the road 3-4 months of the year I just had to be honest and say I wasn't interested. Spending my days driving to Kamsack Saskatchewan, trying to get a few sales is not my image of ideal employment. After I told the two people conducting the interview I wasn't interested they were really nice and we continued to talk for about 20 minutes.

It was good to get the interview under my belt and I feel more confident about the whole getting a job thing now. I always do well in interviews, and I don't think this was any exception. Well except for the fact I told them I wasn't interested halfway through... I'll have to remember not to do that ALL the time.

So lot's more jobs have been applied for and I'm expecting to be back in the rat race sooner than later, but as always if you hear of anything PLEASE email me and let me know!

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Mighty Boosh clips....

I've had a few people asking me about the show "The Mighty Boosh", a show I talked about earlier this month on the blogitty blog blog. So here are some clips that may give a taste of a show that I find hard to accurately explain to people...





And finally this clip is a news story about 'The Mighty Boosh' and gives a very good overview of the series...