Jan?Feb 08 Facebook Notes

I don't want to grow up, I'm up a Toys R Us
kid.
Friday, February 29, 2008 at 8:48pm | Edit Note | Delete
Some of you already know this, and some will find it surprising. I've decided to stop aging and live forever. As part of this decision I've been studying immortality a little. Every once in a while I come across an interesting tidbit. For example, did you know that there is a speciies of jellyfish that with the exception of disease or accidental death never dies? You can learn about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turritopsis_nutricula
Beyond that, the next longest living organism that we know of is the bristlecone pine. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turritopsis_nutricula
Here's a little trivia nugget about the bristlecone pine
Donald R. Currey, a student of the University of North Carolina, was taking core samples of bristlecones in 1964 when he discovered that "Prometheus" was over 4,000 years old. His coring tool broke, so the U.S. Forest service granted permission to Mr. Currey to cut down "Prometheus". After Prometheus had been felled, 4,844 rings were counted on a cross-section of the tree, making "Prometheus" at least 4,844 years old, the oldest non-clonal living thing known to man.[2]
Oldest non-clonal living thing is an acknowlegement that some bacteria, through a process of cell division seem to be almost immortal.
All of this is on my mind today because I quoted an article I read a few months back to a friend of mine. The article stated that the first person who will live to be 1000 years old has probably already been born, and is probably about 60 years old right now.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4003063.stm
That's the article. This guy's working on it for all of us, which is why of course I'm not really working that hard on it. With a beard like that I'm sure he's got it covered.



One of the few articles you'll see in the National Post...
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Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 12:53pm | Edit Note | Delete
where the science of climate change isn't in question. http://www.nationalpost.com/nationalpost/story.html?id=340975
Apparently the threat of climate change isn't real enough for us to worry about spending any money on it's prevention. But when it comes to arming for the oil wars it's going to lead to, we'd better start now. Gotta love conservative logic.
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Moving and thoughts of school daze.
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Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 8:45pm | Edit Note | Delete
This month marks the longest that I have ever lived contiguously in one place. Well it did. I've since moved.
But having spent 2 and a half years in the house I just left, I found myself getting a bit attached to it.
Tonight for instance, I noticed that the North side of my old yard is beginning to thaw. I've grown accustomed to watching the snow gradually retreat in a North to South line for the past couple of summers, and I'm actually going to miss it.
This is somewhat of a landmark event for me, actually missing a place. In the past when I've moved away, I've always missed Saskatoon, and since being back I really miss Vancouver...but to miss a dwelling, a yard is new to me.
I had another bit of nostalgia creep up on me tonight. My daughters' have a recital coming up in March at one of the schools that I used to attend. It'll be the first time in 27 years that I've set foot in this particular building, and I'm kind of looking forward to it. The combination of this move, and the upcoming old school visit got me to thinking about the schools that I've been to. I have a tendency to get really mixed up when I try to remember all of them, because I attended a few more than most people. So for posterity I'm going to compile a list of them, and I thought, well why not share this list with all of you. Perhaps we'll find that at some point in our past lives we were classmates and didn't even realize it!
Here goes, in order to the best of my recollection:

King George
St. Michael's
St. Edward's
St. Paul's
McNab Park
Lanigan Elementary
Fairhaven
Queen Elizabeth
Aden Bowman
Belmont Academy, Ayr
Evan Hardy
Hudson Bay Composite
Marion Graham
Holy Cross
Walter Murray

Now for some reason when I usually count them I get 18, so I think I might be forgetting a couple. I've always been pretty sure that there was another Catholic school in there somewhere, but I can't for the life of me remember That's the list for now anyway.
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Hey, did y'all see the Sixth Seal in the sky tonight?
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Wednesday, February 20, 2008 at 11:55pm | Edit Note | Delete
* The Sixth Seal - Signs In The Heavens

"I watched as He opened the sixth seal. There was a great Earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from The Face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of The Lamb! For the great day of Their wrath has come, and who can stand?" (Revelation 6:12-17)

I've always had difficulty reconciling the notion of divine love, everlasting peace and forgiveness with 'the wrath of the lamb'. Just sayin'. Oh and I thought you might get a kick of being tagged in this note Brian :)
In this note: Brian Lamb (notes)
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Updated about 6 months ago

Spinning Out of Control
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Saturday, February 2, 2008 at 9:12am | Edit Note | Delete
I was really affected when I heard about the deaths of the 2 little girls on the Yellow Quill First Nation, and I started a group to write to politicians and ask for accountability for those deaths to be spread to anyone that may have had a hand in it. Now I'm feeling a little bit like the leader of a lynch mob. I've essentially sentenced this guy without a trial.
Today I received a letter from a stranger telling me I should freeze to death in the snow for starting such a group, that I should think about the family, and I sent back a response standing by my decision. But it's got me thinking. Maybe I should stay out of it. Maybe this family has suffered enough and I should back off. Add to that the fact that the group seems to have become a bit of a haven for racists to spout off their bs, and I'm really rethinking this.
The premise of the group is to ask that laws that cover such things as holding a bar or server liable when a drunk driver kills someone be extended to situations such as this. Anyone that knew he was THAT impaired or could get that impaired while caring for children should face charges. Anyway. Is the group an evil response to an obvious accident and should I keep out of it, or am I doing the right thing?
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Updated about 7 months ago

When It's cold like this...
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008 at 8:25am | Edit Note | Delete
my little guy can be pretty darn cute. He's almost 3 and he's pretty expressive. Actually, I could even go beyond expressive and tell it like it is...he's a drama queen. Like when we go out to the minivan. Even before I open the door of the house to go outside he's yelling "Carry me Dad! Carry me!". Which I do. As soon as we hit the cold outside hair he does this thing that's really hard to describe. I put my arm under his butt and carry him so that he's facing me, with his arms around my neck. As soon as we hit the cold however he pulls his knees up to his chest and tucks his arms and face in between our bodies, in a sort of fetal position. It's the way that I wish I could react to this weather. I have to hold on really tight because he tries to squirm in tighter and tighter which actually causes him to push away a bit. I imagine that he finds this cold weather even more painful than I do. I really feel for him. Which is why the following story outrages, makes me sick.
This deep freeze we are in appears to have claimed the life of, at least, a 3 year old girl. She was found frozen to death on the Yellowquill First Nation. RCMP are still looking for her one year old sister. That's after the father of the children were picked up, drunk and nearly frozen to death himself early yesterday (Tues) morning. He received medical attention, but it wasn't until 8 hours later that the man was able to ask police about his children. Following a search the body of the 3 year old was found.
This asshole should be imprisoned in a freezer for the rest of his life. Every time he comes close to death they should bring him out until he's well enough to freeze again. Let him lose his toes and his fingers one by one. Let him lose his hands and his feet. Let him lose everything but the memory of his children freezing to death because he was pissed fucking drunk, and let him live with that and only that.
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@#$#@%$ James Joyce
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Wednesday, January 16, 2008 at 11:23am | Edit Note | Delete
http://www.freewebs.com/andrewtait/blog.htm
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Wow it's letting me write a note...
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Tuesday, January 15, 2008 at 11:58pm | Edit Note | Delete
well tough, I wrote at my blog today instead.
http://www.freewebs.com/andrewtait/blog.htm
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Yet Another Reason Not to Drink.
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Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 6:15pm | Edit Note | Delete
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=210969
That link takes you to a news story about a 44 year old man who drowned with a plastic octopus on his head after the polar bear swim in Trail B.C.
You don't want to die with a plastic octopus on your head.