Halifax by Bike

Another Trip to TO

2011-10-03T00:52:00.004-03:00

So I went back to Toronto for another visit to my friends Jabes and Thomas. Pretty great time overall! Got to see Thomas's new kiddy and catch up with him and whatnot. Went out for a good ol' fashion guys night on the town --drinks, music, shisha (non-tobacco version), etc. Was good seeing Jabes and her roomie again. I'm just going to throw up some pics below of the wonderful time.

Of course returned to Allan Gardens in the Downtown Core to see what summer foliage they had. These two plants were REALLY psychedelic! I think I may make the above one my iPhone picture. Trippy, no?
What a lovely shade of blue!

A night out at a bar called "the Local". Probably my favourite bar in TO. Good food, cute layout, fun music. Also, the proximity to Jabes' place factors in bigtime. I think we would have gone crazy here if it weren't for a bully of a head-cold that hit me halfway through the bloody trip! Goddammit!

My first full tour of Casa Loma! Some people may remember this place from my fave movie of all time: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Really great audio tour, and a crazy-whicked castle near the heart of TO.

Of course I had to take a picture of Jack's former HQ. What a great guy. Gonna miss him. He did a great deal for TO and Canada! Missing a big hole in Parliament with him gone.

I've been noticing that I'm spontaneously picking up a Newfoundland accent. I would have to assume it's somewhat due to all the Newfish people I work with on a weekly basis. It could have to do also with this new video I found of a lady named Stacey Tuttle. I don't know why I find it so funny. Maybe because I identify instantly with her Kit Kat troubles (I also likes the waffer and the crunch!) But after I asked around about her, I've found that Stacey is literally an official sight of St John's Newfoundland! (Like Mastodon Ridge is to NS). When I further nail the info down on this lady-type, I will re-post.

Take 'er easy, folks!

2011-08-27T12:38:00.002-03:00

Hello everyone! It's been a really long time... since January even! Sorry not to have been posting. Have been going through a pretty crappy time. It's crazy how some people want to really bring you down as low as you can go.

Enough about that.

What has been going on over the past several months? Well Bike Week has come and gone. I helped to plan a couple events. Doing that can be stressful, but at the same time, very rewarding! Here is a picture of a couple of our volunteers at the Bike Week Open Street Party. It was a hell of a time!

I took the next weekend to go on a long hike around Long Lake. It was tough. The path kind of stops after a while and you have to bushwhack it. But still a lot of things to see. Lots of green. But most of all, lots of walking!

ANNNNNNND finally, about a month ago, I found Halifax's one and only Hookah Bar along the Bedford Highway. I went in with a friend to try it out and I LOOOOVED it! I went out and got my own a little while ago and have been enjoying it ever since! It's essentially a VERY flavourful tobacco mixed with molasses and various fruit concentrates. There are a lot of flavours you can get including double apple, mango, grape, watermelon and many more. You can also get tobacco-free stuff, but that usually burns a little hotter than the regular stuff.

Anyways... other than that, I've been working a lot and still trying to pay off the ol' student loans. My unit is closing soon too, so there will be a little bit of change coming soon, but something that I'm looking forward to.

'Till next time, folks!

Skate Night!

2011-02-08T18:44:00.003-04:00

Just posting some pictures of my skate night at the Halifax Oval on the North Commons. If you haven't been there yet, I totally encourage you to check it out! It's definitely the best thing that has happened to Halifax during my time here (which has been about six years now).

I've been there twice already, using the free loaner skates available on-site. When you get a good pair, it's just a total treat to be there with so many people having fun! Also, I am by no means a great skater. Even so, this thing is a blast!

The Canada Winter Games are taking over the ice however, and public skating is on pause for the next two weeks or so. I can't wait for things to open up again!

Otherwise, nothing much going on these days. My bike group and I are working on some "end of year" events that we could throw around town. Just to clarify, our year-end is in June as this represents a full year for our Board of Directors. I've also been looking into entering another couple races this summer. I am not in as good shape as I was last time I made the effort to get into racing... but we'll see how I'll do, here.

Adios, all!

Trip to TO

2011-02-06T13:10:00.011-04:00

After looking down the barrel of a two week vacation, I asked myself, "How can I make the most of my time? You know, do something new." The answer invariably came to me in a dream in which everything in the world was being sucked into a black hole in the centre of the universe. When I woke up, for some reason, Toronto seemed the most logical choice as a place to visit. I would later make sense of this dream. While I was in Toronto, I learned that many Ontarians consider Toronto the centre of the universe.

After taking a Porter flight to Toronto City Centre Airport (quick note: if you are flying to City Centre, expect a choppy landing!), and making my way to Jabes' place in the west end (yes, my friend Jabes now lives in TO while completing a Forrestry degree), my week started off with sushi, cheesecakes, Chinese baked goods (sweet and meaty), casseroles... pretty much a weeklong food extravaganza. In fact I wound up gaining about two pounds per day while there. But I was also able to visit the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Royal Ontario Museum, various bars and pubs, and (possibly my favourite attraction) the Allen Gardens Conservatory.

I was also stunned to see that traffic in urban Toronto, ever during peak hours, is incredibly tame compared to Halifax. After taking a couple days brainstorming how a city with about 10 times the population of Halifax could have about 10 times less traffic, I've come to the conclusion that --even though subways are helpful in reducing use of the single occupant vehicle use-- Toronto streetcars are the answer. They penetrate the entire urban core (and the 'burbs to a lesser extent) so much and run so often that if you live in the catchment area of a streetcar, it would make ZERO sense to use your car for the majority of trips you'd ever have to make in your weekly schedule. As a result, you get an urban core that has a markedly reduced incidence of using their cars and clogging up the streets during peak hours when suburbanites are making their ways to work. HOWEVER, because public transit poorly penetrates the suburbs, traffic usually builds up in these areas more readily during peak hours. I really think that adding light rail transit to help people get to the more transportation-diverse urban core is a great idea. Unfortunately, it looks like the newly elected Mayor Ford is putting the kibosh on this idea. Kind of a shame, but I can't say I'm surprised.

Similarly, Halifax has a network of streetcars buried under a lot of our streets. Up until car culture invaded Canada, you could grab a streetcar from downtown Halifax and ride it all the way to the Halifax Shopping Centre. I wonder if we will ever see a mayor, or council interested in digging these things up and actually putting them to good use again. Hmmm.......

All in all, Toronto was fun and I'd like to go back in the summer sometime. Maybe grab a bike and go on a tour of Toronto (ToT?) and visit Jabes again.

Enjoy the photos!

New Years 2011

2011-01-01T22:01:00.004-04:00

So like many other Haligonians, I celebrated New Years last night by getting a little bit slizzard. And by a little bit, I mean only about 10%. Work in the morning and all... gotta bring home the bacon. Instead of heading down to Grand Parade Square as I usually do, this year I drummed up enough energy to meet a special lil' lady down at the Lower Deck.

Of course I took advantage of the free bus service all night to get downtown, because mainly I find walking to be one of the most boring modes of transportation that currently exists. Anyways, as you can see by the pictures, free bus days are not surprisingly the busiest day for Metro Transit busses. These mothers were packed!

Major disclaimer: You still have to show up 15 minutes before your bus is scheduled to arrive to make sure you actually catch the busses that can sometimes arrive either 10 minutes before or 20 minutes after said departure times.

I really thought it was going to be a typical celebration style Friday night, full of drunkards and yelling and the odd tussle, but Lower Deck was actually pretty good. For $45, we got some free finger food and good music, although the booze prices were still pretty average, considering the above average door charge.

So with 2011 upon us, I'm searching for a goal to work towards for the year. In fact while doing so, I'm realizing that I already have a fair deal of projects on the go. The Crosstown Connector, SPOKE (cycling newsletter), and Bike Week plans for this year. Perhaps one of my goals should be to have less goals... although how do I track the success of that?

Happy New Year everyone!

PS - the SPACE channel is running a Star Trek marathon all day (TNG versions)!

Long time, no write

2010-12-16T00:21:00.004-04:00

So I must admit, while breaking my back at work and with my bike group, I've definietly forgotten about this whole blogging thing. Instead of tossing in the towel, I will try to bust out a couple of these posts a month to keep things manageable.

UNFORTUNATELY, since my last update back in September, very little has been going on. Working full time as a nurse has a way of devouring your free time as a human. It's hard to even carve jogging/biking time out!
Went to my work's Christmas Party (x2) last week. Loads of fun were had by all! I was really happy that I didn't get sloppy/inappropriate drunk for the whole night. Instead I was a cool, calm and collected "business drunk" for about 4-5 hours overnight. At the end of the festivities, hopped a ride back home with Jenna. Which reminds me... I have to pay her like $15 for that cab... BLIMEY!

The Chronical Herald managed to squeeze out yet another superficial cycling story this week. This time, they centred it on probably one of the poorest examples of a behaved bike rider Halifax has to offer: The Bicycle Messenger! Cue the angry, sometimes life-threatening comments by online idiots. Don't get me wrong, I know a little bit about these guys in Halifax. Some of them have families, or are trying to support themselves, and I understand that they have to do what they have to do to take care of business. I'm just unsure why Chronicle Herald has to use these guys as the "prototypical Halifax biker" when around 90% of cyclists actually follow the rules while they are out there!

Lastly, I got some Monkeylectric wheel lights from my Girlfriend this year for the holidays. I think it's turning some heads! I wish I could see what the patterns look like.

Adios for now!

Eco-Expo and useless car things

2010-09-19T12:22:00.003-03:00

So car makers have again stunned me by this move here. My friends rented a car for the weekend and there was a button on the console that lets you change the colour of the lighting around the car. I have no idea what practical purpose this option gives drivers. It seriously seems as though the car makers have designers in their teens thinking up useless crap to load into cars. I just uploaded two colours here, but there were like seven or eight options to choose from.

Other than that, my bike group hosted a booth at the Eco-Expo. What a fun time! There were a surprisingly diverse group there. Bike stuff, NSP, the EAC, but also kid/nick-nack stores like Plovers and Carbonstock. Cool exhibits too like the sea-creatures one that I took photos of below. You can actually walk into and through the whale!

All in all a pretty cool event, and we picked up a batch of new members who aren't really part of the crowd we would typically reach at other events.

That, and we have a new sexy banner. It was a pretty good day!

Work Schedule Waylay, Jersey Shore, Miscellaneous Photos

2010-08-18T14:45:00.003-03:00

So my work has really cranked up my schedule over the next couple weeks. I'm essentially working 2.5 days on and 1 day off. I know that doesn't really add up, but they are all night shifts, which really blots out a great portion of your waking life. Oh well. Money in the bank, I suppose. On the bright side, I think I have the best commute to work ever! I go past the Commons, the Public Gardens, and just a whole bunch of great neighbourhood and greenspace!

Envy me!

Something in my life that is giving me a bit of a scare is I'm starting to watch little snippets of Jersey Shore on YouTube. I'm not exactly privy to why I'm doing this. One hypothesis is that the radiation emanating from the tans on these folks is somehow permeating through the TV and hypnotizing my brain. Also, I find the monicker Mike "the Situation" hilarious!

Went to the new market on Saturday. Although the space was being lauded as having a shit-load more room for vendors and patrons, this place was just as packed as the old market site. Just goes to show that if you build anything for the hipsters, they will bend-over backwards to fill it up with as many pasty-white, sweaty looking, Salvation Army thrift wearing bodies as humanly possible.

Holla at ya dawgs, everyone... holla at ya dawgs.

New Place, New Job

2010-08-08T23:09:00.002-03:00

There's been a lot going on with my life recently.

First of all, I was able to get a job exactly where I wanted. Pretty stoked about that. It's a GI floor, so I get to see a lot stomach and intestinal problems. Some are quick fixes. Others... not so much. I've just completed my final day in training and will be flying solo from here on out. I'm very excited and ready for the challenge. Also, I get paid soon! I think it'll be the largest pay-check I will have ever made in my life!

I just found an apartment too. Moved in earlier this week. The place seems like a hole, but I've been working on it for the past couple weeks now and it's starting to really shape up! I can't wait to get it all painted (see below).

Also, the major working months for my bike group are around the corner. Very stoked to dig my heels into this season of cycling again! I feel a little like a lame duck being away from planning things and having those sorts of deadlines around the corner all the time. It's gonna feel good to be back in the saddle!

Holla!

Valley Loop, Recharging, Jobs

2010-07-14T00:05:00.006-03:00

Ever feel like you're being watched?

These gals were pretty interested when I went by the other day just outside of Port Williams. They started walking in my direction when I went by, so I went back and took some pics. Mainly becaue I grew up in Sussex, and find cows to be pretty neat.

Natures Rorschach cards.

My route was nearly 40km. I'd love to be able to know exactly how long I went and how fast and how long it took me, but some asshole ripped my bike-computer off my ride while I had it parked just outside of Bike Again a few weeks ago. But the route is below.

So I've been at the valley for the past two weeks now. Its nice to recharge the batteries for a while. Getting a lot of jogging and cycling done actually. Right now however, I am chomping at the bit to get back to the city and dig my heels into cycling issues again!

I've been to a couple interviews in the past week as well. I have a job --albeit tentatively-- at Shannex here in the Valley (nursing home). I also went for an interview at the Victoria General site in the city on a unit I would like to work at. I'm really hoping I can land the latter and move back to Halifax ASAP! Fingers crossed, but not very hopeful.

But I will keep this one short. Keep both wheels on the ground, folks!

Tee-Pees, Chickens, Car Shows and Herring Cove Road

2010-07-07T08:22:00.003-03:00

Starting things off here. I've been away from Halifax for a while --spending some time in the Valley with the family. Before I left though, this Native Canadian meeting came to the Halifax Commons for the weekend. It was marked by these huge tee-pees which looked pretty cool! It made me wonder if tee-pees were really that big back in the day. At night, they lit them up with all sorts of different colours. It was really a magnificent sight!

For more info (and more cool pics) of this big meeting --dubbed Membertou 400-- click here or here!

It's been kind of weird to be back in the Valley so far this week. Right off the bat, I helped set up a chicken coup for my aunts father, and checked out a car show in downtown Kentville (see pics below). Aside from that, I've put about 70km into cycling this week. It's a lot easier to bike out here with less traffic lights and stop signs to hinder your ride.

Finally, last night a vote went to council to install bike lanes and reduce travel lanes on Herring Cove Road. I went in to check out the vote and see where the chips fell when it came to council support for cycling. Not only was the areas district councillor --Steve Adams-- against the idea, it became apparent that the business commission had been lobbying certain councillors for quite a while. Furthermore, Steve Adams seemed to have no problem flat-out lying to council and ignoring evidence indicating that lane reductions in Herring Cove Road would actually turn out being a good thing for local business. It's frustrating that benefit packed cycling still takes a backseat to the petty and baseless tactics of ignorant businesses. I hope this changes within the next couple years and we see real traction in active transportation in Halifax. If I had to based my hopes on the past performance of Halifax on this issue though... well let's just say I'm not going to hold my breath.

Big Question...

2010-06-21T10:26:00.003-03:00

Hey all...

One burning question I have is in relation to the following photo. Can YouTube tech-heads really do anything with the message I received after the page failed to load?

That's just a little ridiculous.

If you can't open this screenshot, it says that a skilled team of monkeys is working on the problem, but you should probably give them the following text to help them out. The text that accompanies the message is just a quagmire of letters and symbols. Brutal stuff.

Does anyone really send that stuff in?

Sportsplex Bike Racks, Barrington st bike parking, HCC Ads

2010-06-15T21:02:00.002-03:00

This guy really restored my faith in family and old people. This guy was at Sportsplex picking up his grand-daughter from gymnastics and his wife... by bike! He had a child seat on his bike and his wife had her own, very cute little bike for herself. He was SOOOOOO happy and excited to go biking with them! It really brightened my weekend!

Onwards. I took these photos last week of bike parking along Barrington Street. In all I counted 23 bicycles parked on Barrington. To date, there are zero bike racks of any type along Barrington street between Spring Garden Road and Duke Street. This is very unfortunate for the businesses in the area as cyclists (and pedestrians) are noted as being more frequent patrons and better spenders than motorists. Better consumers are something that Barrington Street really needs, as big box industrial parks like Bayers Lake and Dartmouth Crossing have been sucking business out of the Downtown core.

Why do they call it a business park anyways? It's not someplace I'd want to take my kids to or hangout at...

I finally got a chance to see my handiwork on the side of a bus! Keep your eyes open, folks! You're bound to see more of these babies around before the month is over!

Open Street Party, Graduation, CRNE

2010-06-04T11:28:00.004-03:00

So the Second Annual Open Street Party was thrown last Sunday! It was a great day of biking, roller bladding, skateboarding, jogging, face painting, food, races, capoeira, and just general fun! I wasn't able to make it to the OSP last year as I was in a duathlon, but this one was a blast to be a part of!

At the start of the OSP, there were a couple kids races. This was probably the coolest shot of the first race. Taken by yours truly! I was pretty stoked to see so many kids biking that I might have cried a little.

Graduation came the next day. Convocation didn't take long and in the end, I got a good $40,000 snippet of wallpaper. I'm really glad to be out of that school. The past 2 years there destroyed my confidence, and I've never been treated as poorly as I had by that group of people who call themselves "educators" in my life. Mind you, there are a batch of really great teachers there, but they are essentially eclipsed by the inbred idiots who have a surprising degree of power in that school.

Cool down big guy... it's over.

Wrote my National RN Exam the other day. Not feeling super confident... but I think there is a good chance I will pass. Will give a shout in three to four weeks to tell you how things went.

Nursing Reception, Critical Mass May

2010-05-30T10:20:00.003-03:00

It's been a pretty busy couple days on this end. I'll start most recently and go backwards.

Had yet another nursing event last night. It was pretty good, but was lacking the "je ne sais-quoi" of the nursing ball I had about 2 or so months ago. The music was also sub par for the evening, with a few exceptions. Nevertheless, it was fun to get to hangout with everyone again for another night before we all splinter off.

Just to follow up, I think I am getting hired by a placement company that will send me all around HRM. Although it's sort of nice to have a job, I was hoping for something a little more permanent with a more predictable patient population.

It was also a stellar day yesterday, and despite my wine-induced hangover, I was able to take a walk with my ex-roommate and her boyfriend around downtown Halifax. Although I absolutely abhor walking, our little trip through the parks and around the hospitals were nice.

Finally on Friday night, we had our May Critical Mass bike ride. What made this one super special was some HRM folks, along with myself, mediated access to the MacDonald Bridge road/deck for cyclists to take to get to Alderny Landing. It was an amazing experience. What really left me feeling pretty low was the behaviour and general attitude of some of the bikers that took part in the ride this month. After having gone on this ride, more than any, I understand why a lot of cyclists don't agree with or participate in Critical Mass, and I have to say that I think I'm going to join the growing trend of staying away from the rides.

Regardless, it was still enjoyable, and riding across the bridge, epic! The hipsters once again strapped a speaker to a trailer and has music the whole way. This lead to an impromptu dance party on the pier when we got to Alderny.

Graduation is next on Monday. Jesus... I'm becoming an adult I guess.

Bike Commercials

2010-05-26T10:39:00.005-03:00

Just in case I haven't mentioned it, the little bike group I've been with for the past two years has produced a series of biking advertisements for Halifax! This has been a project two years in the making, and I'm hoping it will encourage people to get off their behinds and start living more actively. Because hey... when I'm 40 years old and nursing, I really don't want to see a bunch of overweight/obese folks with like 20 comorbidities. It's not something that our healthcare system can afford right now.

I just thought I'd throw a couple photos of our shoot days. The videos themselves should be embedded further down in the post.

{{Just to let you guys know: The videos on this page are cut off on the right, so you're not getting the whole impact factor of each one. Please visit www.cyclehalifax.ca to link to the actual vids!}}

Other than that, nothing new to report. I've been slowly studying for my Canadian RN Exams, but my motivation is not as high as it should be for this. Nice to know that I will have something of a job when I get out though.

Also, next week is Bike Week! This usually goes down at the same place all over the world... so if you live in the UK, look into it! (hint) HRM Bike Week should be pretty phenomenal this year! I can't wait to actually be able to enjoy this years events!

Bike Summit 2010, Bike Commercials and a Rogues Roost Trivia Win!

2010-05-17T11:28:00.005-03:00

So I've had a busy couple of weeks there. First off, I have to apologize for not posting in so long. Especially to my one and only official subscriber.

Sorry folks, sorry!

Went to the Nova Scotia Bike Summit a couple weeks ago. This gave a bunch of groups and municipalities all over the province the opportunity to come together and share what they've been doing, what has been working and what hasn't been working to get more people on bikes, or to maintain and expand the little infrastructure we do have.

In all there was about 60 people there from all over the province! It was great to put names to faces and great to see what major projects have been in the works for everyone over the past couple years. I had to present about a couple things we have been working on. FUN!

After the summit, everyone got together to do a smooth 25k ride out to the Habitation, which is a historic site not far from our meeting place at Annapolis Royal. The ride itself was nice, but I was the only person on a mountain-bike, which made it pretty tough to keep up with everyone.

Apparently, when I was passing people, the knobby tires I had on made me sound like a truck.

Right after the summit, I had to switch gears and work on a project that I've been developing over the past two years. I'm essentially making biking commercials that I hope will encourage more people to start cycling as a mode of transportation. The shot below is from Idealbikes (one of Halifax's best bike shops) while we were in there shooting some footage at their shop. I actually just saw the post-edited versions of these commercials and they look pretty incredible!

Finally, I finally won a round of trivia at the Rogues Roost! I've been going on and off for about 3 years and have never won. However, me and my friend Sarah (and two of her co-workers) went the other night, we tied another team, and I had to win a game of rock-paper-scissors in order to get our trophy (gift certificates). So essentially a double-win for me that night!

Biking is going to be really cool this summer! Get your helmet on and that 10-Speed dusted off tout-suite! Bike Week 2010 starts with a Critical Mass ride on the 28th, with a route that I don't think anyone will see coming! HOLLA!!!!

Operations, a little bit of work and Contra Dancing

2010-04-11T23:45:00.003-03:00

So I was able to drop in to the OR this past week to see a few surgeries. The very first one I saw was a Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG --yes, pronounced cabbage). This surgery is required when the coronary arteries (the blood vessels that provide blood to your heart) build up so much plaque from poor diet and/or low activity levels, that they are simply rendered useless. When this happens, a vein from your leg and an artery from your chest are transposed to bypass the clogged areas of your coronary circulation so that your blood can still make it to the important spots of your heart. It was pretty wild! Open-heart surgery! Blood spurting! Heart stopping! Literally!

I'm not particularly squeamish, so I watched bright eyed for the whole event. Oddly enough... I'm missing a Junior Mint...

The next couple procedures I got to see were a lot more bloody, and a lot louder. I essentially got to see three total hip arthroplasties (total hip replacements) back to back. This is a pretty gruesome procedure, even by my standards. All the great tools are there! Saws, drills, graters, hammers, screws... what a wild ride! I'm sure if you check out YouTube, you'll be able to find some pretty gnarly footage of this one! Hip arthroplasties are typically needed when there is some sort of structural problem with your hip joint. This can be due to a fracture of your femoral head (potentially due to osteoporosis) or it can be due to arthritis.

Quick note! Poor diet and low levels of physical activity can also lead to both of these conditions!

All in all, my days in the OR were just the respite I needed to finish off the rest of my shifts for this bloody clinical. 360 hours of unpaid work for the province (of course we have to PAY Dalhousie to do it). I hate the way this system works.

I had a couple days off shortly after this stint to fester around, and boy did I ever fester! Had a couple drinks and supper, courtesy of my friend Jabes; ate an entire box of Mr Christies Choc-Chip Cookies in one sitting; rolled around on my futon for hours on end. It was a pretty good time! A new friend and I actually took my last night to explore what I consider a very hipsterish trend that's been circulating around the North End for the past 2+ years: Contra Dancing. This is virtually identical to line dancing, step dancing or square dancing. Some pics are below.

One of the major functions of Contra Dancing (according to the caller) was that through the contact and proximity of you and your partners during the dance, the concept of community is really fostered and promoted. Judging by the diversity of the crowd, I'm going to have to agree. There were young and old, tall and short, skinny and not so skinny. This is also the first place I've seen North-End hipsters hanging out with older adults that seemed to have careers. I will have to study this intermingling in greater detail at another Contra Dance in the future.

Other than that, work is going smoothly. I now have about 120 hours left. People are still breaking bones and requiring hospitalization. Arthritis is still going on and requiring treatment. People come in sick and leave... well they are usually still sick in some way, but I'd like to think slightly better than when they came in.

Circle of life.

Workshop and Biking to work

2010-04-04T13:34:00.003-03:00

So my bike group --the Halifax Cycling Coalition-- threw a major workshop over the weekend. Pretty well attended by people from all over the province who are seriously interested in getting youth to be more active through cycling.

Pretty great to see some new faces interested in cycling! The major result was that more people want to see a social marketing spin used to get people to cycle. That's pretty awesome since I've been working on this sort of project for the past 6-7 months.

So we're on the right track, as far as public participation is concerned.

I've started my clinical rotation at the hospitals again. Last... one... ever! Thank God because I can't afford to take out another loan! Nothing too too crazy or funny to report yet. One thing that brightens my day is the sheer amount of bikes at the racks at work in the morning.

Other than that though, I feel as though I am a little overworked. Three days on and two days off, when you're working 12 hour shifts feels draining. Thank God I'm in love with this career-path I've carved out for myself.

Hoping to post later in the week. Holla!

CBC Information Morning, Steve Brockley, Pacifico, Waverly Loop, the Market and Biking in Bedford

2010-03-20T23:44:00.007-03:00

So a lot has been going down recently. My in-hospital clinical sessions have re-started. Just seven more weeks until I get paid for doing this. Needless to say, I'm working the equivalent of full time and am getting paid $0/hour.

This feels like post-modern slavery.

Meeting a lot of people at the hospital though. Couple major cuties that I am working with! But let's keep this professional. One of our patients came back from the Operating Room the other day. It was obvious that this person was still a little loopy from the drugs as they were talking in a very convincing Australian accent (not from/never been to Australia). When they saw me lurking in the room cleaning things up, they proceeded to blurt out (to one of the other nurses): "Who is that? Why... why it's a little digeridoo!" Aussie accent all the way. In this case, I was the digeridoo. I thought it was hilarious!

Will keep you posted on other school-related going's on.

My bike group and I have been circulating a petition for an Active Transportation corridor that would span the Halifax Peninsula. It's been a lot of work to go around and collect signatures. We have over 500 now, and it's climbing slowly everyday. To help promote this, we I did a brief (maybe too brief) interview with the CBC Information Morning folks. It was pretty cool to be on the radio, and they had a good view of where our proposed corridor will end up! However, I would have liked to get to the kernel of the issues surrounding the benefits of cycling. Not enough time to do so however.

Here is a picture of CBC radio's inner lair!

A few days ago, my new roomates took me out to see one of their friends perform. This guys name is Steve Brockley, and I thought he was pretty great! Kind of reminded me of Timber Timbre a little bit (slightly Macabre). The three of us drove our bikes to Just Us! Cafe on Spring Garden Road to watch the show. I bought a steamed milk with a shot of caramel. It was a pretty radical evening.

Last weekend, I went to Pacifico for the first time in maybe four or five years. To be honest, I was having a good time... until some skanks and their fatass boyfriends told the bouncers I was dancing next to them and got me kicked out. What a bunch of assholes! So after spending like $40 there through the night, I was just tossed out, no ifs, ands or buts.

I am never going back to Pacifico again. Neither am I going to suggest it to anyone considering going.

The weather has been pretty great recently! I took this opportunity to take my bike out to do the Waverly loop, which is a 50k run around the Harbour (through Bedford), out to Fall River (nearly) and back through Dartmouth via Waverly Road. It is my favourite route! I've done it in less than 1:30 before, however the head winds on this day made the entire trip VERY rough! I was not the only one on the roads that day though. A good 20 cyclists were out enjoying the great weather! It was nice to see them passing me by (going in the opposite direction).

Here is a shot taken from Lake Banook in the Dart.

Jabes and I spent the day together trying to collect more signatures for our petition today. We had a great time! The market was bumpin, as usual, and we got a lot of support. I hope these folks start writing in to their councillors about this!

Outside the Market, this trio was casting a spell on folks! They were pretty great!

Finally, Jabes and I went out for a nice bike ride today! It was a 30 min ride not very far, but we took our time, as Jabes was still getting used to the bike we made together last summer. It still rides like the wind!

We found that a TON of people in Bedford were out enjoying the weather today! It was really great to me to see so many people being active. Thank God car culture hasn't completely choked us out! More people need to enjoy the outdoors though, or else my job is going to get a hell of a lot more difficult.

This park in Bedford (pics below) was pretty amazing. It has a good 1.5 km trail right next to the water, a nice playground area for the kiddies, lots of green space. Would definitely recommend that everyone in HRM spend some time in Bedford checking this place out!

Sometimes HRM staff can design and plan for very awesome green-space! This is something I think we should thank them for a little more. I think I will write a letter to the Coast about this.

Sorry to make this so long and neglect you, my darlings! I will try to make more posts, and get batteries for my actual camera (right now, I am using my iPhone).

Canada Mens Hockey wins gold

2010-03-01T21:40:00.006-04:00

So against my shut-in, recluse personality, I decided to head out to the Oasis to watch the Canadian Mens Gold Medal game (Vancouver, 2010 Winter Olympics). Man what a night! I got there about halfway through the second period and watched it in a room jam-packed with red and white jerseys, face paint, Canada flags, hats toques, scarfs, etc.

When the US scored in the last 24 seconds of the game, there was definitely a collective groan from the audience, and a ton of complaints among the smoking crowd. But it all worked out in the end.

In fact it may have worked too well! After Sid's goal, everyone rushed for the door and spilled out into the street. After about 20 mins, the Bubba Rays, Victors and Gastby's crowds joined up with us and a street party ensued. The street was blocked off by the cops who were oddly cool about us being there. I've thrown in some photos of the street party from the thick of things. After about an hour of cheering and craziness, I decided to get on the bike and ride home with a couple people. Good conversations ensued!

Enjoy!

To all the friends that I called in various parts of Canada: Truly wished you could have been here!

More nursing ball pics, Shutter Island

2010-02-23T00:30:00.005-04:00

Before I head into more pictures from the Nursing Ball, I gotta say I went to see Shutter Island with my friend, Jables. What a wild ride! I would for sure recommend this movie to anyone considering checking it out. The only qualm I have about it was that there were just a tad too many hard cuts within the same scenes. I think it was supposed to be like that to keep you on your toes, but I found it to be a little too distracting.

Anyways, just a couple more pics from the Ball that I dug out while lurking around Facebook (I'm the guy with the orange tie). I don't typically post peoples faces on this though. However, I had an incredible night! Nice to unwind with everyone. I don't think people are done uploading their pics, so some more may come later on.

Still no real catharsis over the degree yet. I wonder if it'll ever come?

Class ending, Nursing Ball, Thoughts on Graduating

2010-02-20T18:03:00.005-04:00

So I had my last exams yesterday for my undergrad in Nursing. It's been a very long six years. Very tough emotionally and financially as the cost of university in the Maritimes and at Dalhousie in particular is STAGGERING! Needless to say, I will not have to attend another lecture for a very long time, which makes me very happy.

What is strange is the lack of excitement I have over this. After an extremely difficult year in 2009, and after six years in this system, I was expecting some form of catharsis in finishing this program up yesterday. After a brutal final exam however, I found the day to be just like any other. It was kind of like a birthday, where you go to sleep expecting to feel different the next day, but lo-and-behold... you're still the same person as the day before.

What was very fun was going to my Nursing ball last night. Although our class isn't the most well bonded bunch, it was really nice to see everyone together and enjoying themselves before we essentially never see each other again. Also, being in a profession full of lady-types... well I had a lot to look at last night! But it wasn't all fun and games (To the lady lady that made me go home to get my ticket: I'm not mad at you for making me waste my money like that, but I still find the sheer surface area of your forehead and thin jawline reminds me of a sperm whale).

These pictures aren't great, but I will try to creep more off of Facebook when people wake up from their hung-over stupors to upload them. But right now I have a week off, and other than doing bike stuff... I'm not entirely sure what to do with myself. Will gladly take suggestions in comments box!

The Dome, Classes coming to an End, a Bike Party and North End Hipsters

2010-02-15T08:07:00.004-04:00

Ahhhhh... Sorry y'all for not having been here for a while. My time gets consumed and I essentially sweep little things like this under the rug. But I've had an oddly thrilling week, and thought I should update you all with my goings-on.

Last Friday, a couple friends and I went to the Dome, which if you're not from Halifax, is probably our highest-grossing (and probably most filthy skanky) dance bar on the peninsula. This has been a hard shift for me a far as nights out are concerned (I haven't been here in likely over five years). Needless to say, I didn't know what to do with myself, so I resorted to watching the dancefloor.

The big developments going on down there were a midget going wild over a Black Eyed Peas song, and some lesbians trying to subtly European kiss my straight friend on the dancefloor. THAT was actually extremely funny.

After this event, I entered probably the longest (and ironically last) week of my undergrad. Yes, I will be graduating soon --fingers crossed, knock on wood. Instead of just cooling off at Gasby's at the end of the week as per usual, I did something very bizzar: Met actual people at our school bar and proceeded to drink with them! Call it cathartic, but the afternoon was pretty good and we were lucky enough to get free pizza from an english sonnet competition that was going on at the same time.

Call me a snob, but I could pull a better sonnet out of my ass.

Later that same day, after taking a sobering nap, I went out to a Bike Party in the North End. It was pretty decent. Had some cool biking videos. But by-and-large I was essentially hung over and no one really wanted to talk to me.

Bummer.

What I did notice was that this party, and just the new lower-middle class of the North-End is populated by a high proportion of young adults that are somewhat similar to hipsters, the kind of which you see in the Williamsburg area of New York. What delineates these hipsters from Halifax's Norenders (based on the content of this fabulous blog) is our hipsters are much more into cycling, a little less coked out, and a hair less judgemental. All in all it seems like our hipsters may have a longer lifespan and quality of life than those living in BBurg.

Although I'm not a HUGE fan of hipsters in general, as they are a sign of major gentrification in the neighbourhoods which they immigrate to --almost in fact galvanizing it's gentrification-- I'm finding them very interesting. Also, I'm beginning to find that gentrification isn't such a bad thing for some Halifax communities.

I hope admitting this doesn't mean I'm becoming part of the fold... naw... couldn't be...

Hope they're not doing a twosie

2010-01-31T17:40:00.004-04:00

So i was biking around the North End the other night and happened upon this little guy. I have no idea if this is recyclable or not. Anyone know?

Oh the marvels of the North End. To be honest, I nearly used it...

Tupperware, New Years, Avatar 3D, Bike Blog

2010-01-04T23:22:00.004-04:00

Geeze... I feel as though I have a lot to go over this week.

My friend from London is still down. Nice to hang out with an old friend and other, more local old friends, whom I never seem to have time for these days, unfortunately. I can't wait for classes to finish so I can move into a more job-like schedule.

So we had a big pot-luck-ish supper the other night. I made some rather delicious dip and met my friends roommate. Great guy! They do Metal busking downtown every now and then. They also made a wicked (and hilarious) Christmas Metal Album and gave me a copy recently. It is phenomenal! Keep your eyes out for these guys, folks!

Went out a few nights later to Gus's Pub, which had this stellar Techno-Rock band called Tupperware. It's been a while since I've heard music like this. They kind of sounded like a newer, younger, fresher Propellerheads. Different of course, but better! It was a great night, but we were in the middle of the North End, and walked all the way past Dal to get home. Not too pleasant with the -15 to -20 'ish temperature out there.

You essentially have to have brass balls to wear a pylon as a mask/hat and a spandex (I want to say) ski suit that explicitly draws attention to your groin area for an entire set. Incredible show, guys!

New Years Eve at another old friend's place out in Ketch Harbour. WAY out there! It was kind of lame, but nice to see all these old friends, and where they are now.

Saw Avatar again in 3D (After seeing it in plain ol' regular D). It was pretty wild! Such a subtle 3D, it was more like real life than that gimmicky crap like Shrek and... you know... Whatever. There is a depth to this movie as well that is lost to many people, I think. Like the message that the internet can bring us all together, worldwide and (perhaps) we can use this to solve some of our complex problems these days.

You'll definitely have to check it out. If you are into sci-fi, you'll really love it. If not, I think you'll find the 3D and imagery pretty engaging and captivating.

If anyone follows the Spacing:Atlantic blog, you'll find I have an article up there which is a vote on the Best/Worst bike lanes of Halifax. Check it out, cast your vote and we'll see if we can change things!

Have a good night, all!

Gatsby's

2009-12-29T23:59:00.003-04:00

Had a nice little night out at Gastby's with some friends. Drinking, pool, fun stories. It's been a while since we've all been together. It's quite nice.

So back in the city after a long few days in the valley. I really don't know what to do with myself there. It seems like there's never anything going on! As a result, I am often quite bored and tend to play video games the whole time.

The ladies there are a little peculiar as well. There are attractive women in the valley, but to me, there's always something just a little bit off to them. I can't quite put my thumb on it. It's just a little strange. I dunno.

Well happy New Year, y'all.

Trip to the Airport, Christmas Party

2009-12-27T16:42:00.002-04:00

Picked up a friend from the airport on Christmas Eve. Completely normal pick up, eh? 'Cept the guy in the giant rooster costume. But this is a classic Halifax Airport pickup to me. Last time I was down, there was someone in a MacPass costume... I'm not sure why.

The next day I went to a Christmas party which was extremely okay. Tons of people, I didn't really know, which would have been fine on its own if they weren't so goony. Some people brought fireworks though, which was pretty nice.

Sorry for the short post. Will get bak to you in the future!

Car Bumpers, the Market and a Dazzling Example of Christmas Trash Reuse

2009-12-14T12:00:00.003-04:00

Just thought I'd start this off by showing this picture of a van that I walked by this week. I'm not sure if I'm more surprised at the fact that this happened to this poor guy, or by the fact that this seemed like a normal thing to see on the streets of Halifax these days.

Whatever the case may be, I thought it was pretty funny.

Went to the market this weekend with my friend Sarah. Got there early to avoid the crowds. Or at least we tried to. The place was approaching 90% capacity when we got there. Sarah didn't get much, but I was able to get my hands on some potatoes, some Valley apples, flowers and some wonderful looking Cat-Grass. I'm also taking care of my neighbors plants while she is away with family over the Christmas Break. I'm not a particularly successful horticulturist, but I'm hoping that these plants don't kick the bucket under my purview. Fingers crossed... fingers crossed.

I found the picture (below) on Spacing:Atlantic. What a wonderful way to reuse old laundry containers and caps! If I ever find my way out of debt and buy a house, I would like to give this idea a try.

Doesn't it make you just want to cozy up and forget about the world?

Another post to come later this week!

Bike Center Ride

2009-11-28T19:45:00.004-04:00

Went on Dal Bike Center's second ride. The weather was very strange! Isolated showers that rolled through, last ing no more than 15 mins... then all of a sudden, sunny with only partial clouds!

Some pics of the day are below.

Dandy!

Sexy group of cyclists right there!

Overall a great ride! I hope I get some turnout tomorrow for Sunday Funday!!!

I had to pop-off shortly thereafter though as I had a meeting with my group-mate from school about a project we've been working on. This term is literally going to make me want to vomit or commit suicide.

Keep it real, y'all!

Sunday Rides, Parade of Lights

2009-11-23T00:13:00.005-04:00

Went out to check out the Parade of Lights last night with Jables and her family. It was pretty cool. I was thrilled to see there were two sections with a sci-fi theme (Hali-Con and Strange Adventures). Great times. To the person dressed as Princess Leah: I would totally fight through the dangerous swamps of Dagobah just to see a sliver of your cleavage!

I'll leave you with a picture of the money-float.

Went on a whicked bike ride today out to the Hydrostone. The weather was incredible! Stopped into Jullienne's Bakery where the spread was divine!

The ensuing croissant and tea was so good, I felt like all the stress and tension I was holding through the week just melted away.

I then crossed through the commons on the way home. Nice to see people still out playing soccer and football and frisbee. I wish more people would have come out with me!

Then I took a few minutes to watch what was going down at the Skate park.

Overall a fantastic morning!!! It's weird but having the morning to myself really made my day seem longer. I got a bunch of work done for school and for my bike group! I can't wait to go next weekend! Hope you guys will join!

Grawood sucks, Halloween Crankiness

2009-11-11T10:03:00.003-04:00

So I've put up a photo of my Friday night at the Grawood from a few weeks ago. Dead, dead bar! I swear there were maybe 20 people in the room, the music sucked, drinks --not so good. This really confirms to me that this place sucks.

A couple of days later I went out for Halloween (I know I'm quite behind on my blogging) and saw this character walking up the street. I'm usually alright with guys on stilts, but this particular guy on stilts for whatever reason freaked me out. He then tried to catch a bus home, but the bus-driver wouldn't let him on with his stilts. Total discrimination!

What do you guys think?

The Hole, Jenn Grant, Timber Timbre

2009-10-25T21:00:00.004-03:00

What an exciting end of week I've been having. The guest speaker we had in from Portland was incredible. If only Halifax was as proactive about cycling issues. As soon as I'm able to get those videos digitized, I will post a link to them.

Before I go further: I have a little bit of an update to show you, my pretties! The hole is being filled! The Trillium is really starting to come together. I pass the whole weekly on my bike, and to be honest, I've joined the habit of my fellow neighbors. First I get off my bike and take slow careful steps to the edge. When I'm close enough to the fence, I reach out and curl my fingers around the cold metal mesh and take a long, hard look down.

I think I wouldn't mind living here when it's done.

But I went to a show last night with my friend, Jables. It was part of HFX Pop Explosion 2009. The artists of the night were Timber Timbre and Jenn Grant. Jenn was marvelous! She came out in the audience to play her last song, and I was able to snag some very neat photo's of her while she was closeby. A couple are below. I really like how they turned out.

I used to go to Jenn's shows on a weekly basis. There was one night that she performed at Queen Elizabeth High School before it closed down (Jabes came out with me on that night as well). Anyways, this was a CD launch party. I really liked the show, but my heart broke a little because I knew she was going to fly away and do tours all over the place. I was pretty bang on. Up until tonight, I hadn't seen her at a show for nearly 3 years.

I was very happy to see her again.

The opener however was very impressive! Timber Timbre was the name of the band. I haven't heard anything like it. It seems like they concentrate meticulously on the most miniscule things in their songs. They are very good at establishing a very macabre tone in their audience, not just through the lyrics of the songs, but through the composition as well. I will try to set up a link to the recordings I subversively and secretly made during the show last night.

I saw a great band on Friday night as well! They were called the Stogies, and in the right hands, they will make a big impact in Canada music scene. I'd suggest you check out their MySpace page, but the recordings they have on there really do not do them justice. If you do check it out, make a point to write down the time and location of their next show... go to WalMart and buy a protective face mask and birth control... and then attend the show. Why the face mask and BC, you ask? Because if not, the sheer awesomeness of their sound will blow your face off and get you pregnant!

Good night everyone!

Rough Ride for Halifax Critical Mass

2009-10-20T17:59:00.005-03:00

Last month's Critical Mass ride got tangled up with the police last month. I can't say I'm surprised, as police involvement is usually involved in many rides to some capacity. What frustrates me is the borderline split personality disorder of Halifax Police. Some months they are kind and courteous towards the Mass, and even escort us during the ride. Other times they are aggressive and very grabby, which is a scary thing when you are on a medium-paced ride with two wheels. I've even had one officer on a motorcycle come up from behind me while I was stopped and try to push me over. I know enough at this point that if you get nabbed by the cops, you get asked 20 questions, none of which you can really give a good answer to, they get frustrated, ask for your ID, rifle through their little law book in their cars and promptly fine you for something. In response to his push, I steadied myself and busted out of there.

Three people were fined last month however, which lead to a "Critical Mass Meeting". A handful of people including myself showed up. It was nice to see that people care about what happened and want to help out the people who got fined.

On another cycling note, the Halifax Cycling Coalition was contacted by the US Consulate General last month about a city planner that will be in Halifax at the end of the week. Roger Geller has been the Bicycling Planner for the City of Portland, OR for the past 15 years. If you don't know about Portland, it's essentially THE cycling Mecca in the US. It will be nice to see and hear what ideas would be feasible in Halifax. He's also meeting with the HRM Active Transportation Advisory Committee. I hope he inspires them to invest their efforts into getting Halifax a Bicycle planner of it's own. I made a poster for this event that I will try and attach below.

That's about it from me. Keep it real you guys!

Duathlon, Bikes are Cool, Nice House

2009-10-04T19:50:00.006-03:00

I went and did another race this weekend. It was pretty alright --a duathlon in Riverport (about an hour or so away). Lots of crazy expensive and good looking bikes. Even though I find my own bike quite fetching, there were some very cute other bikes there. At the end of the day, I wished I had a good $10 000 to drop on a sexy carbon fiber bicycle. Something fast and firm!

If you would like more double-entendres, please leave a comment.

The above pictured bike is my OCR3. The OCR line was meant to be an entry level competitive road bike, which has since been discontinued, and revamped into the new line: Defy. It's kind of like the Toyota Tercel transforming into the Toyota Corolla. The 3 (inversely) indicates the degree of performance you will get out of the bike. The OCR2 for example has lighter wheels and some more carbon fiber than the OCR3, making it a little stiffer as well (stiffness = more power transfered directly to the drivetrain). My bike makes me sad however. I don't really think of it as a "he" or "she" as some people tend to see their own bikes. I have not named it either. I sometimes think "What if my bike does have a personality that it wants to have expressed." If this is true, it must be depressed.

On another note, I met an old friend for supper in Bridgewater the night before the race. We used to go to classes at Dal together, and he's just gotten back from a big trip up north. Upon telling him that I was planning on roughing it in my car by the start/finish line, he urged me to stay at his brothers place for the night. My biggest props go out to you big guy! What a dynamite house!

Well that's it from me. Stay real everyone! I mean it... if anyone wakes up as a mannequin tomorrow, I will flip the fuck out.

Friday Night

2009-09-27T17:38:00.003-03:00

So here's a little bit of a story.

Went out on Friday to a bar, as I do on occasion. I do this solo, because it's literally me heading out to have 2-3 beers/ciders and watch some sports on the TV. To me, this is incredibly boring, but I don't have cable anymore, and the alternative is staying at home, sitting around, looking around. So really it's a treat to me.

ANYWAY. I went out and met the fellow pictured above. Apparently he is in a management position at a social club based at one of the Universities around here. Pretty snappy dresser, eh? Yeah, he was pretty krunk. So at eventually he looks over at me and tells me his name and about his job and whatnot. I thought I'd be nice and have some conversation with this guy. No big deal, right? So I'm talking to him and he suddenly goes "Okay... I'm a pretty big geek, and this is really difficult, you know? Meeting people? I don't really do it." I said I didn't mind, and he started on about how he's really into the universe and was talking about how quantum mechanics is a frustrating thing, because even if you think you know something, you can never actually see if you are correct.

So he's starting to get energetic, and he's looking to jump over to another bar downtown when his lady-friend comes to see what he's upto. Remember how he was dressy? This lady dressed casual. Like really casual. 70% Thug, even! He turns to her and she makes a little surprised face after looking at him. Then he says to her "This is my friend. This is hard for me," to which she replies "It's okay. You're a geek, but that's fine! You're a cool interesting guy. Now let's get going to Masq." She had a pretty supportive, reassuring tone. I was a little confused and asked how they knew each other: *Awkward pause*. I asked if they worked together: *Uproarious laughter from both*. Then he leans in and says: "We fuck together." I said "ohhhhhhhhh-okay," as though I'm used to hearing this kind of thing. The lady then, still laughing a little, leans in and says, "You know, you should come with us. My girls will be there. I'm sure you'll be able to hit it off with one of them." She told me they had been up at the Marylin Manson concert early to "see what they could get" but then planned to hit this Masq place. I asked her if she was comfortable having her girls go to MM alone. She laughed a bit again, like I was the only one not privy to an inside joke. She said "Oh, they're not my kids. They're my girls. Like my girls..."

So really... I think I may have met a prostitute on Friday. Your thoughts?

I got back a little later than I wanted. I was nice and drunk tho and decided to have a smoke. Often when I'm drunk, I look across the street and see this house. More than any other house I've known, this house makes me think of a giant, smiling head. I sometimes say to myself "Come on, you're being silly... it's not like it's going to eat you." Then another part of me thinks, "Are you nuts? That's precisely what the house wants you to think! Then when you least expect it, it's gonna gobble you up!"

Needless to say, I don't walk on that side of the street. Ever. In mental health, we call this a delusion. I on the other hand call it prudent thinking.

Quick Notes

2009-09-22T22:46:00.003-03:00

I've been having some pretty jam-packed weeks as of late. I'll only be able to throw up some quick notes about last week.

This is a picture of one of my classes. I find I'm taking a lot of time to look around at everyone these days. If you ask me why I would be doing such a thing, I might say that it's our last year together, and I'm going to miss some of these people. In reality, I'm looking around at everyone and trying to guess what they are thinking about when I'm looking at them. What to do this weekend? Worrying about a test later today? Trying to figure out whether or not to buy those new shoes?

Don't get the shoes. We both know you have like 6 pairs in your closet that you never wear and this will only add to the pile.

Archie or Archie's Comics: American Golden-boy or World most prolific womanizer?

I did a Century over the weekend. 100 miles (162+ kms) of pure biking fun. If I ever get around to making a short video about it, I'll try to post it up here.

And finally... I've recently found out that the #3 bus is probably the best way for me to get home. It's usually empty and never stops at bus stops for this simple reason: no one knows where the hell it's going! The name of the route is pretty ambiguous (Manors). I've lived here for about 6 years now, people have told me where the different Manors are. I gotta tell ya, it's just in one ear and out the other.

So try the 3! You'll be glad you did! But don't all of you try at once. Because seriously... I wanna get home, start supper... maybe get some laundry done... have a drink or two... read maybe?

Long Week, Dartmouth's Alderny to Woodside Trail, the Morning Ride

2009-09-10T22:06:00.004-03:00

Man what a brutal week. School is in full swing, and it's really putting the breaks on my life here. This one week has felt like it's 14 days long. However, I'm quite sure the weekend will feel far too short.

So the people that say "the only good thing bout Dartmouth is the view of Halifax" are dead wrong! I'm biking in to the NS for my clinical days now and they have a 50% decent Trail there. Only 50% because really it's only 50% completed. But it is a doozey!

Nice little fence there. But in all honesty, my fave thing about it is, in fact, the view of Halifax.

Even though it looks far away in this picture, it's quite a nice sight to wake you up in the morning.

So I guess there is some merit to that statement.

Farmers Market

2009-09-07T18:40:00.003-03:00

Did something for the first time in a long time: went to the Market this weekend. The place was packed as always. If anyone is unsure of why the Market wants a bigger building, you definitely have to check it out for yourself.

This was a big outing for me as I think I've developed a touch of agoraphobia. But for whatever reason, I really like going to the market. I wonder why?

The rest of my weekend was uneventful. Jables and I hung out for a little bit. In fact it took me well over 40 minutes to decide to actually hang out with her. I also took the chance to visit my friend's new apartment. To be honest I'm a little jealous. I wish I had a swanky new pad. Instead I'm stuck in a basement apt. which I think has the same feel as that hobbit-hole that Yoda lived in while we was exiled on Planet Dagobah.

That's right folks: A LOTR's and a Star Wars joke combined. I hope I didn't blow your faces off too bad.

Business Casual, Mental Health Placement

2009-09-04T16:52:00.003-03:00

Another year has started, another placement: begun. This time, instead of my regular scrubs, I had to don a "business casual" look. Not having had anything close to an office job, I'm not sure what this entailed. Did I pull it off? I think the belt buckle speaks for itself.

This placement is revolving around mental health. I was seriously dreading this rotation going in to it, but now that I've been there for a couple days, I'm figuring out it's not so bad. These hospitals aren't filled with nut-cases. Just people who really seem like typical Joes and Janes that want to get better.

One other thing that is fun about this clinical as a whole is the Ferry Ride home. It really gives you a time to decompress and offers a physical distinction between clinical mode and life mode. Something of an inwardly turned catharsis.

Other than that, nothing going on this week. Working through the weekend, but at least I get to sleep in tomorrow. Might pop down to the market.

School, the Hole, Critical Mass and Alberta Healthcare Prequels

2009-08-30T00:23:00.004-03:00

I've never really experience this before at the Killam. I think it's what they call the calm before the storm.

Really used to seeing this place packed to the brim with fledgling academics. Today things were empty, and as calm as a cucumber. This is in stark contrast to what this week has been like. Major problems getting the schedule worked out (final year nursing students have started already), and just dealing with what to expect this year.

I'm sure gonna be glad when this is all over.

I've really wanted to talk about this spot for a while now. It's literally a gigantic 30-40 foot hole that will be filled with a rather swanky looking apartment building. But until then, and especially on hot days, people have flocked to this hole in droves. They're really keen on taking it all in for some reason. Maybe they are throwing their troubles in there. Perhaps they think that if these guys dig any deeper, some sort of Godzilla like monster (or perhaps the fire creature from the Lord of the Rings) will pop out, and they will be the first line of defense for Halifax. Other times I think (the majority of the people watching being men) that they are just enjoying the machoism behind the use of the big machines and whatnot. Looking at the sides of the bedrock and just saying to themselves: "What's that, reinforced with rebar? Yeah. That'll hold."

Attended the last Critical Mass and have been keeping an eye on what's going on with healthcare in Alberta (thanks to the info available from an Alberta-bound roommate), so definitely look for some rantings next week.

Co-op Over

2009-08-24T22:17:00.003-03:00

No pictures to share today.

A low flying jet passed directly over the hospital last week. The sound was pretty intense, and actually caused a bit of trouble with our patients. They jumped out of bed, pulled their stitches and staples, and required some dressing changes.

I heard 7 people woke up from comas due to the noise.

My 10 week co-op has finally ended. It was a great time. Met a lot of people. Made more money than I ever have in my life. It was pretty sweet, and I'm quite sure I'm going to miss a lot of the people I was working with there. That night I was hit simultaneously with an incredible feeling of accomplishment and exhaustion. Going back to school for another few months before this degree is all over. Not looking forward to it.

We were "hit" by a "hurricane" yesterday. A lot of people really went out of their way to batten down the hatches. But what some people call a "hurricane", I called typical Atlantic weather. This is what people in Atlantic Canada look forward to though: their small towns and cities being pulverized by major weather patterns with names. They secretly crave this because it'll give them something to talk about for upwards from 5 years. Remember Juan? That was a hurricane that hit in 2003... and people STILL love talking about it!

Anyway, I was disappointed that Bill couldn't live up to the hype. Mainly because it would have given me something more substantial to talk about today.

Bummer

Trivia Night and an Old friend

2009-08-20T18:30:00.005-03:00

Went to Rogues Roost yesterday for Trivia Night. Always a good time in my books. Having tried trivia at other places in town, the degree of difficulty and atmosphere at Rogues is something that is lacking at other trivias.

We were creamed though. Came close to winning (or at least tying) in 2 rounds, but were blown away in the last. Still good fun...

Good food...

Dynamite Drinks!

An old friend and his fiancee paid us a visit last night too! It was nice to see them. Used to live with this guy down on Rowe Ave., in Fairmount. Miss those days when our group was still tight-knit and together. Now we got a bunch of us in Vancouver, some in Toronto... even London, England! I guess they couldn't stick around Halifax much anymore...

Ya bunch a queers...

Heading into work this weekend. Curious to see if one of our 'guests' is still around. He was touch and go at the start of the week there.

My cushy summer job is almost at an end as well. Back to the drudges of school work. I know there is just a few months left. Less than a year even! But something deep down inside is telling me that the remaining time I have in school is going to be a major drag.

Wish me luck, folks.

Nearly Hit by Idiot Female Motorist, Zombie Walk

2009-08-16T13:15:00.006-03:00

Here's something quite irritating. Biking up Barrington, when some lady was coming off the side street. She failed to stop at the stop sign and pulled out right in front of me. Had to jam the breaks hard, the bike started flipping forward, but luckily I landed it. The back wheel hit hard on the street though and had to be replaced. Put me out a good $60.

The lady clearly saw me coming up (we made eye contact) and saw that I was too close to pull out. If I hadn't have landed the fall, I would have definitely hit the car. Needless to say, after knowing she had caused me to fly off my bike, I heard her accelerate up the road and out of sight. Really nice of her.

While I was waiting for my back tire to be replaced, something quite strange came up the street.

Yes. Halifax has a zombie walk. It was pretty fun to watch. I was amazed at the sheer amount of nice dresses that the ladies were wearing for this event. I'd imagine they'd be put to better use at a job interview so these kids could make it in the big leagues. At the very least, they could wear them around the street corners at night and try to turn some well paying tricks.

I actually ran into an old friend of mine who was in the walk. It was nice to see an old friend out of the blue like that...

Well maybe not like that.

Had a few drinks to cap off the day with Jabes and her sister. Why they would make a patio looking out toward Chain Lake Dr. in Bayers Lake, I do not know.

Buskers

2009-08-15T11:56:00.003-03:00

I was facing another brutal night of not doing anything, so I decided to take a walk downtown to check out the buskers. Maybe grab a drink. I got to the end of my street when I saw this familiar fella (see my first blog entry).

I really don't get the whole busker week thing. I used to play guitar for cash and people hated it. I was shooed away by business owners, told I wasn't allowed to play by the Public Gardens by the park police. One place I went to just straight up called the cops. But for this one week, everything turns around for the buskers, and they're suddenly accepted? Give me a break.

To be honest, some of the busker troops... well it really boggles my mind when I try identifying the appeal behind some of these acts. For example, a drumming group called Squid. Drums can be pretty cool, and they do have some good beats. When you really break it down, however, they only have maybe 3 drum sizes, so only 3 notes. During the show they'll juggle their drum sticks a little bit (note: there is a noticeable pause to the beat when they do this). So I guess they have mediocre hand-eye coordination. But the thing that really gets the crowd is when they start playing every day objects like barstools. People go bloody ballistic when this starts going down, and I'm never really sure why. The beat is the same. The general sound is the same, if not slightly shittier. Why is this such a big deal? I think if I could put myself in the shoes of these idiot, easily amused, staycation spectators, I think they're thoughts would go something like:

"What are those bar stools doing ther... oh god. OH GOD! WOW!! THEY'RE PLAYING WITH THE BAR STOOLS INSTEAD OF THE DRUMS!! Ohhhhhhhh!! Bravo, Squid... Bravo. Here's $10. Man... you guys must have really burned the midnight oil to come up with such a unique idea."

No sir. They did not.

So the night was kind of a bust. I did get to stop by Gastby's again for a slice of pizza and a couple ciders.

On my walk home however, I ran into this bizzar spectacle outside of an Anglican Church. If anyone knows what this is, can ya clue me in here?

Only one more day off. I'm actually looking forward to going back in to work. It's been great relaxing... but I really need something to do here.

Paintball Aftermath, Time on my Hands, Minstrels, Glasses

2009-08-13T16:27:00.004-03:00

So I'm just throwing up some pictures of how that paintball weekend left lasting impressions on my arms and (not so flattering) belly area. Those blasted kids! These bruises are actually pretty tender.

I've really got to get back on a diet regime by September here...

The rest of the week has been pretty uneventful, with one exception. I think the nurse that I was paired with got a "smoothing" day off. I'm not 100% on how this smoothing works. Apparently, as you work, you bank hours that can be used to get a day off (after you've built up the day or course). This has left me with a whopping 4 days off in a row. I can't remember the last time I've had more than 2.5 days off.

Unfortunately, it really reminds me about what little interests I have these days. I mean, I bike around and am training for a race in September. Okay that's 2 hours out of a free day. My bike advocacy group takes up maybe an hour every odd day. Other than that there isn't much else that I do. I seriously sometimes go on Facebook, click the "Home" button, scroll to the bottom of the page to check what's going on with people, scroll back up, and then immediately hit the "Home" button AGAIN!

Oh, my life.

I did take the time to eat out at Minstrel's Gastropub with a friend. They have a rooftop patio which is nice. The food was great (big portions), and was priced well. I got the curry-apple-chicken wrap and a green salad. My friend got a steak and fry plate. We split on a big plate of nachos (excellent nacho's, folks!).

Other than that, nothing to report after 2 days of relaxation.

Went to a glasses store today to help my friend Jables pick out a new pair of glasses. I took a look at the mens selection. I think I'll need glasses soon as my right eye is significantly blurry when compared to the left. As a result, when I'm really trying to focus on something, I tend to wink. People often get the wrong impression from this. I guess they think I'm trying to pick them up. Listen, Sally: to me winking as a pickup maneuver died in the '9o's. Grow up!

Friday Night Drinks, Family and Supper, Paintballing with Children

2009-08-10T11:05:00.005-03:00

So I went downtown to the bars last Friday. It's been about 3 years since I've gone out on a Friday night to drink, but Jables and her cute sister roped me into it, so there was no backing out.

The best part of the night was the walk there.

We started at the Bitter End (below), and moved to Maxwells Plum shortly thereafter. The evening wasn't that exciting. People were drunk. The concentration of police cruisers was higher than I've ever seen in quite a while. Pizza Corner was bumpin'. Girls were lookin' cute. Just stuff I remember as being pretty typical.

Before calling it quits for the night, we headed over to Gatsby's for a Coffee and some desert. Call me old fashion, but that really capped the night for me.

Went to the valley for the weekend to see the family. I think I'm starting to have my family pegged. As much as we enjoy each other's company, I think we're secretly trying to kill one another by food. Whenever a bunch of us get together, there are at least 2 rounds of heavy suppers, and eating usually begins by 4 in the afternoon and can last until 9:30-10:00 that night. Not only this, but a good 70% of the food we consume is meat. Sure we try to make things look good by making a small salad available here and there, but by and large, most meals revolve around steak, pork, chicken or all of the above. We also try to trick the Food Guide's salad recommendations by making pasta and potato salads. It took me a lot of focused concentration to not just blurt out "Alright folks, pasta and potato salad are not the same as regular salad!"

Anyways... I went easy on Supper's #1 and #2, and opted to sit out of the dessert round someone started (various pies).

The next day we went to a paintball tournament. It lasted for about 5 hours. Unfortunately, there were little kids there playing in the tournament too, which really sucks for the following reasons:

- Unless you're very close to a kid, they won't admit that they've been hit.

- You can have your gun barrel to the back of a kids head and ask him to surrender and he will still successfully worm away from you and shoot you in the face, neck or groin, point blank.

- It rarely matters what team the kid is on, he will shoot at any sign of movement unrelentingly.

- You could be walking onto the field with a group of kids that are on your team, get a couple steps ahead of them and then feel about 20 shots to your back because they all of a sudden thought you were a bad guy.

- If you're walking out to a start-point on the course after being hit, kids will always follow you and shoot the shit out of you until you get there. Or until you swear at them and use their real names.

- Kids will cry at the drop of a hat. Do not approach a crying kid while playing paintball. This is usually a trick to get you close enough to shoot in the face, neck or groin, point blank.

After a couple hours, the kids went home (thank god). The rest of the day was fun, but totally exhausting.

Oh. Took the road bike out on Saturday afternoon for a good 20km. Finally made over 30km/h average, which was a goal I had made for myself at the end of my school year. Felt pretty good.

Funny People and Trapped at the Parkade

2009-08-06T12:35:00.004-03:00

After last weeks abysmal movie, I was determined to see a really great movie before summer ended. Being an avid Adam Sandler fan, I was leaning towards seeing 'Funny People' when it came out. Of course feeling exhausted from work on a consistent basis tends to make me push things like this off. Fortunately my friends roped me along into seeing it when it came out.

Best Sandler movie/movie in general that I've seen this summer for sure! I totally recommend you go to your local theater, or movie piracy ring and pay to watch it/own a copy of it today.

Of course when the movie ended, my friend Jables and I walked out of the theater and into 20 mins worth of sheer frustration trying to navigate the parkade to find her car.

I never thought there was any merit to that Seinfeld episode. Color me wrong.

New Race and an Hour at Point Pleasant Park

2009-08-03T16:25:00.006-03:00

So I haven't mentioned this, but I do some racing in my spare time. As much as I'd like to say I've done a bike race (other than an AlleyCat), it's hard to find any road races that are going on at any particular point in the year. I looked into it a couple weeks ago, and essentially, I've missed the road racing season. Drag.

But I've chosen my next race: the Harvest Marathon in Wolfville NS. I'll just be doing the half (21 km). I was on the fence about whether or not I'd start training for it this week or next. Luckily, some friends got me out of the house and we went over to Point Pleasant Park for a fun run.

PPP is a pretty nice little spot to get away from city streets, and get some fresh air. The jog itself however was a little slow. Only did about 4km, and the effort put into the run was probably a 3/10. Not a bad place to start I don't think though.

One feature of PPP is BlackRock Beach. If you value your life, do not swim at BlackRock Beach.

Unfortunately, the Halifax Harbor is world renown for it's unsanitary condition. This means the beach isn't open at any point. Halifax tried to address this issue last summer by making a sewage treatment plan. Things looked pretty good for a while. The beach opened for a couple weeks, and even the mayor jumped in for a swim. Later that night, it rained big-time. The storm-drains --all of which only empty in the Halifax Harbor through the new plant-- overloaded the sewage plant and the next day, after a week of being open, BlackRock was closed again. It hasn't opened since, as the plant is still fried from last year.

Now if I ran a site like www.fail.com, and gave out awards for ultimate failures for 2008, this one would definitely be in my top 5. I guess the plant itself consists of 3 or 4 big vats, none of which have lids. Also all the storm drains, which by my rationale should just empty in the harbor, in reality all connect to the plant. So I guess the boneheads that built the plant thought 3 or 4 large vats would serve over 200 000 people plus be able to absorb all the run-off from storm drains. The real footnote here is that it rains here every 3 or 4 days. So yeah. Only one word...

FAIL.

Lame

2009-08-01T22:20:00.005-03:00

So I haven't really been up to much since my last posts. Just a lot of walkin' around, lookin' around.

Something of note that happened this week was that the cops towed a car that was in our parking lot, and then proceeded to ask everyone in our apartment building (and some other houses up the street) if we've seen random kids, teens or thugs around the car at weird hours. Aside from the car simply being there, I didn't have any info on it.

It's weird being questioned by the cops. It's like I was thinking that I should act like I have nothing to do with the car when I really didn't have anything to do with the car. So I essentially have to act as if I'm not acting. How did I accomplish this? Naturally, I paused the interview in mid sentence, went to the kitchen, grabbed an apple and then proceeded to eat it for the remainder of the conversation.

I thought it would make me look more nonchalant and innocent. I felt if this didn't sell me as an authentic character, I'd have to pull out the big guns: Bananas and/or cantaloupes.

I spent the rest of the day getting ready for my Fri., Sat., Sun. block at work.

I think the most melo times at the hospital are weekends, day or night. On weekdays, the building is constantly buzzing with blood people, porters, lab nerds, physiotherapists, doctors and nurses (of course) and families. But when weekends roll around, the building clears out entirely. Sometimes it feels like the people on your unit are the only ones in the hospital at that point. Today was especially empty. Even when I went outside for some "fresh air" during my breaks, there wasn't a soul around.

The day itself wasn't too bad. Did a successful blood draw on an old lady (first try). This seems mundane, but poking into a vein on an old person is not the easiest thing in the world. Otherwise, the patients were in good shape for the most part, and not too needy. Regardless, the planned 20 minute power nap after work turned into an hour long partial coma.

Got up at 9ish, and I had to double time it to the crappy laundromat close to my house. Probably the worst one in town. Super expensive, no way to get coins, the driers are completely worthless... the list goes on. The concentration of crap however ensures that there is always a machine available.

Regardless, I had to resort to only drying half of my batch, as there was only an hour before closing time. Just the scrubs for tomorrow, and some socks. Because frankly, when your facing numerous raunchy smells all day, breaking your back, cleaning wounds, wiping bottoms, etc., the pleasant country fresh smell and feeling you can only get with No-Name fabric softeners can really save your afternoon.

Saturday night laundry trips. Who's with me?

Long, Torturous Days

2009-07-30T11:00:00.004-03:00

Apparently, whoever's been doing the rain dance that has contributed to this being my worst summer ever decided to take a break today. I didn't know what else to do, so I just went outside with the cam and started biking around. The weirdest thing happened though. I left with only my camera and wallet in my bag, and I came back with said wallet and cameras, plus an iPhone.

Bizzar.

I decided to visit a friend in Bedford for a while. Unfortunately, I was coming down Bayers rd. doing about 40 km/h, and my pannier bounced over into my spokes while I was entering the intersection. This caused the rear wheel to lock up a little bit, and sent me fishtailing all over the place. I should mention that at the time, I was in between 2 lanes of traffic (lane splitting). I was a little embarrassed by the time I made it to the side of the road, and my pannier was nearly destroyed along with the water-bottle that was in there.

The rest of the half hour ride over was nice though.

I went to the movies later that night. One of the previews was for Whip It, the new Ellen Page movie coming out. Drew Barrymore is also in this movie, and in the preview I think she was making fun on someone's appearance. I don't know if the joke was funny or not, because to me, the real joke in any of Drew Barrymore's movie's is her face.

PS: Do not spend 10$ to watch the Ugly Truth.

Joke of a Night

2009-07-28T23:08:00.003-03:00

I was at Yuk Yuk's tonight. I went to the bar for a beer before the show and this guy next to me was acting like his being there was the ultimate secret of the room. He was covering his face a little and looking over his shoulder a lot. When the bartender got to him, he whispered in his most secret tone: "Yeah I dunno... I...

I just want the chicken club sandwich".

I have a feeling that the club sandwich at Yuk Yuk's may secretly be the best club sandwich I may ever have. Needless to say they could not give him the club sandwich for half an hour.

I think he was disappointed.

A Wet Day at Work and these Bike Racks just won't do.

2009-07-27T21:34:00.006-03:00

It was pretty moist today at work. We're in an older hospital, and the air exchange isn't the greatest, which makes the job on very hot and/or humid days a little uncomfortable. The patients are feeling it too. Some are getting quite vexed by it. There are others however that are dealing with it as best as they can, like the old lady that asked me if she could have 20 towels for the day and if we could freeze a jug of water solid for her overnight tonight. I'm only assuming she'd take that frozen jug and hug it overnight until all the worries in her world melted away. Because that's what I'd do. I told her I didn't think we had enough towels to meet her demands. She got a little upset and threw a moist facecloth at me. I'm assuming the moisture was sweat, which makes it pretty gross because it hit me in the face.

My mouth was open a little bit.

After work I picked my ass off the futon in my cramped bedroom (a story for another day) and went straight to the store to get groceries to make myself a supper that would last me for the week. When I got to the bike racks, I was pleased to find them nearly full. This makes me quite happy and restores my faith in society, as people seem to be understanding that a bike can be as utilitarian as it can be for fitness and sport. In some cases, bikes can be just as utilitarian as a car.

While I was in the store however, I couldn't concentrate because I had this song in my head the entire time. The cashier I had was young and cute. Despite this fact, we did not engage in conversation.

Quitting milk, Sundays are the new Fridays and a Weekend of Mediocrity

2009-07-26T22:24:00.006-03:00

I tried quitting milk at the start of this month. I don't really know why I did it. I've heard that getting rid of it settles your stomach, and oddly clears your sinuses after a while. Though my stomach is pretty rocksteady, I find my nose is often runny, so I decided to give milk a break for a month. It feels like I'm a little clearer, however the "Almond Drink" I use for my Honeycombs and Froot Loops just isn't cutting it, so I'm going back to 1%.

I decided to hit the corner store above later in the night. There's something about corner stores that I find very pleasing. It's kind of like after you've established your primary store for long enough, you can talk with the guys inside and have incredibly succinct 2 min conversations that are somewhat meaningful instead of the 20 second sweat-shop banter at grocery stores. It's kind of nice. Some guys and gals that lived upstairs started biffing out boxes while I was inside. I was going to ask if they were moving, but then I saw a biker fly by, which distracted me endlessly. On my walk back I noticed that Sundays now seem to be equal to Fridays as a party night as several house parties were going on on my street and the one parallel. One guy even started singing (I'm assuming at me) "I have a feeling [woo-hoo] that tonight's gonna be a good night", that song by the Black Eyed Peas from his window. Yeah right, buddy. You have a lot of growing up to do.

I ran into this guy just chilling out on a patio on my walk back. One word: Adorable.