excess verbiage

All I keep hearing about is how the snow is coming. "Up to 30 cm! Winds up to 70km/hr! Traffic's going to be a mess!" You know what, I've had enough of the sensationalized fear-mongering that the media is creating. Like, that's it. At first, I was glued to the weather channel and the nightly news and whatever else I could find. Images of people bundled up looking miserable, cars spinning on the road, and on and on and on. The tone in the reporters' voices put the fear in me. It's enough to make a person never want to leave the house!

I'm not saying that it's not a big deal and that you shouldn't be prepared or take caution, but there's no need to sit there anxiously worrying about "the snow! the snow!" Chill the hell out, people. It's snow. Don't get me wrong, I do think it's a bitch to deal with sometimes, but the thing is, it's winter, and this is Canada, so why are we surprised? The rest of the country deals with this every single year. Judging by the global warming madness, I'd say that we're going to have to get used to this type of winter out here on the west coast. It sucks, but what are you going to do, other than move down south?

I've stopped worrying about the havoc that's going to come once the snow has fallen. I still have to go to work Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and I have no plans to not go. If it snows, oh well, I guess I'll take the bus. If it takes a long time to get there, I'm not going to sweat it. I'll do what I can and that's all I can do. If the busses aren't running, then that's probably the only reason I won't be able to go to work. But there's no need to freak out about things you can't control.  Whatevs.

On the flipside, the media rarely talks about how pretty and peaceful and calming the snow can be. Walking on campus last week, it was pretty empty because exams are over and there's hardly any students around so it was really quiet. And it really was kind of a zen sort of feeling. I have my issues with snow, but there really is something about it that puts a person at ease.

So I say, ignore the fear-mongering and never mind the negative aspects of snow and freezing temperatures. Remember the positive things about cold winters: 1) you can wear bulky thick clothing without worrying about looking fat; 2) it's perfect weather for making soups and stews; 3) if you're late for work because of snow, no one cares; 4) once the winter solstice hits, the days will start getting longer again - then it's all uphill from there, baby!

Had my last pre-Christmas dinner party last night at The Cannery, and omg, was it ever good. I mean, it's always phenomenal every time I go, but this was the best. It didn't seem like it would be that way, judging by the fact that half an hour after our reservation time, we still weren't seated. We were getting antsy and hungry, and what's the point of a reservation if you have to wait over half an hour?

But there is a point. It's called getting comped. Sucky restaurants won't or don't do it, but the good ones that actually give a crap about customer service will do it at the drop of a hat. One of my friends went to check on what was happening, and the hostess said she'd talk to the manager. He came over and apologized for the wait, and said that they were waiting for the people at the table to pay up and leave. But in the meantime, he was happy to offer us appetizers and cocktails. Sweet!

However, when the food came, I was shocked to see that it wasn't just nachos or something like that - it was the full-on seafood platter for four people! This was more than enough for the 7 of us and it's something I've had in the past - they did not skimp out on anything. It was a $74 value, plus the drinks, so it was like $100 of free stuff. I have no probem with waiting over half an hour for my table if there's compensation like that! And seriously, that, my friends, is how you do customer service and keep people happy. These other restaurants could learn a thing or two from them!

There's really nothing more satisfying than getting comped, is there? It's a beautiful thing!

Working at a university, one of the perks is having a staff lounge to sit around in on coffee breaks and lunch. Ours is pretty nice. Fancy coffee machine, lots of couches and a tv. There are 3 clusters of couches, and only one of them is by the tv.

Anyway, at lunch, a colleague and I were sitting there trying to watch Martha Stewart. At the bunch of sofas next to us were these two men, I assume profs, who were having a loud conversation about German politics or something like that. I was trying to listen to Martha's interview with the makeup artist Bobbi Brown, but all I could hear was this boring incessant yammering next to me.

It was pretty hilarious when I think about it. They were talking about some intellectual crap, and we were watching people talk about makeup and nail polish. It was gold. I don't actually know what they were talking about because I was trying to tune them out - boring people are LOUD sometimes. But I was thinking to myself, if you're going to talk about boring high-brow intellectual mumbo jumbo, then take that shit out of the lounge! This is supposed to be the place where we can get away from our cubicles and chill out and talk about fun and stupid things. Lighter fare, you might say. hehe.

If you walked in on one of our coffee breaks, you'd most likely catch us discussing riveting topics such as the decline in quality of this season's Heroes, or the different things we like to do with bacon fat. You'd want to join in too, admit it. Bacon fat? or Germany's socioeconomic history? Please. No contest.

I really think they should put up a sign to ban all serious and intellectual conversations from that room. It doesn't belong in there! If there is a tv around and you see some chicks sitting around watching the Food Network or Martha Stewart, then shut the hell up, or else we're just going to turn up the volume! We need to get away from the banal routines of our jobs and talking about silly things or watching dumb shows is just a way to break the monotony of day. So let us have that. In peace.

I can't believe it snowed in Las Vegas! 3 inches too. WTF? My cubicle neighbour was supposed to fly there last night, but I just read that the flights were cancelled, both incoming and outgoing, so I wonder if he managed to get there today at all. That totally sucks. It's supposed to be one of those places you go to when it's cold where you live. There's something really wrong about seeing palm trees and snow in the same place.

When I was in highschool, I was a huge hockey fanatic, like most people who grew up here. I used to follow the standings and cleared my schedule to watch the games with my dad, who was a bigger fan than me. I used to know every single player and all that kind of stuff.

These days, I can honestly say that it's been about 10 years since I've followed hockey or anything about the Canucks. I have no idea who's on the team these days and I don't know whether we're good or not. Just stopped caring. But when I heard that they were retiring Trevor Linden's No. 16 jersey, I got kind of choked up! To me, the Canucks were all about Trevor Linden.

A friend and I would go to autograph signings around town when we were about 15. I used to think he was so hot. I mean, he's still not bad actually. He's aged quite well! But yeah, back then, it was all about Trevor.

Last night, it was all about Trevor once again. His number 16 jersey was retired and it was a nice way to mark the end of an era in Vancouver. I haven't had a chance to watch the full video yet, but I've seen clips and it looks pretty emotional. Gotta love that guy.

I can't remember how the conversation started, but we were talking about Hugh Laurie at work the other day. I've only started watching House this past year, and I really like it and can see why he gets nominated for awards. A friend told me that Hugh Laurie is actually more well known for being a comedic actor in the UK, in shows like Blackadder, which is a Monty Python-esque type of comedy show. He was also in another comedy sketch show for several years as well. She said she can't watch House because she can only see him as the funny British guy, not a cranky American doctor.

I'd never heard of him before House, so to me, finding out that he's famous for being a comedian was kind of surprising. I looked up some clips on youtube, and 1) it's still funny to hear him with his native accent, and 2) he looked so different when he was younger. I think he looks way hotter now, as an older guy. He's not particularly good looking, but he's got some sort of charm about him that's very sexy - especially when he speaks with his accent. Okay, maybe a lot of it is his accent! British accents make every guy that much hotter. lol. But seriously, look at that picture - he's pretty hot!

My brother, his wife, and I have this thing we call the movie downer list. There was a time when we all watched and swapped movies with each other, and for some reason, they were all really serious, intense movies that were kind of depressing and bleak.

We said that if a person really wanted to sulk and be under a dark cloud, then they should watch a double or triple feature of any of these movies. One night, they actually watched Snow Falling on Cedars, Schindler's List, and The Cider House Rules all in a row. I'm amazed they didn't slit their wrists after that.

Seriously, The Cider House Rules depressed me for a week. Michael Caine was so sad with that gas mask over his face. Ugh - I'm depressed right now just thinking about it. The only movie I can think of that's worse is The Hours. That movie alone made me want to drown myself. It was awful.

I think because the weather's so bad right now that I want to watch happy stuff. I'm all about comedies or chick flicks. I've got to make a list of happy movies. I need suggestions for fun stuff right now.

What's on your downer list? Or happy list?

This is the coldest it's been in Vancouver in years. I think it's -10C tonight. How the hell do people in the midwest and back east live like this every year?! As cold as it is here, apparently it's in the -30s in the prairies, with a windchill making it in the -40s! Wtf is that about? Why would you want to live in a place that gets that cold? My poor cat doesn't even want to go outside, and he always wants to go outside. That boy ain't no fool!

This right now is cold enough to make me want to consider packing up and moving to California again! Seriously, when I'm old and retired, the last thing I want to deal with is a bunch of snow and arctic wind. Hell, I don't want to deal with it now. I wonder what the job market is like in Hawaii??

No, I'm not endorsing bulimia or anything like that. What I'm referring to is that feeling when you think you're going to vomit, but nothing actually comes out. So you're stuck in limbo with feeling pukey, yet not able to puke. It's the worst.

Two or three times a year, this happens to me. I've found that the only thing that helps is to get it moving along - by sticking my fingers down my throat to induce vomiting. It's gross, it's unpleasant. But then you puke, everything comes out, and then you feel infinitely better.

I had to do it today, just a little while ago actually. Was on the bus and it's been a long time since I've been on one. I tend to get motion sickness if I'm not the one driving and if I can't see out in front of me through the windows. Plus the chick sitting next to me smelled like a greasy restaurant and she was making me gag. (I can't help it!) I wound up getting off the bus a few stops early because I was THAT close to puking on there. As soon as I stepped off and got some fresh air, it was better.

But when I got home, that feeling came back and wouldn't go away. So I knew what I had to do and did it. First thought was, thank God, that feels better. Second thought was, man, I really need to clean my toilet bowl. Third thought was, damn, what a waste of a $7 lunch! Seriously, that's a waste. It was worth it though. It's not something I do often, but a couple times a year, it does the trick. Sometimes you just need to puke it out of your system.

I took the bus to work today because they kept saying it was going to snow, and as soon as I hear the word snow, I'm like, I am not driving. I actually do know how to drive in the snow because at my last job, transit wasn't an option for me, so I just had to drive no matter what. And a coworker, who grew up in that type of weather, gave me some tips on what gears to use, and how to move back and forth slowly to get out of a patch of ice or avoid spinning wheels. It was useful stuff. Anyway, I think I can handle it, but what freaks me out is seeing other people slip and slide and make dumb mistakes. And I'd rather not deal with them if possible. So I usually bus it if it snows.

So yeah, they kept crying snow today, but it wasn't much at all. Turned back into rain. I had to take the bus home and it was a damn long ride. (one hour on one bus, with many stops. ugh) The morning is never that bad. Not as crowded and stuffy. The afternoon ride though is gross.

However, on the morning ride in to work, this woman sat down next to me who smelled like chow mein - specifically, fried rice noodles, a.k.a. chow fun. I know, it's weird, and quite honestly, not the most pc thing to say, but it's true. I'm guessing she works in a Chinese restaurant or something. She smelled like greasy chow mein and it was making me hungry and sick at the same time. I was glad when she got off.

Then some construction guy came on who smelled like paint fumes. Lovely, huh? It gets better. On the ride home, this chick sat next to me who smelled like a mixture of curry and sweat. I'm not going to lie - that's what pushed me over the edge and caused me to nearly puke on the bus. I gagged a few times, and that's also why I got off a few stops early. The motion sickness was enough to deal with, but I just couldn't deal with the smells.

This is why I hate snow. I don't care if it's pretty, to me, it's just a nuisance. Wreaks havoc on traffic, and forces me to get my motion sickness-sensitive ass on the bus. I admire all of you who do this everyday. I used to do it everyday too, for about 7 or 8 years. Then I snapped, and only go back when absolutely necessary. My hat goes off to you guys. You are far stronger than me.