24 hr stain removal hotline

so a friend of mine from edmonton who now lives in vancouver is notorious for calling me at late hours b/c she seems to forget about the 3 hour time difference between vancouver and toronto. i'm usually still awake when she calls, and i don't mind staying up a little later to talk to a friend 4000 km away, so i don't mind. but this weekend, she called me at 4:45 am to ask me how to get red wine out of her white linen jacket. she was obviously drunk, and didn't look at her watch before calling me. the funny thing is, i wasn't even asleep when she called. i had fallen asleep earlier watching tv, and then when i went to my room, i didn't go to sleep right away, and started reading, and when she called, i was just lying in bed about to fall asleep. i'm not angry at her b/c i think it makes a funny story, but i'll be getting her some shout wipes or the tide stick to keep in her purse.

run clinic

today was the second run clinic in my training for the 10km run in july, and it was good. i feel better than the first clinic, and i ran more too. my muscles are still sore and will continue to ache for the next two days probably. the first clinic, i did 5 and 1, which means run 5 mins, walk 1 min. and today, i did 10 and 1, which was tough near the end. the good thing about running downtown is that you can always rest at the lights, even though we're suppose to run on the spot. i think i need to buy some dri-fit stuff though. this hobby is turning expensive.

matt - this post is for you

went to a blue jays game this afternoon, and it was really good. not as boring as i thought it would be. i used to be a big blue jays fan, but not even when they were good and won the world series. it was after that, when they were a crappy team. i used to watch every game on tv, and if i couldn't watch it, i'd tape the game and watch it later. there are still a few vhs tapes in edmonton of old blue jays games.

the jays beat the red sox 8-1. roy halladay was pitching. we were sitting in the outfield seats, but we could still see everything. i'm going to try and go to a few more games this season. with a few good off season acquisitions, the jays may be a contender this season.

it was too bad the weather was crappy and the roof was closed. it'd be nice to go to a game when the roof is opened and it's sunny. and there was also someone who proposed to his girlfriend at the game on the jumbotron. unless the jays played a significant role in their relationship, ie. they went there on their first date, or met at a game, i find proposing at sporting events lame. what makes it special when there's over 30,000 people watching you on a big screen being proposed to, and most of them hoping you'd say no, just to laugh at the poor guy. the girl said yes.

on another note, i started my run clinic last wednesday, and my whole body was sore for 2 days afterwards. i probably haven't exercised in over a year, besides walking everyday and working in a store, so i think my body was in shock. we ran for about 40 mins, with some walking in between, and i felt pretty good. running in downtown toronto after everyone's getting off work is pretty crazy, but once we got down to the lake, it was less busy. and we were suppose to keep running on the spot if we got stopped at lights to keep our heart rate up, but i think it's totally lame and makes you look like a fool, so i hate doing it. we're suppose to follow a training schedule during the week as well, but i have to get to the point where my muscles don't get sore for 2 days after the clinic before i can start.

i also had to buy runners. i've never had a real pair of runners before b/c i always buy cross trainers. i went to the running room to get their expertise in which shoe is the best for me (i have no arch in my feet, so they're messed up), and they didn't have my size in any of the shoes i needed, so i asked them to order me a pair. but then i bought a pair at sportchek b/c i didn't think i'd get them in time from the running room for my run clinic. but on the day of my clinic, they called me and said my shoes were in, so i went back to buy them from the running room and returned the sportchek pair. i hate that store, i got horrible service, even though they're commissioned, and i didn't want to give them the sale. i refuse to shop there now.

concert count

#12: Billy Talent (19-Apr-06) - Horseshoe Tavern

i think i've lost some of my hearing permanently.

so i'm a super nerd and won some tickets to a billy talent show from a myspace contest their record company was holding. the cool part is that you couldn't buy tickets to this show, you could only win them through myspace, the radio, and probably other ways too.

it was a really good show too, even though it was probably 30 degrees in there, at least, and sweat was dripping down my face. i like small venue shows b/c it's more intimate. but i was definitely not standing close enough to get sprayed by the water/sweat coming from ben's head. i love ben too, he's quite the rockstar, even though he looks a little possessed when he sings.

this show also made me realize i'm getting older. there were people going crazy and moshing the entire show. i just can't be bothered. i've moshed in my days, but now i barely like standing for shows anymore, let alone jumping around for it. and i'm really not that old (despite what you might say, michael).

horseshoe tavern is cool. just this old pub with a stage in the back. i probably wouldn't go there on a regular night, it looks a little shady. but great place for a show. besides the temperature problem.

the new songs they played sounded really good. i can't wait for the CD to come out, june 27th, i believe. check it out.

going to bed now, i pray my hearing comes back to normal. the ringing seems to have stopped though. good sign.

a very good good friday

a friend of mine got some tickets to the raptors-pistons game on good friday and invited me to go. i was super excited because i love going to sporting events, and besides the grizzlies (vancouver)-celtics game i went to in grade 9 when they did some exhibition games around canada, i've never been to an nba game before. (ryan - i think i went to that game with your brother too, we went with mr. kushnir). anyways, i digress. so the tickets were wicked! my friend's dad knows someone who knows butch carter, the raptors old head coach. so our tickets were to his box seats! i've never been in box seats for any event before, so it was pretty cool. we didn't get served food and drinks though, which was fine, having the tickets was sweet enough.

basketball games are crazy. they play music during the game. it tripped me out at first because i thought the DJ forgot to turn off the music or something, and i was expecting the refs to stop the play, but they didn't. and during all the timeouts, they have entertainment on the court. there's so much stuff going on, you'd think the game would be enough to entertain people, but i guess not. my favourite was the raptor mascot, not the regular one, but the one where it's an air-filled mascot costume. the guy was hilarious waddling around the court.

and the raptors surprisingly won the game too. it's surprising both because the raptors aren't a very good team, and the pistons won the championships last year, i think. if the raptors score over 100 points in a game, you can bring your ticket to pizza pizza and get a free slice, but i didn't indulge because i wanted to keep the ticket.

next up...i'm going to the blue jays-red sox game on saturday. we don't have good seats, but i'm still looking forward to the game.

it's official

i signed up for a run clinic at work, with the intention of running a 10km run on july 1st. besides walking to work everyday, i don't do any physical activity. it used to be ok when i worked in the stores, because everyday was like a workout. but now in the office, all i do is sit at my desk for the whole day, snacking on stuff.

i was thinking of doing the hbc run for canada on canada day. even though i have never ran for so long before, and don't know if i can do it. but hopefully this run clinic will teach me. and it's not like i have to run non-stop for the whole 10km, i can walk some of it too.

now my problem is that i don't have any work out clothes or runners. i have to go to the running room and buy some stuff. today was the first day of the clinic, and i thought it'd be just an information day, so i didn't bring anything for a run. but they did have the intention of running today. at least i wasn't the only one who didn't go on the run, there were other people who didn't go either. we run through downtown toronto, so i'll be inhaling exhaust and dodging pedestrians like nobody's business.

so when i actually register to do the run, i expect each of you to make a donation. it's very easy, you can do it online, so no excuses.

too late

i just found out that dallas green is doing an interview and performance on MOD on april 18th, but there aren't any more tickets left! damnit. michael, you were suppose to watch out for info like this for me so i could see dallas again. ah well, now i'll have to watch on tv like the rest of the people. i don't want to be one of those people standing by the window of muchmusic when there's a performer inside. that's just embarrassing.

if i did get tickets, then i might be able to get to the bottom of this rumour that dallas is dating leah. i really hope it's not true.

concert count

#11: Beth Orton (06-Apr-06) - The Carlu

i went to this concert with a friend even though i'm not familiar with beth orton's music, but i like listening to new music, so i went. it was pretty chilled, laidback type of music. but i was so tired, i almost fell asleep a few times. now, this is not testament to the quality of the music, it's just not a good idea to go to a concert on a week night sometimes. the carlu was a nice venue, except when they shine the lights from the stage onto the audience, i was almost blinded a few times. ridiculous.

just got tickets for a show in june with broken social scene, feist, bloc party and a few other acts. should be fun, it's a show that starts in the afternoon on centre island, so hopefully the weather will be nice.

and i just found out the arctic monkeys are coming back to toronto, i want to check out that show for sure. and the red hot chili peppers are doing a north american tour, so i can't wait until they announce the dates for that. they've already announced the cities they're going to, just waiting for the dates. and even though i've seen them in concert in edmonton before, no one can get enough of anthony keidis.

until the next show....

music notes

some random thoughts on music, songs, bands, musicians, concerts, this, and that....

1. i like songs that have unusual words in them. for example, jason mraz is a great wordsmith. any songwriter who can incorporate words like 'dangerous liaison,' 'inevitably,' 'geek in pink,' 'gumption,' and whatever else he thinks of is pretty cool. i appreciate it as a listener.

2. an extension of #1, i also like songs that mention random places. comin' home by city and colour mentions places like nova scotia (sydney to halifax), the rockies, lincoln, nebraska, georgia, alaska, london, and wales. i think it's even cooler if i've been to those places too. it's almost like "this land is your land" but on a world scale.

3. i hate songs that tell me what to do. no, i'm not going to "wave [my] hands in the air like i just don't care." do the hokey pokey? no thank you.

4. i refuse to do what musicians tell me what to do. for example, when i say "this" you say "that." i also refuse to clap in unison when i'm at a show. i'm not a monkey, don't tell me what to do. if i do it, i'd do it discreetly and not wave my arms over my head like a fool.

5. i like songs with long verses. you know, the kind that almost makes you feel like you're going to lose your breath just singing along with it. it's a weird quirk, but it's enjoyable. for example, somebody told me by the killers. the first verse in the chorus, "somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend that i had in february of last year." not a great song, but fun to sing too. just when you think the verse is over, it keeps going.

6. i like musicians who talk alot during their shows. it makes it more fun. dallas talked a whole lot during his show, and it was great. and i also like it when they tell a story about the songs and why they wrote it, what it means to them, etc. seeing musicians perform live gives me a glimpse into their personality, and it usually makes me love them more.

that's it for now.