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and tests of the camera’s macro function.
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Anyway, I came to the realization yesterday that I have somehow morphed into the exact opposite of what I used to be. I despise talking on the phone now. I mean, why phone when you can get the job done with a quick email? I do make exceptions for our extended family or far-away friends that we don’t see very often, but otherwise I avoid it. Even our cell phones get neglected. They mostly get left at home or remain uncharged for weeks, much to the chagrin of, well, everybody who’s ever tried to reach us that way. But this avoidance comes with complications. I recently needed to call a friend – a good friend – for directions, and I didn’t have her number. I was in the car, nowhere near a computer and unaware of the name of the new street that she lives on. I scrolled through my cell phone and realized that I had so few numbers stored in the phone book that I couldn’t even call someone else who might know. And it seemed that my brain roladex was even worse. Barely a phone number to be found. How embarrassing for me. Even most of the friends that I used to race home from class to call were missing from the list. But somehow I can still remember the number of my grade 9 boyfriend (a little pathetic) and all the numbers of my childhood friends’ homes (about a year ago, without thinking, I actually called Alicia’s parents house instead of the house she’d been living in for years. Twice in a row. Oops.) Perhaps it can be blamed on everybody having many more phone numbers than they used to and changing numbers much more often, but really, there’s no good excuse. I’d like to say that I’ll make the effort to change…but I won’t. Everybody’s lives are too busy and no one, including me, has enough time to chat on the phone after a long day of work or on the jammed packed weekends. BUT I should make the effort to at least gather the numbers of the friends (and family – I don’t even know my brother’s number!)that I need to reach on a regular basis…….even if it is just to be able to send them a quick text message. 😉
August 25, 2006 - 10:33 am
There must be something about that 6172 number cause I still give out my parents number when I am asked ‘on the spot’ what my phone number is. I wasn’t able to call my sister when I wanted to last night either. She’s changed her phone about 8 times in the last 6 months and her latest wasn’t in the memory of my phone. (I almost said Maestro…”it wasn’t on my maestro”. Which then brings us to Maestro Fresh Wes – “Drop the Needle”) If your number doesn’t make it into the address book of my mobile (I know you love the use of ‘mobile’, Shan) then it just simply does not exist.
August 25, 2006 - 10:43 am
‘Mobile’ IS geeky, but I’ll allow it from you. But only you.
August 25, 2006 - 1:58 pm
I’m not much of a phone talker, and I don’t know many males who are. I practice something I like to call “ignore the ringing phone”. If I’m busy or otherwise don’t want to talk to anyone, I don’t answer the phone. That drives some people insane. Why don’t you answer the phone? It’s ringing! I also *hate* call waiting. I don’t answer beeps. How rude … “sorry, someone potentially more interesting or important is on the other line. You’ll have to wait without hold music an indeterminate amoun t of time until I’m finished my business with them”. That’s all I’ve got.
August 25, 2006 - 2:10 pm
As much as I don’t like the phone, I never ignore a ringing one. And it drives me crazy that Dan does. To me, every rigning phone could potentially be an emergency – so I’ll race from what ever part of the house i’m in to find one of our two phones, which are normally side by side and not in their respective cradles. So never fear, if you call, and I’m home, I’ll answer. Dan won’t. He’ll assume out loud that it’s for me and go right back to what he was doing. 😐       Our dollar is a fiat currency, meaning it is not ultimately exchangeable for anything (if, say, everyone wanted to trade in their dollars at the same time), and only has value because the Canadian government says it does. We get our paycheques, pay for everyday goods, and (most importantly) invest for our futures, all in Canadian dollars. We are comfortable doing this because our dollars aren’t losing their value very fast. The Bank of Canada diddles with the interest rates in order to keep the inflation rate (how fast the price of everything rises) at 2-3%. We are able to stay ahead of the game as long as our paycheques rise faster than the inflation rate. Nice and cozy, right? Well, there’s an ugly side to paper currencies. For a variety of reasons, Russia, Argentina, and most recently Zimbabwe (as if Zimbabweans need more things to worry about) have seen inflation rates in the thousands of percent. A loaf of bread goes up in price every day. Retirement savings that used to be able to sustain your for decades are now insufficient to buy cat food. I find these currency implosions fascinating. And while I don’t lose sleep worrying that the Canadian dollar will follow any time soon, I do think about alternatives to investing in Canadian dollars, or any other fiat currencies for that matter. Filthy money – makes you want to barter, doesn’t it? How many ducks do you want for that jar of pickles? Tough for the government to tax that transaction …
August 24, 2006 - 12:58 pm
One word Dan: gold
August 25, 2006 - 10:30 am
Your blog makes me think. Thank you for being the one part of my day that makes me think. I (heart) forgetful.ca.
August 25, 2006 - 10:46 am
Perhaps my one word comment wasn’t enlightening enough. I can expand. Back in the day, all fiat currencies were backed by gold. Ever heard of Fort Knox? That is where the US gold is/was held. So, if you borrowed money or held a debt against another country, you could pay back the debt or demand the debt to be paid in either the fiat denominations or with an equivalent in gold. All of the US dollars that existed had to be backed. Now when Nixon was president, France asked for the US to pay them some money that was owed but they asked for it in gold. Nixon didn’t want to do this. So what did Nixon do? He proclaimed that the US dollar was no longer longer linked to gold and the fiat currencies were allowed to float, not backed by any real assets. The consequence of this action is the horrendous mis-management of the US dollar we’re seeing today. They’re able to print as much money as they want and acrue as much debt as they want. As long as other nations keep buying that debt the system is fine. Other countries, like China, need to buy US assets to keep the dollar strong because the US owes them so much. If the dollar free-falls in value compared to other currencies, then the effective debt paid to those countries is much, much less. However, China and other countries are starting to worry about the US mismanagement and are diversifying in other currencies, including increasing their gold holdings. As the demand for the US dollar falls, the strength of the dollar falls. So where am I going with this? Well, gold is a real thing much like silver, oil, houses, and other commodities. There is only so much of it. It can not be printed (like the US dollar). So, if you have little faith in the fiat system, buy real assets with that currency now so that in the future those assets will be worth much more as hyper-inflation happens. That concludes my financial lesson. Keep in mind that I have no formal training in economics or financial planning so if you lose money in investments because of me, i claim no responsibility. 1. … are now older than when you started reading this sentence. 2. … is no longer a planet. Who is paying these astronomer’s salaries? 3. … is almost over. I am sed. 4. … is the next person to be voted off of Rockstar. Apologies to all the Dilana lovers. I aint one of them. Who is hosting the Rockstar finale party, btw? September 12 and 13. 5. … is the premiere of a new segment called “Countdown”. Other contributors: feel free to use the format. I’m sure hilarity will ensue.
August 24, 2006 - 3:56 pm
Fabulous. Thanks to astronomer politics I’ve now lost my way in the universe. I’m pretty sure that Pluto was the planet to which I was astrologically aligned. (Or it may have just been my favorite one). I vote for the Rockstar Finale party to be at your house. You have the biggest tv/family room.
August 24, 2006 - 6:09 pm
Sonja and I will host the party for the finale of Rockstar: Blind Melon at our new house. It should be sometime in late 2007. mark your calendars.
August 30, 2006 - 1:34 pm
Arg! Dilana’s performance of Mother Mother was decidedly un-stinky. I don’t think she’s being sent home tonight. But what a crybaby. As if you want her fronting your band, guys! As for who will go tonight – uncertain. My call is Toby. And yes, the Rockstar: Supernova finale will be chez Fullerton. A two night affair, Sept. 12 & 13; both will be casual dress code, and light snacks in the form of corn chips and mexican sauce will be served. BYOB. Dan: 0 marathons in 11101 days This guy: 48 marathons in the past 47 days I’m sure I have him beat in the “lifetime hours of video games played” category though, so I don’t feel too bad.
August 23, 2006 - 2:15 pm
It worked. I do feel lazy. But that’s psychotic.
August 24, 2006 - 8:32 am
What an idiot. I just don’t think that humans are meant to do such things. I bet his feet are gross.
August 24, 2006 - 11:09 am
Ew. I hadn’t thought about his feet. Back to not running marathons, day 11102 …
September 25, 2006 - 8:58 am
[…] It’s one thing to run a marathon a day. […]
September 25, 2006 - 8:58 am
[…] It’s one thing to run a marathon a day. […] |
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Kris - Macro function is awesome. It has allowed me to take very detailed photos of the cat and last week, allowed me to capture some very large feet on a very small baby.
Did anyone else used to pick those flowers in the top picture and suck the “honey” out of the little petals? I don’t know if that was a widespread trend, or just some bullshit my cousins fed me to try and get me to do silly things.
Sonja - Those are some pretty awesome snaps. You are quite the talent.