I went to work without ski pants on today! It was a little cool, but I managed. I have worn ski pants to work every day since before the Christmas break... possible since November even.
I can't wait for above 0 degree temperatures. Well, except for the mess of melting snow, mud, salt, gravel and so on, all over the pot holey roads. Other than that, yay spring!
Monday, February 25, 2008
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Sun vs. Clouds
As some of you may know, E&I are working towards moving to BC sometime in the future. Part of the purpose of our house renovating is to be able to actually afford living in the lower mainland at a lifestyle level that is comfortable for us.One of the major reasons for doing so is to escape the long, inhospitably cold winters as well as the short, mosquito ridden summers here in Winnipeg. (If I have to wear my skipants for another month just to avoid hypothermia, I'm going to go completely insane.)
Whenever we discuss our plans with fellow Manitobans, it raises a particular debate... Sun vs. Clouds. In Winnipeg, there is a good amount of sun throughout the winter. The arguement is that "sure it's cold, but it's a dry cold, and at least we have sunshine." In the lower mainland area of BC the weather is warmer, the winter is shorter, but it does rain a lot and they do get a lot of cloudy days.
Now we all have different weather related things that we can tolerate to different extents. I am not able to cope with -40 degrees no matter how many sunny days that temperature occupies. I am, however, able to cope with +5 degrees with rain and cloud cover for many more days in a row.
When it's really cold, I don't go outside anyways, so what difference does it make whether there's sun, cloud, or complete darkness?
I'm not saying that one type of weather is better than the other, I'm just saying that I would much prefer one over the other. So for everyone out there who would rather have a dry cold with sunshine, by all means, you are more than welcome to it! I am counting down to a future of short, wet, mild winters under a comforting blanket of clouds. If I find I need more sun, I'll buy a sun lamp.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Disturbing News
E & I get the Free Press on the weekends. This past weekend I read a little tidbit that I found deeply disturbing.
People who are caught driving drunk face additional penalties, especially when their drunk driving causes an accident. Drunkenness in this case, is considered a contributing factor to the 'crime' and punishment is increased accordingly.
In a 'recent' and brutal murder in this city, drunkenness was considered an excuse for the criminals to receive reduced sentences. A group of drunks viciously attacked a passerby and beat him to death, giving each other high fives throughout the process. In general, drunkenness might be (and often is) used as a defense in murder cases or assault cases.
These laws should be changed. A precedent needs to be set that holds the same level of accountability for violators in drunk driving cases as in drunk murder or drunken assault cases. Drunkenness should no longer be allowed to function as an excuse. What kind of society accepts "the licquor made me do it" as an acceptable defense for indefensible behaviours?
People who are caught driving drunk face additional penalties, especially when their drunk driving causes an accident. Drunkenness in this case, is considered a contributing factor to the 'crime' and punishment is increased accordingly.
In a 'recent' and brutal murder in this city, drunkenness was considered an excuse for the criminals to receive reduced sentences. A group of drunks viciously attacked a passerby and beat him to death, giving each other high fives throughout the process. In general, drunkenness might be (and often is) used as a defense in murder cases or assault cases.
These laws should be changed. A precedent needs to be set that holds the same level of accountability for violators in drunk driving cases as in drunk murder or drunken assault cases. Drunkenness should no longer be allowed to function as an excuse. What kind of society accepts "the licquor made me do it" as an acceptable defense for indefensible behaviours?
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
The Mighty Nail Gun
So, the latest portion of work that E&I have been occupied with on our house is drywalling. We hired a friend to help with the ceiling since I'm not really strong enough to lift that much. But the rest of it I can help with. It's been kinda fun seeing the walls go up.
We spent Saturday and Monday evening just doing drywall (Erick finished up the last of it yesterday evening.) Of course there are are always other things that interrupt, like framing in a doorway... which had to be done before the drywall could be completed in the downstairs 'office.'
Sadly, not all boards are as straight as you need them to be. So while E pushed and pulled them into place, I had to use the dreaded nail gun to ensure that they stayed in place.
Damn that stupid thing! You'd think that 1 pull of the trigger would release 1 nail. Right? That would make sense. But no... no such luck. It's like a nail machine gun... I pulled the trigger once and the nails kept coming... slowly moving upwards towards E's hand. The thought crossed my mind that I was about to permanently maim my poor husband's hand... but I managed to pull the nail gun back just in time.
The second attempt at nailing with that horrid machine released only 2 nails. Apparently you're supposed to pull & release the trigger at superhuman speeds. I'm not sure if anyone has noticed but I don't move at superhuman speeds for anything.
The bottom line is... I don't think I'm cut out to operate nail guns. Maybe with some practice. And most certainly without anyone's hands in my way. Then, maybe. But I'd still rather not have to use one.
We spent Saturday and Monday evening just doing drywall (Erick finished up the last of it yesterday evening.) Of course there are are always other things that interrupt, like framing in a doorway... which had to be done before the drywall could be completed in the downstairs 'office.'
Sadly, not all boards are as straight as you need them to be. So while E pushed and pulled them into place, I had to use the dreaded nail gun to ensure that they stayed in place.
Damn that stupid thing! You'd think that 1 pull of the trigger would release 1 nail. Right? That would make sense. But no... no such luck. It's like a nail machine gun... I pulled the trigger once and the nails kept coming... slowly moving upwards towards E's hand. The thought crossed my mind that I was about to permanently maim my poor husband's hand... but I managed to pull the nail gun back just in time.
The second attempt at nailing with that horrid machine released only 2 nails. Apparently you're supposed to pull & release the trigger at superhuman speeds. I'm not sure if anyone has noticed but I don't move at superhuman speeds for anything.
The bottom line is... I don't think I'm cut out to operate nail guns. Maybe with some practice. And most certainly without anyone's hands in my way. Then, maybe. But I'd still rather not have to use one.
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