Kev

A friend of mine told me the other day that a mere 2″ of shaft can make all the difference in the world, so I took her advice after buying a new stick to replace the one I broke last Thursday. I’m used to playing hockey with a short stick, as it gives much better control at the expense of a little power and reach. That was fine when I was playing forward, but I play D now and reach is really what it’s all about.

I was having problems poke-checking, passing, and making life difficult for the opposition, so decided to try a longer stick. Instead of cutting it down a couple inches below the chin (while on skates), I left an extra 2 inches or so on the length of the shaft this time. What a huge difference it made this eve. I was pissing everyone off by stopping them at the blue line, my passes were on the tape the majority of the time, and the extra reach let me deflect shots and grab pucks that normally would have sailed on by.

Tonight was the first game this season where I felt good about my play. I had a goal and three helpers, and the goal was a no-look give and go which we pulled off perfectly. I’ve got my wind back, and I’ve figured out how to tie my skates without crushing my feet. All-in-all, a very good way to end the day. Of course, now I’m totally wired and won’t sleep until 1 or so.

I stopped off at Patty’s for a pint and some soup, and talked to Hope (our friendly neighbourhood bartender) and her boyfriend Jim. Jim and I talked about self-employment, and he made a very strong case for it. It’s a lot of work, but it’s something I could probably sink my teeth into. His biggest recommendation was to work nights to begin with while you’re working full time, and understand the first 6 months would be lean. I knew this in theory, but it was nice to hear someone who has done very well tell me my assumptions were pretty much spot-on. Thanks, Jim, I owe you a beer.

I also managed to get onto the “I’ll get you list” of two of the servers. While talking to Jim, Mel decided to water my hat with a water pistol from 15 feet away or so. Hope lent me her water weapon, and mentioned that Mel wasn’t paying attention and now would be a good time for some payback. Instead of firing from my seat, I walked over to Mel on the premise of asking a question, and let her have it.

She got more than a little soaked. Cindy was laughing at Mel’s predicament, so I let her have it, too. Then the ice cubes and ketchup came out (but only the ice cubes were used, there was no way in hell I was going anywhere near someone with a ketchup bottle). Mel’s closing comments were “watch your back”. Did I mention she teaches Thai boxing?

A good end to a fairly crappy day. Oh yeah – it was my two year anniversary at my place of employment today. Whee.

Today was one of the most depressing days I’ve experienced since 9/11. I had written a long, rambling post describing it, but figured I play with fire enough elsewhere, and there’s no point getting dooced right before Christmas. I realize it’s the moment heavily influencing my thoughts, but I was questioning – and not for the first time – my decision to leave Minne-fucking-apolis.

Days like today are doubly-depressing, because at the end of them I have a tendancy to look back and try to figure out what I’ve accomplished in life. Invariably I come back with “not a lot”. I have great friends and family, who (to me) have made something out of their lives. I can’t seem to stick to any one thing and make it work. I haven’t graduated (although I’m still working on that), I’ve taken a giant step backward career-wise (and part of today was being told it’s probably where I’ll stay at my present employer), I really don’t have any assets that are worth anything besides a couple of pinball machines, and have been a complete washout on the relationship side of anything (not talking about my friends, they’re awesome).

My siblings have families, they have good jobs, they work hard, and for the most part they enjoy what they do. They have houses, they have kids, they have dogs, and I’m really happy for them. My friends, from my perspective, are in the same boat. At one point or another everyone I know has set out to do something and accomplished it. Sometimes I wonder if I have – I don’t think so, but it could be the hemlock talking.

Ah, looking at the bright side.

I wish I knew what to do, but I can honestly say I’m at a complete loss. I started questioning my self-worth when I came back home from the US, and today it was shaken down even more. *sigh* The worst part is I knew the answers to questions I asked before I asked them, it just stings a little (ok, it’s like a kick in the balls) when you actually hear them voiced by someone other than you. I know what I’m capable of, but I don’t seem to be able to strike the match that lights my capabilities off.

I went running with a couple friends and felt better, but still, this day ranks pretty highly up there in the “suck” category. I’ll try to get over myself in the next few days and figure out what to do.

Today has been one of those good weekend days.

It started off with a trip to the gym for my first real workout in almost two months, and nothing snapped, strained, broke, or flopped. I’ve lost a significant amount of strength in the last couple of months, but am counting on muscle memory to bring it back in fairly short order. In any event, an hour-long workout to start the day is a great way to get going. I know, I know, I’m out of my mind. So be it.

The workout was followed up by a carb-bomb brunch at the Lieutenant’s Pump with James, Mark, and Coop with our special guest-star Kris. Poached eggs on potato pancakes with tomato slices and hollandaise – yum! Kris got the short end of the stick, with the advertised waffles she ordered unavailable; apparently they’re difficult to make without a waffle maker. The substitute chocolate chip pancakes with Grand Marnier sauce and whipped cream were huge, which resulted in a fairly thick skin that neither Kris nor Coop could eat too much of. Sorry, Kris. If it makes you feel any better, mine was very tasty.

Following brunch Kris went shopping, and the rest of us went disc-golfing at the Jacques Cartier course. I was a little worried that I’d suck royally, but it wasn’t too bad. It wasn’t my best, but it was nowhere near my worst, and Coop beat me by a stroke on the last hole. I finished with an -8 8 (update: whoops, thx coop, too much work math), which I’m certainly not going to complain about given the cool air and lack of playing time in the last couple months.

I headed over to Kev and Sylvie’s new pad to talk to Syl about some technology-related things, and we ended up shooting the breeze more than anything else. Their house is all painted, is gorgeous, and is starting to shape up. They need some stuff on the wall, though 🙂

The late afternoon and part of the evening was all about Halo 2, and I discovered the first story twist which was a pleasant and cool surprise. I won’t get into it here, there are plenty of spoiler sites elsewhere. The game is gorgeous, it’s not nearly as repetitive as the first one, there’s a great storyline, and it’s a lot of fun to play. I’m looking forward to playing some multiplayer and gibbing Walt and anyone else we can find.

All-in-all, a day well seized. It’s nice to not have anything to bitch about for a change.

I just don’t understand this type of behaviour. When I was living in Minneapolis, the first Krispy Kreme opened off the 494. Traffic was backed up for 2 miles from people waiting to use the off-ramp to get a fucking donut. That said, the people who designed the 394 and 494 combo on/off ramps make the folks who designed Ontario’s highway 407 look like safety geniuses.

Wow, from nuts lining up at Ikea in Arizona to nuts driving up for donuts in Minneapolis to poor highway design, all in three sentences. I can stay focused… really.

Hey kids, the Canadian government is looking to immediately ratify the WIPO treaties which have allowed the government down South impose wonderful legislation like the Digital Millenium Copyright Act. This is bad for a number of reasons. The treaties would facilitate corporations, organizations, entities, and individuals to request content takedowns from ISPs/hosting companies on only the belief that said content infringes on someone’s copyright.

Don’t like what someone said? Claim infringement, order a takedown. It’s that easy. Don’t believe me? Spend some time on ChillingEffects, a site devoted to what kind of nonsense legislation like this can lead to.

Should Canada ratify these treatys, takedowns will not require due process (if the way it’s gone due South is any guideline, and you can bet your booty it will be) and puts the burden of determining whether the content in question infringes on the hosting provider. Most hosting companies and ISPs operate on thin margins, so the easy response will be to pull the $50/month site. There’s a whole lot of other bad, and when groups like CRIA are strongly behind the push for the government to ratify the treaties, you know it’s in their best interest, and not the public’s.

Please take the time (if you’re a Canadian citizen) to write your local MP and let them know that you’re not so keen on giving corporations and others another tool to control information flow. If someone is doing something illegal, it’s for our legal system, not our market system, to decide. Have a peek at www.digital-copyright.ca, and send a copy of the petition to the official collectors and your MP.

The cost of a stamp (mail to an MP is still free), two sheets of paper, and two envelopes will cost you less than a buck. Be sure to tell your MP in no uncertain terms that the law is not to be used to protect an antiquated business model, remind them who it’s supposed to protect, and let them know why you’re sending them a copy (hint: elected representation). It’ll be a buck well spent.

Cool, but I don’t want to know how much time he spends on it.

Reading stuff like this makes me think a little. I’m five years older than Zholtok was, and have the odd bout of arrhythmia from time to time, usually when overtired. That said, I feel like complete crap when it hits, so can’t imagine ever wanting to play while feeling sickly.

I wonder if he really understood the risk he was taking. Actually, that’s pretty silly, he obviously didn’t.

We completed our fall season today with a win, and a second-half record of 5-2. It was beautiful temperature-wise (12 degrees in November!), but crazy windy. We were a little short on people, but had enough to show the colours and make a game of it. The first half was very even, with us taking it 8-7, but we pulled away in the second half to win 15-9.

I’m of two minds on the whole season. There was a lot of good, and more than a little bad, but overall it was a pretty positive experience. I was pretty frustrated about halfway through because of injuries (back, calf, and ankle [which is still sore]) and I really wasn’t enjoying the game. Playing Julie the Cruise Director/Cat Herder gave me an appreciation for how difficult it can be to field a team, but it got a lot easier as the Fall progressed. All in all it was good, but there were a few days where I wondered what the point was.

We managed to find and maintain a core group of players after the third week, which allowed us all to get used to how we all played. I only played in 2/3 of the games because of inuries, but was at all of them. It was really nice to see how far everyone has come (especially Kev C. and Dominique), and how the newer players (myself included) started to get a better appreciation for the game by watching the veterans play. Now, if we could only remember to catch the damn disc before looking downfield, we’ll be rocking.

I learned a bunch, including that I’m much better on D than O. I need to learn o cut more effectively, and this winter I’ll be training to improve lateral movement and exploding off cuts. Thanks to all my teammates for playing, and a big thank you to Ann and Coop for keeping it fun by giving words of encouragement when they were needed most, and mocking me when I was taking myself too seriously.

I think the only real negative I can take away was that my two game discs got taco’d in the final two games of the season. What the hell is up with that? Oh well, it’ll be a good excuse to go buy some new toys in the spring.

Great season, and here’s hoping I can play next summer.

Hardly anyone cares.

Think about that.