A friend and I had an interesting conversation on MSN today. And by "interesting" I really mean "weird and random." The conversation began as he wondered aloud (as much as one *can* wonder aloud on MSN) which was bigger: Alberta or Texas. What ensued was a flurry of googling and a conclusion reached, that Texas is almost 7,000 square meters larger than Alberta.

Then, which is bigger: Northwest Territories or Texas? Northwest Territories or Alaska? Alaska or Nunavut? All pointless, really, but just the thing to kill a few dull moments on a Sunday afternoon.

I guess things continued in due course, and now I am privy to two facts of which I was not previously aware:

1. That 83.4 Pennsylvania's could fit inside Canada.
2. That if the average tea bag is 4.5 square centimetres, and the entire surface of Canada were to be covered in such tea bags, it would require 137,506,178,022.4 tea bags.

If you need a random statistic, and are too lazy to find the answer, or don't care, it's likely that someone else is willing. And it's likely that person is me.

I hope you are all well!
Much love.
Drew.

Thank you to everyone for your comments on my last post. I'm glad to know such wise people!

I don't have much to write right now, so I'm going to post a picture I took of my neice, Clara, this past summer:

It's the people who are not afraid to challenge us and risk our 'righteous' indignation, who are most worth keeping around. Friends and flatterers and fun people will come and go, but it's the mark of a TRUE friend who becomes vulnerable and honest in the interest--and only in the interest--of his or her friend or loved one.

If it's my turn to be honest, I'm just overcome with shame and guilt for some of the ways I've behaved recently, to people whom I claim to love and respect. Why we do things and behave compulsively sometimes is beyond my comprehension. What seems sometimes beyond my comprehension as well is the ability to forgive betrayal and lies and deceit...until it's my turn to do so, and I care enough about that person to the point where it's not even an option or a consideration to be made.

I guess I'm really interested lately in honesty, though I haven't always been succesful at being completely honest with the people that I love. It's a really hard thing for me, because I've protected myself for so long with the ability to be dishonest. It's something that I'm working on.

Am I so afraid that people will TRULY know me, glaring faults and all, if I'm totally honest?

I think I am.

I was driving downtown today, eating a hamburger. I was also listening
to an Eddie Murphy comedy sketch at the same time. I should know that
these two activities should not be attempted simultaneously. I ended up
spitting my slice of pickle and some half-chewed burger onto the dash
of my car. Cause dang, Eddie Murphy is one funny man!

Drew out.

Quote of the
Day:              
You fondle my trigger, then you blame my gun.
                                         
~Fiona Apple, Limp

                            
_________________

So let's see...what's
new? Oh yeah. Not sure if anyone would remember back around Christmas
when I interviewed for a better position at work and didn't get it.
Well, I interviewed for it again last week and I did get it this time!
I'm excited about that. Should be more challenging, better hours,
benefits, etc. All the good things that make me go, "Ahhhhhhh, YES!"
Or...something like that.

If anyone is unfamiliar with Fiona Apple, then shame on you! Shame on
you again! You should go listen to some of her music right away. Not
only is she skinny as a rail and therefore physically acceptable in the
climate of our the-skinnier-the-better society which pop culture
continues to cultivate, but she is actually very, very talented. She
writes her own music and sings it! What could be better?

I was reminded of Fiona Apple again by my South African friend, Charlie, after about a six-month (unwittingly taken) hiatus from her.
He just started his own Xanga, so swing by and say hello. At any rate,
I was most pleased to become reaquainted with this music. It also
reminds me of Matt Lewis,
who introduced me to her. Indeed, indeed. He also introduced me to Jeff
Buckley. My, my. I do believe I owe him something--a dinner at
least.  Anyway, I'm rambling and the buzzer on the oven just went
off, signaling that my dessert is ready for consumption. There I go!

Be well.

Spring officially began today. Check out my 5-Day Forecast! Yay!

As I listen to Life Is Full of Possibilities,
I realize that it is. I could have gone for a late-night coffee and
avoided a speeding ticket on the way home. Or, I could have stayed for
coffee and been sideswiped by some 16 year-old joyriding in daddy's
Hummer.  Life is full of possibilities, both good and bad. I'm
starting to realize more recently that it's not my place to necessarily
bemoan or regret the things that happen in life, but to work within
their contexts. It makes sense to me.

I saw V For Vendetta tonight,
and was blown away. Natalie Portman, of course, was stunning and
perfect. Hugo Weaving, who played V, was also very good. Anyone who can
convince an audience so fully the first time that he's Agent Smith, a
second, that he's Elrond of Rivendell, and finally, that he's a lethal
villian/hero disguised in a Guy Fawkes mask, deserves some notice. The
movie was done so well; it had all the comic book bravado and
sentimentality without the cliches and stale dialogue. It raised some
very provocative ideas about the role of the government and that of the
people over whom it governs. It makes me appreciate much more the idea behind The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, all comedy aside.

It makes me think that maybe--just maybe--it's not only our right, but
our responsibility, to criticize and hold up to scrutiny the governing
bodies of our respective nations. After all, as V put it so well,
"...people should not be afraid of their governments; governments
should be afraid of their people." This, I feel, is the only true
accountability that a government can have--towards the people whom it
claims to serve.

Anyway, just a few random thoughts. I saw a horrible car accident on my
way home tonight (after getting my speeding ticket), and it really
upset me. I'm not sure how that ties in to anything I've said, but I
felt the need to say it.

Ahhh! Why does everyone have MySpace? Why?

I have now joined. I don't know why. Extreme boredom and total lack of will power. *Sigh*.

Here I am. I think: www.myspace.com/der_iron_chef

I was tagged on March 1 by this fellow Europhile, but never followed through. Now I'm following through.

Seven things to do before I die:

1.  Learn German. Fluently.
2.  Look good in a baseball cap.
3.  Get some writing published.
4.  Write a book.
5.  Own some real estate.
6.  Travel to Spain.
7.  Learn how to skate backwards (ice skate).

Seven things I cannot do:

1.  Be patient with screaming children.
2.  Eat caviar.
3.  Or raw oysters.
4.  Or Foie Gras.
5.  Accept "that time of the month" as an excuse to be rude
6.  Sleep at the group home.
7.  Golf.

Seven things that attract me to my other half:

Next....

Seven things I say:

1.  Oh yeah?
2.  Honest?
3.  Ridiculous!
4.  You know what I mean?
5.  At WHAT point did you think this was a good idea?
6.  Thank You.
7.  Wiaaaatch!

Seven books I love:

1. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
2. The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye
3. The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
4. The Lord of the Rings (Trilogy) by J.R.R. Tolkien
5. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
6. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler
7. Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe by Bill Bryson

Seven movies I like pretty well:

1.  Cast Away
2.  Lost in Translation
3.  LOTR Trilogy
4.  Garden State
5.  Goonies
6.  Transamerica
7.  When Harry Met Sally

Seven people to meme:

1. Josh Kue
2. Louisa S---
3. Christina Vickers
4. Claudia Young
5. Beth Ann Martz
6. Andrew Bah
7. Bethany Blanchard

Do it. DO IT.

New Favourite Quote:

"...who did my father think I was? Boys who spent their weekends making
banana nut muffins did not, as a rule, excel in the art of hand-to-hand
combat."

-David Sedaris, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
__________________

Too funny! At any rate, thank you all for your
opinions/suggestions, as per my previous post. I will weigh my options
and decide. I'm thinking that $4000 IS a lot of money, and I DO
hate student loans. But but but....I really want to know the stuff. I
don't think I want this as a career, so it's just sort of....in the
interest of self-improvement. Which, is invaluable, non? Hmmm. We shall
see.

The snow is melting and the weather is warm...ish. However, weather
forecasts predict three days of snow and rain/snow starting on Friday.
Sounds fun? No. I didn't think so, either. It sounds like perfect
conditions for bumper cars, but, like....in real cars. On real roads.
And like, real intestines and other sundry innards spill't upon the
cold and unyielding arctic terrain.

All this to say (shout out to Paul Alford), I am not looking forward to
it! Where are you, Spring? How are we to "gather ye rosebuds while ye
may," be there no rosebuds? Herrick would turn over in his grave.
Alternately, Punxsutawney Phil apparently turned over the wrong way
upon exiting his burrow. You lying skeez! Filthy rodent! I'm going to
make a hat out of that perditious groundhog, I swear! If it's the last
thing I do! Actually, the last thing I do will probably be glancing
over at my own post-rain/snow-car-crash-disembowelment, and wondering why I never followed my dreams to Monterey.

"Gather ye disembowelment[s] while ye may...."

Meh.