Zombies Ate My Neighbours

All this studying, writing essays, and completing end-of-term assignments is for the birds! Though I'm sure I've wasted plenty of time and have procrastinated whenever possible, it just doesn't feel like I'm killing enough time. So while we're on the topic of killing, I'm proud to announce that tonight I'll be heading out to scream in fear and excitement at Dawn of the Dead.

I can't remember the last time I've watched a decent zombie movie. 28 Days Later was okay, but there just wasn't enough zombies on screen at once, and not enough of those zombies were exploding into gooey, undead messes. I've mastered all the Resident Evil games, so my love for zombies does run deep, though the majority of the fear in those games was induced by the inability to move your character in an easy, fast manner.

Nonetheless, tonight should be a fun time, and I expect far more campy laughs than that Jesus movie had.

Currently listening to: Pearl Jam - Once

Downright Crafty

The extent to which I can be frugal and cost-effective seemingly knows no bounds - at times. A while ago I was faced with a very disturbing dilemma. During one of our many visits to Value Village for fantastic bargains, Jeremy and I happened upon an orange Che Guevara shirt, vintage, straight from Cuba. It was one of the most unique finds at the time, which was before the mass-market push of Che shirts, which can now be found at nearly every t-shirt shop and mall kiosk.

I'll be honest, I wore my Value Village Che shirt quite a lot. I wore it so often, in fact, that the ancient colours started to fade with each subsequent wash. It was a gradual change that I never really took note of. It's kinda like how you don't notice a change in your friend if you see him on a regular basis, but go a month or two, and suddenly you remark "Man, you've changed alot since I last saw you! How'd you pack on those extra 50lbs!?" So yeah, it wasn't until a co-worker of mine at Tri-City Drilling questioned just why I was wearing a light pink shirt that I finally took notice.

It's true. The vibrant orange had faded to a dull pink, making the shirt bland and almost unwearable. Now, most people would simply dispose of a shirt that cost them $2.99, but no, I couldn't bear the thought. So one hour and one packet of orange RIT dye later, I had a brand new t-shirt and the legend of Che will continue to live on!

Currently listening to: Hex - Sirf (Hedfunk Remix)

Super Mario

Hey y'all. I just thought this was a great download, so head on over and check it out!

Currently: Working like a madman to finish a Commentary Paper

Procrastination 64

Between cleaning my apartment, doing my laundry, lazing about at Nicole's, and surfing the internet, I was beginning to run out of things to eat up my time before I seriously tackled a few semester-end projects. Normally I'd throw in a healthy dose of Gamecube to consume any productive hours I had remaining, but after a week of not playing, Nicole was so rabid to play Animal Crossing that come hell or high water there was no way I could refuse her subtle coercion to lend her my precious Cube.

Enter Nintendo 64 from stage left.

I haven't hooked up this 64-bit cartridge-based beast in over a year, but let me tell you, a few rounds of Mario Kart 64 or a few levels of Goldeneye was more than sufficient to appease my videogame hunger. Between the two controllers, one has a loose analog stick from overuse, while the other has sticky buttons from New Year's champagne, back in 1998, over at Dean's place. But hey, beggars can't be choosers, and I can only get my ass kicked at UT2004 so many times before I declare competition against those hardcore computer nerds beyond the scope of human capability.

Currently: Cooking some good ol' extra spicy Shake'n'Bake!

Team Pitchers For All

To be completely honest, between work and the pressures of wrapping up another successful year at University, I haven't got much to talk about today. One of the more interesting developments this week has been Lambda Chi Alpha's winning of a student group contest at Boston Pizza on Whyte Avenue.

Looking to save a few bucks, one member discovered that if you register your student group at BP's you get 10% off your total bill. In theory you're supposed to have at least 6 members at the table to receive the discount, but they've been very flexible with this stipulation. This program was actually a contest, and the student group spending the most money would be rewarded with an evening in the Party Room and a $1000 tab!

Let me repeat that. A $1000 tab!

We were informed of our victory on Monday. Now, seeing as how Lambda Chi Alpha has less than 30 Active Members this year, we'll assume that around 20 people will be available to finish off this tab. That's still $50/person! That's enough for everyone to order a Team Pitcher and a steak! I don't know about you, but this is a pretty amazing windfall for a group of University students who were looking to save a buck or two for supper.

Currently listening to: Those old radio shows on 630 CHED.

Sonnuva!

There's only one thing worse than missing a vital Oilers vs Stars game because you're at work all night...it's making your way home after a long night at work, discovering that the game is in sudden death overtime, and the second you turn on the radio you hear, "Guerin scores! The Oilers lose 4-3!"

On a completely unrelated note, I made a call to a Mr. Khan in California tonight......

Currently listening to: KHAN!

Moderate Disdain

Joy of joys, my phone has finally been reconnected...and all I had to do was wait an entire month from the time I paid off my outstanding balance with Telus! It never ceases to amaze me that, when owing a heartless commercial monopoly money, their organizational skills and "customer service" departments are quick to mobilize, efficient, and dare I say, downright ruthless in their execution. And yet, once they've collected their money, much like a corporate Jeckyl & Hide, they revert to their inept, bumbling ways, which would explain the month-long wait to have some Telus technician stop by my apartment, wave his magic wand, and reconnect my phone.

They disconnected my line with the push of a button...couldn't they just push the green button, which I whimsically assume resides beside the flashing red disconnect one, to restore my service?

It's nice to put this entire fiasco behind me, though, as I've been running out of nasty things to say about Telus without sounding like a broken record. Entire conversations with friends, family and co-workers have been reduced to automated rants, and like any post or pre-game hockey interview, I was running out of new slanderous hell-fire to spew forth about this company.

Currently listening to: Nicole "study." A concept as foreign to me as linear quantum physics, which I nonetheless observe with an archaeologists curiosity and fascination.

3 Extra Inches

Well then! I was in the midst of updating this old Blog for the first time since March 1, but more important and pressing matters have arisen and I'm on my way out the door.

I had planned on commenting on my new job or even the fantastic season of ball hockey I've been engaged in with the gang from Vegreville, but I'll wrap this up quickly: the job pays decent and is only moderately zombifying, and those blue street hockey balls are the greatest thing we've adopted since protective goalie equipment. And while I'm bringing up goalies, it's a shame that Russel, our other vetran all-star goaltender, felt inadequate without adding an additional 3 inches. It's still how you use what you've got, Russ, but more power to you, I suppose.

Updated, on the right, the movies I've watched lately and my Ball Hockey Statistics from this season of minding the twine. Ugh...that indoor record just won't do!

Currently listening to: iTunes radio stations refresh, refresh, refresh...

Pain

Someone remind me not to try and "lead a healthy lifestyle" once I hit 30, because even an hour of physical exertion is enough, at the age of 23, to incapacitate me for days!

Though much has been said about the hours of back-breaking labour all my buddies logged simply to clear the snow for our game of ball hockey, I'd like to put those unfounded concerns aside and address my current situation. It's been months since we've gathered together to play even a single game, and though we're all fairly healthy young men, I wouldn't go so far as to say any of us adhere to an active lifestyle, so an afternoon of running around is quite a shock to the system. I couldn't imagine having to actually run around, but as an All Star goaltender, I've got a few specific taxations on my body - namely the weight of my equipment and the constant kneeling down/standing up (or, well, flopping around) necessary to be effective (I use the term loosely).

It's not the day of the game which you're concerned about, it's the next morning that truly sucks. I've been hobbling around like an old man with two peg legs and the bruises up and down the back of my legs from the pad straps only seem to increase in tenderness.

But as much as I like to bitch and moan, the sheer enjoyment from getting the gang together for an afternoon of heated competition is worth the resulting recovery time, and a few bruises and stiff legs only serve as an encouragement to make sure these games happen with an increased regularity. So here's the all the young, but aging, Backyard Warriors and their foolish exploits yet to come! Ha-zah!

Currently listening to: AIR - How Does It Make You Feel?

Royal Ten-enmity-baums

Just how am I supposed to enjoy my free, downloaded, pirated DVDs if the damn movie cuts out 2/3's of the way through!? Just as I was really enjoying The Royal Tenenbaums the infernal file went up and ended on me. For shame, movie distributing pirates, for shame indeed!

Currently listening to: Silence, instead of the last 30 minutes of the movie.