There Goes the Neighbourhood

Vancouver City council has endorsed a plan to develop North East False Creek (my neighbourhood) into Vancouver's densest neighbourhood of approximately 7200 people.

Vancouver currently ranks as North America's third densest city after New York and San Francisco.

Piano Man

Five weeks ago I decided to start piano lessons.

Sure, it's $25 a week but when I think of some of the things I've spend $25 on in the past, such as my brief online Jeopardy tournament gambling addiction, an investment in piano lessons didn't seem like such a bad idea.

I used to take piano lessons when I was a kid but unfortunately I never got beyond grade 3 of the Royal Conservatory of Music series.

So far I'm enjoying my lessons, although my teacher is a little stingy with the stickers.

My lessons are slotted between two four year old kids: Emily, who is a cute half Japanese girl with coke bottle glasses and Téo, a little French-Canadian boy with curly hair.

I usually get in five minutes before Emily is finished her lesson.

Is it bad that I'm competitive with her?

Is it horrible that I get a bit of satisfaction every time she messes up?

I'm learning currently Mark Mrozinski's Turkish Bazaar although this Nathan Chen kid takes the cake:

This takes the biscuit!

OMG this recipe is so effing simple it'll change your life. Always a crowd-pleaser with about a million variations.

These are so easy your kid brother could make them!

2 cups all purpose flour

1 T. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/4 cup butter or other shortening

3/4 cup water

• Mix dry ingredients and then blend in the butter.
• Mix in the water with a wooden spoon
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface and roll out about 1/2 in thick.
• Cut out biscuits with a cookie cutter or rim of a drinking glass (sometimes I like to use my heart-shaped cutter for that special someone...)

Bake at 450F for 10-15 minutes.

You can also wash the tops with egg beforehand to make them SHINY

Makes about 1.5 dozen.

 

Idle Hands

So I've recently found myself with a lot more time on my hands. Now I mean a LOT and you'd think an extra....oh, say, 40 hours a week would be a fantastic opportunity for some personal development.

This is a partial list what I could be doing during my time off:

• Get a few muscles on my body and lose 5 lbs.
• Draw in my sketchbook
• Get to know some of my friends better
• Read a book
• Call my parents

Instead of doing these things I become a 15 year old, straight boy during summer holidays. My days are typically filled with me in my underwear, video games, Star Trek and complex carbohydrates, all after a 10:30am wake up time.

One video games that I'm spending a lot of time on is Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, probably the corniest video game I've played...and I'm loving it:



Imagine it: Einstein goes back in time to kill Hitler. The outcome? WWII as we know it never happened, Germany's role as a super power is never realized and the USSR rises to power as the Allies' new enemy.

From Wikipedia:
The game is set in a parallel universe in which World War II never happened (in the original Red Alert, Albert Einstein travelled back in time and removed Hitler in the 1920s. After an Allied victory in Red Alert 2, the Soviet leaders travelled back in time and removed Albert Einstein in the 1920s, preventing the Allies from creating atomic weapons while the Soviet Union rose to power, battling the Allies in the 1950s. In this game, the Empire of the Rising Sun rises to power as a threat as well (an unintentional result of the Soviets time travelling). All three factions are playable, with the main gameplay involving constructing a base, gathering resources, and training armies composed of land, sea, and airborne units to defeat other players.


Along with the severely macho gameplay there are also a number of cheesy female commandos who wear anything from a tight tanktini to pleather booty shorts. I'm not sure whether I want to pull their hair or French braid it and talk about boys. And yes, that's Jenny McCarthy in the last photo.

The Sims 3: Make your ears bleed

Electronic Arts' third installment of the insanely popular Sims franchise debued only one week ago. Aside from randomly deleting families, helmet-less cyclists and random babies showing up in my families the biggest problem I have with it is the music. Especially when you compare them to the original Sims1 sound track. Have a listen for yourself.

Sims 1 build mode:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs5QGN-zhwM&feature=related

The Sims 1: Makin' Magic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qsmBxl7pA0&feature=related

The Sims 1: Hot Date
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5GpQooj3iI&feature=related

Sims 3 main theme and build mode:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T070bcfT-Eg

For boys who like boys who like joysticks and girls who like girls who like rumble pads

Don't blame me for the title of the post, it comes directly from the http://www.gaygamer.net/ description.

It's nice to know I'm not alone.

Perhaps my Prince Charming awaits on that website, and perhaps he is also a level 30 drawf mage.

One can only dream.

Go Fish

Thanks for the great sticker book, Rachel.

Clockwise from the treasure chest:

A pair of female guppies

Neon Tetras

Male Guppy

Phantom Tetra

Gourami

The Office Goldilocks

Someone's been eating my porridge...actually it's much worse.

So I walked into the kitchen at work today and not only did I find that somebody had gone into my box of instant oatmeal but somebody had gone into the box, opened a new package and placed the full, opened package back in the box. 

What the eff? Who does that anyway?

Toast of the town

OMFG....check it out. This is nuts!

The following is extracted from http://www.yankodesign.com/2007/09/06/honey-i-left-it-on-the-toast/:

Nothing gets your morning going like a cup of joe and a piece of toast slathered in your favorite spread. Of course, it can also be the time of day when things are hectic to start. Kids running around, people in and out, everyone trying to remind everyone else about the super important soccer meet after school. Next time, put it on toast.

This toaster by Sasha Tseng incorporates a little message board where one can read quick notes. The message also gets “toasted” into the toast itself so it gives new meaning to “read while you eat”.

Lego Maniac

Just thought I would share this GREAT photo.

I didn't make this, but I wish I had.

Andrew Lipson is the self proclaimed "professional nerd" and the man behind the Escher inspired Lego creations. Unfortunately, his website is pretty disappointing considering his vocation.

http://www.andrewlipson.com/

If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?

I have been looking for an appropriate bonsai-esque plant a while now but I haven't had much luck with them. Unfortunately most "bonsai" are marketed simply as "bonsai" and do not refer to the actually plant species. In reality the word bonsai indicates only to the method of tree miniaturization and can apply to a number of different types plants. Bonsais are typically outdoor trees like, juniper or maple, whose growth is stunted due to a combination of pruning and root constraint. These plants usually do very poorly indoors. Because of these factors I never had much luck with keeping indoor bonsais.

Then one day during lunch I notice this little guy at corner store and I thought to myself "What the hell, let's give it another shot." So I bought this tree for the bargain price of $14 and it may have been the best $14 I ever spent.

Okay, that may have been a bit of an overstatement, truth be told, the best $14 I ever spent was for tickets to the opening of the movie, High School Musical 3, but the tree was a good purchase, nonetheless.

Anyway, thought the tree is thriving I don't actually know what kind of tree it is.

I asked the cashier when I bought it and he ran outside and brought back a tag that said "Chrysan." After a week of thinking that "Chrysan" was the name of the tree I clued in that it may actually be a Chrysanthemum plant.

However, upon further research it is clear that my little tree is not a Chrysanthemum and I have yet to come across a similar plant since. I look over sometimes and think to myself "who are you? What's your story?"

I suppose my tree is have to remain shrouded in mystery.
Maybe I should try smoking it?

Oh, and for the record I was kidding about High School Musical 3 tickets being the best $14 I ever spent (kinda.)

From Russian with love

The Russian Blue, the sexiest cat on earth and naturally hypo-allergenic (well, practically)

I've contacted a breeder about the Russian Blue, unfortunately it's a little out of my price range, about $600 out of my price range. However, if I was Madonna I would buy 20 of these proud, majestic animals.

Here is what the all-knowing Wikipedia has to say about this beautiful breed:

The Russian Blue is a naturally occurring breed that originated in the port of Arkhangelsk, Russia. It is believed that the first Russian Blues from Russia to England and Northern Europe in the 1860s by Russian sailors.

The Russian Blue is known for being a very intelligent and active animal. They have been known to open doors/windows, play fetch, and are sensitive to basic human emotions. The Russian Blue is also known for getting along very well with other pets and children in a household. They are known also for being quiet and clean animals that are normally reserved around strangers, unless they are brought up in a very active household.

The Russian Blue produces less glycoprotein Fel d 1 and is much less of an allergen source than other breeds of cat. This would suggest that the Russian Blue breed may be hypoallergenic, yet others point out that no cat is completely free of allergens.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Blue

The Dollhouse: Not just another pretty face

Tahmoh Penikett plays the ridiculously handsome FBI agent Paul Ballard in Fox's new series Dollhouse. He's also the son of former Yukon Primier Tony Penikett, could it get any better?

After a rocky start, I am pleased to say that Joss Whedon's new series Dollhouse has finally found its footing.

For those who don't know, Dollhouse is the creation of writer/director Joss Whedon, the brain behind such other shows as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly and Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-Long Blog. Dollhouse is about an underground organization who imprints young men and women with a variety of skills and memories. The organization then "rents" out these people for different assignments. These assignments can be anything from high end prostitution to assassinations. Once the assignment is finished, those who were imprinted (Dolls), have their memories wiped and default into an automaton-like state. It has not yet been revealed how the "Dolls" came to work for the dollhouse.

Originally 60% of why I toughed out the first four episodes was because of the inclusion of dreamboats Tahmoh Penikett and Enver Gjokaj in the regular cast. However, I now find Dollhouse moves forward each week with charisma and wit that I expect from Whedon. The plot also becomes increasingly compelling as certain "Dolls" begin to remember and hint towards their lives before the Dollhouse.

It's worth checking out, even if it's just because Penikett and Gjokaj are smokin' hot.

http://www.fox.com/dollhouse/

Shake n' Bake the world

Lately I have not been able to stop singing the praises of a long lost food of my youth. That foodstuff is none other than, Shake n' Bake.

Say what you will about the 33% daily recommended sodium in each serving, nothing can you say can come in between me and my new BFF. Not only is it delicious, it is also versatile. Trust me, it's not just for chicken anymore.

Try it and you'll never look back.

This that I have Shake n' Baked:
Salmon
Tuna steaks
Eggplants

These are things that I want to try Shake n' Baking:
Shrimp
Extra firm tofu
Mashed potato balls
Zucchini

Any other suggestions are more than welcome.