As The World Turns

'Tis was an interesting day today. Worked the weekend so will have tuesday and wednesday off this week. As usual, thanks to years of conditioning in that country which prides itself on having the World's Greatest Sale, I went shopping.

However the wind was not really co-operating, another *rolls eyes* cold front is coming in for the next few days. But the wind was rather something. I was walking around in the outdoors, I could feel the winds trying to bowl me over and I'm a heavy guy.

But the Piece De Resistance of my buys today is this:



That shiny Key Fob is from Simple American (now you know where that has ended up, always wanted a Lone Star, thank you!) but the other black bit is mine. I'm now the proud owner of a 1989 Honda Civic 2Dr Coupe. She ain't much to look at, but is mechanically sound, (think Millenium Falcon, going to be working on the Warp Drive), comfy (the seats and heater work, important!) she will require a lot of TLC from Moi. I'm already falling in love. Thank god I'm mechanically inclined. But the best bit is, I can actually now go places regularly! No more wasting time waiting for buses.....Yaaayyyy.

Now I remember why I came here, I can't afford a car like this in Singapore!

Jazz..ahhh that much misunderstood, sometimes maligned form of music. Makes some people swoon, makes some fall asleep, causes yet others to go stark raving mad. Jazz has so may sub forms its just mindboggling. Fusion, Blues, Folk, etc there is so many to list. Always been a Rhythm sort of person so I guess thats why it appeals to me. Eons ago, when policemen actually wore shorts, I used to be on the school marching band and I actually played the piano. Dont ask me to march/play anything now, still getting to grips with PS3. What I really like about Jazz though it that its timeless.....whichever music that sets your heart on fire...

This time of the year, the sun still being a low low angle, creates very interesting light especially with pinkish storm clouds in the background, this is the Chinook Centre, Calgary's biggest shopping mall...

So whilst browsing through Self magazine...I came across this tiny bit of tidbit about being a drama queen. Not one to pass up anything free, I took off my inhibitions and skinny dipped into the realm of the unknown. Namely:

Are you a Drama Queen?

And with my score of 75... the result is....*drum roll, peeks through fingers*

You should get an Oscar for your dramatic flair. You tend to blow situations out of proportion, overreact and make mountains out of molehills. While this might keep your life interesting and provide the occasional laugh, it's also got to be pretty hard on you. It's exhausting riding a constant emotional roller coaster! Both for your own sake and the peace-of-mind of those closest to you, you should really learn to chill out a little. Try to keep things in perspective - something may seem like a major life crisis at the moment, but will you even remember it in a month (or day) from now? You can keep your passion for the dramatic (a tiger never changes its stripes), but consider toning it down before you wear yourself out!

So are you one?
The Drama Queen Test

Do you know that Bats always turn left when exiting a cave?

Do you know that you can only fold a piece of paper a maximum of 7 times?

Do you know that watching a advertisement for Toyota cars tells you these?

Do you know I might be babbling?

So the cold spell is now here, but it is now where near as cold as the one we had in nov last year. Maybe because I now have a down jacket, ooooh warmth, nice. But what really piques my curiosity is, why is it when it gets colder, the urge to go pee becomes worse? The only solution is to go commando, I knew army training would one day be useful.

Having a 3 day weekend (finally!) I decided to head back to my old haunting grown - Lake Louise.

Heading out, bright sunshine


Ahhhh at Canmore....hmmm from the clear skies at Calgary to looming clouds...


Mountains again!


Wah! Twisting mountain roads, my favourite! Notice the avalanche danger sign at the side of the road. This road was closed just a week ago because of an one.


Loaded with snow somemore, its really fun trying to slide the car around the corners, nothing beats a feeling of being behind the wheel and in a slide. Must remember to stay away from telephone poles...

This was the headline and part of the news on Yahoo Canada today. Much of eastern Canada is currently having rather warm weather. Some ski hills there have had to close and the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, billed as the world's longest skating rink, still isn't frozen giving rise to many to ponder if this is the trend to come.

"Canadians waiting for winter, wondering how it will affect national identity.

Canada's typically harsh winter weather continued to spare most of the country over the weekend as mild conditions prevailed instead of the snow and deep freeze many would expect at the start of January.

And while many cheerfully enjoyed the unseasonal treat, others pondered what it all means for Canada's national identity.....as a hardy, cold-weather population"

Me cold-weather populatee?

"..the weather is gradually becoming warmer but Canadians shouldn't think current conditions herald a new winter reality. You can't use this as a forecast; you can't say this is the beginning of balmy winters from now on. I think this is in fact a preview, a dry run of the normal winter that we'll see in 2030, 2040." - Environment Canada senior climatologist David Philips.

"Canadian Sarah Campbell seems perplexed. "It's kind of weird," says Campbell, who is more accustomed to the mild weather of her native Scotland. "This time last year, it was snowstorms." She says she's most concerned about Canadians of a different sort. "I just think about the poor polar bears. I feel badly for them." - Hooray for her!

The weather is certainly weird. I just came back from my old haunt Lake Louise which is benefitting from the storms battering British Columbia i.e. lots of snow. I don't remember seeing that much snow when I was there last year....

Back to a bit closer to home. Been hearing that a cold front is coming through the middle of this week but WTF! this is too much.

From +1º to -21º in one day is, really, too much *indignant*

Makes watching this movie over the weekend suddenly seem so ... relevant..

eat full nothing to do...