Category — Daily Musings

So myself along with friends Jordan and Oliver have started something that is starting to pickup some traction. We have been organizing sessions of Capture the Flag in the city which we dubbed Urban Capture the Flag. We had an initial “beta” match which worked out really well, then our official launch last week. Both were a lot of fun, and everyone involved seemed to really love it. Anyway this is just my quick little “introducing” email to what we have been up to. Just put a blog today for it, so go check it out at http://www.urbanctf.org/. if you are interested in playing be sure to let us know. We are always looking for more players.

“They have built a business around selling plastic discs, and nobody wants plastic discs any more.”
- Trent Reznor

So last weekend I decided I had enough with my cd collection sitting around collecting dust. So I decided to remove my cds and inserts from their jewel cases, and store the cds in a binder, and all the inserts and digipaks in a box. All the cds that I didn’t have as digital media on my computer yet, I ripped to mp3.

After separating all the cds from their jewel cases I then put back together all the empty jewel cases and made a tower.

Finally all the inserts and digipaks in an old shoebox.

Definitely much better, and no longer do I have to deal with the pain of dusting every cd I own.

Paul Krugman on the recent AIG debacle:

This was bad analysis, bad policy, and terrible politics. This administration, elected on the promise of change, has already managed, in an astonishingly short time, to create the impression that it’s owned by the wheeler-dealers. And that leaves it with no ability to counter crude populism.

Read the full post on his blog: http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/aig/

Roughly one year ago I took the plunge and bought myself a DSLR. I had always enjoyed taking photos, but never really taken it too seriously. After being pushed by my friend Lee, and positively reinforced by Laura, I ordered my Canon Rebel Xti. When I first started I had no idea what aperture was, when the best times of day were to shoot, and generally how to operate an SLR camera. So I got a bunch of books on the subject, and started to experiment.

My first couple weeks with the camera I shot all the time. Like non stop. I would go out on my lunch breaks, before and after work and shoot. It was a learning experience to say the least, but I was loving it. The more I read, and the more I shot, the better I got a feel for how the camera worked. At that time I also started to get into Flickr a lot more. I found Flickr to be extremely helpful as I was able to find photos that I liked, and try to examine how they were created, and what made them great.

So I continued to shoot and experiment. Learning as I went. Initially I didn’t quite fully comprehend a lot of what the books talked about, but as time went on it really began to sink it. Like how important the light plays in photography, or what makes a good composition. While photography is not a science, there is science and psychology behind a lot of the principals, and it is important to understand them, to be able to take a good shot.

I think when things started to sink in, and I really started to get it was when I visited Laura in London. It was a wonderful trip, one in which I was able to take a few photos (probably not as many as I should have) that I could start to apply the techniques I was learning. My first ever photo “Explored” on Flickr was of Laura’s shoes. At the time I didn’t even know what explore was.

As the summer progressed I experimented more, and continued to grow. I started to play with filters, shoot macro shots, and play around more with HDR images.

Come fall I think I started to put all the things I had learned together. A trip to visit my friends Joe and Kasie in Ventura, California really topped things off. During my week there I was able to get out and shoot daily, and feel extremely positively about the images I shot during my week.

Now I am by no means close to being a good photographer, but I think I now have the basics down. There is still a lot to learn and improve on, and so much more to explore. This is by far the most exciting hobby I have found, and am forever grateful to both Lee and Laura for pushing me in the right direction.

So last but not least a few tips for anyone else starting off in photography.

Know Your Light – Learn when the light is harsh and when it is soft. See the effects each has on shadows, and contrast. Go and shoot during the golden hours (before and after sunrise and sunset) and then go shoot the same things during midday and see how each type of light affects your image. Understanding lighting is probably the most important thing you need to learn.

Focus on your Composition – If learning the affects of light is the most important thing, then learning about composition is probably the second most important thing. Learn the rule of thirds. Then break it. Then go back to it. While it is not a hard set rule it does hold weight. Play around with placing objects in different locations in a shot, and see which ones you like best.

Simplicity is King – It is really easy to want to put lots of ‘things’ into a photo. Generally these types of shots just look cluttered. Try and simplify things, and see the result. Focus on what you want to say in your photo.

Explore – Go out and explore. Take lots of shots. Like seriously, take loads of shots. With digital now you can! You don’t have to share them all (most people say to only share your best shots anyway), but the more you shoot, the more you will learn. Find shots you really like on Flickr (or any other photo site) and try to decompose how they made the shot. Read blogs, books etc, and most of all have fun.

Looking forward there is still so much for me to learn. Some key areas I really want to focus on in 2009 are:

Taking more photos of people: Most of what I have shot so far is typically landscapes. I really would like to get a lot better at taking photos of people (either staged or candid).

Learn to Off Camera Light: I have just gotten into off camera lighting, and would really like to explore it more. In 2009 I plan to fully scour the strobist blog and learn the ropes of off camera lighting.

Utilize my Filters Better: I am still learning the ropes of the effects filters play on an image. I want to become more confident using them, and be able to choose the right filter for the right occasion.

Feel More Confident Behind the Lens: While I have come a long way since I started, I still have a ways to go. I think with continuing to learn, and continuing to shoot though this should fall in place.

2008 was another really good year for me. I was able to do a lot of traveling, see some good shows, spend time with family and friends, and find a new passion in photography.

At the start of the year I decided I wanted to get into photography. So as a Christmas gift to myself I purchased an entry level DSLR, and made a commitment that I would learn how to use it. Over the past year I have thoroughly enjoyed learning and shooting as much as I can. I will be posting a 1 year of photography post later so I will leave this at that.

As far as shows go this year I didn’t go to as many as the previous couple years, but the shows I did see were pretty special. Some of the bands and festivals I attended this year:

Justice, Eddie Vedder (x4), Black Mountain, Metric, 3 inches of Blood, Bison, Shawn Smith, Wintersleep, Bonnaroo, Wolf Parade, Pemberton Music Festival, Stanley Park Singing Festival, Finntroll, Mission of Burma, Sigur Ros, Gogol Bordello, Neil Young, and the Cave Singers.

My only regret was that I skipped the Mars Volta concert. I had tickets, but arrived back from England a few hours before the show, and didn’t have the energy to make it out to the PNE.

Speaking of travel, in 2008 I really began to take advantage of my ability to work anywhere with my Job. My first major trip of the year was a 5 day stay in California with Joe and Kasie for the Vedder tour. I found I was quite able to work productively with a noisy distracting environment. At one point I was even worked in the back of Joe’s Prius!

The Vedder tour also was the catalyst for my next trip. For the 2 Vancouver shows I had invited a Flickr friend, and fellow Pearl Jam fan from London to come spend a week in Vancouver with me and come to the shows. She accepted, and during her 1 week stay we really hit it off. A month after she left I flew out to London to visit her for two and a half weeks.

I had a fantastic time in London, and was even able to spend a weekend in Paris visiting my cousin. Surprising Jason on my arrival was also a nice bonus. However he really didn’t seem to shocked to see me there.

In June I flew to Nashville and embarked on a mini adventure with Jason and Lester through the south. We drove south from Nashville to New Orleans, then up through Mississippi to Memphis, and finally back to Nashville. We ate food at a Bar with a Kitchen, saw some fantastic live jazz, saw the home of the King, and had our vehicle fully searched by the police. All in all a great adventure. When we arrived in Nashville we met up with Kasie and Joe, and made our way to the Bonnaroo music festival.

Bonnaroo was a real blast (and did I mention extremely hot?), even if on the first day I didn’t quiet feel into it. However after seeing a couple of really great sets I got right into it. There were some really great acts at Bonnaroo, and it was a real pleasure sharing the experience with some of my best friends!

After Bonnaroo I flew east to Montreal where I spent a week visiting with my brother and nephew. I was able to celebrate my nephews birthday, take part in the Saint Jean Baptiste celebrations, as well as do a search for the best poutine in Montreal. On my way home from Montreal I made a brief stay at my parents place to deliver my nephew to them for his summer stay.

July began with another visit from Laura. We had a pretty chilled out time together touring around some of the summer hot spots in and around Vancouver. Despite nursing a horrible toothache, Laura was a really good sport all week. The day after Laura left, my parents came for a short visit. They stayed a few days before bringing my nephew to the airport and send him on his way back to Montreal. The day after they left I headed out to Pemberton with Lester and Bernie to take part in the inaugural Pemberton Music Festival. Despite a few hiccups the festival was a glowing success.

August was a relaxed month. I spent a bunch of time in Fauquier, and got to attend the wedding of high school sweethearts Dustin and Sarah. At the end of the month I went with Lester and Bernie to the first ever Stanley Park Singing Exhibition put on by the New Pornographers.

September I invited Kyle to Vancouver to attend his first “real” concert with a band he really liked. It was great having Kyle around, and to take part in his first ever concert. We also managed to organize a session of hockey for him, and were able to get Jen and Steve out.

October I caught a bunch of really good shows (Gogol Bordello, Sigur Ros, and Neil Young). Near the end of the month I had my wisdom teeth removed. While in November after the depression of the Canadian election, and the exciting of the US election, I took a trip to Ventura, California to visit Kasie and Joe. It was a really relaxed visit. We played lots of settles, surfed, protested, ate some really excellent food, and I took some of my favorite photos of the year. Like all visits this one was too short.

At the end of November I organized a surprise stag for my best friend Joern. Bernie, Lorne and myself kidnapped him after work and flew him to Calgary to attend a Flames game, play paintball, and visit with some of his close friends. I would like to say I was the star of the weekend for doing something really cool, unfortunately this weekend will go down in everyone’s memory as the weekend Stefan jumped (or was it fell) down 5 rows at the Saddledome.

Finally December marked the end of the year. It was a true December, with snow, sledding, family and fun. It was also one of the best Christmases I can remember.

So tonight I will cap off another great year, and look forward to the new year ahead, and a month (or more) in Hawaii.

Happy New Years everyone!

At least if you are a Pearl Jam fan!

Checkout the latest Radio 3 podcast:

http://www.cbc.ca/radio3/podcasts/radio3/CBCR3_2008-10-24.mp3

If you don’t feel like listening to the whole thing skip ahead to about 12 minutes in!

My parents told me to checkout a group of Canadian Geese who were hanging around the golf course. It appears a white goose made some friends with some Canadian Geese and is now living with them. It was really cute seeing them together. I wonder if the white goose knew he was different?

Here are a couple photos of them:

I also made one that works pretty well as a desktop background:

Yesterday I went for a hike with my brother up in Garibaldi Park (inbetween Squamish and Whistler). We got up around 6am, and made it to the parking lot by 8am. Pretty good for having been up the night before at our year end hockey keg party.

It took us roughly 2 hours to get from the parking lot up to Taylor meadows. There was quite a few people up there camping, definitely a nice spot to setup a tent. Anyway we carried on with our hike to the top of the Black Tusk. It probably took us another 2.5 hours to get to the top of it. The very last section, getting up to the very top of the tusk is a bit sketchy as you have to climb up an almost vertical chimney. However after the initial section of it, it really wasn’t so bad. After having lunch from atop to tusk we made our way back down the mountain. We completed our circle by then going down to Garibaldi Lake on our way to the parking lot. Rob went for a quick swim in the glacier lake. I would have too, unfortunately I had no change of clothes. Anyway I doused myself in water instead.

All in all it was a fantastic 11.5 hours of hiking up with my brother. Definitely worth going back to.

Here are a few photos from the hike:

Panorama of the view from atop the Black Tusk:

Rob and me on top of the Tusk:

Me nearly at the top of the Tusk:

So last Saturday I went for a hike up Mount Hilda with my brother Rob, Helmut (a friend of the family) and 2 young Bavarian friends of Helmut’s. Mount Hilda is just behind Fauquier in the Valkyr Mountain range. Here are a few photos from the hike.

Start of the hike, going up the old logging road, before heading up through the cut block and into the alpine:

When we got to the end of the cut block we continued up through the woods, and followed a stream all the way up into the alpine.

Indian paintbrush halfway up to the peak of Hilda:

Me right after I reached the peak of Mount Hilda:

The amazing view from the top:

As if you haven’t had enough of this song, check out the Sesame Street version:

This has been something that has bugged me since I recently upgraded to Ubuntu 8.04. I found the solution here.

After about 4 years of the same theme for my blog I have finally gotten around to updating the look and feel around here. I used the fantastic theme called neoclassical mainly because it was somewhat similar to my previous design, as well featured a very nice typography as well as a clean css tableless layout. Maybe the new design will inspire me to blog more.

During my time recently in Montreal I had a goal to find the best poutine in the city. I had grand ambitions, and thought it would be a simple task. What I found however was:

1) There were far more places that served poutine than I had imagined
2) Everyone seems to have their own favorite place
3) Poutine is best had with a nice cold pint of beer

With that in mind I still went out and tried 3 places. One place was a Montreal chain restaurant, while the other two places were staple poutine shops that had been around for years.

Frite Alors

This chain restaurant can be found all over Montreal. I checked it out with Tatiana and Kelly. I had the beef, mushroom and onion poutine. Overall it was ok, what I would expect from a chain. Not bad, not great.

La Banquise

Known as the ultra hipster joint in Montreal, this place has been around for a while, recently celebrating their 40th anniversary. I took their recommendation and had the bacon, onion and green pepper poutine. To be honest I had high hopes for this place, but unfortunately they didn’t deliver. I found their poutine mildly better than Frite Alors, with some really sub par fries. I think they could do with a change of their deep fry oil, and a lesson in making good fries.

Maamm Bolduc

Our final stop of our poutine tour took us to Maamm Bolduc. This bohemian place has a very extensive menu that makes it look like it would a fantastic place to have breakfast. However they do have at the back of the menu a good list of poutine. We decided to go with the ground steak with onions and mushrooms in a red wine sauce. Let me just say we saved the best for last. Not only was the meat sauce absolutely delicious, the fries were also cooked to perfection, and clean and fresh, unlike those from La Banquise. Next time I am in Montreal I will be sure to be back at Maamm Bolduc.

Conclusion

Montreal has a lot of poutine places, and I am sure I only just scratched the surface. However I think I did get to experience one of their better places in Maamm Bolduc. I would have tried more after that, however my brother had had enough at that point. So for now, Maamm Bolduc takes the price, until next time I am in Montreal I suppose.

Jason, Lester and Stefan enter Flanagan’s Pub looking for breakfast.

Stefan: “Do you serve breakfast here?”

Bartender: “This is a bar with a kitchen.”

Stefan: “So uh do you serve breakfast?”

Bartender: “I said this is a bar with a kitchen. So what’ll ya have to drink?”

Stefan: “So you serve like a proper breakfast then?”

Bartender: “You guys look real confused, why don’t you sit down.”

Jason Lester and Stefan consult each other “Does this place server breakfast???”

They sit down. Bartender hands them each a menu.

Bartender: “So what are you drinking?”

Stefan: “Do you have lemonade?”

Bartender: “No, this is a bar.”

Jason: “Can I have a hot chocolate please.”

Bartender rolls his eyes.

Bartender: “Maybe you don’t understand, but this here is a bar with a kitchen. How about a high life.”

Jason: “Alright that is fine.”

Stefan: “Can I get a Corona?”

Lester: “Yeah I will have one of those too.”

End Story. Picture of awesome bartender to follow.

He later goes on to ask if we are stoned because of how confused we look. We ask him where to get good Cajun food, he almost throws us out of the bar. “Guys, this is New Orleans, we were founded by Europeans, we eat Creole food here. Cajun is about 200 miles West in Lafayette. If you see any restaurant here ‘claiming’ to have a Cajun kitchen don’t go there.”

Anyway great bartender who inadvertently started us on a chain of events that found us eating some really amazing Creole food, and catching some fantastic Jazz.

Fantastic new song from the Islands new album. I am loving this song, have listened to it too many times already.

http://radio3.cbc.ca/play/band/Islands/The-Arm/