Hard Exam

I just wrote my midterm for Retailing Marketing, and totally bombed.
Yes. It was so stupidly unfair. There were 40 multiple choice, which were all pretty much fair. But then, there were “short answers” questions. They weren’t so much short answer as they were “list the theories of whatever” or “the list of things that we made brief reference to, and that you never thought of memorizing”. The devastating part is that they were all worth between 5-10 marks each. The multiple choice was less than half of the totally exam! I nearly died. I didn’t memorize every possible list of things, so I didn’t know most of these. And the lists that I did memorize were not mentioned.
At first I thought it was just me, and that I totally studied badly. But then the professor asked the class, worriedly “are you finding this hard?” The whole class erupted with “yes!” and a flurry of questions followed. He extended our time, and then extended it again.
Now, all I can do is hope for a miracle. There’s something that every student dreams of happening to them: “Bell curve”. I’ve never had it happen in my class, but I pray it does here. If everyone fails, then he will raise everyone’s mark. Please God, I’ve been a good boy this year, a really good boy!=)
The day wasn’t a totally bomb though. I got to have lunch with Vicky. We got rice with teriyaki chicken at a place in the mall at school. It was really good. I hadn’t seen her since before Christmas, when she came over to make chocolates. It was nice seeing you Vicky, and we will all get to see you again on the 14th. She’s in for our Valentine's get together as well. Don’t forget that you all have to make plans to come. I want to see you all there! (opps, I almost forget. Not you Michelle, I won’t make that mistake twice).
I also got to see Patrycja today, who was still totally sick. You were funny Patrycja, you didn’t make much sense when you spoke, and everything seemed to be on delay. At least you’re smoking less now=)

JT on SNL

Here's a funny clip of when Justin Timberlake was on SNL. Click the title to watch it.
=)

INVITE FOR VALENTINE'S EVE

Well this week has been about school school school so far. I have done so many things, and have so much more to do. All in good time though. I love being busy with school, it’s so motivating. I’m a natural work-a-holic, so I’d rather be super busy than not.
As with every year, February brings with it Valentine’s day. A day to eigher go out with your boy/girl friend, or sulk and watch as everyone else does this. Well, this year there will be no sulking!
This Valentine’s day will be eventful for all. Why?
Well, you’re all invited down to Church street in TO! We plan on starting the night off at Zelda’s for some of the best food and drinks around, and then make our way around to wherever seems fun from there. Ladies, you don’t have to worry about men hollering at you, or trying to get with ya. No dirty old men will be after you eigher (they'll all be around me=P)That, plus drinks, food, me, friends, and Valentine’s cheer. What more would you want?
So bring yourself and all your friends, everyone is invited (except you Michelle, if you are reading this. You are totally not invited, and that's no joke=)
Everyone else, mark your calendars!

Tuesday night, Feb 14th!
Downtown TO!

Let me know, I will give you directions.

Judy's Baby Shower

Hi all, and a Happy Chinese New Years to you all who celebrate. We just got back from Sreng’s where we ate fish (a very wide assortment), noodles, and sweets. We watched a cool Italian movie, about a Porn Star. I forget what it was called, but it was good.
Earlier in the day was Judy’s shower. Thank you so much Judy, I had a great time. We watched the video at Sreng’s, and it was funny. There was lots of food and sweets, and we played some crazy games. One had us sniffing diapers (okay, Mike went a step further and took a taste) full of ‘stuff’. Another saw Rose and Mike making a T.P. diaper on me. That was a new experience for me=) Judy's family were all really nice, and we had nice mild weather too. I can't wait to see the baby when she's ready to come out!

PS-Get well soon Patrycja!

Commercials: Gameboy micro

Here’s a really really cool commercial that Nintendo used for their Gameboy micro product when it launched. Their goal with the campaign was to capture a new market, one that wasn’t big on gaming yet. They branded this product as an almost fashion accessory, the iPod for portable gaming. It’s really cool, enjoy.

"The world through the eyes of Nintendo"

Night out.

Yesterday I got off work early, at 10. So, Veena, and Sreng came by work to pick me up. To my surprise, they said they wanted to go downtown. I had nothing to wear but my work clothes, but that didn’t stop us. So, we went down to Church, and the surrounding areas. I called up Daren, and he met us a Zelda’s. We got martinis and slushies, the best place for those kinda drinks.
After that, we went for a walk. The weather was so nice, I can't believe we are getting such a mild Winter. Daren showed us some of the cool clubs down there, definitely places we will have to return to. We made our way to Remington’s, but Veena was not allowed in. She’s a girl, poor Veena. So, as usual, Pooncho decided we should eat. Next door there is an awesome pizza place, where you get the biggest slices ever! I love this place. So, we ate there, and then continued our walk down the streets of TO. We made our way to Crews, where we watched Fahrenheit put on a pretty unenergetic show. Usually, she’s jumping around, and slamming the stage while doing her splits. It was probably because it was the end of the night, and she was tired. The show ended, and we left. We all went home after that, and I made it to bed by 3:30. Fun times.

Hudson's Bay

The Hudson's Bay company was sold today to an American named Jerry Zucker.
Hopefully he can do something to bring the company back to where it once was.

gloomy or just restless?

Hello all!
Wow, yesterday I must say I was really really tired. I also feel a little down in the dumps too. I know I’ve only got the rest of the year before I’m finished school, but I can’t wait. While I’m in school, I don’t really live my life. Actually, I feel like my life is on pause most of the time, except for the odd vacation here or there. If it weren’t for seeing my friends on Sunday nights, and going to work, I’d have no life at all.
I think I’m just a little jealous of those around me who are living interesting lives of their own. My time will come, I just need to be patient. In the mean time though, I need to cut myself some slack and have more fun.
That’s my “top of my mind” post for you all.
=)

Commercials: Hot Mario Bros.

I offer something new to you all! The election is over, and it’s time to have some fun. The Conservatives won a Minority, so we have to stay on their ass, and make sure they don't fuck us over too bad. But, now it's time for a lighter note.
My election blogs are over, but I have something much more fun instead: funny commercial blogs! Yes, I have come across some commercials that you just must see.
Today’s are from Japan, and are for video games. To be more specific, Nintendo DS games. This system has blown away everyone’s expectation in Japan, and they are sold out all over the country. Today I have some commercials featuring everyone’s favourite plumber: Mario Mario, and Luigi Mario! Enjoy:

For the new Mario and Luigi RPG:

http://touch-ds.jp/mediagallery/st24.html

For Mario Kart:

http://touch-ds.jp/mediagallery/st23.html

(there’s more related commercials if you click on the arrows just below the video window. Click on the last one, it’s really funny!)

Don’t forget to vote! No vote is ever wasted, even if it’s for a party that you know will not win. By voting, you help that party get funding to ensure their survival.
Vote, so that you can bitch and complain all you want. If you don’t vote, you have no right to complain later.
Happy Voting.
(I can’t wait for Tuesday, when the campaign is finally over!)

Election: Types of Governments

Okay, I understand that all this election stuff is confusing. It confuses me to. So, today I will clear up what it means to have a “minority government” verses a “majority government.”

Majority government:
This is when a party wins at least 155 of the 308 seats in the House. In each seat, an MP that you elected from your area will sit, voting on legislation, arguing, farting, etc.
The party in power can do just about anything that they want in this case. If they put a new law or issue up to vote, it is very likely that it will pass because that party has the most members to vote for it.

Minority government:
When the governing party wins fewer than 155 seats. Things are harder to pass in this case. The government has fewer seats, and is outnumbered by the total seats of the combined other parties. This means that the other three parties can defeat any motion by just voting against the governing party. This is what we just had in government with the Liberals for the last two years or so. What happened: Liberals teamed up with the NDP on some issues and outvoted the Conservative + Bloc alliance. This is how the equal marriage law passed. Many of the Liberals voted for it, along with all the NDP’s, Bloc, and independents (MP’s that are elected to parliament without being part of any particular party. Or, they have been kicked out of the party they were elected under). Also, minority governments can be brought down if the other parties give a “non confidence” vote. This is what happened to the Liberals, and why we’re in an election right now.

So, lets all hope that if the Conservatives win, it’s only with a minority government. That way, the other parties will be able to keep them in check. Also, they can be booted out before 4 years is up.

Return to Brokeback

Hello Hello!
Today was busy for me. I went shopping this morning, then went to the eye doctor, then went to school at 11, and left at 10. That was my day=)
Yesterday, Veena, Sreng and I went to the movies. We saw Brokeback Mountain again because they were playing it at AMC and Sreng is addicted to it=). Was it boring watching the same movie for a second time? No. I have never seen a movie twice at the theatres before, but I didn’t mine. Actually, it was nice seeing it again, it is very well made. It also won a handfull of awards tonight at the Golden Globes (I am not saying that the Golden Globes is a good award show though. If you look into it, it has very little credibility). But, it does point to good signs for the Oscars.
After that, we fattened up a bit a Demitre’s with some ice cream on waffles. Yummy.
Time to go to bed now, my one hour of free time is up.

Elimination Communication

Okay, I’m about to write about something so crazy sounding, you will find it hard to believe. I did too when a friend of mine told me about it. But here we go:
You can train your baby to tell you when they have to use the washroom, right from the first weeks after birth. It’s a process called "elimination communication", where the parents learn to recognise the baby’s signals of having to defecate. By using this technique, you don’t have to use many diapers, or any at all. It takes a lot of time to learn obviously, and you have to be with your baby most of the time too.
Here’s a FAQ that might help explain this process to you.
A friend of a friend knows a couple that does this with their baby, and it works well for them. They take their baby to the potty when he tells them that he has to go (by crying, moaning). The parents also learn to time how long it will generally take milk and food to digest.
Judy, it’s something for you to look into, I guess. Imagine being in the mall, and then taking your month old baby into the washroom stall to pee? I wonder what other people would think?
I guess you'd save a tone of $ though, from the cost of diapers!

Election: Conservative Plans

The Toronto star had a front page story today about the Conservative platform (which really seems to be coming to light now).
First off, the rumour that Harper really like the states and Bush is TRUE. Don’t try telling me different either. The Liberals may not have been all out enemies of the states, but they stood their ground (Not joining the invasion of Iraq, saying no to the Star Wars/Missile Defence program, and softwood lumber).
Stephen Harper is in favour of the Missile Defence ‘shield’, which is Bush’s plan to have weapons that could shoot up into space, or shoot down to earth from space. They want to place some of these weapons and radar in Canada. The Conservatives said they want to bring this issue up again “for discussion”. What’s there to discuss? Bush has enough power without us helping him get more.
Oh, and another issues too: Stephen Harper would take Canada out of the Kyoto accord. This is the agreement that countries made to reduce their pollution emissions. Has it worked? No. Although everyone cheered when Canada joined, we’ve done nothing to follow it. Actually, our emissions are growing at a faster pace than the US’s (who, did not join the agreement.)
So, does it matter that Harper would pull Canada out? Not really, but it does show that he would do almost anything to make businesses happy. They would be the ones who would have to shell out $ to revamp their factories to be more environmental. Now they will love Harper even more.

BP: Bye to Blair

Today was a sad day over at BP. One of our crew is taking flight (and I really mean flight!). Blair, one of the new managers (and one of the greatest) is leaving for South Korea to teach kids American culture. He’ll be there for a year, and will probably experience so many new things, and grow tremendously as a person. All the best to you and your girlfriend Blair, you’ve got balls!