CommPost

Saturday, July 28, 2007

HAPPY FEAST OF ESSENCE!

Although I nearly forgot, I wish you all a happy FoE and a great weekend to wash away the disappointments of the past year.

I'm off to a good start Had a HUGE chicken and Rib dinner last night at Swiss Chalet and then went to the Simpson's movie (which although flat at certain parts was overall very well done!) then to east side's with liz for snacks and drinks.

We started this morning off with choco-bannana pancakes, mixed game salami, and excellent eggs. Played Empire Builder and the rest of the weekend is shaping up just as good!

Happy Feast to All!

Cheers,

P

Friday, July 27, 2007

AT LONG LAST!

After 18 years "The Simpsons Movie" arrives today. The tickets are bought and I'm hoping, praying, sacraficing goats for it not to suck and be worthy of the Simpson name!

More to come.

Cheers,

P

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

LATIN HARPER

Free trade with Peru and Colombia. Support to colombia's most successful governmetn in ages. Canada as a third way model between Chavez and Bush....

Absolutely perfect. This has been overdue for probably about 15 years.

Mr. Harper you're still a SoB but you've done well on this trip. Keep up the good work and maybe try some of your new found foreign policy magic on actually addressing climate change, lowering income taxes (rather than consumption taxes), and generally supporting your government financially since we are after all in surplus.

Cheers,

P

Monday, July 09, 2007

JAZZ FEST WEEKEND

So this weekend was great. Isaac came up early friday morning and crashed. We then enjoyed the fruits of little italy (massive italian cold cut sandwiches and the belgian beer pub in lovely weather). We then walked through the glebe and hit another pub for nachos and more refreshments on a warm day.

Later that evening I made steaks on the BBQ and home made marguaritas and we just sat around on the patio at my place and chilled. Called adam but he was sick so we got called to pick TJ up at the Bus station. HOwever the time of the bus got screwed up so TJ ended up at adam's place and they came over for a bit. TJ ended up staying the night as Adam was quite sick. Adam took off after chatting a bit and having some sore throat tea.


The next day it was off to Montreal (with a very pushy TJ constantly trying to grab shotgun even though he wasn't really navigating) and lunch at Manzo's pizzaria for their - literally - world famous subs. And much gorging and enjoyment was had by all. Before actually chowing down though we needed to get some cash and the bank near my house had a broken door so their machine was blocked off, the two banks we tried near where we entered montreal didn't have machines or were locked and the convinience store we stopped at with a Royal Bank machine was ALSO out of order. So we just decided to make TJ pay.

Once we'd finished our subs we parked the car near my grandmother's place (a good location to leave the city later that night and also near a metro station to get downtown). We stopped in and had some cookies and tea with my grandmother which is always nice then headed down to the centre. We got programmed walked around.

It never ceases to amaze me how Montreal blocks off about 8 sq blocks with 8 free stages tons of vendors and street shos and tens of thousands of people. It was wild as always.

We caught 'the california guitar trio' which was just spectacular. Their last tune was a kick ass rendition of bohemian rhapsody which they got the crowd to sing while they played the tune on guitar. Later we saw Don Ross a folk guitarist/singer that I think I enjoyed a lot more than anyone of the other with me. To finish the night off we caught the montreal big band (which rawked) and a little trio doing a guitar blend of spanish, arabic, and classic music. It was a nice touch to finish off. Especially since their last song was a very 'special' rendition of the theme from the good the bad and the ugly.

Anyway we made it back to Ottawa. Adam and TJ crashed and Isaac and I wen tout for Pho at about 130am. Had a really good chat and ended up in bed around 5am.

The next day was quiet. Breakfast, gorceries and dropping Isaac off at the bus station.

A very good weekend!

Cheers,

P

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

TRUER WORDS....


"Olbermann: Bush, Cheney should resign
‘I didn’t vote for him, but he’s my president, and I hope he does a good job.’
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MSNBC video

Special Comment: Bush, Cheney should resignJuly 3: Keith Olbermann questions Bush’s actions in commuting the sentence of Scooter Libby.
Countdown

SPECIAL COMMENT

By Keith Olbermann
Anchor, 'Countdown'

MSNBC
Updated: 8:13 p.m. ET July 3, 2007


“I didn’t vote for him,” an American once said, “But he’s my president, and I hope he does a good job.”
That—on this eve of the 4th of July—is the essence of this democracy, in 17 words. And that is what President Bush threw away yesterday in commuting the sentence of Lewis “Scooter” Libby.

The man who said those 17 words—improbably enough—was the actor John Wayne. And Wayne, an ultra-conservative, said them, when he learned of the hair’s-breadth election of John F. Kennedy instead of his personal favorite, Richard Nixon in 1960.

“I didn’t vote for him but he’s my president, and I hope he does a good job.”

The sentiment was doubtlessly expressed earlier, but there is something especially appropriate about hearing it, now, in Wayne’s voice: The crisp matter-of-fact acknowledgement that we have survived, even though for nearly two centuries now, our Commander-in-Chief has also served, simultaneously, as the head of one political party and often the scourge of all others.
We as citizens must, at some point, ignore a president’s partisanship. Not that we may prosper as a nation, not that we may achieve, not that we may lead the world—but merely that we may function.

But just as essential to the seventeen words of John Wayne, is an implicit trust—a sacred trust: That the president for whom so many did not vote, can in turn suspend his political self long enough, and for matters imperative enough, to conduct himself solely for the benefit of the entire Republic.

Our generation’s willingness to state “we didn’t vote for him, but he’s our president, and we
hope he does a good job,” was tested in the crucible of history, and earlier than most.
And in circumstances more tragic and threatening. And we did that with which history tasked us.

We enveloped our President in 2001.And those who did not believe he should have been elected—indeed those who did not believe he had been elected—willingly lowered their voices and assented to the sacred oath of non-partisanship.

And George W. Bush took our assent, and re-configured it, and honed it, and shaped it to a razor-sharp point and stabbed this nation in the back with it.

Were there any remaining lingering doubt otherwise, or any remaining lingering hope, it ended yesterday when Mr. Bush commuted the prison sentence of one of his own staffers.
Did so even before the appeals process was complete; did so without as much as a courtesy consultation with the Department of Justice; did so despite what James Madison—at the Constitutional Convention—said about impeaching any president who pardoned or sheltered those who had committed crimes “advised by” that president; did so without the slightest concern that even the most detached of citizens must look at the chain of events and wonder: To what degree was Mr. Libby told: break the law however you wish—the President will keep you out of prison?

In that moment, Mr. Bush, you broke that fundamental com-pact between yourself and the majority of this nation’s citizens—the ones who did not cast votes for you. In that moment, Mr. Bush, you ceased to be the President of the United States. In that moment, Mr. Bush, you became merely the President of a rabid and irresponsible corner of the Republican Party. And this is too important a time, Sir, to have a commander-in-chief who puts party over nation. "

Cheers to that.

Patrick

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

JAZZ FEST

This weekend. Montreal. Large Subs. Loud music. 1 million plus people in an 8 block area... The one the only montreal Jass festival.

Isaac is coming up thursday night and I've got friday off. Tj is coming down from Petawawa and even Schlegel is coming. This should be a good weekend.

2 weeks till the wife gets home.

Cheers,

P