A weekend - stuff I saw, stuff I learned

I saw:
Two bands, (thanks CFRC - hey it's their funding drive, go donate) both pretty spiffy - The Remains of Brian Borcherdt (very, very good) & Wax Mannequin (very odd, but good, too).

(Brian Borcherdt)

I learned:
Ritual lasts well into the evening, which can lessen the enjoyment of seeing bands at Clark. Something I will keep in mind the next time a band is playing Clark on friday.

(Wax Mannequin)

I saw:
LLAMA!!!!!



I learned:
Rabbits can be vicious.



I saw:
The Big Apple

photo by

I learned:
They are far from everywhere



I saw:
PUPPY!!!!!!!!!!!



I learned:
Poker+Champagne+Wine+Beer=An empty wallet



Thanks to James, Jen, & Arwen for an entertaining and informative weekend.
rgsc

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,/ Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!

For this and more Burns images checkout the National Gallery of Scotland.

Today is Rabbie Burns Day, celebrating Scotland's Bard, the lover of mice, whisky, winter, and, of course, haggis (hey! he even wrote about me and my victories! although it doesn't look like he was too fond of me). The traditional way to celebrate is to hold a Burns Supper. I had the great fortune of attending such an event when I lived in Glasgow and it was an fun experience even though I wasn't sure what was going on or being said most of the time (I will see if I can find and post photos from that later).

The Burns Supper, which dates back to 1796, has a particular format and the menu consists of the following: Cock-a-leekie soup, Haggis warm reeking, rich wi' Champit Tatties, Bashed Neeps, Tyspy Laird (sherry trifle), A Tassie o' Coffee. Toasts and speaches are made, poems are read (even if not understood), and the evening ends with Auld Lang Syne.

To celebrate you can prepare your very own haggis or, if you are running short of entrails, here is a veggie friendly recipe:

• 100g/4oz onion, peeled & finely chopped
• 15ml/1tbsp sunflower oil
• 50g/2oz carrots, very finely chopped
• 35g/11/2 oz mushrooms, finely chopped
• 50g/2oz red lentils
• 600ml/1pint vegetable stock
• 25g/1oz mashed, tinned red kidney beans
• 35g/11/2 oz ground peanuts
• 25g/1oz ground hazelnuts
• 30ml/2tbsp shoyu ( soy sauce)
• 15ml/1tbsp lemon juice
• 7.5ml/11/2tsp dried thyme
• 5ml/1tsp dried rosemary
• generous pinch cayenne pepper
• 7.5ml/11/2 tsp mixed spice
• 200g/8oz fine oatmeal
• Freshly ground black pepper

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190°C, 375°F or Gas Mark 5

2. Sauté the onion in the oil for 5 minutes, then add the carrot and mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes.

3. Now add the lentils and three quarters of the stock.

4. Blend the mashed red kidney beans in the remaining stock, add these to the pan with the nuts, shoyu, lemon juice and seasonings.
Cook everything, well mixed together, for a further 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Then add the oatmeal, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 15 to 20 minutes, adding a little extra liquid if necessary.

6. Turn the mixture into a lightly oiled 1lb loaf tin and bake for 30 minutes.

7. Serve with mashed neeps and tatties.

So have yourself a dram of single-malt and have a Happy Burns day.

rgsc

Debate and 'Death Country'

photo from the Queen's Journal taken during Tuesday's debate

Friday night was a busy one here in Kingston - filled with political hopefuls debating the merits of terminator seeds and banjo-filled songs about cat-fighting raccoons. These two events were mutually exclusive but both were entertaining.

The evening started off by attending the standing-room only All-candidates meeting on Canadian sovereignty, the environment, and a sustainable Kingston co-hosted by the Society of Conservation Biology, the Council of Canadians, and Save Our Seeds. It was quite an interesting debate - much more exciting than the last English leaders debate which was boringboringboring - and it was nice to see our future leaders going toe-to-toe over these extremely important issues. While I won't give a blow by blow, I will say that Eric Walton of the Green Party came off extremely well: he was well spoken, knew his stuff, and seemed confident. Rob Hutchinson of the NDP also made a favourable impression with his strong statements based on both his party's platform and personal experience. However, he didn't seem to be as strong of a speaker and he went well over time on numerous occasion. It is admitted that these guys had the cards stacked in their favour given the topic of the debate - primarily dealing with the environment however there were opportunities for the other candidates to score points. Lou Grimshaw of the Conservatives has his moments, but by and large the applause was more polite than heartfelt (I really wished someone would have asked him about the posting of political signs on public property - which all the other parties agreed not to do, based on a suggestions by the Greens and which Tories were the only ones to ignore. Had I the chance I would have asked it "Mr Grimshaw, is it because you a) hate the environment, b) are an egomaniac who loves to see his name everywhere, or c) are you just a dick?" 'cause as far as I can see those are the only three possibilities. I hope they come knocking at my door). Liberal Peter Milliken, the honourable MP and Speaker of the House looked smug and schlumpy. He was the only one to get booed and heckled by the audience. He certainly didn't win too many points with this crowd by suggesting that terminator technology is fine and dandy since farmers have a choice whether or not to use it (yeah...just ask Percy Schmeiser about that one). Even the outta left field Don Rogers of the Canadian Action Party - who made some good arguments even if is overall platform is completely crackers - scored higher on the applause-o-meter than Milliken. If nothing else Rogers certainly added some spice to the debate. Overall it was a good debate. There was some evasion but little outright spin and the candidates were snarky enough to be amusing but not so much that they were off-putting. Feeling like we were good, politically engaged citizens, it was off to the Grad Club to rock-out a bit.

The first live musical experience of 2006 was a good one: seeing Windsor "Death Country" superstars Eliott Brood in an intimate environment before they get huge after playing SXSW in Austin. The only thing that could make this better? Getting in free due my being able to answer a question about Ferris Beuller's Day Off on a radio contest. So thanks for the ticket, Tuan fill in (Eric?, I forget who it was). The show started off with the superb Geoff Berner. Never before have I seen such a nervous looking guy grab a crowd's attention, with an accordion no less, singing songs about the failure of the Maginot Line ("Stupid! Stupid!”) and losing poker to Corb Lund. With an extremely strong voice, engaging storytelling, and audience participation, Berner had everyone's attention through his rather odd set. I would highly recommend checking him out live should you get the chance. Headliners Elliot Brood did not disappoint. They played a long set showcasing material off their latest album as well as playing covers of Neil Young, the White Stripes and others. Their songs give you a feeling there is nothing outside whisky, cigarettes and murder for these guys. The gravelly voice of lead singer Mark Sasso was perpetually straining as he belted out the gritty lyrics. The show was very up tempo and had the crowd dancing (well, if you could call it that - one particularly memorable "dancer" resembled a guineafowl on benzedrine more than anything else) and the band was in highspirits and were very accommodating (ie playing a request for a couple who had to leave to catch the last ferry to Amherst Island). Elliot Brood's brand of indie/punk-influenced country may not be for everyone (although their song "The Bridge" did very well on CBC's National Playlist) but they certainly had no trouble winning over the Grad club with their energy and sincerity. Elliot Brood photo from
rgsc

Happy Tim Hortons Day!

Ok, it isn't really Tim Horton day, but maybe it should be. Today is the birthday of hockey guy and donut purveyor Miles Gilbert "Tim" Horton. To celebrate go get yourself a double-double.
photo from

photo from

Sure they're sparkly but...

This came to my attention when perusing the resurrected Veritas Lux Mea. While this article it isn't new, I think makes quite an interesting read (I would, wouldn't I.) Photo from

Ten Reasons Why You Should Never Accept a Diamond Ring from Anyone, Under Any Circumstances, Even If They Really Want to Give You One

(I've just posted the highlights - see the article for explanations of each point and sources)

1. You've Been Psychologically Conditioned To Want a Diamond
2. Diamonds are Priced Well Above Their Value
3. Diamonds Have No Resale or Investment Value
4. Diamond Miners are Disproportionately Exposed to HIV/AIDS
5. Open-Pit Diamond Mines Pose Environmental Threats
6. Diamond Mine-Owners Violate Indigenous People's Rights
7. Slave Laborers Cut and Polish Diamonds
8. Conflict Diamonds Fund Civil Wars in Africa
9. Diamond Wars are Fought Using Child Warriors
10. Small Arms Trade is Intimately Related to Diamond Smuggling

" Many of the prisoner-laborers who work Sierra Leone's open-pit mines end up in shallow graves, executed for suspected theft, for lack of production, or simply for sport. (© Jean-Claude Coutausse/ CONTACT Press Images)" from Amnesty International
rgsc

Decemberists in Toronto (revisited)

photo from kstashuk

A wannabe coolkid and a pseudo-hipster (a "yupster" no doubt) over at B(oot)log has posted mp3s of the Decemberists' Toronto show from October 2005. So...yay. Go get 'em.
rgsc

Out of the Archives and into The Archive

Some of my fellow archivists and I occasionally talk about the (mis)use of the term "Archives". Often it is bandied about rather cavalierly, making us a bit irritated. However, in this case I'm not too worried about it. While not a correct use of the term, The Archive sounds like a pretty cool place - even without containing historical records. I particularly like the part of their mandate: to "provide a comfortable environment for people to meet and exchange ideas." This is certainly something archives in general should strive for. And who's to argue with gourmet coffee and baked goods (not in the reading room, please) and free screenings on Tuesdays. Next time I'm in New York I definitely will hop on the L train to Brooklyn to check this place out.
rgsc

Yarrr Hargh! We're Number One!

According to a post on SoulShine, an OECD study from 2004 shows that Canadians are, per capita, the world's biggest downloaders of illegal files (here is the study, see p. 75). According to the article, for every one legal download there are 14 illegal ones. This information, naturally, makes the record companies very unhappy. They want to toughen up Canadian copyright law (see my post on Bill C-60, which died on the order paper when the election was called, here) and, in order to see that the law is changed to their liking, they (along with other vested parties, such as videogame manufacturers, book publishers, and film execs) are courting the possible future Minister of Heritage, Liberal MP Sarmite Bulte, by throwing her a $250/plate fundraiser at the Drake, which has been called worrying and inapropriate (and I am inclined to agree). While all sorts of groups throw money at political parties and candidates, Michael Geist makes the very interesting point that, as far as he can see, the Copyright lobby is only supporting this one candidate. As I said before, changes and reforms to Canadian copyright laws do need to be made. However, this doesn't mean that the companies should get all they want and that average Canadians get screwed. Somehow I don't think Canada will follow France's lead to allow free sharing of music and movies on the internet (the French probably will not see the amendment proposing this become law, either, unfortunately, as it can be reintroduced into Parliament and still has to pass through the Senate) but it would be nice to see the interests of the people and not just the executives being served. I have more to say on the issue of copyright - particularly on the levy charged on blank media - and on what some of these statistics about downloading might mean, but that will have to wait for another day as I spent ages figuring out how to PhotoShop my pirate picture...I think the maple leaf is a nice touch and those are some pretty badass headphones, eh?
rgsc

Holiday Roundup, or 'Where the hell have you been'

Hello and Happy New Years dear reader(s). I know I have been pretty slack with updating lately. What can I say, the holidays have kept me busy. Well, to be honest, busy might be an overstatement; occupied is probably more accurate. To sum it up, the last couple of weeks have been taken up in pursuit of (at least) two of the seven deadly sins: Sloth and Gluttony (illustrated by the wonderful Gustave Doré courtesy of the University of Texas at Austin), as well as Yuletide cheer. Can’t forget the cheer…or the yule. It was actually a fairly unexciting holiday, but that suited me just fine. It started off on the Thursday before Christmas. I took a vacation day and spent it wrapping, cleaning so the pet sitters didn’t think we were a bunch of degenerate slobs, and sitting around (Sloth). It was then off to Caledon East for a good ol’ Pallister Christmas, complete with great drinks and wonderful eats aplenty (Gluttony). There I witnessed and experienced the wonders of a deep-fried turkey – honestly the best damn turkey I’ve ever had – and we managed to avoid burning down the house, the nearby cars, or setting ourselves aflame. Yay us. Among the wonderful presents that were unwrapped on Christmas morn’ was (I kid you not, this thing was tailor-made for me) a "Hot Rod Red" Nintendo DS courtesy of Laura (unfortunately I lost the decals so I can’t trick it out, but it is still cool, nonetheless). So, thanks to that I have spent much of my time since then burning up the track of MarioKartDS (Sloth). On the 25th we headed down Bellevegas way for more food and beverage with the family (Gluttony). It was back to Kingston and a very snuggly kitty on the 27th. I went into work on the 28th but my brain was still on vacation and I didn’t do too much (pretty Slothy). New Year’s Eve was pretty quiet but we did end up doing stuff. Everyone’s favourite engineer, Ian, came up and we headed to a pretty great townie hangout for pool and beer and then to The Toucan (my favourite place to go to in Kingston, I’ve decided) for more drinks, food, cards, more beverages, video golf, and to ring in the New Year (Gluttony). We planned to stay in, but when we went to the pub for breakfast on New Year’s Eve morning we say that they had half-price food and no cover (avarice?) so we decided to go. And it was pretty empty until about midnight, which suited me just fine, although I imagine the wait staff wasn’t too thrilled. Even though they tried to poison us with the world’s worst "champagne" (I am using that term generously in this case) I appreciated them giving us a little New Year’s tipple along with noisemakers and tiaras. It was a nice touch, even though it was horrendous. The last few days of the holidays were spent doing pretty much sfa beyond watching dvds and eating stocking candy (slothgluttonygluttonysloth). That’s about it. Not too thrilling but good. Hope everyone had a great holiday. I was going to do a year-end roundup but I decided against it as I was feeling a little like a
















image from

rgsc