My last day in Math & Stats

Friday was my last day in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. The folks from the Department all went to lunch at El Mayor. There was soooo much food. They just kept bring out platters of new dishes... hummous and baba ghanouz, kibbee and falafel, fatoush and tabouleh salads, a lentil and rice dish, an eggplant and chickpea dish, then platters of shish kafke and shish tawook with this wonderful spiced rice dish, and roast chicken. THEN they brought various desserts and thick coffee.

The folks in the Department left Tim in charge of procuring a going away present for me. He had come into my office one day a week or so ago, and told me about how his wife had been looking for a computer bag. I played right into his hand. I went on and on about how I empathized and how I had been looking all over the place for a bag that DIDN'T look like a computer bag, WHERE I had already been to look for bags, and why I didn't like the ones I had found. The bag he found was perfect! It looks a brown leather tote that you would never know had a computer stored in it. It's even the perfect size for my laptop.






In other news, Jon must be really desperate to have me "understand" his penchant for games like Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO), and Everquest. Earlier in the week, he told me that he had a present for me that I "neither needed nor wanted". When he came over yesterday, he presented me with a copy of LOTRO and a card for 60 days of membership. We set up my character this morning (I'm an elf Lore-Master), and we went through a few training quests. He even added himself and his guild members to my friend list. I've already told him, however, that any time spent playing on LOTRO does NOT count as spending time together. Something tells me that this is going to cut into my poker/blackjack time., dammit.

TTFN.

A new year...a new guy...a new job...

Let's face it, 2007 SUCKED!!! It could only get better for 2008, right? Maybe...

For the longest time I was feeling rather dissatisfied with my life. I thought that, after Greg and I broke up, I would start feeling better about things. Nope. Well, ok, I felt somewhat better, but still overall, blah.

I think the real turning point came when I cancelled the vacation I take every year the week of my birthday. There were faculty interviews, and a decision had to be made and forms filled immediately after a decision was made so the hiring process could get started. At the end of the week NO DECISION. The Committee delayed it until the next week!!! I cancelled vacation for NOTHING!

It was pretty much the sum total of my work life. I pushed paperwork around, and for what? A bunch of bureaucratic bullshit that in the grand scheme of things, meant NOTHING! So some fucked up committee could decide if we followed some procedure correctly? Whoopdee-flippin'-doo!!!! I was going home every day feeling like I had accomplished nothing. And I really hadn't. At least when I worked for Satan at the pharmaceutical company, there was something tangible at the end of the day.

So, I applied for a couple of positions, and got one of them. It's a lateral move, rank-wise and $$, but I'll be working for Associate Deans, instead of a Department Head, so it's a promotion of sorts. I won't have to deal with most of the bureaucracy. I'll be counselling students most of the time. Maybe I'll help a few of them. I'll actually feel like I DID something important with my day. Maybe...

So now you're asking "new guy", what's all this about a new guy? Haha I did the story out of order mwah hahahaha!

Sorry...where was I? Oh yeah, new guy. Maybe next post. It's my blog, and I'll write about stuff (or not) if I want to, stuff (or not) if I want to...

TTFN,

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008 !!

Overall - a sucky holiday season!

You know how there's this thing where women get some sort of amnesia about how much pain is involved in giving birth, so they'd actually be willing to go through it again? There must be something similar about spending the holidays alone, because I don't remember spending the holidays alone being so horrid the last time I did it, which was fifteen or so years ago. On the other hand, I DID catch up on my sleep.

The lone bright spot was getting to see Kristen and Allan for a few days, a trip I just returned from Saturday night. We ate, we shopped, we laughed our asses off, as we usually do when we get together. We make, and get, jokes that no one else seems to understand, or else we get that 'wtf' look.

I just got the new laptop I ordered at the Future Shop Boxing Day sale. It's great - I can play more than one poker tournament without staling the computer.

Hope everyone has a great New Year's Eve. DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE, or I'll hunt you down and kick your ass!!!

TTFN,

C

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!

It was probably the best concert I DIDN'T get to see...

Last night, Bedouin Sound Clash played at The Basement, the University's pub. A friend (who eons ago made me promise not to mention him by name in my blog) and I decided at the last minute to see if we could get in.

The event was sold out, but we were told to stand in a line for people with no tickets (we had dubbed it the "Loser line"), and, after all the people who had tickets, and/or were on the guest list were let in, we might get in if there were no shows. The line for people who had tickets snaked around the corner, through the woods and up the road to Grandma's house. This was at about 8:15 pm. We were told that the band wouldn't be going on until 11 pm, after two opening acts.

They didn't start letting ticket holders in until almost 9 pm (when the first opening act started.) There were three or four hundred people in line. The staff was soooooo disorganized. There were two bracelets - a green one that proved that you had a ticket or were on the guest list, and a blue one that signified whether or not you were legal to drink. Instead of taking bunches of bracelets through the line, checking for ID and tickets and handing out bracelets accordingly, so all the staff at the door had to do was search purses and check for bracelets, there was a couple of people who were randomly checking and handing out ONE colour of bracelet, while there was a HUGE logjam at the door with people who were still handing in tickets, checking themselves off the guest list, AND checking their coats and getting bags searched.

By 1045 pm, they STILL hadn't let in all the people in the ticket line, and the band was supposed to be coming on in 15 minutes. We just said "screw it" and went back to the DH and had another couple drinks before toddling off home.

If I had been one of the people still in line at 1045 after missing both opening acts, and about miss the first set of the main act, I would have walked up to the front of the line and demanded my money back. What a big, giant clusterf***.

Michigan vs Ohio State this weekend!!!

This Saturday marks the annual Michigan/Ohio State game. My understanding of the situation is, if Michigan wins, they capture the Big Ten title, and go to the Rose Bowl.

GO BLUE!!

What a busy freakin' weekend!!!

Friday Night - Windsor International Film Festival

Film - Weirdsville

The opening scene has a mouse swimming, trying to get out of a grungy toilet. I was somewhat afraid that the movie would go downhill from there, but I was wrong. The movie was brilliant with an awesome soundtrack that comes out on CD November 27, 2007.

Saturday Night - WIFF and a late Halloween party

Film - Persepolis

This animated film from France won the Jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The film is about a Iranian girl's childhood during Iran's war with Iraq. She tries to find her own identity during the ousting of the Shah, a war, and Islamist rule.

I need to see the movie again. Maybe next time I'll spend less time trying to compare the subtitles with what was being said....

Late Halloween Party - Denis and Monica's place

After Persepolis, Maria and I stopped off at my place to a) let the dog out, and have a play, and b) pick up the bucket o' frozen daiquiris from the freezer, before heading off to Denis and Monica's late Halloween party. There was a nice mix of people and pets (My puppy scratch is healing nicely, thanks for asking) and tons of food. A good time was had by all, especially the
guy who went in drag. He looked better in a dress than I do *sigh*.

Sunday night - In Remembrance - a Concert by the Windsor Classic Chorale and Friends

One of the Grad House gang is an alto with the Windsor Classic Chorale. They had their first concert of the season last night - the second of what is an annual event commemorating Remembrance Day. There was a piper, a trumpet player, a cellist, and some local celebrities reading letters from soldiers from the World Wars. It was a beautiful concert.

In non-weekend related news, I booked my accommodations for my annual Holiday trip to visit Kristen. Too late to back on pet-sitting with Bandit, Greg...

TTFN,

C

WOOHOO!!!!! My afghan swap squares are DONE...

...well... at least the ones I have to mail out, anyway. I'll be posting pics of the squares I receive soon.

In other news, Kristen came down to visit this weekend, and bunked at my house. We went to the new Bistro on the corner of Riverside and Ouellette. I had the soup of the day, which was Sweet Potato. It tasted like, and had the texture of, liquid pumpkin pie filling. It was yummy.

TTFN,

Well... THAT didn't take long!

Over 1300 people played in the Blogger Championship tournament I mentioned a few posts ago.

I went out 1259th. My pocket aces got cracked by pocket kings. First card out the door on the flop... a king.

Oh well, maybe next year.

TTFN,

C