Two weeklong competitions that won't exactly determine the fate of the world

But that doesn't mean they can't be entertaining, right?

This week there are two competitions that unfolding. One is rather highbrow and literary, the other is, er... not so much.

Let's start with the literary: for the fifth year in a row the Ceeb is airing Canada Reads. For anyone who is unfamiliar with the format, it is pretty simple: five Canadians each choose a book that they think the entire country should read. Over five days they debate the merits of their picks and each day the panellists vote off a book until they get a winner. Simple enough. There are always some very interesting arguments and even though I haven't read any of the books on this year's list I am still curious to see how it all unfolds. I watched it religiously last year and really got into it. This year is shaping up to be just as good. Today, Scott Thompson's pick was the first to get the boot after John K Samson broke a tie. Very dramatic indeed. My pick for the winner is Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road.

The other competition is more mindless entertainment than anything else, at least I hope it will be entertaining, but I am still intrigued. I can imagine a television exec thinking out loud: "Dancing with the Stars was pretty successful. We increased the chances of personal injury by having them doing pairs figure skating...what next?" I'll tell you what's next - Celebrity Cooking Showdown, that's what's next. What other show offers the possibilities of a b-list celeb getting scalded and potentially losing a finger or two? I missed the first episode yesterday but am gonna watch it right now... Alan Thicke is hosting and P-Diddy is a producer. It is undoubtedly going to be a trainwreck.
rgsc

Mystère Extraordinaire!

This friday we gathered together to see who murdered our good friend Roland Stone. It was a group of shifty characters the likes of which have never been seen before. There were lies, there was money loaned and money stolen, there were questions of inheritance and questions of linneage, and there were wigs.

Thanks to Natasha & Matt for hosting, thanks to Mark (the coldblooded killer that his is) for organizing, and Happy Birthday to Danielle who is the reason we got together.

The Suspects!

The Killers!

The Wigs!

Intrepid : an adjective, a car

in·trep·id: adj : invulnerable to fear or intimidation; a means of transportation that allows me to avoid taking the bus to work.

I realized today that I hadn't posted about the most significant thing to happen to me recently - I got a car! I am now the proud owner of a 1996 Chrysler Intrepid, which you can admire above. Stunning, isn't it? Thanks to the generosity of my mum, who got a car from my nan, who got a new car, I got this automobile and now I am no longer at the mercy of Kingston Transit. It's a bit of a beast and the A/C doesn't work, but it does have a tapedeck (Rawk!) and it is all mine. What more can i ask for?
rgsc

A belated blogger birthday

Can you believe it? I has been a year, (hmm. now over a year. I thought my first post was on March 31st but was actually on the 9th...oh well) since I started this little repository of ramblings. It all started innocently enough - so I could post a comment on mark's blog - and since then has experience fits and starts of posting, letting you know what I've been up to, random things I've come across, and what has irritated me. You know, standard blog stuff. Even though my blogging attentions have been directed elsewhere as of late, it certainly has been an interesting experience and one that I plan to keep up for a while longer. It has been fun to look back on my past posts today and remember what i've been up to for the last 12 months. Hopefully you've enjoyed reading what i've been up to as well.
rgsc