Wednesday, June 30, 2004
More DVDs for the Collection
I had a short workout at the gym. It was very busy and there were too many people doing multiple sets in the circuit area so I decided to avoice it. I didn't have the energy to try and be patient and polite and ask them to move. What part of "Please do not do multiple sets..." on the signage do you people not understand!!
After the gym, Colin and I had dinner at Swiss Chalet. We then stopped in a WalMart so Colin could get a new watch, and the both of us found a bunch of super-cheap DVDs. When I got home I thought I'd game for a bit but instead I wound up watching G.I. Jane. Great movie!
Posted by Dre at 9:06 AM
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Tuesday, June 29, 2004
Fast Food is Nasty
Colin and I went to see Supersize Me last night. We ran into Scott and Suzy there. It was a great documentary! If you haven't had a chance to see it yet, I recommend making the time to check it out. Even though I eat out quite a bit, I don't eat very much fast food at all. I'm especially glad that I don't after seeing this film. The one thing I may try to adjust in my diet is to start drinking more water and stop drinking pop.
I also voted last night for our Federal Election. I'm glad I got a chance to have my say. I voted for what I thought was the lesser of the evils, and I'm happy that we now have a minority government. I'm hoping that'll make them more accountable for their actions than if they were a majority government.
Posted by Dre at 10:36 AM
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Monday, June 28, 2004
Another busy weekend...
Thursday after work, Lisa and I went down to Market Slip to see the reinactment of Samual de Champlain's arrival. It turned out to be a handful of people dressed up in period costumes. Nothing too exciting, although I got a couple of decent pictures. We then walked over to the Ale House and got a brewtender and supper. Anthony and Dan joined us, then Michelle and Anthony B., John, Jay and Colin. Wemosied over to check out the bands playing at Fort La Tour and caught the last couple of songs by Maxwell's Sons, and then stuck around to watch the fabulous fireworks show. It was very well done. It was set to symphonic music and lasted about 25 minutes. Teh usual fireworks shows around here are about 10 minutes, with each firework going off one at a time - usually not all that exciting. Needless to say, the show put on Thursday evening was pretty exciting in comparison.
Friday evening was Lisa's "Ladies Night" since Anthony had gone to Toronto to see an Evil Dead musical. I had dinner at Mings with Colin first and headed over to Lisa's around 8:30. It was a fairly mellow crowd - just Lisa, Julie, Ann and I. We watched Dirty Dancing, chatted for a bit, then decided to go out dancing. Well, the last time Lisa and I were out dancing must have been a couple of years ago. We thought we'd go to Studio 54 but it was closed, so we popped upstairs to Club Montreal. It was deadly quiet. The guy at the door gave us each a ticket for a free drink (no cover charge!) and at the mention of karioke, Lisa and Ann's eyes lit up. I sang one song - since there were maybe 4 other people there. I think Lisa and Ann sang 2 or 3 songs each, then we left and went to the Spy bar. It wasn't very busy either. The folks who were there were pretty young - we saw Semi there. But the music was good to dance to, so we stuck around. All in all it was a good evening - relaxing and fun!
Saturday morning I had a hair appointment, and in the afternoon I gamed, napped and went to the gym. It pretty much poured all day, which was a little depressing. That evening I popped out to John's b-day party and hung out for a bit, then went home and made it to bed at a fairly reasonable time.
Sunday morning was Colin's triathalon. I hung out with Cliff and Shannon and we cheered him on. Cliff made fun "TEAM PARC" shirts up for cheering Colin on. Colin did very well - he beat his time that he was aiming for. This was his first triathalon and he did a great job! Congrats, honey!
Sunday afternoon I relaxed and gamed a bit more, then around supper, Colin and I headed upriver and had a fabulous dinner at Bill and Dawn's. We didn't stay too late because Colin had to get some more work done on a homework assignment for a job interview. I spent the rest of my evening gaming (big surprise), although I did still manage to hit the hay fairly early.
It looks like a busy week. We vote today. It's actually stressing me out a bit - I was thinking of seeing Supersize Me tonight, but I might wait and see it tomorrow night instead. That'll give me a chance to catch some of the election coverage on TV tonight.
Posted by Dre at 9:02 AM
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Thursday, June 24, 2004
Top 5 Things I like About Saint John, NB
As we celebrate the 400th Anniversary of Samual de Champlain discovering us, I'd like to spend a few minutes reflecting on the things I like about this city....
1.) The Friendly People. People here say hello as they pass you on the street. The local shopkeepers know you by name. There is something comforting about that.
2.) Standard of Living. Where else could I afford to live so well? We have a surprisingly high standard of living, which is something that has helped convince me to stick around a bit longer.
3.) Access to Opportunities. A few years ago, I thought I'd try out for an open audition with the Saint John Theatre Company. Little did I know that it would be so easy to get involved in the theatre community. It's like that with most things. You just have to speak up and people seem to welcome you in with open arms.
4.) Proximity to Nature. I know I don't get out to enjoy them enough, but we do have some lovely parks in this city - the Irving Nature Park and Rockwood Park. Also, it's a real treat to live right next to the Saint John river system AND the Bay of Fundy. A lot of folks around here take it for granted that we live right next to the ocean. On a whim I could go kayaking, whale-watching (or both!), hiking, canoeing, camping, you name it - and it's all in our backyard!
5.) Lack of bugs in the Uptown Peninsula. That's right - it's a pretty big plus for me. The "natural air-conditioning" that we get from the Bay of Fundy seems to keep most of the bugs away. Only when I go upriver to visit friends, am I reminded that I need to coat myself in bug spray to avoid the mosquitoes, sand flies, black flies and horseflies.
Posted by Dre at 9:54 AM
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Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Top 5 Non-alcoholic Beverages for a Hot Summer Day
1.) Water
2.) Iced Tea
3.) Pink Grapefruit Juice
4.) Lemonade
5.) Sprite
Posted by Dre at 9:13 AM
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Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Great Deal!
I ran over to CD Plus yesterday to pick up a CD and thought I'd check out their selection of PS2 games. To my delight, they had Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time for only $30 with an additional $10-off coupon! Guess how I spent the rest of my evening....
Top 5 Breakfasts
1.) crépes
2.) french toast
3.) apple pie
4.) left over red thai curry
5.) cereal with a banana
Posted by Dre at 8:38 AM
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Monday, June 21, 2004
Le Short Weekend
A one-day weekend is far too short for my liking. A 2-day weekend is barely long enough. What else did I do this weekend? Watched High Fidelity, played more Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy, did a wee bit of shopping, made it to the gym, hung out with Colin for a bit, and hung out with Lisa for a bit, and Anthony - who came along to the mall. All-in-all a decent yet short weekend.
In the spirit of the "Top 5" Lists from High Fidelity, Please let me know your Top 5 Overplayed Songs. Here is my list:
1.)"Everybody, Everybody" - C&C Music Factory
2.)"Boys of Summer" - Don Henley
3.)"Toxic" - Britney Spears
4.)"This Love" - Maroon 5
5.)"Backstreet's Back" - The Backstreet Boys
Posted by Dre at 10:09 AM
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Saturday, June 19, 2004
A Short Weekend
It's Saturday and I'm at work. Which is fine by me - it's kinda blah out anyway. Things are very quiet in the office today - there are only a couple of us in. Yee-ha.
Last night I treated myself to some new DVDs (they had some great stuff on sale at FutureShop.) I picked up Kill Bill, High Fidelity, a 6-Disc set of The Pink Panther movies, and a 5-disc set of Gene Kelly movies. Needless to say, I have all sorts of stuff to watch now! I love spoiling myself. :-)
Posted by Dre at 3:21 PM
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Friday, June 18, 2004
Latest Addiction
Thanks, Lisa, for introducing me to my latest addiction, Inspector Parker. Now, if I can only be my best score of 50,278...
Posted by Dre at 10:28 AM
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Thursday, June 17, 2004
Yet another quiet evening.
I had a great workout at the gym yesterday - I think I'm still pumped from it (albeit a little achey). after the gym, I went home and had a tasty Indian meal and then Colin came over and we headed down to Terry's convenience store and picked out a movie to rent. We decided to watch Bowling for Columbine, which neither of us had seen. We both really enjoyed it. Definately worth a watch, and definately makes me proud to be a Canadian!
Posted by Dre at 9:03 AM
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Wednesday, June 16, 2004
Sunny Day
Another quiet evening on the home front last night. I went straight from work to the gym and then straight from the gym to the loft to catch SJTC Second Stage's Evening of Monologues. By the time I got home it was about 9 PM and I made a quick meal for myself and settled in to game. The thing is, I didn't have the energy. So I flipped channels for a bit then hit the hay early.
I brought my gym gear today so I could do a full workout after work. But since it's so nice out today I don't know if I want to go to the gym this evening. I'd rather try to spend some time outside - I'd feel guilty if I didn't take advantage of it.
Posted by Dre at 12:34 PM
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Tuesday, June 15, 2004
I thought about seeing Stepford Wives but from what I've heard the reviews aren't so good for it. I also wanted to see The Chronicles of Riddick but I guess the reviews for that are even worse. So that freed up my evening to game last night. I picked up SPHINX - And The Cursed Mummy on the weeekend and was eager to give it a try. The thing is, I was too tired to do much gaming. I just didn't have the energy to concentrate. So I shut it off. I watched North Shore which was a waste of time, and then read a new comic that I'd picked up on the weekend. It's called Hawaiian Dick and I really enjoyed it. I'll have to make a point of picking up more of those. I guess they're thinking of making a movie based on the comic, starring Johnny Knoxville. I hope they do a decent job with it.
Posted by Dre at 11:47 AM
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Monday, June 14, 2004
Ryan's 20 Questions
Ryan Gilbert recently interviewed Lisa and I for his TGI20 Questions site. You'll find us under "Other".
Posted by Dre at 10:40 AM
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Weekend update
Last Thursday night I went to the Somerset Pub to see Mike Cowie, who was promoting a new CD. It was an excellent show, but I had a terrible headache so the jazzy trumpet blaring was making me wince rather than tap my feet. Needless to say, I left early and headed straight home and to bed.
Friday was a busy (and hellish) day at work. Friday evening I got home to an entertaining message on the phone from Anthony, who was sitting in the courtyard having a few drinks. I hung out with him and Dan and Lisa and Colin for a while and Shot the breeze. Colin and I grabbed supper at Taco Pica and then started to watch Pitch Black. We only got abotu 15 or 20 minutes into it before I started to fall asleep.
Saturday morning I had a great workout at the gym, and I remembered to renew my season subscription to the Saint John Theatre Company. Colin and I left for Fredericton that afternoon and I did a bit of shopping at Regent Mall and Strange Adventures (Comic Book Store). We spent the night in Fredericton visiting Colins friends Besty and Jamie and had a very relaxing evening.
On Sunday we left Fredericton around lunch time and headed to the Merryfeilds. Colin was going to swim in the river but the wind had picked up quite a bit, making it too choppy for swimming. We decided to stick around and hang out, socialize and get some sun. We came back into town for supper - Colin made excellent bison burgers. We then finished watching Pitch Black. It wasn't bad. Kind of predictable in some ways.
Posted by Dre at 10:22 AM
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Thursday, June 10, 2004
Take it Easy, Bro
Last night Peter came over and we rented Timeline. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be - but then again I wasn't expecting very much from it. I think the premise was interesting and it was a decent movie except for a few slow parts. And, oh, Paul Walker. I think he's terrible. I kept expecting him to say "dude" or "bro" and sure enough - when they are in the 14th century, he makes a point of telling one of the locals to "Take it easy, bro." Yeesh. Also - I didn't for one second believe that the token female of their group (played by Frances O'Connor) was actually interested in him.
Posted by Dre at 9:22 AM
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Wednesday, June 09, 2004
A Nice Visit
I made it to the gym last night. I just did 1/2 of cardio. Still trying to get back into the routine. Speaking of which, I intended to bring my gym bag to work with me today and I forgot.
My friends Peter is in town, and last night we got a chance to catch up over a beer at Churchills. It was good to see him - it seems like his job in Toronto is suiting him well. Silly guy, bought a gigantic truck - a real gas guzzler. I don't know what he was thinking. Well, at least he's happy with it.
It looks like it'll be a quiet evening tonight - hopefully I'll make it to the gym, and then I'd like to try printing out some digital photos, although I suspect I may need to pick up some new printer ink. I've been scrapbooking my photos from the last year and I'd like to try to finish that stuff up soon. That reminds me that I also need to make the time to update my photos on this site. I don't think I have anything up since last summer.
Tomorrow (Thursday) night, Mike Cowie is playing at the Somerset Pub. I think he's just put a new CD out. Anyway - he puts on a great show and I'd like to catch it. I know Lisa's interested in going as well. Anyone else interested in coming along?
Posted by Dre at 8:46 AM
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Tuesday, June 08, 2004
Addiction
Beware! Rocket Mania is addictive! I made it to "Master of Pyrotechnics" (417995 points). Whew!
UPDATE 2004/06/10: "Imperial Pyrotechnist" (484585 points)
Posted by Dre at 2:35 PM
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The New Potter Film is Worth a Watch
Last night I saw Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I really enjoyed it - I liked the fact that it was darker than the previous films, and that it stayed true to the book. Great casting too. I guess it's over 2 hours, but it certainly didn't seem that long!
Posted by Dre at 8:37 AM
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Monday, June 07, 2004
A Sunny and Warm Weekend
It was a lovely weekend - the first taste of summer for a lot of folks around here. The weather has been pretty bad lately - and it has fel more like November than May/June. Anyway, it was nice to be able to enjoy a couple of days off with decent weather.
Friday night I cleaned my apartment, then Colin came over and we watched Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which Colin hadn't seen before. I got a very entertaining phone call from Lisa and Anthony et al, who were well into a few drinks at the Ale House. They wanted more company, but Colin and I had already settled in for a quiet evening. I was pretty tired form a long week, and I slept at least 10 hours that night. Guess I needed it.
Saturday was lovely, although I spent most of my day indoors. I had a desire to get cracking on some scrapbooking, having gotten tired of staring at the pile of photos from the last year that needed to be organized. I did manage to get outside for a couple of errands. And I did make it to the gym which felt great but was exhausting. Saturday evening was another quiet evening. Colin came over and we watched Torque which was uber-fluff. Wow. Glad I rented it for a low price.
Sunday was a busy day. The highlight of my day was going upriver and kayaking with Colin. It was great to eb able to spend some time out on the water on such a nice day. I only got a tiny bit pink on my forehead, thanks to the tons of sunblock I sprayed on. Unfortunately, I also got a weird rash on my chest and one shoulder. I wonder what it's from. I still have it today and it's still itchy as can be. I hope it goes away soon!
Sunday evening I just did more scrapbooking. I felt like I should at least be trying to do something productive with my time. Now I'm back to the grind. It's a busy day at work, but I can't seem to get going. I'm just about to eat my lunch now. I hope the protein also gives me some energy cause I feel like I'm about to fall asleep at any moment. Yarr.
Posted by Dre at 1:45 PM
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Friday, June 04, 2004
TGIF
It has been a long week back at work and I am really looking forward to a hopefully relaxing weekend. I am going to try to get back into my gym routine this weekend. Because of working long hours and doing rehearsals, I haven't been able to go regularly for the past 5 or 6 weeks. Now that I once again have my evenings free, it'd be nice to be able to get back into shape.
I picked up The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King on DVD last night. Of course I didn't have the time or energy to watch all of it, but I did skip through it and watch bits and pieces.
I have some cast photos that I took with my digital camera that I need to gather up and send out to everyone. Hopefully I'll manage to get that out of the way this weekend. I heard the weather is supposed to be nice so I may not spend too much time indoors working on my computer. I need to take advantage of good weather when I do have the time off. Maybe a bit of sunshine will help me feel a little less down.
Posted by Dre at 12:54 PM
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Thursday, June 03, 2004
Canary
I took it easy last night. I got takeout from Mings, invited Colin over for a bite to eat, watched a bit of TV and went to bed nice and early. I've been meaning to do that for a while.
On my way to work this morning, I saw a wild canary. I know they exist around here. The last time I saw one uptown would have been about 6 years ago. We both stopped and eyed each other for a moment, and then we moved on. It makes me happy to know there are such things as wild canarys that exist in uptown Saint John.
Posted by Dre at 8:23 AM
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Wednesday, June 02, 2004
A Mellow Mid-Week
Colin made a tasty BBQed shrimp, steak, asparagus and potato supper last night. I hung out at his place and we watched the last 2 episode of Las Vegas which he had taped for me. Scott M. dropped off a comics catalog and I looked through it. It was a mellow evening.
Things are somewhat quiet today at work - which I am enjoying, since I still don't totally have my voice back. I think I'm going to take things easy tonight. Maybe get a couple of things done at home and maybe even try to hit the hay early. I could certainly use the down time. I still feel as though I haven't stopped in a long long time.
Posted by Dre at 10:41 AM
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Tuesday, June 01, 2004
Finger 11
It was a SUPER-long day at work yesterday. Holy Moly. Tough to try to get back into the swing of things after 7 or so weeks of being at least partially preoccupied with working on a play. I managed to eek my way through the work day. As soon as I was done, I headed over to Harbour Station to find Renny, who was adjusting the lights up on one of the lighting rigs. I walked back to his hotel with him and we had a quick bite to eat there. It was nice to at least be able to spend a bit of time with Renny. He'd reserved a couple of tickets for Colin and I to see Finger 11, so we met up with Colin as we got back to the venue. I picked up a T-shirt. I like the fact that they sell womens T's at concerts now. Ten years ago you'd rarely if ever find a fitted T at a concession stand.
The seats were quite good, and the show was enjoyable. I'm not too familiar with most of their music - but I do enjoy a few of their songs. They used half of Harbour Station and there was a fairly young crowd out to see them. The stage was fairly simple - nothing to fancy or tidy. The lighting was pretty good - although I have to admit - I must be getting old, as the strobe light effect that they used now and then was starting to bother me. I used to love that stuff. I thought they did a good job overall, although I did find the guitar player on the far side to be rather distracting. It seemed like he was trying way too hard to be some sort of character (or perhaps was just rather blitzed) - he spent the better part of the show wildy swinging his guitar around and trying to play it at every angle. Precision was not his goal. The guitarist on our side of the stage, on the other hand, may have been jumping around quite a bit now and then - but he stayed in control so he could really wail on his guitar. The bass player didn't move around very much, and the drummer seemed to be having a lot of fun. The lead singer did a pretty good job - he has a wide range of vocals - I just wish I could have heard some of his quieter vocals over teh guitars. I guess that's one of the hazards iof live shows - if I really want to hear the best quality I should go out and buy their CD. Colin and I left after they played "One Thing" followed by the song that they did that is on SSX 3. So, all-in-all it was a good show and worth my time. Thanks again, Renny!
Posted by Dre at 8:20 AM
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