...and now with painted baseboards!

 

Annual Fall Colour Report, pt. 1

"The fall colour season is just barely under way..."

WooHoo!

Laurie and I are the proud new owners of this!!!
 
 
 
Can't wait for Algonquin.
Speaking of which... Look for the next post

New Floors Cont'd

 
 
 

Return of the Colour Report

So far, not much colour change going on in Ontario's forests. Soon though. Soon.

Carpets Begone!

 

Out West

2007 Canadian Ultimate Championships

Start Thursday.

The aptly named Paradise Valley

Alpine blooms have short lives

Congratulations!

Sunset over Rundle

Frappuccinos: summer's liquid cheeseburger!

"A cup of black coffee is a three-calorie beverage. Add a teaspoon of sugar and a splash of milk and you're up to 35 calories. But order a frozen coffee drink and you've turned a low-calorie beverage into a 500-plus-calorie liquid dessert."

How children lost the right to roam in four generations

The article is good, but the map is better. Succinct and compelling.

The Polish John Cleese

"However, Ms Merkel views Poland, rather than Britain, as the main opponent of a deal and the hardest nut to crack. Such perceptions were confirmed when Warsaw raised old grievances about Germany to try to bolster its case for a "fairer" voting system in running the EU. Under current arrangements dating from 2000, Germany has 29 votes to Poland's 27 in EU councils. The new system, based on population sizes, will give Germany more than double the Polish vote. The Poles are demanding a new way of calculating votes that would diminish German "hegemony."
Under the nationalist Kaczynski brothers, prime minister and president of Poland, it seemed Poland was bent on refighting the second world war against Germany in the bunkers of Brussels.
"If Poland had not had to live through the years 1939-45, Poland would be today looking at the demographics of a country of 66 million", rather than 38 million, and would warrant a much higher quota of votes in the EU, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the prime minister, told Polish radio.

Well. Seeing as the founding principle of the EU is "Don't Mention The War!" it seems to me that the only possible response would be repeated viewings of this classic Fawlty Towers sketch. However, the Poles had a different response - thinking out of the box as it were and I have to say, I didn't see this coming:

Neat Sailing Tricks

Apparently this is important before you sail around the world...

Not Another One

Toronto Police: Cyclist Killed. Here

That's Gotta Hurt!

Frenchman Marc Gicquel (R) gets medical aid by a doctor after he received a... - Tennis - Yahoo! Sports

Despoiling a Treasure

Once again, the MNR and forestry companies cut off their nose to spite their face. This is truly a shame, and MNR should be ashamed of itself - although given that it is little more than a vessel for the industry needs to begin with...

Luminato is over

This is my awful snapshot of PulseFront. You can find much, much better ones in places like this such as this one.

There were lots of other public art things around, such as Union Station's horses.

Fascinating Engineering Feats

Galveston on Stilts

Wayne Gretzky-Style 'Field Sense' May Be Teachable

Wayne Gretzky-Style 'Field Sense' May Be Teachable

Gender Blender X-Rays

Apparently a fun time was had by everyone except those with broken bones - captured online!

Cubicle warrior's guide to office jargon

Oh so painfully true.

Where is your fish from?

May 24 Weekend

Doors Open Toronto is this weekend!

For a complete list of the open door buildings, look here.

John trying the footblock on Noah!

Doors Open guide - May 24-26

From The Star.
There's also an online map here.

100 Mile Diet in Toronto

Technically, Bonnie Stern cheated, but this is seriously impressive for Toronto in the spring:

An incredible taste of the place she lives. The salad alone contained marvels we’d never eaten before: a winter lettuce called Tango (among 11 other lettuces), marigolds, chickpea sprouts, popcorn shoots. On top of the greens, roasted white beets with smoked ricotta cheese and smoked, sun-dried Principe Borhgese tomatoes (an Italian food tradition that has faded so badly that Ontario’s David Cohlmeyer now ships his to Italy - so it goes in the global-local food chain). Then came sweet potato and maple syrup mash, roasted carrots, and braised short ribs from Cumbrae Farms, a group of selected small farms working with special breeds. (Someone asked Cumbrae’s Stephen Alexander if there was a simple way to tell small-farm meat from industrial, factory-farm meat; he replied, “Forget claims and trust your eyes and trust your palate.” He says he can instantly smell the sulfates from industrial animal feed.) We drank apple sangría and local wines. Dessert was caramelized apples with maple syrup semifreddo over crepes.

A Kitchen On The Cheap

The New York Times on the bare minimum one needs to provision a kitchen - for $300.

In Toronto, you could go to :

• Nikolaou

• Nella

• Dinetz

The list:

• 8-inch, plastic-handle stainless alloy chef’s knife for $10
• Instant-read thermometer $5
• 3 stainless steel bowls $5
• Sturdy tongs: $3.50
• a sturdy sheet pan
• plastic cutting board
• Paring knife $3
• Japanese mandoline for $25 (for thin, even slices or a real julienne)
• $4 can opener
• vegetable peeler
• colander
• a small, medium and large cast-aluminum saucepan (total: about $30) - just not the awful wafer thin sets of stainless or aluminum ones sold in big-box stores.
• medium nonstick cast aluminum pan (10-inch; $13)
• a large steep-sided, heavier duty steel pan (14-inch; $25)
• single lida skimmer (for removing dumplings or gnocchi)
• a slotted spoon
• a heat-resistant rubber spatula (replacing the classic wooden spoon)
• a bread knife (good for crusty loaves and ripe tomatoes)
• a big whisk
• food processor (12-cup capacity)
• salad spinner
• Microplane grater
• coffee and spice grinder
• An immersion blender
  
• A whetstone or a decent steel

What not to Get!

• BREAD MACHINE You can buy mediocre bread easily enough, or make the real thing without much practice.
• MICROWAVE If you do a lot of reheating or fast (and damaging) defrosting, you may want one. But essential? No. And think about that counter space!
• STAND MIXER Unless you’re a baking fanatic, it takes up too much room to justify it. A good whisk or a crummy handheld mixer will do fine.
• BONING/FILLETING KNIVES Really? You’re a butcher now? Or a fishmonger? If so, go ahead, by all means...
• WOK Counterproductive without a good wok station equipped with a high-B.T.U. burner.
• STOCKPOT The pot you use for pasta will suffice until you start making gallons of stock.
• PRESSURE COOKER It’s useful, but do you need one? No.
• ANYTHING MADE OF COPPER More trouble than it’s worth, unless you have a pine-paneled wall you want to decorate.
• RICE COOKER Yes, if you eat rice twice daily. Otherwise, no.
• COUNTERTOP CONVECTION OVEN, ROTISSERIE, OR “ROASTER” Only if you’re a sucker for late-night cooking infomercials.

Jesse in the Garden

Some photos of the rapidly changing garden.

The Five-Second Rule Explored

Testing the Five-Second Rule. Basically - don't eat it...

Go walking Saturday to remember Jane Jacobs

Spacing Wire • understanding the urban landscape » Go walking Saturday to remember Jane Jacobs

Early Days of Toronto's Streetcar System

Fascinating - up to the Lake Simcoe service from the 1920s.

Maybe I Won't Work on the House After All

The NY Times has a compendium of DIY horror stories. . .

Pwned: Syllabus

Seemed somehow relevant given the blog name.
Anyway, I'll populate the post with more info, but I just wanted to say how amused I was by the Globe's coverage of the Digg HDDVD issue.

Astonishing Kayak Trip

From BC to Tuktoyaktok. In a kayak.

100 Mile Diet: The Book's Arrived

Here's the blog, but go buy the book here

On Virginia Tech

"There is no reason that any private citizen in a democracy should own a handgun. At some point, that simple truth will register. Until it does, phones will ring for dead children, and parents will be told not to ask why."

Shootings: Comment: The New Yorker

The Way We Age Now

Human beings fail the way all complex systems fail: randomly and gradually. As engineers have long recognized, many simple devices do not age. They function reliably until a critical component fails, and the whole thing dies instantly. A windup toy works smoothly until a gear rusts or a spring breaks, and then it doesn’t work at all. But complex systems—power plants, say—have to survive and function despite having thousands of critical components. Engineers therefore design these machines with multiple layers of redundancy: with backup systems, and backup systems for the backup systems. The backups may not be as efficient as the first-line components, but they allow the machine to keep going even as damage accumulates. Gavrilov argues that, within the parameters established by our genes, that’s exactly how human beings appear to work. We have an extra kidney, an extra lung, an extra gonad, extra teeth. The DNA in our cells is frequently damaged under routine conditions, but our cells have a number of DNA repair systems. If a key gene is permanently damaged, there are usually extra copies of the gene nearby. And, if the entire cell dies, other cells can fill in.

Nonetheless, as the defects in a complex system increase, the time comes when just one more defect is enough to impair the whole, resulting in the condition known as frailty. It happens to power plants, cars, and large organizations. And it happens to us: eventually, one too many joints are damaged, one too many arteries calcify. There are no more backups. We wear down until we can’t wear down anymore.

Annals of Medicine: The Way We Age Now: Reporting & Essays: The New Yorker

Pearls Before Breakfast

The Washington Post has a brilliant concept piece, perfectly written and illustrated with video. Wow. Joshua Bell, Kant, Stradivarius, Koyaanisqatsi and the life of a commuter all in one article.
Likely the best article I've read in months - and those that know me know that encompasses several thousand articles (which is actually an interesting point in itself. I should one day work out just how many words a day I read. A scary thought, greatly in inverse proportion to how much I write). I wonder if it will actually change my behaviour on a day to day basis.
Anyway, I imagine that the WashPost will take it offline or behind subscriber doors soon, so I highly recommend reading/watching/pondering it.
Also - a follow-up here.
and here
and here

The 4 Kinds of Flat Roofs

Hmm. What to do...

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/knowhow/exteriors/article/0,16417,1127447,00.html

housing prices rollercoaster

What a ride! And quite the information aesthetics. I want to do that for some of my work data...

Have Your Say On Toronto's New "Street Furniture"

Toronto's sell-out of public space continues.
It's instructive to examine the vendors record on illegalsigns.ca

Toronto's hidden rivers

This is great. Check out the sub-links on Toronto area river basins: http://www.thestar.com/photoGallery/199469.
http://www.lostrivers.ca/
http://www.torontofieldnaturalists.org/

Canoe Paddling - Canadian Style

Wow. Makes me look like such an inelegant hack.

Trip Recap: Wapta Un-Traverse

Pictures are here.

Cool Toronto Game

For the record, I'm going with Bathurst and Davenport.

Nordic Skiing in Fernie

Fernie Report

Unfortunately ski conditions have been less than attractive. Last Sunday and Monday, the Pineapple Express, that was advancing over BC, peaked over Fernie. The ski hill was assaulted with high winds and pounding rain that extended almost, but not quite, to the highest skiable terrain. On Monday, much of the hill was closed because of the avalanche danger and there were several large slides within the ski hill boundary. Since then there has been a dusting of new snow and colder temperatures. Neither of which have managed to undo the storm damage.

Today was nice and sunny but “Old Sol” was unable generate sufficient thermal energy to do much good.

Not that it would matter, as I didn't have any gear until after 2:30 and then when I borrowed my sister's - my "loaned"season's pass was flagged as not being mine! So quickly skated away from the liftie, who was saying "Sir, you have to go to guest services!" so I can be fined and the season pass pulled!!!

Oh well. Quite the birthday.

We're Not Happy Till You're Not Happy

Thanks Air Canada for making my birthday something less than it could have been. A nice blue bird day here in Fernie - and me without any luggage.


PS - any fault that could/should be addressed to me for last-minute unpreparedness is totally deserved, and will be ignored as per usual :)

So Not Fair

Fernie Snow Report - Official Fernie Alpine Resort Snow Conditions Report.

All that snow. And now it's melting. Melting away.

Ow

Something to avoid in the next couple of weeks.

Another way for me to injure myself

File this one under basketball.

Dock

Somewhere on Parrot Cay

Intersection of antropology and economics

It's a clever blog - and apparently that intersection is mostly marketing, but there's some fun commentary on things as diverse as why female CMOs are more likely to be sacrificial change agents to people's relationship with their pets.

Kite

Seadoo Spray

Gung hei fat choi!

Chinese New Year is upon us!

Horseshoes & Hand Grenades

For someone in my line of work (loosely described as tech research - better described as custom data collection - accurately described as monotonous), this is an awesome screed on the biz as it is.

Oh, and the worst: fielding emails from PR parasites eager to suck away precious time in a half-hour phone meeting while the Senior Vice-President of Smoke Blowing tells me about how his company's software—based on an idea cribbed from Google—is going to change the way I look at something I didn't care about in the first place. (Inevitably, "forever.")

CSM Re-cap

CH did his crazy thing - skied 70 km carrying his sleeping bag and food, slept outside, then skied another 70 km faster than I could without a pack...
SI and PS both finished 70 km both days as Coureur des Bois Silver, so they can now enter CH's category Coureur des Bois Gold next year should they be so foolhardy (and yes, of course, they are that foolhardy :)
I entered the "tourer" category, and started at 8:30 am (not the 6:30 am start of the CdB's) after missing the first bus- then tried to catch up and beat the time cut-offs (like the Ironman, they close the course to stop people from skiing in the dark). I made the time cut-off at the last checkpoint by 3 minutes - going >50k in 6 hours - then I bonked. And couldn't move - next year I'll remember to drink more fluids/eat more, so I can finish the whole course. Anyway, on Sunday, seeing as I wasn't eligible to finish as a CdB, I skiied a fun 30k with L (well I had fun - she seemed kind of zonked at the end :)
It was interesting as I've never really been an endurance sport kind of person to see what it was like - over 6 hours of going hard, your mind/body goes through all sorts of weirdness. Anyway, burning >6000 calories in a day means that I don't feel bad about eating well for a while :)
And it's the furthest I've skiied in a single day ever - and same for L, so good for us (and to P, S, & C, thanks for dragging my as out to this after 5 years of procrastination ).

Hmm

Dunno anyone like this at all...

Data becomes Art

Fascinating video of flight patterns in the US and how they illustrate other socio-economic-geographic data, all set to vaguely Buddha Bar-like tunes.

CSM Changes

This is good to know about...

Working Diligently

Current location

Thanks to Google Maps

Gosh, it's hard to focus

Stanford Prison Experiment: Now on YouTube

Thanks to Accordion Guy for the references. A classic psych experiment, now on ww video for all to see - rather than just read about in text books...

Bartleman's Book Drive

This is a great initiative that I'm sure we can help out on.
For more details, please see here or here for this year's program. In short, it's:

From January 1st to January 31st, new and gently used children’s and young adult books can be dropped-off at any OPP or Toronto Police Services detachment in Ontario (including Toronto Police Services headquarters on College Street in Toronto). With the support and assistance of the Canadian Forces, other voluntary organizations, and shipping companies, these books will be shipped and distributed to aboriginal communities.

Snow in Vancouver

Canadian Canoe Routes :: Vancouver Snow Storm...

Ultimate VideoPapers

Instructive AND fun. The Layout and positioning ones are new.

Wapta Traverse Hut to Hut Ski Tour across the Wapta Icefields in the Canadian Rockies

WooHoo!!!

Happy New Year

Season's Greetings!

A Calvin Christmas Thought

Not enough?

More Calvin with Snowmen!

Xmas Spirit?

Hmm. From the New Yorker:

Since the early nineteen-nineties, Joel Waldfogel, an economist at the University of Pennsylvania, has been doing a series of studies in which college students are asked to put a value on the presents they receive. Waldfogel’s main finding is that, in general, people spend a lot more on presents than they’re worth to those who receive them, a phenomenon that he calls “the deadweight loss of Christmas.” A deadweight loss is created when you spend eighty dollars to give me a sweater that I would spend only sixty-five dollars to buy myself. Waldfogel estimates that somewhere between ten and eighteen per cent of seasonal spending becomes deadweight loss, which means that billions of dollars a year is now going to waste.

But, on the upside...

A study by the economists Sara Solnick and David Hemenway shows that we value unrequested gifts more than presents we ask for, because we assume that the former show more thought.

So,

Waldfogel’s studies also suggest a very different solution: if most of the presents we buy are going to be less valuable in monetary terms than in sentimental ones, then there’s no reason to believe that the more expensive gift is a better gift. In fact, the more we spend at Christmas, the more we waste. We might actually be happier—and we’d certainly be wealthier—if we exchanged small, well-considered gifts rather than haunting the malls. Calculating the deadweight loss of Christmas gifts is a coldhearted project, but it leads to a paradoxically warmhearted conclusion: the fact of giving may be more important than what you give.

All quotes from James Surowiecki

Calvin Cont'd

Winter Calvin cont'd

Christmas Calvin!

How to Navigate Public Transit in Toronto

Cool.

Another "You Ask, I Answer"

One excerpt:

Nearly 100 Americans are dying every month. The United States is spending $2 billion a week."

And the total?

The United States has made a massive commitment to the future of Iraq in both blood and treasure. As of December 2006, nearly 2,900 Americans have lost their lives serving in Iraq. Another 21,000 Americans have been wounded, many severely.

To date, the United States has spent roughly $400 billion on the Iraq War, and costs are running about $8 billion per month. In addition, the United States must expect significant "tail costs" to come. Caring for veterans and replacing lost equipment will run into the hundreds of billions of dollars. Estimates run as high as $2 trillion for the final cost of the U.S. involvement in Iraq.

Ouch. But there you go J-Mac.

Online Music

A competitor to Pandora along with last.fm This one matches by mood, gauging your it on the axes of Positive/Negative and Calm/Energetic. Pandora looks for similarities between your faves and other songs within the music itself. Not sure what Last's method is yet. So far, I'd say that musicology plays more familiar music - which is a good and bad thing.