Snapshot of the CBC page

So ... the Canadian people cast their ballots and selected the first minority government since 1979. And the situation is even more volatile since no two parties can unite to create a majority (Liberals and NDP are still one seat short). What does this mean? How did it happen?

First, a little background for the American readers. The Canadian election suffered the fate of "3-level" world news on behind "Karzai: Send NATO troops now" and "Chirac chides Bush over Turkey". Anyways ...

Canada is split into 308 electoral districts (ridings) that span the country. Each of these electoral districts select a representative, Member of Parliament (MP), to sit in the "house" (House of Commons). And the full 308 MPs make up parliament and the government, so a single party (there are 4 major parties - down from 5 in the last election) must obtain at least 155 seats to claim a majority government - which means that any laws that are presented by the governing body (party the won the most seats) can be passed. Keeping in mind that each MP is suppose to vote based on the opinions of their represented region - and not necessarily on the party (yea right!). If the governing party Proposals a law that gets voted down they are suppose to call an election ... which now brings us to the fun of minority governments.

This time the Liberals (think Democrates) only won 135 seats, the Conservatives (think Republican) took 99 seats, the NDP (think Communist) took 19, and the BQ (read Quebec separatists) took 54 - there was also one independent that took a riding in Surrey, BC. So ... it will take at least 3 parties to produce the required 155 seats, and really the Liberals and NDP are the closest in ideology (Liberals are left-center with the NDP way out left) and combined with the independent could form the balance of power -- either way expect another election within 2 years.

Now why? Well, this is pretty simple. - note: personal opinions ahead - The NDP have held an important place in Canadian history and even today ground us in some of the things we hold as representative of Canada. However, socialist governments do not work - they lead to a society of people that depend solely on the government. They don't reward people for working hard since everyone is equal, seniority always wins - hard work/better qualifications are discounted. When they have entered power their few positive changes are smudged with problems. They have sent both provincial and federal governments into huge fiscal problems by borrowing without concern for the future. They are strong union supporters which sends businesses packing. Their positives of 'medicare' and social assistance programs have trouble funding themselves. Thus ... they get only a few seats federally and typically in areas where current economics are struggling.

The Conservatives are too right for most Canadians. They tend to fill their ranks with more religious candidates and are less open to change. While they have several ideas that fit with my own (reform welfare to a temporary crutch rather than a paycheck, promote more privatization to give choice to the people, and reform the military taking us into the new century). However, they are also against things like gay marriages (just make civil unions legal and leave "marriage" to the churches) and tend not to be a 'liberal' as I would like.

So ... then the Liberals. They have won the last 3 elections, guess now 4, and hold more of the popular ideals. However, I personally have been frustrated with their lack of 'official' stance on several topics - always opting to sit on the fence. Combine that with the scandals that have emerged as the previous PM left office and you find that while they may have managed to balance the budget - they are wasting money while not providing new equipment to the military or funding health care ... Canadians don't like that.

Therefore, I did not know where my vote would have stood - and I think a lot of Canadians felt the same way. Those who are a little right saw the Liberals leaning left and voted Conservative ... those not happy with the health care commitments voted NDP ... Quebec, still want their voice heard as an independent society voted BQ ... and everyone else stuck with the Liberals hoping that a change in leadership recently will lead to changes down the road.

In the end, keep the pencils sharpened ...

Sunday

Fahrenheit 9/11 was sold out last night ... so we, being Krishen, Melissa and I, caught the 12:30 matinee today. Mr. Moore once again used the power of human emotion to convey his political agenda. It is interesting some of the conspiracy theories he presented - and I am sure some of them our true. Oil, like most precious resources, has been one of the driving forces for war over the ages. It was one of the major reasons Hitler wanted to push into Russia ... and why the Japanese attacked the US. Oil is a commodity that our society depends on today - just listen to us (including me) complain about the rising gas prices. So, one would expect that a President with a oil tycoon past would be tied to a Oil/Energy plan. Moore used that to present an opinion that the Bush family and the Bil Laden family had a connection that was based in greed and deceit. International diplomacy is a tricky business ... especially when the the country has billions invested. Those billions go to feed and house thousands of citizens here is the US - so cutting off that supply of money would be even worse to the economy. Saudi Arabia I don't think played a direct part in the 9/11 attacks ... and I would like to believe that they assisted in any way they could -- keeping in mind that they are also running a country with citizens that they have to protect and defend.

Now, as for the heart felt story of the lady from Flint, Michigan. I felt sorry for the loss of her son as I do for all the families that loose loved ones - at anytime. However, the military is known to be a hostile and dangerous job - and those who take on that responsibility I have incredible respect as it is not a job that I could do myself. Again, that being said ... I feel for those putting themselves in harms way for a cause that I believe is less than nobel. Iraq, I believe, was targeted before there was a case. Saddam was a dictator and like most dictators he ruled with a heavy hand ... however, that does not give us the right to move in. Or, if we do then we have to draw the line and fight for those freedoms everywhere those conditions occur - not just in the land of oil. Their citizens are fighting because they are seeing a foreign power coming in destroying their homes ... killing their children ... and taking away what freedoms they did have. Yes, I said taking away ... one day the people of Iraq, I hope, will know the power of freedom but for now they suffer. Just look to Russia to see how slow such change occurs.

Overall, the film was put together well. It educated, in a biased way, to other possible reasons for the decisions that were made. From the cheering of the crowd throughout and the applause as the credits rolled one could tell it was preaching to the choir. Personally, I don't hate G.W. Bush ... I believe him to be a nice guy and looking for the solution ... I just don't believe that he is the "right" guy with the "right" advisors to make the decisions for tomorrow. [Check out Krishen's take and pictures of the event.]

This election is going to be an interesting one as it is with most elections. Just wish I was at home and could have followed more of the Canadian election (Monday, June 28th). Though I am torn there too ... the Liberals have created (what I think) is a stale environment; not taking action and/or being slow on decisions. They are also scared with scandals ... yet they have not increased the debt and found surpluses at the end of the last few years. As for the Alliance/PC coalition, they are a little right for my tastes - agree with some things - disagree with others. It seems that no matter where you live in this world ... picking a leader is a choice between two evils. Only after they leave office and the state of the nation (during and after) is analyzed can you really tell just how good or bad their were. Sorry if I rambled ... I am sure you will see more in the future (and if you know me I am sure you are expecting it)!

Saturday

After a day of sleeping in and sorting pictures and CDs ... we headed to Erik and Amy's place. After a little snack at the local custard shop (yummy), we pulled out the game Taboo. What a riot! That is one that we will be picking up for our place (mark it on the wish list).

Friday

Nightclubs are few are far between in the little City of Sarasota. And its not really that it is a little city, it is just the citizens are 'newly wed or nearly dead' and they don't seem to have the University crowd that Victoria had. However, this past Friday we joined the fun of opening a new club to the area. Khrome comes with a biker decord mixed with New York style. Opening for dinner before spinning a little house music from the DJ booth allows for an all-round enjoyable evening.

Now, if only Darren can keep from dropping bags of cocaine he wouldn't be kicked out of the club. And upon hearing that the bouncers actually escorted him out due to this made those who know him chuckle ... lucky for everyone involved he managed to convince them that - "nope ... wrong guy!" Now, now Darren be good! :)

Saying good-bye to my family house #3 (though this one I was only ever a visitor)

My parents have moved out of their Fernie home. Built only a few years ago, it was a nice homestead - great view, beautiful architecture, and a lovely layout. I unfortunately did not get to visit enough ... and now it is being passed onto someone new. Change ... always a rough time ... is a fact of life. I look forward to visiting the next place my parents set their stake. I wish you all the best as you move on ...

As for me, the last two weeks I have ignored Ultimate ... choosing instead to spend the evening / afternoons with my wife. Honestly, the choice at the time was not very hard ... quality time vs soaking myself in the torrential down pours that we have seen of late. However, last night I returned to the field only to find myself once more lacking energy and poorly out of shape. Throwing seemed to improve some over the last couple times - so the break was good in that regard, but I definitely was not getting the same working during my time off ... even with walking. Was thinking that a regular trip to the pool for laps might help - but finding a good time slot is tough. Not being a morning person I barely make it for work ... then the evenings are often spontaneously busy so I can't count on getting to the pool prior to 11PM (closure time). How do you find the time to get a regular workout?

History was set today as a new ship has entered the space race. Funded privately, SpaceShipOne has broken the commercial barrier of space flight. While it still has not completed a qualifying flight in regard to the XPrize competition, it does mark the first time a privately funded flight entered space.

I wish Mike Melvill, and the entire SpaceShipOne team, all the best as they put forth the effort to complete the two required XPrize flights in the coming months. Top prize goes to the first team that flies 3 adults (or weight equivalent) to an altitude of 100km twice ... within the span of two weeks using the same aircraft. Was that not the original goal of the Shuttle program ... 2 week turn-around? (speaking of which ... NASA is making progress in providing an in-flight repair kit)

Just think, this was only one of the twenty-five competitors all striving for completion of the XPrize - due by Jan 1, 2005. Oh, what excitement the coming months and years are to bring. Once again we sit of the edge and ignite the imaginations of the younger generation. They sit and watch as the hurdles are slowly coming down and the path of our future is being laid our before them.

Last Wednesday Melissa and I stopped at McDonalds prior to heading to the Swing Club. We figured that we would give their new "Go Active" Happy Meals a taste ... which gave us a chance to snag a Stepometer™. I, of course, immediately started logging ... Thursday I logged just over 2600 steps during the afternoon ... and Friday I logged 3788 steps over the day. That, if I estimate my steps to be about a 1/2 meter, that is 1894 meters or almost 1.9km (~1.18 miles for those of you in the US).

The Stepometer™ works by using a pendulum that swings while you step. Unfortunately, it also swings as you sit down, put it on, take it off, bump into something, or in other words ... give the belt clip a little jolt. Plus, if it is in a vertical position or just off your hip it does not correctly log your steps (from what I have seen). Therefore, this is by no means a scientific experiment ... however, it does provide some insight into my living habits. And honestly, the belt clip did not go on as soon as I got up ... plus I took it off well before actually crawling into bed. Thus, it likely averages out to give a good representation of the day.

So ... on an average work day with no evening activities I walk just under 2km ... well below my desire to walk at least 5km a day. According to PBS you should be walking 10,000 steps to match the Surgeon General's recommended 30 minutes of exercise (matching my estimates). Now, all this isn't taking into account that I likely will log differently from day to day and it does not count my Ultimate games or practices ... swimming ... or the daily workout I still have not started. Either way, I think I should continue walking, a logging, the extra mile.

How many steps did you take today?

7 days on ... 3 days off. But we come back to interesting news ... and it is news that will effect our lives several years down the road - much as electricity effected things over a hundred years ago. At least that is my opinion.

Both CNN and Wired published the teleportation of an atom. This was done with Photons a few years back.

Processes involves some funky lab prep, but in the end what occurs is unexplainable ... at least by me. By some means of something they call "entanglement" the atoms are linked, and then any change to one of the atoms produces the same change on the other atom ... no matter what the distance. (ie. no physical connection needed) Screwy eh?

They say this technology can effect Quantum computing, but the next step (cause there is always a next step) is molecules. That could mean replicators and transortation devices in the future ... we are really talking Star Trek here.

Give them a couple years ... and they will move mountains.

Check out the pictures from the day

After a day of painting we needed to get out ... so we joined Amy and Erik in another trip to Busch Gardens.

This time we got to see the Elephants bathing which was quite an interesting site to watch. They were quite playful in the water ... pushing, squirting, rolling ... think they were quite happy to be out of the heat. So we decided that was a good idea and found a bridge overlooking a wonderful exit to a water ride. And from this vantage point one can view wave after wave of water coming down on their heads ... very refreshing.

Work started in the main hall with everyone getting in on the fun

So, after we initiated the work early this week, today we finished it. With Catherine already coming over to lend a hand, we received a call from Darren who also become interested upon hearing about the party. So with the four of us working we made short work of the living room, dining room, and kitchen. We managed to complete the taping and painting and put most everything back by the end of the day (there are a few places still needing to dry and some needing a second coat).

The colours turned out nicely, a light green back-dropping the off-white doors, baseboards, cupboards, and appliances. The cranberry wall stands out nicely adding a little extra spice to the kitchen and providing a little character to whole room. In the end the entire house feels a lot more "homey" ... just the feeling we were looking for. Now for the bedroom and office .... hmmm ...

Making good time we pushed into the kitchen

But eventually it all came to an end

Presenting our new living room

and dining room

Gives us a whole new feeling in the house

Well, now that we have been in our place for a couple months and Melissa has been home for several weeks we are starting to get organized. So ... now we thought we would like to get settled.

White cupboards, white ceiling, white walls, white chesterfields ... it was just too much white. So we thought we would add colour. In addition to a few new plants and relatively new furniture we are painting. Just the main room for now, but I am sure that it infect the other rooms before the year is out. We are currently planning to be in this place for a couple years ... so it should not be too much of a problem.

Melissa's Note:
Be careful when trying to paint burgundy, we have put 3 coats on and it is still a little too red. Going back for more paint (darker paint) tomorrow.

Photo snagged from the swingtime.info website

Last night we joined with Amy and Erik in a trip to Gulfport in search of a swing club. What we found was the "Gulfport Casino" and the Wednesday Swing Night. So once more, after about a 3 year lull, Melissa and I tore up the dance floor with our rusty shoes and two left feet. It brought back memories of Swing City and the Edelweiss Club. Back then we did a lot of swing in the Victoria area, but ever since then we haven't found a new club ... until now. The crowd was almost identical to where we were finding old friends with new faces. We were right back at home.

Wish it was closer ... wish it was on Friday ... though, regardless of these wishes I think this is going to become a semi-regular mid-week hangout for us.

One has to have a little fun

Photo pulled from NHL.com

In another low shot game that held you to your seat, Tampa came out on top. It was a disappointment to us and to a lot of Calgary fans. They fought hard.

Andreychuk was finally able to swing the silver cup over his head. You have to give him a lot of respect, even in this moment of glory he did not want to leave his teammates behind, looking several times to pass it off. But the team allowed him the first skate. Tampa Bay has a great team here. They have both the skill and the heart ... and they desire Stanley's silver crown.

Even though Tampa outworked Calgary for most of Game 7, at times Calgary really pushed. Khabibulin kept the Flames off the board until mid way through the third ... and then put the wall back up. The game ended on a sour note with a pour call in the final minute. A. Ference was giving a 'charging' penalty for a hit on St. Louis as he rounded the Calgary net. While it was a hard hit, it was taken square on the body. The commentators down here really bugged me as they kept going on about "how is was cut ... so wasn't the penalty obvious" (hello ... this is a charge ... not a high-stick). I would love to see a replay to see if I missed something, but the media and players are respectfully staying off the topic. Adding insult to injury, it was then followed with a 'good will' call against Andreychuk with 22 seconds left. It was a horrible way to end an exciting series.

However, great series. Fast paced, hard hitting, grinding and had some exceptional scoring ... it was everything you wanted in a cup final. So, with that all said ... congrats Tampa. I look forward to joining you on the streets to see the cup shared with the city.

Question of the day: Do I get season tickets for next year? Starting at $599 it is a hard deal to pass up.

(Next year it is Vancouver's turn)

After a long weekend of activity it is time to head back to work.

On friday we enjoyed the latest in the Harry Potter series. It was another well done movie by that team. As in the books, this latest adventure has a whole new 'feel' to it. The whole tone is much more grey than the previous two movies. Work has apparently begun on bringing book 4 to theaters, Nov 2005. At this rate she better get book 6 out soon, the hords are ready.

Saturday saw a disappointing loss in Calgary. They fought hard but came up a little short. And I say a little as it did go into 2 overtime periods (if not the last for 33 seconds). Melissa is starting to feel a little like the system is being rigged. And while I choose not to believe it, I do see where she is coming from. I like the players deciding games ... I like hockey to be played with the grit and determination that is being shown. Only problem is that Calgary is racking up penalty minutes when the same things go unnoticed on the Lightning side. I believe that non-calls have cost about 3 lightning goals in the last couple games. Now, if your not going to call it - great. But keep it fair on both sides. Lets hope the underdogs come out on top ...

Last night, after Ultimate, Melissa and quickly packed up dinner and headed to Lido. It was a great way to end the weekend. We watched the sun go down as we finished leftovers from the "Indian Restaurant" (can never seem to remember the actual name). Then we laid there and watched the stars come out as the waves crashed against the beach. It was just too bad that when we got back to the car it was 11:45 ... we still wanted ice cream!

While we could not find tickets to Game 5 we did not want to miss all the excitement. So 5 of us (Melissa, Krishen, Darren, Catherine, and I) headed upto Tampa to enjoy the game in the thick of the crowd. First note: There were not a lot of Calgary fans hanging around outside. We did end up meeting a couple guys on vacation, down from Toronto, who thought they would come out of the festivities. Most of the crowds was cool ... little talk of smack ... but all in good fun. There are always those few 'bad apples' that cause problems ... and it wasn't for Melissa stepping in we could have had an international incident. Seems one guy was unhappy about the Canadian flag and was looking to swipe it. Thing was, after the second period I put the flag away ... going into the 3rd up by one I felt might be a little obnoxious. This guy was trying to dig into pockets to take it ... -break those fingers-.

Anyways ... we headed out after the 3rd and listened to OT in the car. It was getting late ... and that seemed a good point to sneak out. Check out Krishen's pictures of the night.

[Pictures courtesy of Krishen]

Memorial Day Weekend pictures

So, this past weekend Melissa and I joined Krishen and about 150+ other ultimate players for a weekend hat tournament in Savannah, GA. Except for the drive in a non-A/C vehicle is was a wonderful trip. The road was quite scenic and even had rolling hills in as we headed north of Orlando.

We stayed in Jacksonville the first night and upon seeing the city scape Krishen and I headed to snap a couple pictures. Over two hours later we strolled back in to a worried Melissa ... apparently our extended 30-min trip caused some worry :) Ooops.

Saturday was a sun filled day of chasing a flying disc around a gorgeous park. Forsyth Park is set in the old part of Savannah, marked with civil war monuments and surrounded by classic 'southern' and 'victorian' styled homes it really set the mind at ease. Melissa took off during the day to find check out some of the historical graveyards and tourist spots. She returned to find us hot, tired, and sore ... but still playing. That evening she made many enemies with the Tampa folks we were staying with as we all sat to watch the hockey game ... the 3-0 blowout by Calgary had basically left only us watching the game by the end of it.

Sunday we awoke to more sunshine and this time .... sand (or should I say shells and sand). We played hard, but still lost our first game in this the elimination round. Wow, did the game's pace change between the field and the beach. Good news, we pushed the "purple" team to 13-11 win ... and they won the "it all", so that made me feel a little better.

We, however, amused ourselves with "walking-beer" Ultimate. Rules: "Can't spill your drink", "Must walk", and "Must drink before throwing" ... fun little game to pass the time. You should try it some time ... in the end I was burnt but that did not really matter.

That night Melissa and I enjoyed some food at the "Crab Shack" (a must if you are in town), some music at the pub downstairs from our condo ... and a nice long walk on the beach. Even got to touch our (or my) first shark ... some fishermen down on the pier had caught a Sand Shark. They say it tastes good ... but we were more interested in the texture and muscular structure ... darn divers! It was a great weekend ... and just lead me to desire a nice long road trip around the southern states ... there is so much history and beauty tied into these areas, one just has to take some time out and soak it all in.

We managed the 6+ hour drive home in time to see the 1-0 Tampa win. Such a disappointing loss in so many ways ... but that is how it goes. Game #5 is still up in the air.