One Week

I want to watch this. The theme may be over used, the budget small- but it's Canadian roots are something that makes it worthwhile.

Life Goals

We had to do 100 life goals as an assignment. I thought I'd share them- notice how they deterirate as I get more and more tired of doing them. I began to run out of good material :).

1. Live on the Bridle Path.
2. Have a better posture.
3. Stop contributing to consumerism and shopping at the Dollar Store.
4. Go to Australia.
5. Learn the guitar.
6. Learn sign language.
7. Visit France.
8. Finish Law School.
9. Move out.
10. Work at Borden Ladner Gervais.
11. Write a book.
12. Get Married.
13. Drink more water.
14. Plant a garden.
15. Go on a road trip with no predetermined destination.
16. Run a marathon.
17. Eat Healthier.
18. Go to more concerts.
19. Learn to golf.
20. Become a millionaire.
21. Retire Early.
22. Have Granite countertops.
23. Become a majority shareholder in a start-up company.
24. Donate my money.
25. Learn French.
26. Visit Azizi (in Italy)
27. See the northern lights.
28. Become a university law professor (after I retire )
29. Change the world.
30. Have a kid.
31. Be a better friend.
32. Backpack through Europe.
33. Sleep under the stars.
34. Leave my city once a month, leave my country once a year.
35. Tithe.
36. Read the Bible more.
37. Witness a miracle.
38. Meet the Dalai Lama
39. Take more pictures.
40. Stop sweating the small things.
41. Learn to splurge 
42. Make an indy movie.
43. Dance in the rain.
44. Learn to drive manual.
45. Own a BMW.
46. Send my child to UCC- if they’re a boy.
47. Become a member of the Granite Club.
48. Listen Better.
49. Volunteer more.
50. Join a fraternity.
51. Have a website.
52. Keep my blog- forever.
53. Subscribe to the Economist.
54. Visit facebook less.
55. Switch to Mac.
56. Do more things outside.
57. Buy a cottage in Muskoka.
58. Read more books.
59. Go on a roller coaster.
60. Discover the meaning of life.
61. Do all my required readings in University.
62. Stop worrying excessively about other people’s opinions.
63. Finish an entire container of ice cream at once.
64. Never shop at Wal-mart.
65. Think about the big picture.
66. Eat more good food.
67. Eat at Susur’s new restaurant in NY.
68. Love.
69. Become a member of a political party.
70. Get baptized.
71. Go “Green”.
72. Try out some new friends.
73. Judge people patiently.
74. Lose the me-first mentality.
75. Get to the end of this list.
76. Stay at every Fairmont hotel in the world.
77. Live in Hong Kong for a year.
78. Find real love.
79. Write an entry for an encyclopedia.
80. Learn the real meaning of “being a man”.
81. Make memories with those I care about.
82. Ditch worldly possessions.
83. Ride the trans-Siberian railroad.
84. Join a band.
85. Make a difference.
86. Love God.
87. Win at the casino.
88. Stay in a “presidential suite”.
89. Go on a cruise
90. Buy a boat.
91. Design a shirt.
92. Join a gym
93. Work out consistently.
94. Appreciate my culture.
95. Learn to like apples.
96. Bake a pie.
97. Own a respectable wine cellar.
98. Get a 95 average in university.
99. Meet Barack Obama.
100. Change the world.




Voila!

Away for the weekend

After a long week of badminton try outs (which, happily, turned out well :))- I need a rest.

I'm going up to Mini-yo-we this weekend for a much needed respite.

See you in a few.

DECAAAAA!, and a note on the "sheltered" generation

This weekend, I participated in the DECA Ontario regional competition.

For the unintiaated, DECA has a pretty good page on Wikipedia here.

I competed in SMDM, or Sports and Entertainment Marketing. There were a bit over 4700 other students there, all decked out the in the annoyingly mandatory business attire.

Considering my age (9, 10, 11, and 12 all compete in the same competition), it's not very surprising that I didn't win. I usually place first for grades 9 and 10 in my own chapter, but it's not good enough to place at Provincials.

My partner has a tendancy to score less-than-optimal exam marks, which typically brings down our combined score. It stinks, but now that I'm an executive in our chapter, I"ll get to choose my own event next year.

It's slightly awkward to be responsible for a group of toughened, slightly intimidating 11th and 12th graders, especially ones I don't know, but they surprised me with their politeness. Always give people time. They'll end up surprising you (perhaps not in a good way, but that's exciting too :P).

I was the unofficially appointed tour guide for my group of friends. We had almost six hours of dead time to kill downtown at the Sheraton centre, so I suggested that we break a few rules and wander outside. It surprised me how sheltered us "suburban" kids are. They'd never seen the Peace Garden in front of City Hall, never seen the City Courthouse, and were completely baffled by the TTC.

A few weeks ago, I brought my friends to Chinatown (the one on Spadina). After buying some student tickets, they walked straight through the turnstile, unaware that they had to put one of their tickets inside that box thingy. The TTC staff member at the booth stopped one of them, but the other one managed to sneak through. It's a salient reflection of the consequences of urban sprawl.

Hundreds of thousands of youth will have never ventured out of their safety zone. I look around at my sheltered friends, and I weep for the future :). 20 years from now, our country will be lead by people that have been spoon-fed all their lives.

It's time for parents, (and their offspring) to begin to consider their futures. We need to equip ourselves for society. One day, the dreams of our generation will fuel reality.

Dave Devall Retires

Dave Devall is retiring after nearly 50 years of work at CTV. I'm a bit late on this one- as he announced his retirement on Monday, but it's better late than never.

I usually get my TV news from CTV, and Devall has become an icon of the times. The fact that many people, even non-watchers of CTV recognize Dave is a testament to his work in Toronto.

CTVis playing daily celebrity video tributes at the end of each newscast- and they're quite entertaining.

We'll miss him- but he'll apparently be returning for guest appearances.

Here's to a career of great meteorology.

Second semester

Well- I'm in class, first period, second semester. And I hate my schedule.

I found out just recently that I share every single one of my classes with a person that I very much dislike. It's going to be a heck of a semester.

How am I blogging from school you ask? First period is a joke.

It's pretty much free web browsing time- which is great.

Teacher is looking my way. GOtta run.

1 down, 7 more to go.

Well, first semester is finally over. I've enjoyed my 9 day exam break, but it's time to head back to the books. It hit me that I'm now officially 1/8 done High School. I just have to repeat this dreadful semester thingy 7 more times, and I'm free! (well, at least in University)


I watched the first three quarters of the Superbowl- but then I got bored. Still- the 100 yard interception run by whatshisface on the Steelers was mighty impressive. It's the longest ever play in Superbowl history, but it all went downhill from there.

Anyways- I've got to prepare for school tommorow.

It's back to the drag for me.