Mystery of the week
Does anyone recognize any of the following names?
Paul Robson
Jane Haque
Walter Jarsky
Jacque Beauvais
Jason Cook
Joe Balant
Judy Haddad
Cheryl Ibbotson
David Shanoff
Debbie Fleming
Doris Chen
Felix del Aguila
Gordon mahaffy
Helen Nolan
Jason Francoeur
Julie & Ronni Bates
Camilla Gryski
Casey Meng
Qiu Wang
Christos
Narcissist Design Co. & The Perfect T
Daniel Neysmith
David Room
David Keeble
My reason for asking: I received a very random email forward from a "Paul Robson" last night with a silly picture of a penguin standing on top of on a panda bear. My first reaction was that it was a virus, but I was pretty sure they couldn't be transmitted via jpgs. Totally puzzled by why my name was on his list of recipients, I googled him and found out that he's an economics graduate from UW. After responding to his email and politely asking him how on earth he might know me, he responded with "Sorry Heather, It's a mystery. I deleted you from my contact list."
Anyone who knows me will know that this is gonna drive me nuts until I figure out the connection (as I am certain there is one somehow, probably less than the cliche "6 degrees"). Anyone with any leads, please show me the light! This mystery CAN be solved!! :)
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Monday, March 21, 2005
Funny Story
Oh my gosh! I almost forgot to post about this one!...
So the other day after my usual Monday evening run I was waiting patiently at a stop light (like all responsible drivers should) and drifting off in my own little dreamworld. When all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a little red Plymouth Colt turn the corner in front of me. This car caught my attention because it was the same one that an ex-boyfriend of mine used to drive. I thought... "no way... that can't be him... he can't still be in this city"... But sure enough, I caught a glimpse of the driver as it passed, and it was indeed, my "psycho ex" (the title comes from a very long story that you'll have to ask me about in person some day if you have any desire to learn more about it). I laughed aloud thinking about the strange encounter, and when the light turned gree, continued along my merry way wondering if I would ever run into him again.
Well, not more than a month later (last week), I was on my way to my first shift at the Running Room. Feeling totally ravenous from having not eaten much all day, I decided to stop at a gas station to pick up a quick snack on my way to work. And since I was coming directly from my brother's place, I happened to select a gas station I wouldn't normally pass by. As I entered the store I quickly scanned for the chip stand, grabbed a bag of Doritos (yummmy!) and headed to the cash. It was at that moment that I noticed the cashier making an overly obvious attempt to avoid eye contact with me. I looked at him and quickly realized, it was the psycho ex! I said hello and called him by his name and he almost tried to pretend like he didn't know me. But I continued the conversation and asked him what was new and all he could say was "umm.... I'm.... here...?" I asked him how his school was progressing or if he was done yet and he said something about finishing up this year. Since I was in a hurry, I wasn't able to talk longer, but I couldn't help but laugh as I walked out the door. For someone who was soooo confident and strong headed and egotistical while we were dating, I couldn't believe what I saw. What a weird encounter...
Am I a sick person if the only emotion this whole situation stirs up is laughter?
Oh my gosh! I almost forgot to post about this one!...
So the other day after my usual Monday evening run I was waiting patiently at a stop light (like all responsible drivers should) and drifting off in my own little dreamworld. When all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a little red Plymouth Colt turn the corner in front of me. This car caught my attention because it was the same one that an ex-boyfriend of mine used to drive. I thought... "no way... that can't be him... he can't still be in this city"... But sure enough, I caught a glimpse of the driver as it passed, and it was indeed, my "psycho ex" (the title comes from a very long story that you'll have to ask me about in person some day if you have any desire to learn more about it). I laughed aloud thinking about the strange encounter, and when the light turned gree, continued along my merry way wondering if I would ever run into him again.
Well, not more than a month later (last week), I was on my way to my first shift at the Running Room. Feeling totally ravenous from having not eaten much all day, I decided to stop at a gas station to pick up a quick snack on my way to work. And since I was coming directly from my brother's place, I happened to select a gas station I wouldn't normally pass by. As I entered the store I quickly scanned for the chip stand, grabbed a bag of Doritos (yummmy!) and headed to the cash. It was at that moment that I noticed the cashier making an overly obvious attempt to avoid eye contact with me. I looked at him and quickly realized, it was the psycho ex! I said hello and called him by his name and he almost tried to pretend like he didn't know me. But I continued the conversation and asked him what was new and all he could say was "umm.... I'm.... here...?" I asked him how his school was progressing or if he was done yet and he said something about finishing up this year. Since I was in a hurry, I wasn't able to talk longer, but I couldn't help but laugh as I walked out the door. For someone who was soooo confident and strong headed and egotistical while we were dating, I couldn't believe what I saw. What a weird encounter...
Am I a sick person if the only emotion this whole situation stirs up is laughter?
Sunday, March 20, 2005
Catching up...
A huge congratulations to Trina on the completion of her first half marathon! Trina completed the Burlington Chilly Half a couple of weeks ago and finished with a time just over 2 hours. Way to go girl!! Congratulations also goes out to Mike (my Ericsson co-worker/roommate buddy from 3B) and Brenda on their recent engagement. I'm so happy for you two!
Career news: I am now officially a part-time employee of the Running Room in Waterloo. I applied a couple months back (before picking up my tutoring students), but last week I got called for an interview. Next thing I knew, I was on the staff list! It's been fun so far. 2 shifts under my belt and I'm schedule for an opening shift on my own next Sunday. Crazy stuff!
Marathon news: I was all set to brag about my exciting flight news (round trip tickets to Vancouver for $282 taxes included) when, much to my disappointment, I got the sad news of Jetsgo's closure (less than 2 weeks after I booked my flight with them). I was so pissed, but called my credit card company the morning I found out and filed my "grievence report". Supposedly I should be getting my money back the day after my flight is scheduled to depart. Thanks to my big brother Mark for feeling sorry for his poor sister and donating his
Air Miles points to my cause. I still have to pay $140 in flight taxes, but that's definitely the best deal around these days!
Motivational news: Saturday evening I met up with a friend to go climbing at Sportsworld. It's been years since I have been climbing (last time was probably with Ming and others in 2B), and I had forgotten how scary it was until I was half-way up my first wall. After a while though, I eased into it and remembered how much you can rely on the "safety" in the rope. The best part of the night was conquering climb after climb with a little coaxing from below. Just when I was ready to give up from sheer exhaustion in my arms and grip, a little shout from below convinced me to keep on going. It's such a cool feeling when you overcome something that you didn't think you could ever finish! Man... am I ever sore today though!...
Finally... if someone is looking for something really stupid but cute to cheer them up, check this out: www.it.dev.duke.edu/tmp/I_Like_You.swf
A huge congratulations to Trina on the completion of her first half marathon! Trina completed the Burlington Chilly Half a couple of weeks ago and finished with a time just over 2 hours. Way to go girl!! Congratulations also goes out to Mike (my Ericsson co-worker/roommate buddy from 3B) and Brenda on their recent engagement. I'm so happy for you two!
Career news: I am now officially a part-time employee of the Running Room in Waterloo. I applied a couple months back (before picking up my tutoring students), but last week I got called for an interview. Next thing I knew, I was on the staff list! It's been fun so far. 2 shifts under my belt and I'm schedule for an opening shift on my own next Sunday. Crazy stuff!
Marathon news: I was all set to brag about my exciting flight news (round trip tickets to Vancouver for $282 taxes included) when, much to my disappointment, I got the sad news of Jetsgo's closure (less than 2 weeks after I booked my flight with them). I was so pissed, but called my credit card company the morning I found out and filed my "grievence report". Supposedly I should be getting my money back the day after my flight is scheduled to depart. Thanks to my big brother Mark for feeling sorry for his poor sister and donating his
Air Miles points to my cause. I still have to pay $140 in flight taxes, but that's definitely the best deal around these days!
Motivational news: Saturday evening I met up with a friend to go climbing at Sportsworld. It's been years since I have been climbing (last time was probably with Ming and others in 2B), and I had forgotten how scary it was until I was half-way up my first wall. After a while though, I eased into it and remembered how much you can rely on the "safety" in the rope. The best part of the night was conquering climb after climb with a little coaxing from below. Just when I was ready to give up from sheer exhaustion in my arms and grip, a little shout from below convinced me to keep on going. It's such a cool feeling when you overcome something that you didn't think you could ever finish! Man... am I ever sore today though!...
Finally... if someone is looking for something really stupid but cute to cheer them up, check this out: www.it.dev.duke.edu/tmp/I_Like_You.swf
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Thursday, March 10, 2005
Work Funnies
The joy of working at a small company means random emails to the entire mailing list, some of which are pretty hilarious. Here's two from this week:
Subject: Car licence APLS 236
Message: You've left your lights on. You're ok for a while, though, because you also left your engine running. Dave
Response (to the entire company): Thanks Dave. These remote starters are neat, but you have to watch how you put your keys away :-)
Subject: Wrong keys
Message: I am hoping that someone on this distribution list would know the whereabouts of my keys. I hung my keys up shortly after 1pm in the gym and when I returned at 1:45 to fob out of the gym.... I realized my keys were gone. If someone would like to swap their keys for mine... preferably the person who currently owns my set of keys, please reply to me. I would like to have them before I go home.... so that I can go home :-)
Thanks, Mark
The joy of working at a small company means random emails to the entire mailing list, some of which are pretty hilarious. Here's two from this week:
Subject: Car licence APLS 236
Message: You've left your lights on. You're ok for a while, though, because you also left your engine running. Dave
Response (to the entire company): Thanks Dave. These remote starters are neat, but you have to watch how you put your keys away :-)
Subject: Wrong keys
Message: I am hoping that someone on this distribution list would know the whereabouts of my keys. I hung my keys up shortly after 1pm in the gym and when I returned at 1:45 to fob out of the gym.... I realized my keys were gone. If someone would like to swap their keys for mine... preferably the person who currently owns my set of keys, please reply to me. I would like to have them before I go home.... so that I can go home :-)
Thanks, Mark
Wednesday, March 02, 2005
Backwards Reality
I can not believe how backwards our country (and government) views the current sporting/olympic "crisis". After reading a story on CBC.ca yesterday, I was floored to learn how Canada plans to get out of our performance slump at the Olympics and boost our medal count at the 2010 games. They think that funnelling a hole pile of money down a specific channel that targets only the top athletes will miraculously lead to a specific number of Gold, Silver, and Bronze Canadian performances at the Vancouver games 4 and a half years from now.
I don't think so...! I think the problem goes so much deeper and is tied to our generally lazy and unfit Canadian culture. Look at the physical education program in our elementary schools and think about how much changes in that area could have bigger and "grander" effects. By targeting the Canadian poplulation as a whole when they are young and at their most influencial phase of life, instilling a passion for (and even just the habit of) physical activity and sports can have a trickle effect and result in a much larger Olympic candidate pool to choose from. Sure this may take a lot more work (revamping the curriculum, changing views, making people do stuff they just don't want to have to do) and extra money. But forecasting the medal results at say, the 2020 Olympics, and even the financial rewards on our public healthcare system could speak wonders for this theory.
This "band-aid" approach is true in so much of life. The scary part is that it is simply a fact. With the sonic speed that life runs at today and the resulting pressures we endure, we fail to take the time to examine problems at the root. Instead we do whatever we can to find *a* solution and we suffer longer-term as a result.
I can not believe how backwards our country (and government) views the current sporting/olympic "crisis". After reading a story on CBC.ca yesterday, I was floored to learn how Canada plans to get out of our performance slump at the Olympics and boost our medal count at the 2010 games. They think that funnelling a hole pile of money down a specific channel that targets only the top athletes will miraculously lead to a specific number of Gold, Silver, and Bronze Canadian performances at the Vancouver games 4 and a half years from now.
I don't think so...! I think the problem goes so much deeper and is tied to our generally lazy and unfit Canadian culture. Look at the physical education program in our elementary schools and think about how much changes in that area could have bigger and "grander" effects. By targeting the Canadian poplulation as a whole when they are young and at their most influencial phase of life, instilling a passion for (and even just the habit of) physical activity and sports can have a trickle effect and result in a much larger Olympic candidate pool to choose from. Sure this may take a lot more work (revamping the curriculum, changing views, making people do stuff they just don't want to have to do) and extra money. But forecasting the medal results at say, the 2020 Olympics, and even the financial rewards on our public healthcare system could speak wonders for this theory.
This "band-aid" approach is true in so much of life. The scary part is that it is simply a fact. With the sonic speed that life runs at today and the resulting pressures we endure, we fail to take the time to examine problems at the root. Instead we do whatever we can to find *a* solution and we suffer longer-term as a result.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Best deal in town!
So I've managed to pick up a couple of tutoring students this term. Both girls happen to be taking the same course, Grade 10 Academic, which is super convenient for me. After my first couple of sessions, I've realized just how much I'm cut out for this. I love helping them with their math! It gives me a fun challenge to re-teach myself what they are learning each week, and then try to think (on the spot) of a different way to explain it to them so they can see it, and better understand it, from a different angle.
I've discovered that I am a total sucker and these people are getting WAY more than their money's worth. For a measley $25-$30 these students are getting one-on-one sessions, for 1.25 - 1.5 hours, in their own homes, with yours truly. Given that the going rate in this city is $40/hour (and usually a very strict hour), I think I'm a steal. I wonder if I will ever actually end one of my sessions "on time"? :)
So I've managed to pick up a couple of tutoring students this term. Both girls happen to be taking the same course, Grade 10 Academic, which is super convenient for me. After my first couple of sessions, I've realized just how much I'm cut out for this. I love helping them with their math! It gives me a fun challenge to re-teach myself what they are learning each week, and then try to think (on the spot) of a different way to explain it to them so they can see it, and better understand it, from a different angle.
I've discovered that I am a total sucker and these people are getting WAY more than their money's worth. For a measley $25-$30 these students are getting one-on-one sessions, for 1.25 - 1.5 hours, in their own homes, with yours truly. Given that the going rate in this city is $40/hour (and usually a very strict hour), I think I'm a steal. I wonder if I will ever actually end one of my sessions "on time"? :)
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