Saturday, April 30, 2005

Kershaw Chive


Kershaw Chive
Originally uploaded by iTripped.
If I was to carry a pocket knife, this would be the one I wanted most. It comes in a variety of finishes, including multi-coloured titanium, etc. but there is something to be said for the simple elegance of the polished steel. They are pretty pricey up here in Canada, but in the US, even Wal-Mart carries the chive for a decent price (but not the cheapest).

What I like about it is the small size and quality of construction. I used to carry a small knife with me, until I lost it on a trip home from Vancouver. Anyway, I'm hoping that one day a generous relative (or spouse) happens to get me one as a gift.

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

What are your three must-carry items?

I used to work with a guy who referred to the "Holy Trinity" as his wallet, keys and cellphone. Lately for me, I have noticed I don't leave without my wallet, keys and sunglasses. For another, it might be smokes, money and watch.

My question to you is, what three things do you have in your pockets whenever you leave the house?

Monday, April 25, 2005

Day at the beach


Louise in the water
Originally uploaded by iTripped.
Yesterday the weather was nice enough for us to take Louise to the beach. We headed out to Kal park, and made our way to the water. Our plan was to see just how well Louise could swim, as we didn't know yet.

Louise can swim, just barely.

Once at the beach we let her run loose, so she could play with the other dogs. She doesn't really swim unless she has to. At one point I carried her out a little deeper and we confirmed that yes, she CAN swim if pressed, but Louise would much rather keep her paws on solid ground if possible. When the day was done, all three of us were exhausted.

Monday, April 18, 2005

Not only is it shiney, but it works too!


Razor
Originally uploaded by iTripped.
Yes, it works. What I have found is the modern razors allow one to be sloppy or rushed without consequence. I don't have a problem with that - in fact, I grew quite used to it.

No, this has always been about me being a cheapskate. Or more accurately, not willing to spend a small fortune for the convenience. It's also about using fewer disposable products that contribute to our landfills.

By the way, the penny is included in the shot to give a sense of scale. This is also before any polishing has been done to the razor.

I have found that it works very well, provided that I take my time. Also, I have only wet-shaved with it, and have no plans to use it dry-shaving. Holly commented on how close a shave I was getting when she noticed I had less stubble after 2 days than I would normally have after one. There is a learning curve though, as it is possible to get too close of a shave.

Friday, April 15, 2005

My shaving odyssey begins.

I managed to find a double sided safety razor at a local antique shop for $6.00. At that price, how could I argue? Blades from a local general store cost me another $1.49 for a pack of 10. Total cost for razor and blades was a whopping $7.69 after taxes.

For now I will continue with my shaving gel and look into getting a shaving brush and other things later, if desired. One thing I am glad about is that today is Friday. This means I have 2 days of practice before I return to the office. So if I inadvertently cut myself with this thing, I'll have a day or so to heal.

I'll see about posting some pictures (of the razor, not my anticipated wounds) once I have time to polish it up a bit.

Thursday, April 14, 2005

Existing prototype of my underwater home?

I discovered this site while browsing today. It is for the Jules Underwater Hotel. I wonder if I can get a grant to build one of these babies close to Vancouver? One fundamental difference between this and the idea I envisioned is this one maintains constant pressure with the water, where my idea was more like a submarine, where pressure in the living quarters was kept the same as sea-level. This approach looks to be much simpler in principle. Of course, I would have to teach Holly how to dive, if only so she could properly decorate the place.

New goal: to become an aquanaut.

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

Gloomy bears

I just stumbled across this site that sells Gloomy Bears. Apparently, it was a problem for some people to get regular stuffed bears as toys, since real bears are never as cuddly. I particularly like the vacuous look in the eyes, but that's just me. No plans to purchase one at this time.

Friday, April 08, 2005

Tired of paying for razor cartridges

I admit it. Typically, I'm in a rush and I dry shave with a Mach 3 razor. And I get razor burn from shaving too quickly. I don't hate it, but it definately isn't enjoyable. What I do hate is buying replacement cartridges for my razor. How did a 4 pack of triple blade cartridges end up costing more than the original razor?

I understand the economics, so don't feel the need to enlighten me.

I hate it so bad I started to look at alternatives, and I'm glad that I did. The first article I discovered was from MSNBC, which talked about getting a good, close shave. Here I was re-introduced to the shaving methods of my grandfather.

These methods require specific equipment: a double edged safety razor, a shave brush, shaving soap or shaving cream and possibly a shave mug or bowl. Examples of said equipment can be found at a site called Classic Shaving.

By this time, I'm thinking 'Cool - this is just the sort of thing I was looking for!' So I started looking for more sites, and more information. I came across this site, which tries to make wet shaving seem like a religious experience. I was somewhat disillusioned. The gear was nice, but he was somewhat elitist for my tastes.

However, I am going to give it a try. The wet shaving, that is. I doubt I'll get the ultra expensive equipment on these sites, at least right away. If I can get rid of the razor rash, AND ditch expensive cartridges, I'm already interested.

How to blog safely

The EFF has a great page up today on how to blog anonymously, which in this day and age is growing in importance. Before I go on, here's the link.

Why is this important? Because quite frankly, just about everything on the internet is logged and very, VERY traceable. I blog with an identity. Because I do, what I say on my blog immediately reflects on my character. But suppose I wanted to write about work, without the fear of getting fired for it. Or suppose I wanted to write about politics. Or suppose I lived under the oppression of a hostile government and wanted to write about my experiences, but would be persecuted for it. You get the idea.

Thursday, April 07, 2005

To PSP or not to PSP

If you had asked me yesterday if I was going to buy Sony's PSP, the answer would have been no. I am impressed by the device, but will probably buy a PDA instead as you can simply get more done.

Then today I stumbled across the following 2 links:

BBC News
Engadget

The second link shows a functional IRC client on the PSP. The first one mentions hacking a web browser from the Wipeout Pure game to work on other addresses. These 2 things by themselves are very cool. The PSP appears to have captured the imagination of a lot of people, kind of like how the ipod did. It's not surprising, since it has a big, shiney screen and plays pretty 3D games. If Sony allows this cottage industry to grow, the PSP could become a cultural hit like the ipod. But if Sony operates like they usually do in this regard, the device will be crippled before long, to disallow the hacks. People will tire of this, and move on to the next shiny thing.

The biggest problem so far is text input. If Sony manages to design a keyboard for the PSP, we will have an ultraportable laptop replacement.

But back to the games. The real reason to hold off on getting a PSP right now is the lack of a good, bloody first person shooter. End of story. Halo sold the X-Box. Release a quality FPS, and if I haven't already bought a PDA, Sony will get me as a customer.

It's 4:44 AM

and I cannot sleep. Well, I could, but I was keeping Holly up with my snoring, so I got up for a while. I figured that since I am up, I might as well do a little searching online to see what can be done about my snoring. So I emailed my doctor. Well, not really MY doctor, but the specialist that treated me before. I'm not sure I'll hear back, but who knows, they may have developed some new treatments in the past few years. As always, time will tell.

For those of you interested, this post is NOT being composed on the Camino browser. I'll stick with Safari for now, since it works.

Here's a question I'm going to throw out there - it came up in a discussion I had with a friend. Is it possible for a man to be a feminist, or is a feminist by definition a woman? If so, what would one call a man who believed in gender equality, and how is that different from a 'feminist?' My opinion is that anyone can believe in gender equality, but only women can be feminists.

Saturday, April 02, 2005

Lounging Louise


Lounging Louise
Originally uploaded by iTripped.
Everybody loves her. And why shouldn't they? Louise probably had a hard life early on, so she deserves a little spoiling now and again.

We first met Louise at the Vernon SPCA. At that time they were calling her 'Pugsley' for lack of a better name. She was rescued from her previous owner, and we happened to arrive at the SPCA at just the right time. We had to wait for the SPCA to get legal ownership of her before they could adopt her out to us, but that was okay because we were moving into our new (current) place, and this would give us a little time to set things up.

While Louise (as we chose to call her) was rescued from a bad situation, I personally suspect that she suffered more from neglect than from abuse. Louise shows no fear around people, be they children, men or women. She is definately a people-loving dog. She is also well behaved, although we still took her to obedience classes to gain some control over her willful spirit. It worked, sort of.

We named her after Louise Jefferson, because George Jefferson often called his wife Louise, "Wheezie". If you have ever heard a pug breathe, you will understand how this is the perfect name for her.

Friday, April 01, 2005

Home, Sweet home (for now)


Balcony view April1-05
Originally uploaded by iTripped.
Okay, so this isn't really home as such, but rather the view from my balcony. Oh well, sue me.