Computer Noob

Last year my dad decided to get my mom a computer for Christmas.  This doesn't sound like a very big deal but it was because neither my mom or dad have EVER used a computer in their lives.  My dad heard other friends talking about how they email, look up travel deals, etc. and thought my mom should get in on this action.

This is where having a daughter comes in.  I was given the task of picking something out..dad was excited with cheque book in hand.  I found her a nice basic laptop and had to research the best way for them to connect to that "Internets".  They live in the country so there are no cable options.  I ended up signing them up for a wireless stick that works really well. 

Needless to say once the gift was given, the computer training and phone calls began.  You forget what its like to show someone who knows nothing about computers.  Not how you hold a mouse, what it does, what a window is, what a cursor is, how to open foxfire (my mom kept calling it that).  She actually caught on pretty fast considering, and now a year later uses terms like...I googled that.

Today I saw a cartoon that reminded me of  how we started out and it made me laugh, 

Back to School

It feels like back to school time.  Having said that I don't actually have kids and I don't work in a school, but it still feels like that time of year. 

Tonight when I was watering the pots outside, I couldn't help but notice that tinge of coolness in the air and a few yellow leaves here and there starting to waft to the ground.  The air reminded me of the clothes that I would wear on the first days of school.  In my day it was new cords and a nice sweater.  A sweater was appropriate because the morning air was getting cooler and cords..well..they were just cool!  It was always exciting to get a couple new things to wear for school that you got to pick out yourself.  Mine always had to stay in the closet until school started so they would be new.  In those days you didn't get a ton of new stuff regularly so it was a big deal.

I always was excited to get started and see all of my friends.  I liked summer vacation but was usually ready for it to be over and get back to school.  I think this was more in my younger years as this faded as I got older ; )

It's the time of year when you start to think about getting things done outside.  You know that it's now or next year so enough with the excuses.  Git er done!  We went to the Eco station on the weekend and took a bunch of electronics in so we can work on the games room downstairs this winter.  We have to re-seal the driveway so I am thinking this weekend will be the time for that (hint hint).

The traffic going to work is getting busier now which signals summer vacations are mostly over.  New television shows are starting up as well so the "repeat" season can just go away. So while I hate to see summer go, I think fall is really wonderful.  Although I could skip winter..but I don't want to think of that just yet.

So let's enjoy the rest of summer and hope for a beautiful long fall season!

Thieving Little Pluckers

In the World of Warcraft there are a lot of quests.  A LOT of quests.  Some are pretty mundane, kill X number of things.  Some are pretty interesting and some are quite hard, depending on the class that you are.  I remember when I first started to play I died so many times on some quests it wasn't even funny.  Now that I am awesomer than before, I can ace most of the quests that used to give me trouble. 

With the various expansions added to WOW, different flavors of quests and storyline were added.  The last expansion was called Cataclysm and it came with 5 new levels and some new zones.

Anyone that has played WOW would realize the Blizzard has a sense of humor.  They have a lot of quests that poke fun at pop culture or pay homage to various things.  An NPC called Haris Pilton, a one handed mace called the Fight Club, a quest called Don't Stop Bereavin. 

Thieving Little Pluckers

 In the expansion they added a zone called Uldum.  This has a Harrison Jones quest line that is a full Indiana Jones story with cinematics.  I think its the best zone of the game and the most fun.  In this area they also added a daily called Thieving Little Pluckers.  This is where you wack a stack of pygmies with a giant hammer.  Its pretty fun I have to say.

Gnome Obliteration

But my far the best quest they introduced was one called Gnome Obliteration.  Basically you control a giant ball of flames and you roll over 1000 gnomes.  If you turn the volume up loud they have the gnomes yelling and making hilarious sounds and flinging all around. 

Call me a sicko but its pretty great and a lot of fun, especially if you have had a frustrating day!

So that's all I got for tonight folks, I may have officially surpassed Chad for WoW posts this challenge. 

Say it isn't so! : )

Stuff

I look into my neighbors back yard and I see "stuff".  An empty hot tub sitting on the patio with all the ambiance of an armpit.  I see a barbque, and bunch of lawn mowers, some quad like vehicles, a basket ball net, a bunch of miscellaneous ugly looking equipment.  They have a huge oversized double garage and a extra large shed in the back stuffed to the rafters and yet the stuff still overflows into the yard.  The majority of the stuff I mentioned never gets touched as they are never home to use any of it. 

He also has trucks, every kind of truck possible.  His wife and teenage kid have different colors of the same brand new Chrysler 300.  He has a massive loud Harley and other manly toys.  Then the other day he drove up in a camper. Not a normal camper, it was literally the size of a greyhound bus...I am not exaggerating!  This is the profile of the rich blue collar guy in Alberta today.

He is not unique, you see it everywhere.  People that can't get enough of buying things.  Some can afford them, most cannot, but don't stand between people and their god given right to acquire stuff.  There is a new show on TV coming called "Pack Rats".  I think this is the step you hit before "hoarders".  I have come to the realization that I definatley don't posses this gene.   I hate having extra crap laying around and I have very little emotion attached to stuff.  Sure there are the few sentimental things, but most of the things I cherish are memories in my head and the people and animals that I love. 

I am not saying I don't have any stuff, everyone does.  But I think long and hard about what I really need/want and if it will somehow add value to my life.  Sure I can afford a fair amount of stuff, but for what purpose?  To have it laying around like my neighbor?  To show off to people that I can afford nice stuff?  I could care less if I keep up to the Jones-es - chances are the Jones-es have credit card debt up the ying yang. 

I watch shows like Till Debt Do Us Part and see people that make a hobby out of acquiring stuff.  One girl actually had 78 pairs of jeans.  Yes....think about that.  78 x $75/pair = $5,850 in Jeans!!  Then she actually started to cry on her bed like a little girl when they were going to make her sell most of them. WTF is this world coming to??? 

People need to smarten up and get a grip on what is important in life. Health, love, family, friends, experiences...none of these things are made of plastic, metal or electronics.  People are bankrupting themselves buying shit they don't need because they feel an enormous sense of entitlement.  It is no wonder the U.S. is in such a predicament and we would not be much better in Canada if we didn't have regulations to save us from ourselves.

So dear neighbor, I will continue to plant trees, put up my trellis, whatever necessary so I don't have to look at your abandoned crap.  Keep working 7 days a weeks so you can buy more stuff..after all, that is what life is all about ...right??

Tucker and Dale - My Favorite Hillbillies

Recently we watched a movie on a Cheezy movie night called Tucker and Dale Vs Evil.  It was recommended by our friend Steve and I can see why.  Its very, very, very funny.  It has some pretty gory parts but they are hilarious.  If you watched all of the more serious horror flicks of the 80's with the teenagers getting offed by the crazy dood in the bush, you will appreciate this take on that genre. This is a laugh out loud movie that you should download today : )

Tucker & Dale vs Evil is a hilariously gory, good-spirited horror comedy, doing for killer rednecks what Shaun of the Dead did for zombies. Tucker and Dale are two best friends on vacation at their dilapidated mountain house, who are mistaken for murderous backwoods hillbillies by a group of obnoxious, preppy college kids. When one of the students gets separated from her friends, the boys try to lend a hand, but as the misunderstanding grows, so does the body count.

Expedition Impossible

This summer I started watching a new Mark Burnett show called Expedition Impossible.  It is similar to the Amazing Race as teams race to various checkpoints and are given challenges.  The part that is different is that the 13 three-person teams race across vast deserts, over snow-capped mountains and through raging rivers in the Kingdom of Morocco.

Some of these locations looked grueling and oddly some of the people that looked the most fit failed horribly.  In one of the early legs of the race a group of Latin ladies did so much bitching and belly aching at each other that their attitudes definitely did them in.  On one team called the Farm boys, the biggest strapping guy was constantly being a big pansy and having to stop.  Meanwhile much less fit looking teams passed them by.

I think the most inspiring team on this challenge was one called "No Limits".  These are three very close friends and one is blind!  Yes, totally freaking blind.  It was amazing to watch this guy walk over terrain that was so uneven and treacherous.  He would hold onto his buddy and jump 40 feet into a raging river from a cliff and then Kayak down the raging river.  Yes, a one man kayak all on his own, with only his friends calling out.  He climbed and repelled mountains, he rode a horse and a camel, you name it this guy just did it.  Not a single complaint, just an incredible relationship and trust with his teammates.  It was incredibly inspiring.  Along with his blindness, his team mate hurt his leg very badly and kept pushing through as well.  In the end they came in second place just minutes behind the first place team.  They never got frustrated with each other, just kept up the encouragement and were determined to do the best they could. 

So while television often focuses on those people in the world that are useless and offer nothing of value (aka. Jersey Shore), it's wonderful to watch people that truly understand what team work, friendship and perseverance are all about.  Some people leaving you feeling inspired rather than disgusted, and that is great!

Ah So, Ah So

The other night we had "Japanese Village" night.  What is this you ask?  Well, it is where we rip off the awesome food you get at Japanese village.  It's actually a pretty easy meal to cook, cheap as hell to make and very very yummy. 

Basically you get some beef strips and stir fry them with some teriyaki sauce.  Meanwhile you make some nice basmati rice and stir fry some strips of cabbage, onion, carrot, whatever mix you like with some soy sauce.  The result is almost exactly like Japanese village, except without the asian guy that flings knives around : )

Anyone that has gone to JV knows that what takes these dishes to another level is the sauce you can put on the food.  You can get a sauce that tastes exactly like JV's by going into the Sawmill restaurant and buying a bottle.  This however is kind of a pain as we don't have one nearby and you always have to go make a special trip.

So this year when we went to the St. Albert farmers market we saw a bunch of sauces and dips at the Blue Kettle booth.   They had a ginger sauce that we thought we would try.  The amusing part is that I asked the nice lady how long it would last in the fridge.  Little did I know that this was an incredibly stupid question because this would NEVER be an issue.  This stuff is amazing!  Good lord you could spread it on cardboard and it would be yumm-ee! 

So when we went to use it for our JV night recently, the jar was empty!!!  Noooo...(insert psycho music here)!  The crack sauce is gone!  It was a sad moment, now we would have to have naked rice and vegetables ; (    This used to be just fine until I got a taste of this evil stuff in a bottle, but now I want it all the time.

I even hooked my friend Steve and now he is looking for a supplier...er...a dealer...I mean a store to get more.  Luckily they sell at various places other than the market so we can get a fix in the winter months as well.

So damn you Blue Kettle lady with your nice gray hair and pleasant smile...you are pure evil.

Pet Plastic Surgery

I have always been an animal lover, hell often I like them better than people.  Why is that?  Well, because we are supposed to be on the top of the food chain and yet I constantly shake my head at the stupidity of our species.  Case in point:  If you are one of those folks that is giving your child botox for wrinkles or getting plastic surgery for your pet, you qualify for the tin foil helmet and should not be allowed to breed.

Yes, I said plastic surgery for your pet.  Apparently this is on the rise!  Here is an except from an article about the topic:

Ever consider putting your pet under the knife? From silicone testicles to nose jobs, cosmetic surgery for pets is on the rise in some regions of the world, reports The Telegraph.  U.K. insurance company Petplan churned out the numbers based on claims made by British pet owners in 2010.

Not only was there a jump in nose jobs by 25% over three years costing a total of $2.5 million in 2010, but $1.6 million was also invested in eyelifts.  Then there are Neuticles, the fake, bean-shaped testicles made out of solid silicone, which come in a range of sizes for the neutered dog to maintain pride and self-esteem.

Jim and Jaime Davenport of Atlanta, Georgia opted for the testicular implants for their English Bulldog. In an ABC News interview, the couple explained that it was just too "out there" that their dog, Munson, had been neutered.

The Davenports aren't alone. According to neuticles.com, "over 250,000 pets worldwide have been Neuticled since 1995."


I am not even sure what to say, I didn't even know the word "Neuticles" until today.    Sigh ~


P.S. Thor is lucky he is hung like a grape or he could be in trouble ; 0

Peeves

I have written a post earlier about awesome things.  So today for no particular reason I am going to share with you some of my pet peeves.  Nothing earth shattering, just some little annoyances that really bug me.  Some bug me more than others, and some it may depend on the day (or time of the month ; )

• Words like manipedi or Vaca!  I have no idea why these irritate me so much but they do.  "I'm going on a VaCa!".   "I am going to the salon for a manipedi..or whatever".
  
• This leads me to my next peeve.  Television shows that give far to much attention to annoying shallow people.  I think the Kardashians are a good example and they may even be the ones responsible for the afore mentioned annoying words.  What has happened to our society that we find these people so interesting? It scares me to think that teenagers would want to emulate people like those from the Jersey Shores....gawd!
  
• The Collective WE.  We have a client that uses this all the time.  When something is his job to do, then he will frame it as the Collective We (make a circley shape with your arm) should all do this thing.  What that really means is "we" and not him should do his job. 
  
• Another pet peeve of mine is anonymous douche bagery.  When you are playing games people often are foul and nasty.  This is mainly because they are anonymous and they have no consequences for their terrible behavior.  If you don't have the guts to sign your name to it, then STFU.
  
• Our company seems incapable of supplying our boardrooms with proper equipment and decent chairs.  Every time you go in to do a presentation you play the tree bears game and test out 3 chairs to find one that is only semi broken.  Then you wade through the mess of cables with all the mislabeled network connections and hook up the piece of crap portable projector and your laptop that you dragged into the room.  It annoys the snot out of me that this huge company is too cheap to mount a freakin projector, setup a computer and not have cables all over the floor to trip over.  I guess I am asking too much, after all we are only an IT company.
  
• And last but not least I was going to rant about traffic lights in Edmonton again, but I have probably mentioned this already a time or two.  But I will leave you with this thought....Travel 104 Avenue - From to 104th Street - 124 Street.  14 sets of traffic lights!!!  That is 14 sets of lights in 20 blocks!!  Really?...really

Smilin Jack

I like to watch the news in the morning when I am getting ready for work.  Today I was really surprised when I heard that Jack Layton had passed away.  We all knew he was sick, but I didn't realize just how near the end of his life he was.  I think it was extremely impressive how he rallied in the election and changed the landscape, especially in Quebec.  It's no easy feat making in-roads in political blocks of concrete, but he did and with a smile.  Underdog took the day! 

So to think that he did all that with such a serious illness!  Going to rallies, traveling around the country, public speaking events...hell I get tired just on a flight from a restful vacation in Mexico.

It always startles me when people are taken by cancer.  It is such a universally ugly word.  No one wants to hear it, especially in connection with a loved one.  More and more there are treatments and hope but its a long road for all cancer patients. 

It's really a shame that smiling Jack didn't get a chance to do a bit more as the official opposition, but he really showed people that hard work, perseverance and conviction can pay off. 

Putzing in the Garden

Lots of people have complained about all the rain this year.  I have to say overall I haven't minded it.  As a person who loves to garden, the rain is welcome.  There were a few days when my pots were threatening to drown but overall the grass is nice and green, the trees loving all this moisture. 

For me my garden is a place to go and unwind.  I think also it gives me a creative outlet that I really miss now that I no longer do the web design at work.  Every year I add to spots, see where I need new pockets of color and keep working on the "master plan". 

So here is what has been going on in the garden this year.  If you read my posts last year you know I built a trellis to kind of separate the back yard from the driveway a bit.  I came up with the design on my own and sat down and planned it all out.  After a few trips to Rona, some post digging and the realization that I needed a nail gun, the trellis was done.  Then I stained it which I think took longer than building it.  Getting in between all the little slats was a pain in the arse! I have now dug a little bit of sod out around the bottom and planted a little tree and some vines.  The vines are about to bloom and need to fill in more, but its a start : )

The side of our garage is fairly plain and I would like to have some nice vines climbing up on it.  On a garden tour a fellow had morning glory just growing out of the cracks by his garage, so I am giving this a try.  I have started the vines from seeds and they are starting to bloom.  They are supposed to seed themselves so we will see next year if this works.

Morning Glory

When we moved into the house the sides were pretty open to the neighbors.  They are nice people but I prefer more privacy and I hate looking in their yards at their "stuff".  People have lots of crap now a days and looking at it isn't pretty.  So operation block out neighbors began.  We planted 3 of the columnar aspen trees.  These things are amazing.  Here is a picture of them now and they were only about 6 feet tall a few summers ago.  I highly recommend these for privacy, and they don't take up much horizontal space in the yard.

I like to plant up quite a few pots and put them on the deck and on the front porch as well.  This year a few of my pots had sunflowers grow in them.  I planted annuals but I think my local squirrel was stashing some seeds in the pots and they came up.  So I left them in - what the heck.  

We also put in a fountain the back yard and picked up some flagstone to make a path to the shade garden in the back yard.  I keep on adding little rock plants to fill in between the stones.  This has been hit and miss with some taking well and some not liking the soil there at all. 

The shade garden has been a real adventure.  I added a mirror on the fence to add some reflection and I need to fight the battle of the slug in this type of environment.  I hear they like beer.



I have added three new rose bushes this year, one is a climbing rose.  I love roses and want more color in the back yard, not just shrubbery.  They are all supposed to be hardy for our Zone 3 but we will see.  It often depends on the winter and the spot you put them in.  So far they are taking well and blooming, so fingers crossed.




So before I bore you to death, I will end this post with some miscellaneous pics from the yard.  Some days I wish the yard was bigger so I had even more spots to plant things...but I am making the most of every spot and always have a plan for next year ; )

Peachy Keen

Movin to the country
gonna eat a lot of peaches

I'm moving to the country
gonna me eat a lot of peaches

Peaches come from a can

They were put there by a man
In a factory downtown

If I had my little way
I'd eat peaches every day
Sun soaked in bowls
Just in the shade

(Sing it with me)

Today our friends dropped by and brought us some fresh peaches from BC.  Anyone that has bought them from the grocery store knows that at times they can be kind of hard and not very juicy.  But these babies are soft and juicy and taste delicious.  We have a few of them so I will make some nice Peach Crisp but for tonight I grilled one up and put it on some nice vanilla yogurt for dessert.  Yummy!!

Grrrrreaaat Day! Woo Hoo

Today was a good day.  Nothing really special happened but was a great day none the less.  I went to the final day of my course and we wrote the course exam.  I passed and got my certificate and the best thing of all was we each got a goofy promotional pen that says "hey, don't forget to smile laugh and have a grrreaaat day!  wooo hoo".

It's funny how people like such dumb little things like this. Or maybe it's just me.   I plan to take it to work and annoy a few of my colleagues.

When I got home today I was pleasantly surprised.  Chad was home and he had done pretty much all the weekend chores!  Laundry done, folded and put away, vacuuming and grass all cut.  That was so nice to come home to as usually a big part of Saturday is spent getting all this done. 

Then he took me for dinner and a movie!  What a great dood  : )  We went to see Harry Potter as I have wanted to see the final one.  It was really excellent.  I find I have liked the Potter movies more and more as they progressed.  I think because the earlier ones had lots of silly things in them that were interesting but I prefer them now that they have gotten older and the story has become more singularly focused and darker.  There were some great effects in it with a cool dragon and a fire dragon effect. There were also some great wizard battles with the good professors of the school dishing out some wand whoop ass!   It was in 3D which it seems is becoming standard now so some things were coming out of the screen at you.

My best friends hubby also got to come home from the hospital today after 2 weeks.  He has his colostomy but with any luck it will be removed in a few months.  The best part is he is on the road to recovery and over the worst it seems.

Now I am at home with my jammies on typing this post.  The weekend is here and the housework all done, so more time to just enjoy.

Hope you all have great weekends planned as well.

Meet the Girls

OK before I bust out the gardening post, I should share a little secret.    My name is Tammy and I play World of Warcraft.  Ah, the shame...

Ultimately its Chad's fault, of this there is no doubt.  Although he never handed me the crack directly. He just played it around me.  It was a matter of time before I would give it a try.

At first I thought maybe it was just because I liked him that I was playing.  But as time went on, I played all the time on my own.  Sometimes he would go to bed and I would be up questing or raiding with my guild.  Yes...a guild.

I have quite a few different toons, but my main has been my Troll hunter.  So without further adoo, here is Auranoctura (I made the name myself : )

It's fairly appropriate class for me as hunters have pets.   She has a stable full of various types of pets, each has its own benefits.  She is level 85 which is top level until the next expansion.  I have played her in lots of different ways such as PVE which is the man way to get to the top level.  But I also enjoy battleground player versus player action.  She is a survival hunter and does fairly well in pvp, especially with resilience gear. 

WoW also has a number of achievements that you can earn and this is the main toon I work on those with.  The most difficult one so far was a series of special event achievements that tie into all the various holidays and festivals such as valentines day, christmas, halloween, etc. (What a long strange trip its been). Each has many quests and takes a minimum of a year to get, two if you miss any of the quests during the limited holiday time. 

For this quest achievement I was rewarded with a beautiful flying drake mount that not everyone has.

As a hunter your primary role is damage or dps.  Where this becomes important is in a Raid.  You are one of the people that is expected to output a wack of damage and take down the boss as fast a possible. You also have to stay alive by not standing in the "shit".   If it's purple, green, spikey, gelationous...don't stand in it!

To mix things up I thought I would try my hand at healing as well.  Anyone that has raided knows that dps is easy to get, but tanks and heals are at a premium.  So I rolled a Shaman and got her to 85 as well.  She has been a lot of fun to play and now has some decent raid gear.  There is still better available but unless we can get enough people together for the larger raids, those pieces will remain elusive.  She has a duel spec so can also switch to a damage dealing spec but I mainly use her for healing.  This is an important role in a group, and it definately gets easier with practice and a few helpful add-ons.

The trick to being a good healing shaman is to understand which heals to use when and to have good mana management.  This is tricky in raids.  We have fights that can last 6-7 minutes straight which is a long time when you are healing a large group that is taking a crap ton of damage! 

Recently blizzard came out with a few new races for the Horde and Alliance.  For the horde I created a Goblin mage and named her Tamajama.  Goblins are funny little creatures that tell saucy jokes and have some very funny starting quests.  And when it comes to a fight, they can kick ass...just like Yoda!  When they /dance they do a mean lady gaga poker face.  My mage is only lvl 77 so far but I will get her to 85.  She does some pretty serious damage as a frost mage and is lots of fun to play.  (if I was like some players with rulers, this is where I would insert my amazing crit rate)

Each one of my characters has a variety of different professions and can make all kinds of things that can be used by each of them (blacksmith, inscription, herbalism, engineer). You end up having your own little economy and that is really handy.


These are just three of my toons, I also have a lvl 85 warrior, and 81 Warlock, and 80 Alliance rogue and a few other lower level ones as well.  I am getting to the point where I have played most of the classes now.


So those are my girls!  I have never made a guy character..or an Orc!  (orc chicks are nasty).   For some reason it would feel weird to play a male toon, although I am sure there are lots of guys that play females : )

So there it is...my little secret.  Don't judge, its all good, nothing wrong with camping out near the dork forest.

On Course Day 2

Today was the second day of my Project Management course.  Don't worry I won't give you a daily blow by blow of the content, just a high level of the types of things we are covering.  This one is focused on Schedule and Cost.  So we spent quite a bit of time creating a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).

Really this is a tool to help create work packages that you can assign to people.  From this you can create a network diagram (different than the IT version) and plot all of your dependancies.  Basicially - which tasks can start when.  Does one have to finish before the others start, or can they be done at the same time?

A WBS could really be applied to any project, we used an example of landscaping a yard.  We also had a more complex case study that was less fun than landscaping but made the point.   This is a simple WBS for a banquet. 

We also talked about building contingency into projects.  There are actual formulas for doing this, not just pick a percentage and add it.   Other topics were determining your critical path and how to deal with Risk.  There are various ways to handle risk and we had some good examples. 

Ultimately these are things that I mostly do already but in my own way.  These methods are more tried and true and a bit more scientific.  Tomorrow we will talk a lot more about risk and resources which is always a relevant topic. So Friday is the exam and then back to work to put it all into action.

So that is my boring post for today, tomorrow night we are going to see the last Harry Potter so I will give my review on that.

I am glad the homeys got my PiMP reference.  Sometimes I think I am the only one that thinks these goofy things : )

On Course

Today rather than being at work I was on a Project Management course.  This one is focusing on Schedule and Costs.  This is an accredited course that can be applied to a PMP certification if I so desire.  I have taken some of the others in the series and have enjoyed them mainly because we have an exceptional instructor.  Her name is Priscilla Bahrey and she really lives what she teaches and has a very interactive approach to her classes.  I enjoy all the class discussion and she gets to the point with her lessons.

Typically I am not the greatest student as I am fidgety and not always focused enough. Some people looove school...can't get enough of it.  I am the exact opposite.  I am a "street smart" kind of learner.  Now don't get me wrong, it's not that I think I know all there is about Project Management, but I prefer to learn by doing. 

I have PM'd a fair number of IT projects of various sizes.  Each time one is complete I sit back and really think about what went well, what didn't, what would I do differently next time...and then I do it (courses call this "lessons learned").  This has served me well as I get a bit more organized each time.  I get better at heading off risk before the shit hits the fan and flings all over myself and my team.  I have gotten better at being direct with my clients and setting realistic expectations.  "Yes, we can most certainly add those new features to the scope, that will also add 5K to the cost and 3 weeks to the schedule". (insert sweet smile)

These classes have taught me some extra tricks and some PMBOK terminology.  But do I want my PMP?  Hell no!  Why is that?  Well, I have gotten this far in my life/career with a high school education so why start putting fancy letters behind my name now!  I don't begrudge anyone that wants that or enjoys learning this way.  Different strokes for different folks, however I can tell you that I know many a certified PMP that can't manage their way out of a paper bag.  They just think that they can create a plan and manage via a spreadsheet.  You can plan your ass off, but if you don't know how to manage issues, communicate, set expectations, mitigate risk, deal with client and team members then your project will fail. 

So while I am enjoying the break and this particular course I will never be a motha fucka PiMP : )

Word.

City Planning - Airport Redevelopment Plan

When all of this Edmonton Municipal Airport controversy started years ago, I was fairly ambivalent about it all.  I didn't really have much of an opinion one way or another.  At that time the big decision was to either keep it as a fully functioning airport or consolidate to the International.  Well the International won and the muni became a shell of what it once was. 

More and more the writing was on the wall that it would be closed and re-developed.  My only real fear about that was that Edmonton would just take this space and create yet another un-inspired neighborhood.  Stick some houses in, a few 7 elevens and call it a "community".  Yet another neighborhood that has nothing within walking distance, our typical "get in the SUV" and drive elsewhere kind of place.

But low and behold, this may not be the case.  Mayor Mandel doesn't see to want that either.  He has a vision to try and take this opportunity to do better.  To start putting the "planning" into City Planning. (which has been a complete oxymoron).  The city commissioned a number of companies from around the world to come up with concepts for the redevelopment of this area.  After some public consultation a company was selected.  They are Perkins and Will and they are even Canadian (Vancouver based).

Now this is in concept phase and there will be at least 15 months of design and consultation, but what interests me is that there seems to be a desire to add quality of life to a development rather than just buildings.  They talk about parks and green spaces, walkable streets, places to play and gather and grow food.  What is most exciting is the talk of deep geothermal!  Can it be that in the province of "coal plant development" we are actually thinking of doing something environmentally forward?  Say it isn't so!

If you are interested in the concept you can take a look here. 

So I really don't want to hear any more from Envision Edmonton.  Where were they years ago when this was a burning issue?  The horse is out of the gate, decisions have been made so move on already!

Obviously this is still all talk and we will have to wait and see if this all comes to fruition and lives up to expectations but at least the conversations are happening and a plan is in progress.

Some times I am not sure why I really care.  I live in St. Albert now, but I grew up in Edmonton and work there every day.  I have always had a soft spot for the nice city I remember.  It has become less enchanting over the past decades so I would like to see it gain back some of its shine.  I think some thoughtful planning and development can really help that happen.

Once is Not Enough, or Is It?

I started this post and had it on the back burner.  But then when I read the Disco Earl post, my retro groove stirred.

We all have favorite movies from the 70's and 80's depending on how long you have been alive.  Many of these movies were classic for their time.  I am not saying they were "quality" movies, some were definitely not.  But they were unique and fun and reflected the decade they were made in.  Of course with the lack of fresh ideas out there, it is to be expected that some movies will be re-done.  Some I can understand, but many I can not! 

Here is a sampling of some coming to a theatre near you!

Footloose
The original was 1984.  It was a classic tale of teen rebellion and repression featuring a combination of dance choreography and realistic and touching performances. When teenager Ren and his family move from big-city Chicago to a small town in the West, he's in for a real case of culture shock. Though he tries hard to fit in, the streetwise Ren can't quite believe he's living in a place where rock music and dancing are illegal. 

Oh my gawdd!  Rock music and dancing are illegal!!!??   

This movie was cute, it had Kevin Bacon in it and a whole crapload of catchy toons.  I suspect the sound track was a big part of why it was so popular.  Plus it was the eighties!  Will this really work again?  In the days of every other teen having a cell phone and knowing far too much about sexting, do we really think this innocent story will fly?    It will be out in October so you can see for yourself.

The Thing
I really liked the Thing.  I remember it being creepee up at that cold and deserted looking research station.  Those were the days when they really mastered the art of scaring the crap out of you without really showing a lot.  The only movie that I had seen like this was the 1979 Alien.  It was also great to watch an adult Kurt Russell.  As a kid he was always on the Sunday disney shows, but now he was kicking alien ass.

The original was 1982.  An American scientific expedition to the frozen wastes of the Antarctic is interrupted by a group of seemingly mad Norwegians pursuing and shooting a dog. The helicopter pursuing the dog crashes leaving no explanation for the chase. During the night, the dog mutates and attacks other dogs in the cage and members of the team that investigate. The team soon realizes that an alien life-form with the ability to take over other bodies is on the loose and they don't know who may already have been taken over.

 The re-made version is also out this October with some new actors I don't really know. 

Warriors
A 1979 cult classic.  A rough and tumble NYC gang called The Warriors are framed for killing Cyrus, the leader of the most powerful gang in New York. Cyrus has been trying to unite all the gangs in the area, so they can rule the city as one unit. When a big meeting for all the gangs is organized by Cyrus, the head of Gramercy Riffs, all hell breaks loose after Cyrus is shot. The Warriors are falsely accused of being the ones responsible, now they must make it back alive to Coney Island before retribution is taken.. back to their own turf.

In its day this seemed like a good movie.  What stood out were the "scary" gangs they had back then.  You expected Michael Jackson to show up and hold a dance off at any moment!  Everyone remembers hearing "hey warriors..wanna come out and play?".   Click here if you would like to take a little blast back to the past and revisit some of these gangs of awesomeness (that's what Cliff would call them).   I am thinking this one will be worth a revisit on a cheezy movie night.

For those of you tingling in your pantelonies because you can't wait for the re-make, it won't be out until spring of 2012 : (

Judge Dredd
What can I say, I am a sucker for a Sylvester Stalone movie.  With the execption of expendables, I have liked them all for the most part.  Yes, I understand he talks funny and says "I am da law", but hey, I like a little kick ass entertainment.

This one is more recent - 1995.  The Year is 2139. The Planet Earth has changed into a virtually uninhabitable place called the "Cursed Earth". All of the Earth's population have crowded into the cities across the planet, now known as "Mega Cities". The crimes in these "Mega cities" became so violent and so powerful, that the regular justice system was powerless to contain, then it collapsed completely. But, a new Justice System came from the ashes, They were 3 justice systems in 1 (Police, Jury and executioner), they were called "Judges". In Mega City 1 (formarly, New York), There was a Judge, named Joseph Dredd, who was the toughest and most stringent Judge in history. One day, he was charged with murder. He was tried and sentenced to life in prison because of it. Then, Dredd found out that it was in fact a person who shares his DNA. Former Judge Rico. Now, Dredd has to find out what Rico is planning to do, and to discover about his past.

Flash forward to 2012, or I mean backwards.  The new Judge Dredd will be Karl Urban. You may know him from Star Trek or Lord of the Rings.  Sounds like it may have some entertainment potential.  You can never have to much "justice".  O no you can't!

Digestive Health

So today my BFFs husband is in the hospital getting a colostomy.  He just turned 34 this week and his innards are a mess.  He has had issues with diverticulous and related problems.  Now he seems to have a very serious infection, absess and obstruction.  He has been in a LOT of pain the last few weeks and it has all just gone south. 

Today they will remove part of his colon as it has some issues.  The best case is he will get a "bag" for three months that will divert everything and give his poor insides a chance to heal.  They will send away the diseased part of the colon and hope like hell it's not cancer.  So my fingers are crossed today they will be able to get this under control and he can go forward with a relatively normal life, but we won't know for a while yet.

One of the issues that comes up frequently with digestive kinds of problems is diet.  This fellow is not the best eater in the world, but not at all the worst either.  Our north American diets can really reak havoc on our guts.  We eat too much at once, we don't move enough and we put too much processed crap into our stomachs.  As I am typing this the food network channel has a show on called Outrageous foods.   For some reason its awesome to make a hamburger that should feed 20 people and one person will brag about their ability to eat it all...RAR!!!!

Well, in the meantime we wait and hope for the best.

Mamminals

I have always been an animal lover.  Or mamminals as Chad says to tease me.  Once again the Edmonton Humane Society is overloaded with cats.  453 in their care and 100 up for adoption.  All of these cats/kittens have to be spayed/neutered before they will be put up for adoption all at a cost to EHS and it's contributors.  I have been a contributor for years and have always directed a large portion of my United Way contribution to the Edmonton Human Society.  This way I can give a lot more with payroll deductions.

This past cold winter we had two cats in our neighborhood that we had to take in as they were homeless in the -35 degree temps we were getting!  It breaks my heart that in a fairly well to do province like Alberta we have so much of this.  If you don't want a cat, then don't get one..but if you do, then look after it.  They are not something you just discard when you are sick of them.  Actually I guess they are since there are so many constantly needing homes : (    I really get tired of hearing how people "cant't afford to fix their animals.  I had a cousin tell me this about their outdoor cat on their acreage.  Really?  The $60k vehicle you just pulled up in and the regular manicures you can afford do, but a few hundred for a surgery is too much?  BS!  It's just ignorance and irresponsibility!

If for some reason you can no longer have your animal, then please find it a good home, but don't just move away and leave it on the street.  The Humane society is averaging about 50 cat surrenders a day...sheesh!  I am really glad they have such a wonderful facility now, but it too has limits. For now I will just end this post with a video of a ridiculously adorable kitten.  This one not at the EHS, but they have plenty if you get the urge : )

Random Stuff

• Someones cell phone at work sounds like the ice cream truck.  This is just cruel.
  
• Listening to Shakira at work is not good if people around.  I am having a hard time not wiggling my ass in my chair.  I am sure people think i have to pee!
  
• I am sorry Chad for making you listen to the entire Bat out of Hell song on the radio on the way home from work.  They don't make em like that anymore ; )
  
• Today a street person told me he liked my hair-doo.  That was nice.
  
• Speaking of the streets, I wonder what ever happened to Spandex Man?
  
• The word "done" means different things to different people.  To me it is 100% finished and tested. Developer definition: It is working on my local machine if I use this one use case only and don't try and build it to an actual environment.
  
• I needed a band-aid today so went into our work first aid kit.  Well no band-aid but if i get an 8 inch knife wound it looks like I will be covered.
  
• I work with a grown woman that talks like a baby, is it wrong that I want to smack her?

Tomorrow is Friday!

Cook Yourself Thin

Today Shaun gave a weight loss update and many of the commentators also talked about their attempts at weight loss.  It's interesting that these days many of us have weight to loose.  I suspect that all our modern day conveniences and sedentary lifestyles are big culprits. 

I too have worked on loosing weight.  In the last year and a bit I have managed to loose and mostly keep off 35 pounds.  I follow the weight watchers approach and basically just track what I eat.  I can eat whatever I like but if I make crappy choices, then I can't each much at all.  One secret is really limiting how much you eat out and eat as much home cooked fresh food as you can.  Of course this takes more time and effort, but I think the benefits are worth it.

We all like looking better and fitting into smaller jeans, however for me the big driver is health.  As I get older I want to ensure I keep my blood sugar, cholesterol and other factors under control.  I don't want to take a pill for anything that can be controlled naturally. 

So back to food.  This has been something I have focused on, especially since I love it so : )  For me I love my sweets and won't have any success if I eliminate them completely.  So I have found some good recipes for goodies that reduce the sugars, cut fats and overall calories.   I also try and make sure my fiber is high and the carbs low.  In this endeavor I have found a few good sites with yummy recipes you can try.

Gina's Skinny Recipes has some great recipes and loads of great pictures.  I love to see a picture of something I am going to make.  There is a banana oatmeal cookie on this site that I recommend.  Just a bit of butter and lots of oatmeal.  I like to add sunflower seeds, raisins, dried cranberries, whatever you like to fibre it up.  Here is the cookie recipe. 

She also posts the nutrition information and the WW points (old and new). 



There is also a TV show called Cook Yourself Thin.  I have started trying a few of their recipes.  One that tasted really good is Healthy Potato skins.  They are really yummy and the sweet potatos have half the glycemic index of a white potato, so they break down into sugars much slower which is good.  You also get a healthy dose of spinach in this one so all good.  I have started using Turkey bacon as well as an alternative.  It isn't quite real bacon, but a good alternative.

I also have the Eat, Shrink and be Merry cookbook.  This is also a TV show and has some recipes that are yummy.  These sisters work to take a regular recipe and re-vamp it to cut carbs, fat and salt.  They also try and increase good fats and fibre.  The Starvin Guy Chicken pot pie was a good one.  There is no crust but instead a sweet potato biscuit on top...its pretty yummy.

The other thing I often do is check out nutritional information on food choices if I am going to a restaurant.  They don't all have them but if you are going to BP, Montana's, Earls, etc. they do.  You would be surprised at how evil some seemingly innocent dishes are.  Now I am not saying to never treat yourself, but this is about being good more often than being bad.  Often the better choice is good as well. 

So those are a few sites you can check out for some cooking inspiration, especially if you are looking to dial back the bad a bit : )

Missed Opportunities

I work in downtown Edmonton.  Now this has never been my favorite place as I am more of a burbs or rural girl at heart.  Having said that, I do like some city down towns, just not our own.  There are some nice spots here and there and some pockets of development that have really enhanced downtown. 

Some good restaurants have cropped up and more and more I see people out and about going for walks, jogs or enjoying a fat frank on the street.  My problem is this - there are so many wasted opportunities to improve public spaces.  A couple of examples come to mind.

The downtown library.  Behind the library there used to be some planters, benches and tables where you could go sit, take your lunch and enjoy the sun for a bit.  When you work in a tall building all day, little breaks outside are really energizing and often relaxing.  Last year they started to tear everything out, benches, planters, all gone.  I was excited because I thought they were going to improve the space and make it even nicer.  Once it was done I went back and there it was.  A giant pad of concrete with just a few benches and a whole lot of nothingness : (   wtf?

This is the same with Churchill square.  Now I understand the need to have a nice surface for festivals and events, but what about the times when they are not going on?  You end up with another large mass of nothingness and people hovering around the outskirts where there are a few tables and trees. 

I feel like our city keeps missing the mark on public spaces.  I work on Rice Howard way which is another location with lots of potential.  The street has some good restaurants and a few patios.  The city could easily close down a couple of those streets to traffic and make them more pedestrian friendly.  I could envision restaurants having patios that spread out into the street.  It would be nice to have a few more street vendors and some places to sit and eat that hot dog or whatever!

I think a downtown core has to offer more than buildings and concrete.  I see improvements happening but its very slow.  I think public spaces can really add value to peoples lives and I hope that future planners give this a lot more thought than they have in the past.

Blogapulooza

So let the blog challenge begin.  I don't see this as so much a challenge against others but a challenge for myself to write a bit each day and get some thoughts out on er...well...not paper.

What will I write about?  Well, I guess just miscellaneous stuff.  I really don't have an overly exciting life by some standards.  I haven't climbed mount Kilimanjaro.  I haven't jumped out of an airplane or eaten bugs in Africa. I am really just a simple Alberta girl that likes the little things in life.  So that's what I will write about? I am warning you now, there will be flowers!  I can't write every day for a month especially in the summer and not talk about gardening. There will also be food.  I like to eat food, and have found more and more enjoyment out of cooking and baking new dishes.  This may be a result of my addiction of the food network and internet recipies.

There will also be animals, crafts, movies, music and opinions!  Anyone that really knows me knows I have lots of opinions.  I tend to keep a lot of them to myself rather than write them in a post.  I haven't totally found my inner Cliff as of yet, but some topics get me going for sure.

So let the keyboard games begin ~

Sad

Today we found out that a fellow that we have played World of Warcraft with passed away in a car accident by Morinville on Friday.  We have met him in person, but mainly got to know him via his "Warrior" and his easy going voice on Vent.  He was only 41 and is gone just like that.  It's reminds me how quickly it can be over and that growing "old" is really a privledge.

We will miss you Thery ; (

Gauntlet

Liam is throwing down the gauntlet..

Gauntlet (English pronunciation: /ˈgɔːntlət/) is a name for several different styles of glove, particularly those with an extended cuff covering part of the forearm. Gauntlets exist in many forms, ranging from flexible fabric and leather gloves, to mail and fully articulated plate armour.

I shall take that Gauntlet and put it on and slap this blog silly with it!