Toronto

I went to Toronto this morning for work, to look at a school project that is nearly finished. I saw a funny police indicent while driving up Victoria Park Ave. A cop was standing on the side of the street with a radar gun, hiding behind a telephone poll, watching for speeders. He was so sneaky. At first glance I thought he had a revolver in his hand and he was about to take down a bell repair guy working on the side street, but he was just trying to hide from oncoming traffic. Must've been a slow day.

I visited my Grndfather on Saturday, to celebrate his 81st birthday. I really admire him. He's got a great sense of humour, is always up for extra dessert, and treats my grandmother with love and respect. He teases her a lot, which is hilarious to watch. She's a bit gullible, which just encourages him.
A few years ago he spent a fair amount of time building a small replica sailing ship. He only had photos and a few small drawings to work from, but he created the ship from individually cut pieces of wood, each custom cut by hand. The detail he achieved is remarkable. Each joint and each knot was by hand. I can only imagine how many hours he put into it.

Stephen Lewis: A follow-up

This past Sunday night, as you're aware, my loyal blog reader(s), was the Stephen Lewis Foundation Fundraiser at the Millenium Park in Peterborough. Michael put in a tonne of work, planning, organizing, collecting auction items, etc. His goal was $10,000.00. I think the final tally came in at a couple hundred over that! It's incredible what a few volunteers and a community can do in an evening.

Here's some pictures from the event, the first of Michael and Keith Monk, the auctioneer. The second of Aengus Finnann who soothed the crowd into a giving mood through song and story.

Amateur Night

Scott Adams injects some 'stellar' humour into the planetary mix.

more trip pics

...a sunrise over a corn field, somewhere in Iowa...

...Steve balancing Avi on his head...

...The highest elevation I've ever climbed to...


...the front face of Longs...

Tyler got married to a lovely girl named Jane on Saturday. I lived with Tyler for a couple of years during University. He's one of the nicest, most genuine guys you'll ever meet. I wish them all the best in their marriage.

Free Mockingbird

Derek Webb is giving away his latest albumn "Mockingbird" for free!

What's the obsession with JonBonet Ramsey? What makes her so special compared to the millions of kids who have been murdered, or who have died since her death 10 years ago? Why can I not open a newspaper or listen to the radio without hearing the latest news about some asshole who claims to have killed her?
The sad irony is that I just contributed to it. My apologies.

Afghanistan - Still going

An interesting account from a Canadian Soldier on the ground in Afghanistan.

I spent the last week in Colorado with three other guys, hiking, climbing, caving, relaxing, eating, meeting people, water skiing; basically, just having a quality vacation. I love the landscape of Ontario, especially the Canadian Shield just north of Peterborough, but there's something special about mountain top views, and shaded valleys surrounded by peaks. God created the earth, in all it's variety, and it was good. Very good.

HIV/AIDS Community Fundraiser for the Stephen Lewis Foundation

The Silver Bean Café is hosting a community fundraiser in Millennium Park in Peterborough, on Sunday Aug 20, for the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

There will be a concert by Aengus Finnan, founder of the Shelter Valley Folk Festival, and a community auction performed by Keith Monk, the local auctioneer legend. Come out for an evening of awareness and fundraising for the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa(please bring your own lawn chairs). A huge problem, but where a little bit of money can make an impact in people’s lives.

more info...

The 'Peculiar' Disappearance of Iraq Coverage

"CNN will surely remind us today that it is Day 19 of the Israel-Hezbollah war - now branded as Crisis in the Middle East - but you won't catch anyone saying it's Day 1,229 of the war in Iraq...

'This is happening even as the casualties in Iraq, averaging more than 100 a day, easily surpass those in Israel and Lebanon combined" more...