lovehatethings

I received a letter from the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas (two weeks after my trip mind you) confirming my credit line had been approved. Perhaps what some would consider a bit late, but stranger than the timelines was the return address. I never thought of Malmo, Sweden (or anywhere in Sweden mind you) as a clearinghouse of bulk mailings. Is there a burgeoning cottage industry in Vegas mail coming out of Northern Europe? I hesitate to think of the distances this paper would have traveled had I not been at this address anymore.

An impromptu podcast featuring long-time friend Jeff Barnes waxing under influences on the mismatched pastiche of music and setting in a late night scene from a Lebanese restaurant here in Hamilton, Ontario.
 
A bottle of red, a bottle of white, a horrible musical compilation that should be titled "Slices of Blandness".
 
This podcast marks the marriage of the scripted lovehate podcasts with the impromptu podcasts. Episodes 42 of both are now combined in the new episode 85.

A frank discourse on the idiocy of Gary Bettman, the short-sightedness of the NHL, and why hockey needs to come home to Hamilton, Ontario... okay, you may not care about hockey, or Hamilton, or even know or care about who Gary Bettman is, but if you want to hear me trash talk the Wizard of Idiot for a few minutes, take a listen.
 
Also, if you're one of those "tech news" people, Jim Balsillie's involved, and, for those of you who don't know who he is, he is the CEO of a little outfit called Research in Motion who sell a gadget called Blackberry... not that we'll be talking about app stores or anything, but if the tech geek thing floats your boat, there you go.
 
Check out makeitseven.ca for updates on the saga.

A bit of a nostalgic tribute to my hometown of Hamilton, Ontario. It's not that I left or anything. It's more like I rediscovered a piece of it tonight.

photo by john piercy

Turning an Impromptu Podcast into an open letter to the idiot that I had to contend with on the road home from Ottawa yesterday.

I grew up with this show as it was shot in my hometown of Hamilton. Perhaps the cheesiest kid's show ever made, they used to cash in on Canada Council grants by adding educational components like "The Professor" and "The Librarian". Also included psychedelic musical segments with the Wolfman and added surreal elements like the Gorilla. Almost all characters, the central one being the Count with his goofy sidekick Igor, were played by Canadian comedian, Billy Van.

For more information go to www.frightenstein.com

They even paid an out-of-work Vincent Price to do the introductory work:

The Wolfman

The Professor

Gorilla