bien dans ma peau
I’ve been working on a new project having to do with “web 2.0”. As I explained to Michiel over a googletalk chat; I’ve decided to get involved with some sites on the internet; part of that whole web 2.0 dynamic in order to expose myself to new ideas. Since I’m usually in 4 different places— either camp, home, visiting my ‘rents or off wandering around Alberta, my MacBook has become an essential part of my life (or it could be my iPod but that’s debatable). My MacBook is the one constant, the one thing I know I can take with me everywhere and stay in touch with the world; and that includes all of you :)
Unlike most camp employees, I don’t go home to a family or significant other or even a dog. It’s usually just me, my car, cellphone, a camera, my MacBook, my purse, iPod, identification, hairbrush, bank card and…….a plan. Since I can’t carry around paper journals and books for all my hobbies, I’ve been working on putting my public life/interests online. My private life stays private of course but I figure I can give enough information to get enough information in return. My blog is one way but it’s limiting; not too many people find pagans that hypocritically work on an oil patch all that interesting. Some perhaps, like my loyal readers, but most go for the drama queens.
So in the next few weeks I’m going to start listing these sites I’ve joined or are joining. We’ll find out together if “web 2.0” lives up to the hype afterall, eh.
survey says…
the search for a new hometown continues but it seems I might have found a contender and it’s close Calgary :) I’m staying for a 24 day shift but on next days off, if the roads are good, I’m going to take a road trip and reconnoitre.
I found something really cool the other day called LibraryThing. It’s a website where you can archive all the books you own and apply tags. You can also search lists belonging to fellow members. I’ve uploaded about half of my books and tagged them. You can organize them by tags such as wellness, spirituality, cooking etc. My LibraryThing can be found here.
twisted transistor
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead”
— Albert Einstein
New year, new adventures. Over Yule I thought a lot about moving and I’ve decided to get a place of my own. I don’t know if I’ll stay in Cold Lake. I’ve been surveying people at work, asking about what they think of their hometowns. When I get back from shift next week I’m going to go apartment hunting. I’m excited as I’ve always wanted a place of my very own— where I can I can be as eccentric, nerdy and geeky as I want. A place that’s a physical representation of what’s in my head.
My blog is slowly evolving. I know I’ve talked a lot about myself lately and not so much topics of interest but life was busy. Now it’s settled down a bit and I’m back to hitting the books and studying. I even bought a few books over Yule break; most notably Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by B.K.S Iyengar and a few books on the elements of Japanese design, aesthetics and Shintoism. I think my blog is finally going to start becoming interesting. As for the design, that will be finished when I get my Adobe Illustrator software exchanged for the English version.
from bad to worse
just to prove to michiel and the rest of the world my incredibly bad luck— I ended up missing work today. Instead I spent it in a doctor’s office in Fort McMurray. My cheek is swollen up like a chipmunk and I have to go for x-rays when I get back to Cold Lake. Apparently I may have akin to a stone in my saliva duct/gland (whatever). SoOoOo just when I started to feel better after the whole tooth thing at Yule, and the falling on my ribs and ass thing last week, I now have to continue to take powerful antibiotics, painkillers and spend a shitload more money on my health.
Januarys are just not good to me. People die or I get sick or I lose my job or sometimes it’s interchangable(sp?) between those three. I don’t believe in predetermined fate; even the heathen idea of fate is more flexible in that fate is made up of many thing including obligation and choice. In another nutshell it basically states that our past, including that of our ancestors, our choices and our deeds determines our future.
Yoda says it best “always in motion the future is”. Still Januarys just never seem to work out for me. However, I’m pretty pissed off right now about my health (when am I not) plus a few other things that I noticed today while in town and I’m going to find a way to fix it all or at least get life under control again. I’ve been pretty slack since I moved to Alberta and just testing the waters and spending time just adjusting. I think I got it down now so basically it’s go time and things that have been waiting to get done are going to get done.
the sound of one hand clapping
dyed my hair black yesterday. In this picture I’m listening to an audiobook called What is Zen? on my U2 ipod. I’ve been think a lot about spirit and spirituality as well as how to simplify religion. Even though I’m a pagan with a modest education in eastern philosophy I still feel that I’m either overwhelmed or underwhelmed in my spiritualness as of late. I’m a bit at a standstill but my mind has been racing with ideas on how to amalgamate what I’ve learned in order to structure it then simplify it to its essence.
sore
what’s black, blue and sore all over? moi. Three days ago I fell off a bus and used my ass and my ribs to break my fall. I look like I’ve been given a few whacks with a baseball bat. good times. So I have bruised ribs and pulled muscles but also an excuse to just relax all weekend :)
Until the wireless internet issues get sorted out at work, posting might stay sketchy. There is always the possibility of purchasing a wireless air-card but that’s about a $100 a month. hmm.
anyways, more later; right now it’s tea time.
prodigy
task #63: add 101 non-fiction books to my library is complete! The final total was slightly over 101 books :D It’s insane, really! I bought 101 books in 6 months and that doesn’t include the fiction books I purchased. wow. I feel kind of funny about it.
task #37: buy a proper set of cookware. This one was completed during Yule but not by me. My parents gave me the Jamie Olive Professional Series cookware set by T-Fal as a gift. All too easy…
more fun with snow
today I did another first! I walked on a frozen lake :) Kind of fitting since it’s the first day of the new year. Oh, and I woke up early and caught the first sunrise of 2007. Enjoy the pictures.
mac unpacked!
well I didn’t get Creative Suite installed as I’m waiting for an exchange for the English version. However, I was able to download and install the Adobe Photoshop CS3 Beta and have been monkeying around with it tonight. Here are the pictures of my mac unpacked. Sorry they’re not great but the camera I was using isn’t the greatest.
say hello to kyle
I finally made the switch from PC to Mac as of today :) Say hello to Kyle! They say all Macs are female but my new 17” MacBook Pro is decidedly male and I named it Kyle after my favourite Jedi Master…Kyle Katarn.
It was a process that started with the release of Mac OS X. I had gone to college and received a diploma in Network Administration (a smattering of Unix and Linux but 98% was Windows 2000 Server) and another diploma in Web Development. I didn’t use to like Macs because I found the OS even more bothersome than Windows. I was also never a big fan of those fruit-coloured iMacs.
After dealing with Windows-induced tech headaches and working for a company, that in my opinion makes horrible PCs, I gave into the will of the force and back into the lightside fold. Once I saw OS X and was able to spend some quality time with it, I fell hard— technolust. I finally had a way out of my Windows world.
But I’ve never been able to afford a personal computer, especially not a Mac notebook. So for the last two years, I researched and planned what I would buy when I could finally afford a computer, more specifically a Mac. As a Yule gift to myself, today I got my MacBook Pro and it’s been a wonderful day indeed :) The packaging is environmentally friendly; packed with recycled paper and no plastic (Apple used paper boxes that are sleek and reminicent of origami with the way they fold together). The setup process was a miracle— I plugged in the A/C adapter, turned it on, plugged in my ethernet cable, chose a username and password and voila! I was good to go.
I didn’t receive one single error message, my Apple Mighty Mouse and Office 2004 for Mac installed flawlessly. I even watched a DVD, The Devil Wears Prada, and the new glossy screen showed it off well. There was only one mistake through the whole process. I received Adobe Creative Suite 2.3 as I ordered but…it’s in French. So I have to phone Apple and get it exchanged.
I took pictures of my Mac as I set it up (called a Mac unveiling I believe) and will have those pictures online ASAP either when I get the English version of Adobe or when I have time to sit down and learn how to use Aperture.
……………………
In other news, during the next fews days you’ll be seeing an almost completely redesigned, reimagined blog. I might even be changing the name. I want my blog to my more informative as much as it is personal and heathenry/witchcraft will only be one aspect I’ll be posting about— kind of reflects my life since my spirituality is only once faucet of what makes me…me. I hope you stick around. I sure some will welcome the changes while others will move onto other blogs.
even the geeks think I’m uncool
it’s true. As far as geekiness goes, even the geeks think I’m uncool. What kind of geek enjoys the Star Wars prequel trilogy and likes Load and Reload by Metallica? ;) By admitting that I have planted myself firmly at the bottom of the geek hierarchy.
I had more to say but I ended up at the emergency room last night because of my tooth ache so I’m feeling a bit spacey from the painkillers the doctor gave me. Apparently my wisdom tooth is infected in the gum area (which, for long time readers is no surprise because I’ve been procrastinating for 3 years to get them pulled). So now I’ve learned my lesson and as soon as possible, when I get back to Alberta I’m going to get them pulled. First, I have to finish a round of penicillin to get rid of the infection. good times.
spicy
here are some pictures I took on my 12km hike along the Vedder River in Chilliwack, BC for the Winter Solstice, and my trip today to Harrison Hot Springs, BC to buy my buddha statue :) Enjoy!
the rule of three
Three more tasks completed on my 101 things in 1001 days list :) They be:
- Task #44: buy a MacBook Pro.
- Task #49: buy a wacom tablet.
- Task #99: purchase the complete U2 collection on iTunes. (which I actually did about 2.5 weeks ago but forgot to strike it out on my list).
For you fellow geeks out there that are curious as to what I purchased this afternoon, the list is as follows:
- 17” MacBook Pro
with the glossy screen, 2GB RAM, 100GB 7200 RPM HDD, (including an extra battery for those long busrides back and forth to camp). I also got Aperture pre-installed and it comes with iLife which has Garageband so I can make podcasts. - Wacom Intuos 9x12 tablet
- Adobe Creative Suite Premium 2.3
- Star Wars Battlefront for Mac
- Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic for Mac
- 2 iTunes music cards for $50 each.
- a sling-style pack for carrying the MacBook back and forth to camp.
- Microsoft Office Student and Teacher Edition.
- Bose QuietComfort 3 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones. This was a must-have— absolutely. Expensive, but when you work on a construction site, regular headphones are useless— I know.
