Friday Favourites: The Aliens

I love these guys...their song about being a robot man

and about being happy

They make me happy.
And so for a friday favourite, check out the Aliens...their album Astronomy for Dogs is guaranteed to make you smile and tap your feet a bit. They even do a slower loungy version of Robot Man on the album which is also very good...

The Aliens are a Scottish band consisting of former Beta Band members Gordon Anderson, John Maclean and Robin Jones. They formed in 2005 after Beta Band was shut down over their lead singer having some personal problems.

J ran into their album through CFCR. I say this: I like. Solid happy rock with the odd wierd noise in it...gotta love it. There is a new album that they've just put out...I haven't been able to run into it yet. Hopefully it it is just as good. If you like off the beaten path happy rock, seemigly twiddled with a Super Furry Animals-ish sort of feel, check them out. I never was too much of a Beta Band fan other than their song Miles and Miles of Squares and Eclipse...a bit too droney. But The Aliens? They finally got it right for me.

So, my good peeps, enjoy the tunes, and have a happy Thanksgiving weekend.
I'm off to help my Mum bake obscene amounts of tasty things and toast marshmallows and play cards and drink hot chocolate for a few days...Yum.

Getting ahead means falling behind

After discussions with someone being screwed over by their job, I have to ask:
Explain to me why people I know who work hard and kick ass at what they do are often screwed over and given shitty work and hours, as they are the responsible ones who will always show up and do them well, regardless. It's like the slackers of the earth are rewarded and the hard workers given the splintery pokey end of the stick, when they deserve a lollypop or at least a frigging scotch mint. How about some mixed nuts?
Case example: Why yes, the responsible staff would like to work shitty 5 Am-9AM shifts, with occasional additional crap duties randomly scheduled...and the occasional crappy evening tacked on split shift bits, as well as most weekends, with hours often right in the middle of the days so they can essentially do nothing with their families or spare time...and then all the stuff they like to do that they used to do can be given to others to "free them up" to do all the shit. In essence, leaving the responsible boring crappy bits to the responsible one, with all the fun, interesting work to the slackers and new people, after the hard worker has gone out of their way to work hard and prove themselves as good people.
How is that fair?
What kind of a rewards system is that?
Should you not get a say in how/if your job is being rearranged if you are doing a damn good job at it?
You shouldn't have to threaten to quit a job you like to prove a point. A good worker should get to choose the some of the good bits and let the crap workers do some of the crap.

Way to reward hard work corporate Canada.

You wankers.

My name is little Bongo

My name is little Bongo
I sing my little song-go
I see you staring at my head.
I admit my ear is long-go

My name is little Bongo
I sing my little song-go
Rhyms are hard to think of.
Except for words like flong-go

My name is little Bongo
I sing my little song-go
If there was one place I would live
Well, that would be the Congo



Heh heh...I found a Life in Hell compilation book at a used bookstore a little while ago.
I haven't read it in years...since high school. It is what Matt Greoning did *before* that whole Simpsons thing.
I now have enough Bongo for weeks :)

Geeks Ahoy!

Over at Cranky Fitness, on a rant about medical terminology, they posted a link to the Idiotic Table.
I love it.
The Idiotic Table lists all the *real* components of matter...like:

Allergens : The Allergens, sometimes called the Flowergens, are emitted by flowers, and react readily with the human nasal system, in both pleasing and unpleasing ways.

Active Cheeses: The elements of the Active Cheeses are known for their property of readily bonding with other substances, such as Hamburger, Broccoli, Pizza.

Filler Materials: Substances which don't appear to conform to any given pattern are classified as Filler and stuffed in the middle of the table or shoved to the side. Their uses and properties are largely unknown: for example, nobody is entirely sure what Minnesota is for...

Alcohols: The Alcohols are known to cause increased levels of ambient Assium, and have been known to cause increases in Dissinum.

Innate Abilities: These elements are emitted by the brain during the use of psychic powers. Innate Abilities sometimes manifest in the presence of Tempertantrum and Hissifittium.

Fetishides: The Fetishides are inert, mainly because the other elements will not interact with them directly. However, Fetishides have been known to manifest in the presence of members of the Alcohols family.

"In 2003, many speculated upon the Element of Surprise, but it proved impossible to detect as just about everyone was already talking about it."

*snort*

Altho I liked the elements of weaselpudgium, nutellium, geranium, hardon and delyrium, my favourite element...due to the sciencey wiencyness of it all was the molecule with atomic weight 999...Unobtanium.

*giggle*
Ah...geek humour is so hard to find. I'm still snickering...:)

Tick Tock

I now have all this time looming over me.
Free evenings. Weekends for planning and using.

Seriously...I can't use it all up and I have no desire to waste it anymore. After a few days of vegging out, the tides will turn and I will want to do things. Not watching films or videos...but *doing* things. This weekend is thanksgiving, and next weekend my parents are coming to visit...but in between and after? So much time!
What to do?

I want to set up the living room for *real* (not just set things along the walls), trim back the plants and put things (eep) back on the walls.

I want to paint the spare room so I can move the computer and the new/old desk I now have for it up there so J can set up his gear in a proper permenant way (The desk was made by my grandfather!).

I want to have a bonfire with friends to say good bye to fall, celebrate my birthday and get ready for winter

I want to sew J the coat I've been promising him for over a year now

I want to build my Mum the window she wants for the cabin door. I'd like to finish it fro Christmas...She turns 74 this year and I keep wondering how long I'll have her with me and I want her to be able to look at it every day, and think of me and how much I care...

I want to repaint my bedroom...to restart a new time for myself, in relaxing shades of burnt red.
Soothing...a new start.

I want...I want...
Too many things...and finally some time. Not enough for all...but perhaps some.
I think I'll put all the things on a piece of paper and put them in my empty plant vase. You know, the one with all the lizards all over it, full of glow in the dark stars...and pick one and do that one...and then go on and on from there. I keep getting told I have too many ideas and too little time.
WELL, maybe I have time enough for one thing at a time?

Hmmm...

Relaxation

The tree people came and trimmed all our dead branches and trees on friday...I had no idea how bad it was until they were all gone - now we have happy healthier trees and probably twice the light in our yard we used to. There were some dead branches taken down before they could fall down and now the yard looks rather spiffy. They had all the cool cherry pickertrucks and tools to do it right - and they took all the trimmed stuff away after. If only we didn't have to pay them...ah well. I love living in an older neighborhood with grand old trees...I want to keep the ones we have around as long as possible. It's actually gotten me excited about doing stuff to the outside of the house next year...it is time. We've only lived here 6 odd years...can't ignore the yard forever...
Saturday was relaxing...went for a long walk in the woods and watched the leaves fall and went home to make yummy food and read books and nap in the sunshine. Even watched a movie or two. A fitting day off after 2 weeks of insanity.
On sunday it was the Cancer Run . Again this year we had a team from work, but there were 18 of us this time. Some of the girls couldn't run so we all walked together...it was a really good time. Our team raised $4000 for cancer research- not too shabby. It poured rain the whole time, but it wasn't a cold day, so we all just got wet and had fun anyways.
On sunday after I warmed and dried up I made an experimental pie: Apple gjetost. It rocked.
Check out my food blog if you want to know more (I even remembered to take pictures this time...) I'm trying to put all my recipes in one place. (Cuz I'm a scientist and I feel the need to classify and organise...and I *do* make good food, if I may be so bold).
Hope you all had a good weekend. I did.
Now it's back to it...

This is the end...beautiful friend

Checking the internet on a laptop with a cat around is utterly impossible.
Perhaps I'll get up and go do something useful on my day off. I feel very lazy and am so very glad that tonight is the last night of the pledge drive.
As my Dad would say Hot Damn and Hallelujah

Eeez a meeeleycool

This morning, I left for work in a sad, frustrated state, having spent 20 minutes hurriedly looking for my work keys...they're a big bunch of keys for all the labs and rooms I supervise all on a lanyard. I finally had to give up and walk to work.
The whole way I thought variations of "Did I drop them? I don't remember hearing them...I took the bus home last night...are they at the lost and found? Will I get in trouble? How do I replace them? Where did I leave them? Crap!"...and so on and so forth.
At work, I unpacked my lunch in the lunch room and made some coffee. When I sat down, coffee and toast in hand, talking to a coworker I unzipped my bunny hug...and there they were-around my neck.
The thing is - they are a big ass ring of keys. 13 of them. I can feel them there. They make noise when I walk and bounce on my abdomen when I walk fast (like, oh, say, when I walk to work) and I can feel them.
I don't remember putting them there.
I obviously didn't sleep with them around my neck...and I swear they weren't there when I left the house or when I walked to work.
So how'd they get there??
Either it's a miracle or I'm a loonie.
Neither one of those makes me particularly comfortable at the moment...

Mmmmm...soup

Only 3 long days left.
Then the pledge drive is OVER!

La lah la la lah laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.
I'm counting the hours.

On the upside, my favourite vietnamese restaurant is only 2 blocks from the station...and now that it's payday I will be paying them a visit for some deluxe wonton goodness this evening.
THAT will make the night better for sure...

Sometimes it's hard to be a woman...

Any respect I had for Palin, McCain's token female running mate in the US election, is waning after reading that she is pushing to have evolution and creationism both taught in schools as one of her election statements. I have to ask: Haven't we gotten past this to more important issues of state in election time?
The US has a lot more problems at the moment than a science/church pissing contest over the origin of the species. Let's hold up the whole separation of church and state and move on with governing a country in a humane and fair way. Unless we're going to acknowledge all religions in the US and let them all have equal say, leave it alone. Teach taxonomy and leave the rest out until people go to University and let them figure out what they think from there...

Maybe focus on *real* issues in the election. Like, oh, I don't know...the economic collapse of a nation? Feeding and clothing all of your people and allowing them to live a decent life? Removing corporate greed from your White House and allowing the country to look after itself and the environment with prudent dignity?

I would like to speak for the entire female gender in saying: A hearty boo to Palin, and state that really, although she *is* technically one of us, please don't judge us all by her actions. Can we assign her some "other" category? Give her some sort of tattoo, saying "warning contents are not representative and may have settled during shipping"?

I had such hopes that the first female politician let anywhere near the White House would be anything other than this...Hillary I could handle. But this?

*sigh*

And here I was so pleased last night, gloating about how a woman would be better in office, after reading our local Conservative MP's mailout to us that was his usual rantish, bigoted, female insulting and pretty much inane self...with comments like how he wants to "stop women being forced into abortions" and "halt the restrictive and hurtful human rights commissions and committees" from getting in the way of "good people" doing the "right" things. In the past he's ranted about the terrible natives who abuse our social programs and are taking advantage of our handouts, and how women are not being allowed to be traditional (??) and that liberals and NDPs are attacking family values. I keep wondering why he gets reelected over and over...but then I know I live in a predominantly religious right wing riding, where lots of small town people will vote conservative just to vote conservative regardless of who is on the ticket. I cannot, on good conscience, support this guy. A pigs bladder on a stick would be better some days, I think. He is a racist illspoken man who has not done anything helpful for the greater good in my riding other than to support the status quo.

And again...I am baffled why people vote conservative for such a leader. I understand wanting family values...wanting someone who isn't scary and won't challenge your way of life or thinking. Someone who looks after "what's right"? But how is that concept uniquely conservative? And why is liberalism so bad? Why are people so afraid of new thoughts, cultures and ideas? To me, if the person in the running in your area was a good person with a lot of well spoken ideas then pick him/her, regardless of his political party. Pick someone who will stand up for their principles, whatever they are, and make sure your riding's needs and opinions are held up in government. Isn't that the whole point of voting?
Do I want Maurice Vellacott to be king asshat of Meewasin Saskatoon riding again? Hells no.
I am not exaggerating when I say that altho I am certain he is a nice, decent man, he has also proven himself in the past to be overly biased in christian religious issues and a racist by his actions and statements.
We have to move forward...

And so now I can't be proud of men or a women in politics...
Perhaps I shall use my lab to create a new 3rd gender...or (shudder) go into politics.
OR (I'm liking this 3rd option more and more the more I think about it) create a new race of political undead to run in the next election...hell why not? I can see it now: an undead Trudeau for Prime Minister in 2012! Bring back the great leaders of the past to Canada!

Um...yeah.
Lunch break's over.
Bye.

My eyes! The goggles do nothing!

Well...my brain is full of sciency wiency stuff.
I just helped tutor the grade 11 japanese student staying with my brother. I had to relearn a bunch of biology I haven't looked at in ages: parts of the cell, all about bacteria and wading through the latin gobbledegook that is taxonomy...and apparently, there are now 6 Kingdoms in taxonomy instead of 5. Sheesh! I am constantly amused at the need for scientists need to describe and classify. They divided a kingdom into 2 just to be more anally descriptive and divisive...rather arbitrarily if'n you ask me...but then I still think Pluto should be a planet, so what do I know? :)

Yesterday was bliss. Maxing and chillaxing and relaxing all cool and shooting some b-ball outside of the school...and all that. I relaxed...I made a fiery hot breakfast of taters and sausages with some chipotle peppers in them (they cooked up hotter than I thought) and finally finished The Time Traveller's Wife. I highly recommend it. AND we got tickets for last night to see the local production of Waiting for Godot. It is a somewhat experimental and obscure play. It's a play by Samuel Becket I've always been curious to see but never figured it would make it to way out here... It's just collections of dialog between 4 bizarre people as they wait for someone. Not so much plot as exposition and absurdity...Not for everyone but *I* liked it.

And, my trusty new appliances came. They look very cool. I gave them all hugs of welcome.
I have thoroughly relaxed and today made up some muffins and pumpkin cookies, and even tried my hand at celiac baking. My sis-in-law was recently diagnosed celiac...so since I was going over there today to tutor Kyoka, I thought I'd bring her bakey munchables. It's so unfair that I bring over other stuff and she can never eat them. I even put peaches in them (which my brother hates) so they are all for her. Score.

Anyhoo...time to get back to the pledge drive mines. I just ahve to keep reminding myself it is for a good cause and I think I am ready to get back to it for a little while longer. It's all over friday, so I can see the light at the end of the tunnel...faintly.

Cheers.