Rocky Balboa

Its the story of a blood and guts warrior, a man who takes an excruciating amount of physical and emotional damage. Its Rocky Balboa. With this movie, I think Sylvester Stallone is able to give his character the finale he deserves.

The character Rocky Balboa is based on a real life journyman boxer named Chuck Wepner. One night he was taking on one of the greatest heavyweight champions ever, Muhammad Ali (who of course, was inspiration for Apollo Creed). Now, Chuck was given absolutely no chance to win. As an indication of how good a boxer, or more appropriately what Chuck was known for, his nickname was the Bayonne Bleeder because he was cut so often. Not exactly the Itallion Stallion. Before the fight, all Wepner really wants to do is prove that he belongs.

During the bout with Ali, Wepner magically manages to knock him down. There is a funny quote where Wepner goes:"hey I knocked him down!".

Trainer: "sure, but now he looks real pissed off!"

And so Ali starts taking it to Wepner. Ali is actually known for extending his fights and adding additional punishment to his opponents instead of just ending the bout. Nevertheless, Wepner manages to make it to the 15th round before Ali unleashes and forces a TKO.

But enough about that. Rocky is the fundamental underdog story. It is a story thats uses boxing as a metaphor for getting up after being knocked down, and that when you finally got the opportunity to be with the champ, at the very least all you want to do is prove you belong there.

Quickie

Quick update for now...

Its funny how we percieve things while exams are running. Well, at least its what happens to me. Like when I'm trying to study, all of a sudden the room is just too damn cold. Or the the chair is too wooden. Or this table is too high. Oh, now my pen just doesn't have enough ink. You get the point, but anyways exams have ended and we're into the holiday season...

Anyways, what am I up to lately? Well, its been pretty much working at Sears and, some exercise, and sleeping. One thing I would like to get done during this holiday season is donate some of my old jackets and clothing away. I have just a load of stuff that I don't use and could definitely be put to better use. If anyone wants to also donate some of their older stuff, we'll see what places my family normally goes to and maybe do a quick run...

Tiny Dancer (link fixed)

Such an awesome performance from Dave Grohl in his cover version of Tiny Dancer. The chorus is embedded in my head...

Skating?

Its been a while since we've had a big group outing, so how about the next one being skating? Since its winter and all. Of course, I have no idea where would be a good place or a good time because everyone is so busy. But its something to keep in mind, and hopefully we can find a good place.

Rec Leagues

To anyone that actually reads this, I'm wondering if there would be any interest in forming a team for a rec league? Right now I occasionally play with a floor hockey team in the Edmonton Sport and Social Club and its pretty fun. In this league, the emphasis is on fun first and winning second, while in a competitive and structured context.

So I'm wondering if anyone is up for that in some upcoming season? It will probably be for the summertime or so, but they have a number of sports. The main ones being floor hockey, flag football, and basketball. The other league I found real quickly on a search was the Edmonton Rec League. Of course, the downsides are the time commitments, that the location or timing may be less than ideal, and the cost of the teams. In the ESSC the cost I think is $490 per team to register. I think generally the ideal number for any team is to have ten people, then its $49 each. Something to think about...

Also, one last link. I thought this is one of the coolest combination of songs ever. Check it out.

Three Years Old

On Sunday, Oct. 15th, 2006, this blog became three years old! Happy Belated Birthday Blog! I'm not really sure what to do with this blog, kinda goes with my theme of indecisiveness. I just decided to post a month, and a quick one liner to go with it.

Oct. 2003 - Oilers need a goalie, Biology 107 takes a lot of time, and Econ 101 is freakin' boring.

Nov. 2003 - The Oilers organization pull off the Heritage Classic in a game against the Montreal Canadiens. Very cool event, which was preceded by an Edmonton Eskimo's Grey Cup win over , yep, Montreal!

Dec. 2003 - My uncle who lives in Vancouver passes away at the age of 50. We need to come out to Vancouver more often, like we used to.

Jan. 2004 - Dev yet again pulls off another successful... gift presentation? He got me a digital camera. Dev always does this and doesn't really recieve enough thanks for it, so thanks Dev. Also, we learned how to play the game "Zoo".

Feb. 2004 - "Wardrobe Malfunction." 'Nuff said. Also when I first started looking into Occupational Therapy

Mar. 2004 - Went to my most memorable Oilers game ever. It was in a 5-4 win over Nashville. Conklin was in net, and Nashville's last shot rung off the crossbar, but we won!

Apr. 2004 - Joined College Pro, which was a good lesson. Taught me a lesson in really thinking jobs through, because it takes a lot of your time. Sometimes money isn't worth it, and that you gotta do what you gotta do.

May. 2004 - Started to learn how to drive, and this was the summer of Monday Night Sports for us! Also, I took note of the fact that Clarence took a football to the nuts. =(

June 2004 - I start work at 7-Eleven thanks to Maggie. I think I forgot to thank you, so thanks Maggie.

July 2004, August 2004 - Went to California and finally visited Disneyland! Also, unforgettable quote from Ron Burgundy: "I pooped a hammer."

Sept. 2004 - I quit 7-Eleven for school. Also, a terrorist incident in Russia where children in a theater are taken hostage. If I remember correctly, special forces had to gas the place and stage an assault.

Oct. 2004 - Finally settle on Occupational Therapy, and general whining about University.

Nov. 2004 - Somewhere, I forgot to mention Project Halo. So no worries, here is when Project Halo 2 happened! Thanks Ryan for organizing that.

Dec. 2004 - I play Mario and Luigi Superstar's Saga. Such an awesome game, I had to mention it. Also, first and only time I saw up at the glass at Rexall Place. It would be an AHL game where the Roadrunners take on... the Hamilton Bulldogs?

Jan. 2005 - Hm... nothing really... seems like we started playing poker? Well, funny hockey logos!

Feb. 2005 - Ong Bak comes out this month. I still have no idea how Tony Jaa did some of those moves.

Mar. 2005 - Keith goes to China! Then comes back. As well, an aquaintance that we know of, Andre Poon dies in a car accident. The circumstances are tough to take if you know what they are.

Apr. 2005 - UFC 52, where Matt Hughes and George St. Pierre assert their dominance in the Welterweight division. Matt Hughes in his fight against Frank Trigg takes a shot to the nuts, almost gets knocked out, then decides "fuck it, I'm going to win." Then does.

May. 2005 - We play Risk 2025. I'm really scared to play this game ever again, its so intense. I am lucky enough to win this game thanks to Kevin, though I don't remember how. Also, the most classic moment occurs as Ryan nukes himself.

June 2005 - I get accepted into the OT program! Weehaw!

July 2005 - Great road trip to Vancouver. We got to stay at my cousin's house and when we got back went fishing. Also, Tony participates in a hypnosis show. Completely, and utterly awesome. He was a good enough sport to show the DVD of it at a later time, so thanks Tony for doing that.

Aug. 2005 - I goto Brunei to visit my mom and dad's family! It is very friggin hot!

Sept. 2005 - First month of OT, and a statement that never really changes. "So far my program... sucks."

Oct. 2005 - I start my first fieldwork placement and I have an okay time. I learn a few things that I definitely like to be aware of.

Nov. 2005 - My mom likes Green Day and in particular, she likes the song "Boulevard of Broken Dreams". She relates to it because she feels isolated from the rest of her family back in Brunei. One day I hope it can be me that takes the family back there. Or Keith, but its my idea... =D

Dev. 2005 - First time judging in amateur martial arts tournament, but it was pretty neat. I was fairly spot on with what other people were seeing, so it looks like there is a standard people follow. Although I think I did screw over a soft stylist. Ah well, stance!

Jan. 2006 - Went to a Bryan Adams concert, and wow did he rock. I was really suprised, but the audio was tremendous. It was probably a better performance than the first time I saw him.

Feb. 2006 - I actually somehow end up at a beauty salon in Chinatown. My mom had a coupon for a facial or something, and just had to have me go. Sigh... they did something to my face, and it definitely ranks in my top 3 of "most painful moments ever." Someone give me a punch to the face any day over this experience.

Mar. 2006 - I do something for an OT fundraiser, which is partly for our grad. Although I'm not graduating I may actually still go...

Apr. 2006 - I have my bellringer exam in my anatomy class. One of my most intense moments ever. Basically, its an exam where you try to label parts on a cadaver. Look it up if you don't know what that is... should find some interesting pictures

May 2006 - I have my practical OT exam, where I am observed performing an assessment. It goes well, however I find out that I failed some other course which starts a trend that would lead me to exiting the program. I'm still proud of some of the accomplishments, but would definitely feel that I never really got comfortable with the profession.

June 2006 - Congrats to the Edmonton Oilers for making it to the Stanley Cup finals. We know you'll get it next year!

July 2006 - I start placement in Camrose and live in my own. Interesting experience, and just shows how hard it is to get up in the day if you don't look forward to it. Also went to Kdays and while I enjoyed it, the event has gone downhill and I don't know if I'll be able to enjoy it as much as before. The hilight would probably have to be the water balloon catapults, despite everyone losing at least 4 water balloons due to breathing.

Aug 2006 - I exit the OT program. I won't be getting that shiny piece of paper, but hopefully I'll be able to find out what I want to do.

Sept. 2006 - I enter NAIT and start a job at Sears. Just things to take up my time and gain life experience. Also, the return of the New Orlean Saints to the Superdome. Its kinda funny, I thought I would have mentioned the hurricane somewhere before this, but I didn't. I only mentioned it in context with football.

Oct. 2006 - Three years of blogging!

And that is it! Well, kinda interesting to see what has transpired for three years. I know I definitely didn't put things that if I look back on this post, that I would have liked to. But for now, I'll leave it as is. Anything that should definitely be mentioned? Well, see you in another three years!

Happy Thanksgiving

At times its easy to get swamped in our highs and lows, but I think even in the middle of those, we can give a solemn moment for all the things we have been given. Sometimes its incredibly difficult to show our gratitude for whatever reason, but the least we can do is be a little bit thankful.

It would be nice if we could live everyday with the meaning of each holiday in our mind, but we can't or don't, so its nice to have a few days dedicated to the things we should have more time for.

Three Years Old! Almost!

Thats how old this blog is nearing and oh how things have changed. Looking back, I used way too many exclaimation points! Well anyways, maybe I should try to do something to commemorate three years of this thing existing. Hmm...

I remember doing this a long time ago for replies, lets see if it works..

**Question about Chris!!**

What is my favorite song?

a) Paradise City by Guns 'n Roses
b) Everlong by The Foo Fighters
c) Let it Be by The Beatles
d) Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) by Green Day
e) Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns 'n Roses

Exercise 7.1: Thinking Deeply About Why You are in College

Christopher Boon

I am not sure what my real motivation is in going to post secondary. It seemed like a natural progression from high school to go to the University of Alberta (U of A), get a degree, and then move toward the “real world.” However, I wonder if I truly am comfortable with the transition of moving toward the “real world.” I have always felt that I have to uphold the image of being steady, and being in post secondary seemed to be a part of that. It has shifted somewhat when I left the U of A to be at NAIT.

My fundamental purpose in going to college is in all honesty, deep down, to pass the time. I am committed to getting good grades and being open to new concepts, but am unsure of what the future holds. I am not particularly ambitious or have a deep desire to do extraordinarily well. Thus, this does lead to me going through the motions. So far I am a career student. However, I don’t see the light at the end of that tunnel and I think that I am afraid to run with any ideas because I may end up failing to live up to it, and I don’t mean academically. I know I can perform academically, but in more application type situations, I am a lot less sure of myself. I’m not sure if I am making things harder for myself.

Again, I am not sure what my motivation is. I cannot pinpoint a deep internal desire that pushes me. The one thing that pushes me to do decent in academics is the possibility of being below average. Otherwise, I don’t have a future in mind. Perhaps I’m not even willing to put the extra effort in to find out. I’m not sure exactly where I can or should start, and it seems more difficult without some sort of beginning point.

This led to a recent decision to get a part time job. I decided to start a part time job at Sears. I’m finding that I don’t have enough work experience as is, and so I need to get back out there. The hope is that I will gain experience and perhaps insight to what I want. Maybe I’ll find that I enjoy working with customers directly, or that I hate it and would rather work behind the scenes. Will I like situations with pressure, or not? It is here that I hope I will gain valuable experiences and perhaps more insight into what I want. My position is a Sales Associate, so I will be responsible for directly interacting with customers. As well, I hope to be able to apply or at least see the concepts that are being taught in NAIT business being utilized. I already think that my marketing class will help in terms of narrowing down typical demographics for my department and such.

Why Sears? Well, I thought they represented a typical large Canadian company and I can start to see what is being taught in business school happening in real business. Sears isn’t a specialty retailer in one item, and the position of Sales Associate I feel will give me a better experience than being at a till. I’m hoping this non scholastic experience will kickstart me into figuring out what I want to accomplish in my academics.

The Saints Are Coming

Last night I watched Monday Night Football return to New Orleans. I've always wondered about the importance of sports in the grand scheme of everything else. Its pretty insignificant, yet so many people (including myself) place a large part of life toward it. How do you justify spending so much money to fix the Superdome when there is so much in New Orleans? One of the main messages was that the Superdome was a symbol of return to normalcy, that things will be back to what it was. As well, it apparently holds many many conventions, festivals, and is the economic centerpiece. Not to there is always that emotional attachment to a sports team that I can't explain. But while seeing the Saints beat up the Falcons for 3-4 hours is nice, once you're done, then what?

I think the strongest moment was one of the sideline reporters who had family be directly affected, and she was just able to compose herself. Anyways, MNF was a good spectacle and it was tough to see the announcers balance the line of focusing on the football game and the greater issue of rebuilding the city. Go Reggie Bush!

I've really grown to sports and I am trying to figure out why. I think its because its full of stories that are true. Its full of larger than life characters, of feel good stories, of disappointing tragedy, of suspense, and its all actually happening. Characters who perform on a field of conflict and dominate the other side to succeed. These characters already seem larger than life, can reach iconic status. The best example of this is Muhammad Ali, I think his life is absolutely incredible. From there on, I guess it grew.

"I am the Greatest!"

Withdrawl Syndrome

I was about to get into a blog about something, but then I got caught up in a quiz. It was much tougher than I anticipated, and I got drained trying to do it. =(

Summer 0f '06...err '69... haha 69...

Well, I don't feel like updating with real content though since its the end of summer I figure I'll put this song up. No vocals though, so you'll have to do the job... Yeah, Megaupload is kinda a mess to go through but so easy to upload stuff without signing up for anything.


Bryan Adams
Summer of '69 from Reckless 1984

I got my first real six-string
Bought it at the five-and-dime
Played it till my fingers bled
It was the summer of '69

Me and some guys from school
Had a band and we tried real hard
Jimmy quit and Jody got married
I shoulda known we'd never get far

Oh when I look back now
That summer seemed to last forever
And if I had the choice
Ya - I'd always wanna be there
Those were the best days of my life

Ain't no use in complainin'
When you got a job to do
Spent my evenin's down at the drive-in
And that's when I met you

Standin' on your mama's porch
You told me that you'd wait forever
Oh and when you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
Those were the best days of my life

Back in the summer of '69

Man we were killin' time
We were young and restless
We needed to unwind
I guess nothin' can last forever - forever, no

And now the times are changin'
Look at everything that's come and gone
Sometimes when I play that old six-string
I think about ya wonder what went wrong

Standin' on your mama's porch
You told me it would last forever
Oh the way you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
Those were the best days of my life

Back in the summer of '69

Everlong

Thanks for the comments below, it has been encouraging. Right now lets hope I can get on track to somewhere. In other news, I have been kind of been playing around with a guitar for a little while. Basically, as a kid, my dad never got to make loud noises. So as an adult he has purchased guitars and amps to play with. Of course, I have now started to use the guitars and amps a lot more than he does. I decided to take a quick video here and I put it up on Megaupload because it was quick and easy. Its just me playing a little bit of the song Everlong, which indeed has become one of my favorite songs. The guitar I'm using is my dad's Telecaster, the one I was given is in Camrose but I'm picking up all my stuff soon. I took Guitar 10 and near the end of that course, broke my hand, so that ended that. When I sorta picked it up again, it was mostly for a time waster but its been a lot of fun cranking out something through the amp...

Fork in the Road...

If you look back through the history of my blogs, maybe for the year, I had been coming off as ambivalent. At least thats what I think it has been like. General unhappiness? I'm not sure, but a lot of left alone statements never acted on, or forgotten. I kept trying to get kickstarted, but really I just seemed to sputter along. To get to the point, I am going to leave the Occupational Therapy program. I'm going to fail out.

Now, I had blogged earlier about the repeated course. I thought that when that happened, I would get kickstarted to work hard. I did, I studied pretty damn hard for the practical exams that were left. There was a lot of measuring and borrowing of assessments. Frick, I even bought a goniometer. Once the practical exams were over, I was kind of happy and proud to get through it. My response had been a good one, I was going through some adversity, handled it, and thought I was going to be better off for it.

Then I went off to work through the course I was repeating. There is not much too it, I fell back into the previous habits of doing the minimum to get it done. Not good, because you don't want any health professional on your case doing only the minimum. It should have been simple enough, but for some reason I was getting drained. The course itself wasn't actually that long and I had plenty of time... Yet near the end I felt stretched for time...

To get back on track, this placement did not go well. I'll summarize why as quick as I can. I knew that I was doing a poor job, but didn't work to correct it. Procastination was occurring, but it was a different kind, because normally you at least feel guilty. I didn't really feel guilty, I was okay with letting it slide. Finally it reached a point where I couldn't come back from it. In the end, I did have a choice. I could have taken a shot, try and get back to a pass. I thought to myself, do I have the attitude, committment, and desire to do this? I thought I asked myself this just a little while ago, and responded well. But this time I thought back to the whole year. Was I happy in this program? Did anything excite? Was I just trying to finish a degree? I have only a year left, and having a degree could have lead to looking at some graduate options... but the choice has been made. I'm out.

Its frightening. Did I make the right choice? What should I have done? Should I have continued? Are there still other doors open for me? I've probably left a bit out for now, but right now I am looking at some career counselling. There are some books to read and fill out, and hopefully this helps me with some decision making. Time is not exactly my friend....

Anyways, thats kind of an update. Next blog will be a quickie, and will potentially introduce you to the our latest and greatest catch phrase.

Everlong

I'm not having the best time on placement here, and a lot of has to do with the fact that I'm not taking advantage of what is here. I'm not stepping up is basically the gist. I'm gonna let another day pass before I put something up.

In the meantime, I feel like putting up a blog so maybe I'll talk about music for once. I'm not a huge follower of music but my preference is largely toward rock. I lean closer to "modern rock" but really, I listen mostly to mainstream music. I'm really too lazy to go out and search for whats out there. The songs I'll bring up here are mostly slow ones because while its nice to totally rock out, right now I'm not in the mood and slower songs just seem to have a way of sucking me in.


Glycerine- Bush
Seems to be about relationships and uses the substance glycerine as a metaphor for the volatile nature of relationships. For me, it feels like you're looking back on a situation and you feel numb. There isn't an emotion attached to it, and its just so hard to explain whats going on yet it makes sense what has happened.

4 am - Our Lady Peace
Really simple song but I just felt a lot of raw emotion come out of it. Also makes me think about those times where you stay up in bed until, yeah, 4 am, just obsessing about something. Could be about anything. You may not even know in this case, but for whatever reason you toss and turn.

Waiting - Green Day
I didn't like the video that went with this song because it seemed to scream "party video!" Really, besides the poppy sound it doesn't have anything to do with partying. It seems like a straightforward song about getting a big opportunity and being nervous about taking it. Maybe you'll take a chance and succeed, maybe you won't even take the chance at all... You just have a level of anxiety that you're not used to and at least in this moment, it paralyzes you. I guess by the more upbeat nature of the music you're supposed to pop out of it?

One of my favorite songs is from the Foo Fighters and its titled Everlong.
Most cranking version of Everlong ever is here. Its not a slow song, but the music just seems to speak to me, if that makes sense. The song seems to imply that things happen too fast. You want to hang onto one moment, because after that, or even before that, everything falls back down to Earth. The music gives a feeling of excitement that you can rock out to, but to repeat myself a bit, the speed gives a sense that its all happening to quickly and will be over too all too soon. It slows down in the middle to let you savor it, so it can hit the chorus one last time before ending.

Its not a happy or sad song again, but you just long for that moment. You've waited for it and its passed, so you relive it. Again and again, you think of that one spot of time that has implanted itself in you for the rest of your life. Alright, now I'm just repeating myself...

These songs all are fairly simple, but raw. There is uncertainty, and each contain some lingering in the past. And to me, they're just there for you to feel.

The Name Game

I enabled random posting again, just in case someone that I don't think reads this, actually does. Than it would be nice to know if they have anything to say. Anyways, just a brief comment for this blog. For those that don't know, my cousin has impregnated his girlfriend. Rather than get into any of that, I'm going to choose my mom's reaction and go straight to the "awww a baby!!!" While at Kdays we had conversations about what the kid's potential name could be. Kevin has managed to come up with Mojo... Mojo Boon? Someome please top that...

Klondike Days and that Mechanized Dragon... Its not Capital Ex Dammit...

For some reason I'm really looking forward to going to Klondike Days. Maybe its because I'm in Camrose for the rest of my summer and when I ask about things to do, walking trails and Wal-Mart top the list. But lets move this blog forward by thinking backward. ..

My very very first memory that I can actually recall is walking in the scorching sun and trying to make it underneath that bridge that connects the formerly known as Northlands Coliseum to the Agricom. Yep, we're heading off to Klondike Days! I can't remember a lot except those little cars you could drive on those old wooden tracks. Except you didn't really drive, but it was still super awesome. Another childhood memory I have is the ride "Dragon Wagon." Its a tiny kids roller coaster that travels in a loop and has two whole bumps. As a kid, this ride scared the shit out of me as it seemed to move me much faster than any previous experience. That damn dragon, too intense. (On a side note, in a random fit of rage, I threw away my favorite childhood book, Dragon in a Wagon... oh what have I done?!)

Ah, and there is always the Midway games. I declare myself to be the Whack-A-Mole champion! This is the only game where I aways win, but the downside is I have to keep spending and beating other people to win an stuffed prize I don't want... anymore... Well the amusing part is when anyone decides to play against me, despite knowing I have and will again without doubt hand them utter and horrible defeat. Awesome.

Then there is the food. Corndogs!!!... Three dollars for a small one?? Aww crap... why must I fall for you, delectable fried food. You are sweet and salty... how?! And those classic times people have taken on Monster Dogs. Man...

Finally, my favorite part, RIDES!!. At one time, I was not a fan of rides. Yep, these sky high dragon fast dizzying machines freaked me out. But now I've embraced these mechanized spin machines, because where else can I get such excitement? To me its like performing any really good jump kick except without having to put hard work and train for it. You get an adrenaline rush and thrills galore! Right now, all I want is to get strapped into the Fireball and feel the wind and G's as the ride goes. And lets not forget the rides that clearly state: "Heavier person on the inside." Seriously, don't ignore that instruction and don't be the jerk that flares his elbows out. ...Heh....

Again, I'm looking forward to having fun at Kdays and I'll end off by paraphrasing Mitch Hedberg, "Weeeee! That is what people say when they are having fun. They refer to themselves and other people."

The Rose City

So I've spent a full day and night now in Camrose and ... I am bored. Anyways, lets go over some things during my stay thus far:

I settled in on Sunday and went to bed early. Somewhere around 11 I started hearing music from my neighbour. I start hearing symphonic type music and wonder, I wonder if thats a girl next door. Cue the switch to AC/DC! Oh yeah, I'm staying in the dormrooms of a bible study college. Seriously, crapdammit, You have to blast AC/DC at 11 pm?? Finally I knock on the door, quick intro, "hey I'm trying to get some sleep, your music is too loud" and he goes oh sorry, and thanks for coming to me instead of complaining. I head back to bed and the musc is turned down but I realize that the walls are seemingly as soundproof as lego bricks. Okay fine, I don't know how well Lego contains sound, but I could still hear the AC/DC. Dammit, its not even the Back in Black album. Eventually I get to sleep...

So I wake up for my first day at my new placement. For my first day I would be actually be driving with my preceptor (supervisor) to Viking, which is about 45-50 minutes from Camrose. Yay... As it turns out she has an orientation day due to a job she has started a while ago and hasn't been able to make one of the orientation day for a while. The point is, the day was pretty much a snoozefest and I didn't really do anything.

Once that part of the day is over, I eventually have to make supper for myself. Now, the kitchen I have access to is across the street from me. Its not a great situation, but whatever. I was not able to successfully adapt to the fact that my materials adn the kitchen was seperated by so much space. I kept forgetting materials everytime I walked to the kitchen. "Oh crap, I forgot the pots *runs back*... oh crap, I forgot the butter *runs back*.... and is the inside of this fridge actually warmer than this room?" Well, I don't feel that I really cook anyways. I just sort of heat up some foodstuffs, and unite them in a bowl...

And now, here I am. I actually went to the visitor center and asked what is there to do in Camrose. The response? There are musuems around, if you like those. My preceptor said that Camrose is marketed as a retirement community as well. Its a slower paced lifestyle than Edmonton and it is filled with some nice scenery and walking trails. But walking is for suckers...le sigh

Anyways, time to head off before some more great but not appreciated at night because I'm fucking trying to sleep hard rock is blasted by my dorm neighbor...

Go House Lifter!

A nice story from the Make a Wish foundation...

Crap, no more hockey!

Congratulations to the Carolina Hurricanes for winning their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Their team and fans deserve applause for their efforts and performance. And of course, thanks to the Oilers for giving our city some excitement in the springtime. There was definitely no shortage of effort, and all the credit to the Hurricanes for coming together for one more big game. As for the Oilers, thanks for the memories as I'll always remember watching game 3 against San Jose when Horcoff scores the winner in triple overtime. Hopefully next year we'll see a Battle of Alberta and the Stanley Cup returning back to Oil country =D.

Anyways, I regret not blogging recently because some topics that I wanted to talk about have passed and I can't really go back and type something out. It is as if there is a time limit on a topic, and once it expires the topic is null and void. However, one I think that can still be done is an apology. Devin, if you're reading this one I owe you an apology. It was a while ago when you needed a lift home and I should gave offered it. I apologize for not giving you a lift, I mean if a friend can't give a simple ride home, then what the hell? I'll try not to let it happen again, friends need to be there for each other, even in small things. I think its been part of a trend of bad decision making and I'm definitely unhappy with myself. Its humbling and a confidence breaker to step back and see you're not the person you thought you were. Sometimes I think that joke picture of the male brain on Maggie's blog is a compliment.

Now, if I can pull my act together and pass my online course, I'll be shipped onto placement in Camrose from July 10th to Sept 1st. Its pretty exciting to get to live on my own, even though I'll have about 6000% more work to do. Nevertheless, I hope to make the most of that opportunity and if I for some reason don't make it, I'll probably spiral deeply into some unescapable bout of depression. You will find me hiding in the basement closet never wanting to come out.

Oh yeah, I also am going to the Esks game on the 24th. So far its my family, however my dad won't make it so there is an extra ticket. Anyone interested in watching the Esks take on the Stamps gimme a shout.

Thats all for now...

Seize the Moment, Seize the Day.. 5 days later


Whups, I had started this a few days ago and kept it as a draft. Hopefully the finished product will have some sort of cohesion...

Anyways...

The "Seize the moment, Sieze the day" stuff is the theme and title song of my brother's high school graduation. So I had attended my brother's convocation at the Jubilee Auditorium. By the way, the song is actually pretty good and hopefully they'll try to record it somewhere. Anyways, recently I've been witness to a few milestones (a first car, marriage, high school graduation)and it has kind of forced me to think a bit (I know, I try not to strain myself).

So I started thinking back to my own graduation, and really not much came back. I never really thought graduating high school was a big deal. In fact, why are we really celebrating it? Whoop dee doo, we managed to get at least half the questions on our exams right... yeehaw? But I realize now that graduation was not merely about passing high school. I guess I might have gotten it then if I had truly listened to all the speeches I would hear. Graduation was also about transition, that one chapter of life was closing and another one was beginning. New changes were going to happen, and for better or worse, we're taking this time to celebrate the actual past that happened, and the bright potential future. Really, this is where all the cliches come but they're really the only way to describe whats going on...

Actually, hold those thoughts for another entry... This is where the blog takes an abrupt turn yet. This is what I get for not finishing a blog on the day I started it.

Today I was heading home from the U of A and decided to take the LRT. Now, as I was going down, I suddenly saw some shapes near the edges of the station. In fact, they were on the tracks. Great, I thought to myself, it was some people goofing around or what it looked to me was that someone threw a random bag of stuff on the tracks. Then I realized that it was actually an elder lady who fell off her powered wheelchair (perhaps she just got off the train, stayed on the spot for a little bit to find something?). I'm not going to describe it much. She was lying on her side as emergency personnel was helping her, and what looked to be her husband holding a considerable sized cloth covered in blood next to them. I'm not sure how to describe how I felt, but I saw the face of someone else and I went a bit numb...

This blog started off looking at milestones and celebrations to a tragic event. I can't even think about what I would reflect on. I'm a bit mixed in what to think or feel. I haven't exactly learned a grand lesson from all that has happened, but I'll be mulling it over for a while...

Clinical Reasoning

Well, its been about a week since I finished finals. My last two exams were a multiple choice exam and a practical exam. The practical (OSCE - stands for Observed structured clinical exam??) would have us assess a fake patient in either a physical or mental health aspect. I think I'll just talk about the OSCE now, it was quite an experience. There was actually a lot of material to cover, and in the end we would draw up a piece of paper that would only look at a little portion of that material. Basically, know everything or risk getting something you can't deal with. As well, to pass you had to get a mark of 70% or better. It did seem like an exam that you kick ass in or utterly utterly fail, but there were a few borderline marks.

I got to school about 10:00 am even though my test was at 6:50 pm so I could walk through mock scenarios a few more times under "Exam conditions." I thought it'd be a lot easier to know what to say after going through it with other people over and over again. I'm not sure if I would have done better if I just relaxed for the whole day and then come in near 5 to do the exam. I feel as though I need to go through the day focusing on that one event, even though thinking about the test sapped my energy because of nerves.

Now, the OSCE is set up so if you're doing a physical assessment, you've got about 6 minutes to take a quick history and then determine whats wrong. For a psychosocial part you've got 10 minutes to take a history and then go through an assessment. The physical portion is fairly straightforward, you get someone who "hurt" their right shoulder or left hip and knee. However, the mental health part can be tricky because their diagnosis can be major depression to mania. Depending on how the patient plays it, it can be very tough to handle the situation. In some cases, the patient refused to go though the assessment and other times they would be touching the student and rapidly talking.

Oh yeah, another thing that kind pissed me off was that my test had been moved back 40 minutes, so I said ah screw it, I'll come back later. Of course, when I get there about 7:10, I found out that they had been close to on time and that I got skipped. Crap! So my exam actually did get pushed back 40 minutes, but it was my fault. That was so awesome...

So anyways, I finally walk into the exam room and get my case scenario. Yay, its a mental health and my patient's diagnosis is Major Depression. Now, I kinda had an idea of what would happen. Major Depression would not affect someone's ability to tell you how to perform something, they can and know how to do it physically and cognitively. However, for some reason, there is just this void inside and it sucks up all your energy. Anyways, I walk in, start up the history and ask a few questions. Generally, I'm doing fine although I do need to speak up.

Now for my highlight moment!!

One of my questions is something along, "imagine you are at home and are about to goto bed. What should you do to make yourself feel safe?" Usually people will say check windows or lock the door (correct answer) but my patient says oh I've got a HANDGUN underneath my pillow. Oh fantastic, you're depressed and you have a handgun. Its a wonderful combination that mixes well, like Kool Aid and water....

Afterward we were talking to the evaluator of the OSCE, and he said to me it was funny the way my face looked when the patient said that. He also said he hoped that I acknowledged it in my written portion of the exam. I of course nodded politely and thought, good thing you aren't marking it! I'm so glad I have clinical reasoning...

But yeah, bottom line is that I passed it and am so glad that its done with!!! =D

Down but Not Out

My lack of effort or drive, whatever it is exactly, has cost me bigtime. I didn't really expect it to happen, but it did. What happened is this: I didn't get credit for one of my courses. I'm not going to bother getting into the specifics (fair or unfair, bullshit class or not?), except the bottom line is that I failed it. Now, I forget if I've mentioned it earlier, but I was heading toward my next clinical fieldwork placement on May 15th. However, that is no longer so, because a requirement of attending fieldwork is passing all previous Occupational Therapy courses. Therefore, when May 15th rolls around, I'm staying home.

I did not see this one coming at all. I was sitting in the computer lab and checking my email and it felt like a glancing blow to the face. I was in a state of shock but trying to immediately deal with it as best as I could. I immediately set up an appointment with the instructor and see what my options are in this situation.

After that appointment, it basically confirmed that I'm not going to fieldwork. To kind of compound it a bit, that was also the day that I was going to the oral surgeon to figure out the details of my wisdom teeth removal for the summer. That ended with me being at Westmount Transit Center, and during that time I actually stopped by and visited with my former Mandarin teacher. It was more or less a pleasant visit. When she asked how I was doing, I said good, but of course it was more like "I'm fucking crushed because I can't go onto placement."

On the long bus ride home, I forget if it was the same day or earlier, I had a long time to think. After recovering from the initial shock of all, I started to think. Maybe this could be a positive event after all. In fact, this could be the best thing to happen to me so far in OT... Yes, failing a course. Why? Because this consequence has given me a sense of urgency and a sense that I do need to apply myself. If in the end that isn't enough, than so be it. But I better not fail because I simply did not put in enough effort, that I couldn't put my mind to it and conentrate on doing the best I could. Me putting in a shoddy effort is insulting to those individuals who couldn't make the program but would have had the attitude and work ethic to succeed. I better not simply take up a spot and waste it.

Of course, I better walk the walk. Its all fun and exciting to do the whole "rah rah" thing but I better start this newfound energy for effort by making sure I pass my next two exams that are coming up... Wish me luck. =D

Well, that sucked

Blah, today I went to school for almost no reason. You see, in my program I have to select 5 modules out of a wide variety of topics (such as "Sexuality in rehabilitation to Splinting). So I went to school thinking, "Yay I'm going to knock off another one of the 5." But then it got cancelled. Weee! The kicker is that I had an contact lens appointment scheduled for that time but I had to move it. By the way, I did have an appointment even before that one. I have to goto another one because I could not insert the stupid f*cking contacts into my eyes (why did I censor myself?). It was almost a waste but I ended up signing up for a module sometime in June.

Oh yeah, also saw Silent Hill. My impression of this movie actually goes against the title of this blog entry. I didn't think this movie was as bad as indicated by movie critics, but I can understand why they scored the movie they way they did. However, I am convinced that the director thought it would be a good idea to tell the actors to base their performances off the CGI scenes from the video game...

Okay, time to put this one to bed. I thought I'd finish with what I thought was an interesting quote...

Chris Martin on "The Scientist": "That's just about girls. It's weird that whatever else is on your mind, whether it's the downfall of global economics or terrible environmental troubles, the thing that always gets you most is when you fancy someone."

Movies suck!

Take a look at the top box office moneymakers at www.rottentomatoes.com. It is just astounding to see that of the top ten, only three of them collected generally positive reviews. Now granted, something like Scary Movie 4 is going to get panned by the critics but just wow, it is astonishing (but not suprising) the level of suck that is going on in the theaters.

I had been hoping that Silent Hill had gotten some positive reviews. While doing some quick reading, I also found something else interesting. I took this passage from Roger Ebert's review of Silent Hill.

"Dr. Shlain made the most interesting comment on the panel. He said they took some four and five year-olds and gave them video games and asked them to figure out how to play them without instructions. Then they watched their brain activity with real-time monitors. "At first, when they were figuring out the games," he said, "the whole brain lit up. But by the time they knew how to play the games, the brain went dark, except for one little point."

Kind of explains the whole too much video games makes your brain go dumb dumb thing...

But anyways.. about Silent Hill! Who wants to watch it Monday? Even though its gotten a bit crushed in the reviews, it apparently has a good atmosphere and setting to the movie. The visuals are supposed to be fairly impressive and that alone can set a really good mood. I'm hoping that reviews have some kind of negative video game bias and that affected the reviews. I would liken what I've read about the movie to something along seeing a really pretty girl's face and then being snapped back into reality when you actually hear what she sounds like. It would be like Jennifer Aniston with the voice of Fran Drescher (spelling?). Now that is a truly horrifying thought...

Alas, it is time for some more studying. Well, I've just got to power through and look for the light at the end of the tunnel...

Bellringer

I've got a bellringer test tomorrow, oh what fun that will be. For those that don't know what it is, I have an exam for my cadaver lab. There will be 50 stations where you have a minute and 15 seconds to identify muscles and such on various specimens. Well, after that I've got to start studying hardcore for my finals. Sigh, its that time of year where everything feels like its swamping you. Ah well, gotta work through it because I just have to. Good luck to everyone studying up for finals, and curse that awesome spring weather laughing at me...

Doesn't Even Deserve a Title

Check out this old interview with Mario Lemieux by Dan Patrick. Its an old one but funny. Even if you don't, my favorite part is the end:

DP: What's the best thing you did with the [Stanley] Cup?
ML: I slept with it.
DP: By yourself?
ML: My wife was beside me.
DP: So, you and your wife slept with the Cup?
ML: In between us.
DP: You spooned with the Cup?
ML: Just for a few minutes.

And another interesting link, I just have to say that the architecture of this building is amazing. =D

Jeez, I have nothing to say at the moment. I wish I was a great storyteller so I could type out something. In fact, I wonder how is it that other people can be such great storytellers. They can create such glorious narratives about the most inane events (One time, I ate food I microwaved by myself...!). But then again, I prefer having an easygoing life. Dramatics aren't a part of life I wish to have, but building Lego cities is...

Ichiro!

Can't believe I watched this baseball game, but Japan beat Cuba 10-6. Weeeeee... it defeated studying Anatomy. Now I go into the lab not knowing what is what. Again. Dammit. "Weeee... that is what you say when you are having fun. You refer to yourself and other people" (Mitch Hedburg, some year).

Go Heavy or Go Home!

That little saying comes from watching a UFC special on Rich Franklin. Its posted up on the wall at the gym he weight trains at. Yep, nothing like watching somebody else train their ass off. The video is here and is about 200 megs. If you've got a broadband connection, it can't take too long to download. For me it was about 25 minutes or so. Also, the first two minutes are awesome. You'll have to watch it to see what I mean. =D

Some other interesting stuff is that our OT class is trying to do a fundraiser for next year. Apperantly its quite a big deal, and what we're doing is setting up an all day cycling on a exercise bike marathon. Basically, a whole bunch of teams register for a fee (having 2-8 people) and have to keep the bike's wheels turning for 8 hours. For the registration fee, half goes to a charity and half goes to our class' grad.

As well, there is this pledge thing. Here is where I think this idea falls off a bit. If each person from the faculty can raise $100, multiply it by the number of students (90+) we can cover our whole grad. The only issue is, its a pledge and therefore we go around asking people to donate to our grad. I believe at least 90% of these pledges would go toward the grad. Really, I can't imagine doing that, "hey wanna donate to my grad? By the way, you probably won't be going." But I could still try to come up with pledges. The way I would do it is hold a Poker tournament with buy-ins, and give away prizes instead of having a prize pool of the buy ins. Or I can sell stuff, but the poker idea is more fun. I just can't think of stuff I already have that I can give away right now...

Alexander the Great!

So my favorite hockey player ends up burning Canada in mens hockey. Well, what are you gonna do? Everyone is going to become a hockey analyst and remark about the game and team that was put together. Me? It just means Smyth and The Six Million Dollar man can come home and get some rest for the Oiler playoff drive. Good luck to Russia now, since they're the ones to knock off Canada. I have to admit though, I felt good for the 'ole Russian Rocket, Pavel Bure, who was the previous most exciting player in the NHL! By the way, anyone ever feel that he sort of looks like Macauly (sp?)Caulkin (yes the kid from Home Alone!)? Except without those baggy drugged up looking eyes...

Anyways, let the hockey rants begin...

Weekend Update

Anyways, on to a relatively interesting weekend. I'll start with the most recent event, which was a very ruggish and daring outing to a beauty salon in Chinatown. Yeah... I'm serious. Continuing on, I was there for... I don't even know what its called. I just heard the word "Extraction" and understood it involved my face. This procedure also involved some sharp objects. Presumably this was all to smoothen out pimples and so on on my face. Now, I like to think I have a decent threshold for pain, but wtf? This is one of the few times my eyes started to water in response to some kind of physical impact on me. The other time being a punch in the face.

The day before, I helped out in moving some stuff from one house to another. This led to the usual surge of "growing up" thoughts, so naturally I kind of shut them out for the time being. I don't have any crazy stories from this, which is probably a good thing because that means nothing was destroyed.

Okay, enough of this post. I'm going back to the Somethingawful comedy goldmine. Now, some of that stuff is very funny, but also very offensive, hence the name somethingawful. Anyways, my favorite archives are the tales from the zoo... =D

Ahahaha...

Hopefully the link won't die right away but chcek out this headline.

Woman accused of being a condom bomber.

Waiting by the Door

I don't think I can really type out a relatively lengthy blog anymore. At least for this little while. I think I'll just pop in random comments for my own sake. Unless somebody want a blog about a cadaver lab...

Anyways, a sort of interesting thing happened today. Well, for some backstory, lets go flashback to my youth. Back in my elementary days the routine for me before I left school was to grab breakfast, watch tv, and than watch my mom drive off to work. As she drove off, I would stand at the screen door and keep waving until I couldn't see the car anymore. Than I'd bolt to the side window of the house and be able to catch a glimpse of the car before it rounded another corner.

I think its fairly undisputed that I'm a mommy's boy (whether I like it or not). So today I had to car as I needed to head back to the University for an evening class. Things have changed a bit, I don't stand at the door anymore to wave, but as I backed out and drove out of our neighbourhood, I could see my mom waiting by the screen door waiting until she couldn't see the car anymore. I don't know why I didn't today, but I know on Thursday I'll be waving back.

Traveling Tickle Trunk

Trunk does not actually travel or tickle people. Maybe I'll explain this later...

Anyways, Happy Chinese New Year weekend! (Though I'm a bit late)

Actually, this weekend should kick ass. I'm going to the Oilers/Canucks game, there is a very good UFC event going on, and its Superbowl weekend! Rock on! I'll try to actually blog later on.. because you know, its good for self reflection and stuff. =D

Nope!

I've been trying to blog but when I get down to it, I just blank out and decide that sleep is a much more enjoyable experience. I guess this blog will partly be a response to Dev's latest effort. Now, I'm fairly content with life and there is much positives to focus on than negatives. Actually, content might be the wrong word to use. Perhaps its more appropriate to say that I can accept what my life is at the moment. I can't say that I'm fully satisifed with myself.

Motivation has definitely been something I have struggled with for the past year. My work ethic seems to have flatlined somewhere. I think I might need some kind of book or guide for self organization and perhaps to get me inspired. My work has not been stellar and the "pile system" hasn't been all that great. It has really been the same old story for a long time. Its getting annoying, when I do set the time for schoolwork or whatever, I just would rather stare at the table than finish what needs to be done. Am I really that lazy that I just don't want to do any work? My sense of needing to do a good job or finishing tasks on time has dwindled away. Ah... fuck it...

In other news, I'm heading out to the Bryan Adams concert. I believe a number of other people are heading out there as well, but really I'm more going because my mom wants to. Well, for the concernt I will be looking toward the moment where everyone pulls out their lighter during the song "Everything I do." I'm sure that'll be one of the highlights of the show...

Ah man I'm tired... okay lets shut down one down...

Sick Day

Lately I've been very sick and have been stuck inside for a while. I'm not sure whats afflicting me, but the symptoms include the runny nose, sore throat, and a while ago headaches and fevers. All thats left is a slightly irritated throat so I'm still coughing quite a bit. I still need to just sit tight so that it doesn't get worse or flare up again.

In late November I had an allergy test and found out I had a similar ordeal with the people who are allergic to all kinds of things. Trees, dirt, grass, and for me, dogs. It is apperently a relatively severe allergy and one theory is that Ryan's dog and something else hit me...

Anyways, does anyone feel like hitting an ice rink on Friday? I talked with Kat a bit about heading to one of the outdoor rinks outside the North YMCA. Not sure about details, but I know I'm determined to get out there, I've been inside a little too much lately. >=(

Okay... thats all for now. Gotta rest up and get better.