Well, we did it. through pain and tears, my sisters and I ( with the help of our great friend and inspirational runner Derrick) finished the Calgary Marathon this morning and we came in under 5 hours… This a a huge accomplishment as it is our first one and have only been training this year! So let the Stampede begin ( that’s what is happening here in Calgary right now), because the training is done, the race is over, and we have some drinking time to make up for…..Right after I take a nap for about a week…..

Hate to admit it, but Microsoft gets cool. Microsoft Suface, aka Milan, is an amazing new approach to holistic communication with limitless technology interaction. Take a look at this video or visit their site at microsoft surface. This is soooo smart!

If you never took science beyond grade 5 you don’t claim that you are a rocket scientist and start giving engineering advise. If the only thing you have ever baked was by a 20 watt light bulb in an easy bake oven, chances are you wont right a book about the secrets of fine cuisine. And, if your artistic ability is limited to finger painting and stick figures that tend to look like Gumby rejects, then you probably wont go head to head in competition with Picasso over a cup of espresso. So why is it that drive by commentators seem to be experts on everything no matter what their background? And why, if these experts are so amazing and right, can they not even sign their name. This blog is a vent dedicated to the cowardice of anonymous blaspheming drive by commentators.

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And today, I graduate…well kind of. As with everything else about my Interior Design Program, it is a rather blurry and abstract convocation. You see at 2pm I show up in my long blue gown and wait for my name to be called so that I might accept the scroll which certifies that I have earned my degree. This little piece of paper is to justify the 4 years of Kraft dinner, pre-mature aging, sleepless nights and tantrums over silly things like pencil lead issues. But that’s okay cuz now I have it right? Wrong. Once again my program has some how wiggled away from the norm of the college policy and I in fact have 2 more months of school to complete…AFTER Graduation….The little piece of paper is like a promise note. “IOU on degree in 2 months…have a nice day”. My second graduation will be in August with the ring ceremony.

            But this doesn’t defeat me. I got a new do ( my hair is another atrocious story…hint…don’t ask for something crazy the day prior to a big event), I got my new dress ( again another horrific story about buying things too small on line) and I have plans to eat out ( no actual plans but I am sure MCDees can fit in two more). So At 2  today I will arrive; blue in the face due to my too-tight 70’s disco eBay dress, 6” taller with my trailer-park beach fuzzed hair, and 4 years smarter with my blank piece of paper! Isn’t graduation great!

What is worse than buying a gift on-line for a birthday present and it arrives late? How about it comes late, is broken, and non-refundable. I understand that it is a gambling game with eBay, however, one would think that the eBay stores would be a safe bet. Bet again. The store is called Dallas2you and it is not one you should shop at. I paid full price for a set of MP3 glasses ( buy it now option). I got them 5 weeks late ( evidently they sent it to the wrong address but did nothing to compensate me). Then we got to use them 5 times and they simply stopped working. When I contacted the store I kept getting an automated response that informed me they tested all the products prior to shipping and that they do not give refunds. Now I have to send it back on my own dime, wait for them to test it again and hopefully send a new pair. I am guessing that once I send it                                    off I will see anything from them again.

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Imagine a community that was sterile, tidy, quiet, reserved and regimented. A neighborhood that said goodbye to noisy streets, chaotic markets, and invading neon. A residency that cultivated hygienic, strategic and standardized dwellings so that all the world was harmonious and uniform. Sounds like a sci-fi flick to me ( enter zombies here). This was the premises of La Ville Radieuse, the Radiant City by Le Corbusier. It was his answer to all of the workers who needed adequate residency that was not in the heart of the city. Promoting a ‘big scale’ it was a collection of units in big buildings with big open park and big urban highways. This inhospitable and socially destructive building failed, but it lead the way for community design planers to create new urban schemes and regimented housing projects. This spreading of economic cookie cutter housing is rapidly creating a serious backlash of misused resources, community disassociation, physical de-appreciation, and highway congestion to say but a few. This is ‘urban sprawl’. Corbuiser lead the way with Radiant City, which is a satiric film on the subject should fittingly be named the same. Radiant City the film is a documentary about suburban sprawl that is both funny and educational.

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Okay, first the scene: You are a female tourist in Vietnam riding in a taxi on a busy street that is in the middle of some accident bumper to bumper crises. The car is not moving, you are sweating, you have no idea where you are and to make matters worst, you need to pee. So you cross your legs and wiggle around and send a silent prayer to whoever is listening to give you the strength not to urinate on the nice cabbies seat. Well it is not God who answers but the driver, “I have something for you.” he states and he hands you a shewee. That’s right, a shewee. Evidently they are rather common in some areas of the world, but I only heard of it recently from a friend whom was stuck in a taxi in Vietnam during a traffic accident at rush hour.

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I remember not so long ago having a love hate relationship with my Ubuntu laptop distro. I loved the comely shades of brown and the cool sizzling earthy music of its start up, but it was nothing but smoke in mirrors because my crappy Acer decided to have an equally crappy wifi connection. And so the only good memory my laptop has are the lingering images of milky browns and echoing chimes. Alas that too is gone as Ubuntu partners up with Java and releases a new colour pallet of purple with their 7.04 distro.You might not see its lavender shades, but its there. Jabuntu is watching you.

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My attention span could give a magpie a run for his money. I love Shinies. I once bought a large basketball shaped yellow citrus fruit , not knowing what was inside , just because it made me smile. Cute, eccentric, in need of medication, you be the judge. This time it is not fruit but little desk accessories that have turned my head and lead me to a site that offers a collection of quality baubles and special gifts. The MOMA store

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Well it has been a lovely hiatus, but the time has come for me to bring back my blog. It was a busy semester and there was just no time for the pod cast, school, work and the blog. Now, I am back. And what will be the first blog of my return you ask? What passionate, life altering literary delight do I have for you? I am sad to say it is Puppy Love. I found it at Yanko design.com and have never been the same.

Have you ever suffered from the shinnies? It is when you experience something that is so bad you have to do it again. Like watching an accident, it is awful but you just cant look away. Like eating that horrible Thrills gum, it tastes like soap and yet we keep chewing. Or smelling your sneakers to make sure they are dirty…hello …they are dirty…smelling them twice to confirm just makes it dirty and weird. Well this is how I felt after seeing the Hotdoll for dogs. It was a sensation of funny meets ridiculous but dates cool on the side.

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