Imbedded Video

Well it`s the last day of April and tomorrow will therefore be the first day of May (unless of course space-time is altered somehow between now and then). What this means is that it has been a full month since i left the beautiful country of New Zealand and i have yet to post my photos or impressions. So here is yet another little teaser. Actually this is an excuse for me to test out posting video, so bear with me if it doesn`t work. I`ll figure this whole internet thing out sooner or later. From what i hear, it`s a series of tubes...




This is a short video that i took while in Auckland, New Zealand. Right smack in the middle of downtown Auckland they have a couple different options for adrenaline junkies. One is a bungy-style jump off the Skytower (seen in the background of this video) that is well over 100 meters (!). The other is this ride here, which looks more sickening than thrilling. I tried neither, choosing to wait until Matt and i went to Queenstown to try bungy jumping at the world`s first commercial bungy jump location, Kawarau Bridge. It was AWESOME! My next time through New Zealand i hope to try many more of the heart pounding experiences they have to offer. Cheers!

Avril means April in French. duh.

" Hey! Hey! You! You! i don`t like your girlfriend
No way! No way! i think you need a new one
Hey! Hey! You! You! i could be your girlfriend..."

Oh Avril, thou hast sunk so low...

Or perhaps the real tragedy is how catchy the song actually is. Bad memes, man. Bad memes...

Shaking Hands

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!!!!!!

Shaking Hands

That is all.

Ah, Yer Just Jealous!!

A friend in America just sent this link to me via the series of tubes that is the internet with the e-mail heading "Is this True?" and i say to you, sir, Yes, It is true. Animosity towards Toronto is something that i have come across again and again both in my time in Canada (especially at an East Coast university) and outside Canada (working with English teachers from all over the world). While Americans tend to make a quick joke or an ignorantly facetious comment when i say "I`m from Canada" or "I`m from Toronto", usually involving a beaver, a lumberjack or the ubiquitous "Eh", other Canadians can become downright bitter about my hometown and i have, on one occassion, actually had another teacher (from Saskatchewan no less) refuse to acknowledge my presence for the rest of the day after he found out where i was from. Fortunately, i am usually able to see this behaviour as so-stupid-its-funny, and i can only hope that this new documentary, "Let`s All Hate Toronto", which i am very curious to see, treats it in the same light. If anyone out there in teh blogoshpere has seen it, please let me know what you think. Of the movie, not of Toronto. I don`t really give a flying f*ck what you think of Toronto. ;-)

Yours Truly, soulless, one-eyed corporate zombie Ian (from Toronto).

And remember:
"Ignorance is not Bliss. Bliss is Bliss. Ignorance is just a fancy word for Stupid."
-Ian Warney, Memetic Engineer.

Giggity giggity!

You can also amuse yourselves with these. They are two recent Djing gigs that i`ve played at. Patrick`s Sayonara Party at Absinthe, which was so much fun. Patrick has been part of the Osaka ex-pat community for a couple years now and qquite active as a photographer and poet. So long, Patrick! The other flyer is for "Delicatesssan", a showcase of some up and coming DJ talent in and around Osaka. I was very happy to be asked to play and i thought my set went very well until i heard the recording of it later. It`s amazing how you can hear every little mistake on a recording... ew. But i still had a great night and had lots of fun playing. Thank you to TripleByPass (Matt) for including me in this event (and for designing the flyers!). And sorry i had to leave early (2am) because i had work the next day (10am).

Oh, HELLLLLLLL YES!

I`m still sifting through the hundreds of photos as well as doing a mighty fine job of proctrastination (and lots of reading and Spanish studying!) so you`ll have to wait a bit longer for NZ info. But in the meantime amuse yourselves with THIS. =)

mucho graciasssss.

God Bless You, Mr. Vonnegut.

Kurt Vonnegut, the American writer, has passed away at the age of 84. He shall be greatly missed and his contribution to 20th century literature shall not be forgotten. If you haven`t ever read any of his novels or short stories, may i take this opportunity to recommend them highly. Among my favorites are "Bagombo Snuff Box" (a collection of short stories), the novel "Breakfast of Champions," and the unsettling and entirely witty "Cat`s Cradle."

read the Canada.com article: Konnegut dead at 84

Back from NZ!

Well i`m back from my fantastic trip to New Zealand and busy with work and home life. And it`s cherry blossom season here in Japan(which only lasts about two weeks) so i`m trying to get out and see them as much as possible during their brief appearance. Also, my newest fascination is the field of memetics and cultural evolution so i have been trying to get a lot of reading done. AND Ulala has been in and out of the hospital with her sinus surgery so i have also been busy visiting her. Strong as she is, she`s out two days early and recuperating at home (read: watching TV and doing lots of laundry). Thank you again to everyone who has sent their good wishes and congratulations on our engagement. We still haven`t set a date for the ceremony but i will keep you posted. Speaking of posting, i have MANY pictures from New Zealand but i will have to sort through them. I took about 800 pictures in NZ!! No joke!! As Matt Anaka so aptly put it, "You can pretty much spin around taking pictures in New Zealand and most of them will turn out spectacular." Thank you so much to Matt and to Jacqueline for being excellent hosts, giving me a place to stay, and especially for all the driving!! (i think i spent a third of my trip in a car! =) So here`s a quick preview. Hopefully i`ll get around to actually writing about my trip (and about bungy jumping) a bit more in the next two weeks.