This is what comes of having three dogs and fully 80% of your facebook friends/groups being animal-related organizations. Last night, I dreamt that I took my sister's new puppy to the park - and promptly lost him!. In the dream, I fell into conversation with a fellow dog owner, then turned to check on the…
September 11, 2013: Snow Monkeys win! And lose! Well, this is disconcerting!
Well, one week into the 2013 fantasy football season, and my Snow Monkeys have tasted their first victory AND suffered their first loss of the year. The win came in impressive fashion, on the very last play of the opening weekend. Down late, my Snow Monkeys snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with…
September 8, 2013: The party was subarashii!
Last night's party was a success. Everything went as planned, the guests seemed pleased and, most important of all, I was NOT violently ill like that time I had a bunch of people over for home made ice cream, ate thirteen different flavors and ended up very sick. Less ice cream this time around but…
September 7, 2013: News of note!
Tonight, I'll be hosting a little party for the staff of the Granville Island Veterinary Hospital. With two hours to go before festivities get underway, I'm doing a final check: Dinner = Check! Japadog will be setting up shop in my backyard to serve up their Japanese-inspired hot dogs. Dessert = Check! I picked up…
September 6, 2013: Oh, this and that!
Yesterday, Akemi hit me with another one of her only in Japanese terms. "What do you call a girl who's always interested in good-looking guys?"she asked me. "Uh, a girl,"I offered, following the logic that men who are always interested in good-looking women are most assuredly referred to as men. "Why? I suppose the Japanese…
September 5, 2013: Underappreciated comic book characters who need their own t.v. shows!
ANIMAL MAN He can soar like an eagle, swim like a shark, run like leopard, and eat like a pug! Awesome! BOOSTER GOLD A hero who comes from the future, not in search of bad guys, but personal fame and fortune. Delightfully anti-heroic. DEADMAN The ghost of a murder victim is permitted to temporarily inhabit…
September 4, 2013: Free to good home = Bad Mojo!
"Why,"I wondered, "is there a homeless man walking around my backyard?" I parted the blinds and watched him, in his work boots, ratty jeans and Harley Davidson t-shirt, circle round the side of the house and over to the back gate where he fell into conversation with some guy standing in the alley, on the…
September 4, 2013: It shouldn’t be this difficult!
Great. Now my treadmill is broken. Over the past couple of weeks, it has seemed increasingly reluctant to get going, no doubt mirroring my general attitude. Every time I would turn it on, instead of immediately rolling like it used to, it would pause as if considering. Again? This guy just worked out last night?…
September 1, 2013: The New Fall Line-up!
I try. Believe me, I do try. At the beginning of every fall season, I try to catch as many of the new shows as possible, dropping those that fail to capture my interest and sticking with those that hold my attention. Slowly but surely, as the weeks pass, various of these new shows fall…
August 30, 2013: My Whirlpool Rant! Mailbag!
Yesterday, Akemi and I bought a new oven. NOT a Whirlpool (or Maytag) owing to their crap customer service. Earlier this year, the digital control on my old Maytag oven stopped working. We contacted the manufacturer, now Whirlpool, who arranged for a repairman to come over. "Repairman" is a misnomer. He didn't actually repair anything.…
August 29, 2013: Japanese wedding advice!
This November, Akemi and I will be attending her sister's wedding in Tokyo. This will be our first Japanese wedding and, apparently, they're full of customs covering everything from the particulars of the varied gift envelopes and their requisite knots (don't make an ass of yourself by tying a Hanamusubi instead of a Musubikiri!) to…
August 28, 2013: Artistic Expressions!
The day after my bout with what I suspect was food poisoning, my breakfast and lunch consisted of two hardboiled eggs, a bowl of chicken stock, and a bottle of ginger beer. So, when dinner rolled around, my appetite was back. And good thing too since we had reservations at Raw Canvas, a unique, art-themed…
August 27, 2013: A tale of two dinners!
Last night, Akemi made some beautiful home made orecchiette, "small ear" pasta, following my mother's recipe. Getting the cooking time right was a little tricky. When first served they were clearly undercooked, so they went back in the pan with the tomato sauce and grown chicken and, ten minutes later, they seemed dense but ready.…
August 24, 2013: Upcoming Movie Releases To Look Forward To! Or not!
HELL BABY Release Date: September 6, 2013 What it’s about: A horror-comedy from the creators or Reno 911 that sees an expectant couple move into a haunted house What it’s got working for it: Cameos from some funny people including The League's Paul Scheer. What’s it’s got going against it: The humor doesn't look particular…
August 22, 2013: Recent Recommended Reads!
Recommended reads: A Terror by Jeffrey Ford The latest release by author Jeffrey Ford is a nightmarish novelette that offers a supernaturally speculative take on the inspiration for one of Emily Dickinson's most famous poems, "Because I could not stop for Death". Emily Dickinson, awakens to an empty house, her parents and sister inexplicably gone. She…