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Working the fair at the PNE

Finding time and energy to make posts has been tough in the past few weeks because of the day job, and all of that has led up to this weekend. The Fair at the PNE has kicked off in full force, and I’ve been on the forefront of getting things in place for the few weeks that it runs. To be quite honest, it’s not unlike the county fair that I grew up with every year, just down the street from my parent’s house.

My view at the PNE

There are a lot of agriculture related things here combined with the huge amounts of food vendors and people trying to sell the products that you don’t really need but find yourself unable to live without. Truthfully, it’s more like a glorified carnival on steroids, and the only thing that makes me say that are the rides that make you contemplate the ratio of bolts to nuts. They could probably use my leatherman on the hour, every hour for some added insurance.

In all honesty, I appreciate the fair to the extent of what it means to summer. They basically run hand in hand, and it’s not a stretch to say that it wouldn’t be summer without one. That being said, it doesn’t mean that I love every minute of it.

It’s like the line from Clerks[imdb]:

Dante Hicks: You hate people!
Randal Graves: But I love gatherings. Isn’t it ironic?

It’s tough to appreciate fighting the foot traffic, getting bumped, pushed, or waiting in lines. Only having one place to be isn’t as bad, but depending on that location, the non-stop noise can get to you. Sometimes you get lucky, and so far, so good. With even more hope, these next few weeks go by pretty quick because the $7 I had to throw down for my lunch time burrito didn’t impress me. Makes me really lose my appetite for my yearly corn dog.

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F-117 stealth fighter to be retired

F-117 Stealth Fighter I posted this photo of the F-117 Nighthawk[wiki] that I took a picture of at the Abbotsford Airshow a week or so ago, and it prompted some questions about the description that I made about it. The plane is soon to be retired from service, blowing onto the scene in the first Gulf War. So many people simply refer to it as “the stealth fighter”, but the time has apparently come to replace it with something better.

Now, I’m not the most prolific, all-knowing individual about military aircraft, or much about things that fly in general, but what I do know is that the plane will be replaced by the F-22 Raptor[wiki], another jet fighter with stealth capability. Compared to the Nighthawk, this new aircraft follows the general principle of being bigger, faster, and stronger, among other things.

Even though I’ve been on the job like mad these past few weeks, it’s taken me to some pretty neat locations. Still, it’s tough to really enjoy events like this when you still have a job to do.

You can see more of my photos from the airshow on Flickr.

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Third Tuesday in Vancouver

As if there aren’t enough things going on in Vancouver that relate back to technology, social media, or something to do with Facebook, Twitter, or whatever social networking tool you use, here comes another one.

Third Tuesday in Vancouver is an event that focuses on bringing people together to share ideas and concepts about various things relating to the online world. In fact, let me allow the Facebook group to explain it better.

THIRD TUESDAY is a monthly meetup for communications and marketing folks interested in learning/sharing more about the practical applications of social media in business.

Third Tuesday has real world chapters and meetups in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.

Third Tuesday meetups typically include a guest speaker who talks with the group about different social media technologies and trends ranging from blogging, podcasting, social networks to influencer marketing and online WOM techniques — and how these things apply to communication, marketing, community building and society. We really try to encourage group discussion and learning, and we do this by keeping our meetups very casual and open, but focused too so that our members walk away with new insights and actionable ideas for their businesses.

Third Tuesday is also an opportunity to simply network with industry peers, to share knowledge, experiences and perhaps a few laughs and drinks too. So, if you’re interested in some thought provoking discussion about new media marketing and communications, please join us for Third Tuesday.

Even though I was (depressingly) unable to attend BarCampVancouver due to my work schedule, this will be a neat opportunity to not only experience this realm of meetups, but I’ll also get to see some of those folks from BarCampVancouver as well. I’m also curious to hear about what tools or methods people are using for the realm of business, especially when it comes to thinking outside of the box to do unique, successful things. Should be good.

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Sparta – erase it again

Sparta is coming to Vancouver on September 7, 2007 with Alice In Chains and Velvet Revolver at Pacific Colosseum. Might try to slide ourselves into that show, fingers crossed.

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Fob and what it stands for

One of those rare occasions where Rebecca and I get to walk into work together, I asked her what “F.O.B.” stands for this morning. This is in reference to those keyless entry things that are becoming the standard for getting into many secured buildings. You wave it in front of the pad, something beeps or the light goes green, and the door unlocks to let you in.

The one for our building is smaller than my thumb. It’s too small to act like a key chain ornament, but the one I had in my old apartment in the states was big enough to hurt small children. Actually, it was more of a credit card in size, but you get the picture.

Turns out, and thanks to Wikipedia, this isn’t an abbreviation. It’s the given name of the device.

A key fob is a decorative item many people often carry with their keys, on a ring or a chain, for ease of tactile identification, to provide a better grip, or to make a personal statement. Key fobs are often mistakenly called “key rings” or “key chains” in colloquial usage.

Fobs vary considerably in size, style and functionality. Most commonly they are simple discs of smooth metal or plastic, typically with a message or symbol such as that of a logo (as with conference tchotchke) or a sign of an important group affiliation. A fob may be symbolic or strictly aesthetic, but it can also be a small tool. Many fobs are small flashlights, compasses, calculators, penknives, store discount cards, bottle openers, or USB flash drives.

Electronic key fobs are used for remote keyless entry systems on motor vehicles. Early electric key fobs operated using infrared and required a clear line of sight to function. These could be copied using a programmable remote control. More recent models use challenge-response authentication over radio frequency, so these are harder to copy and do not need line of sight to operate. Programming these remotes sometimes require the automotive dealership to connect a diagnostic tool but many of them can be self-programmed by following a sequence of steps in the vehicle and usually requires at least 1 working key. [wiki]

So now I know, and in case you didn’t, you do now. For the longest time, I thought it stood for something but never took the effort to find out until now. Sadly, it’s not “frequency operated bobber” like Rebecca thought, but I think it should be from now on.

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Rocking the Osoyoos

It’s been a whirlwind last week or so, but I want to make a mention of the excellent long weekend that we had in Osoyoos.

Vinyards down the hill

I wish I could say that we did a lot of really cool things, but there is something to be said about going on holiday. To me, that’s means not doing a lot. One could say that cooking good food and hanging out on the beach is a lot, but that’s the speed of things that we both needed for getting away, especially with the amount of workload that has come with my day job.

Penticiton is over there

On Sunday, we thought about doing some wine tours, but once we got into the car, it was tough to stop driving when we had some incredible, hot weather and good music going on the iPod. Instead, we ventured through Oliver and Penticton to explore the area some more.

Crusing misc. back roads

There is something to be said about getting on the back roads to get a true sense of the Okanagan, especially after you’ve done a handful of wine tours before. It’s not that I’m against them (or the sampling), but it’s almost more impressive to drive by as many operations that you can and see them from the outside than seeing just a few from the inside. And if you think that the valley is impressive from the bottom, get up on the hills. Very cool perspective.

Marmot pose

The marmots amazed me, and I realize that this makes me no better than the throngs of tourists who photograph the raccoons in Stanley Park like they are a dying breed. They were simply everywhere at one point. They’re plump and don’t move, even in the hot, hot sun.

When it comes down to it, numerous pictures of just hanging out on the lake just didn’t cross my mind. It was time to relax in the midst of all the busy things going on right now. As I write this, I’ve been awake since 3:30AM to work a remote until noon, only to have more things to take care of for future remotes in the afternoon. I knew this was on the horizon, so it’s why we took it very easy over the long weekend.

Gorgeous view of the valley

I’m ready for another.

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My first bear

As Keira commented, it’s been a little while since I’ve made a post. Work life has been hectic, and the long weekend prompted a kick ass getaway to Osoyoos. Getting back yesterday, I’m right back into the fray. But while doing the work thing last Friday, I saw my first bear in the wild during my first time ever in Whistler.

Photographers in force

He came across the hill and ventured down the worn in pathway, nibbling on weeds or flowers or something.

Stupid

This woman was asking for it. She stood there with her back to the bear to get a picture with it in the background. Did she stop there? No, she started to yell “Hey, bear! Look here, bear!” over her shoulder to get the bear to look her way just so she could snap that amazing picture. Better yet, she started backing up about ten feet, pulling her picture taker with her, towards the bear.

Bear strolls down the trail

Black bears don’t get very large, but this one seems like it could grow just a little bit more before it’s fully grown. At least that’s what other people were saying. I haven’t a clue.

Closest Bear Ever

I would say that thirty yards is as close as I got, some folks got closer only because the bear came in that far. After reaching the bottom of the trail, he turned around and went back the way he came. Needless to say, I was pretty amazed. My co-workers flipped when I said that I had never seen a bear before, so everyone came running to make sure I caught him about a hundred yards out. Didn’t think I would be getting as close as I did though.

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Different version of a release party

Keira, Duane, and Rod came over tonight, and we all gathered to kind of mark the occasion of the new Matthew Good album being released. For the most part, I made the dinner, minus Rebecca slicing the meat and cheese.

Tuesday Night Dinner 1

I’m pretty proud of what I came up with. Curried egg salad sandwiches, BLT wraps, assorted meats and cheeses, and crackers.

Tuesday Night Dinner 2

It was Raymi who inspired the effort. Otherwise, I would have gone with chiliaquiles, but there was something telling me that having them again just wouldn’t be as awesome as a gathering of good folks like this would be. Of course, slurpees go with just about anything.

Dinner Aftermath

Needless to say, I think it all went over well. Can’t forget to mention that Keira makes some of the best guacamole that can be found outside of my family. Truly an impressive concoction that I have found in a long time, and she makes a mean batch of cookies as well. In fact, they go well with the whip cream that was originally intended for the strawberries. Rod was the first to make this discovery, all of us following suit.

There wasn’t any listening of the new album as much as there was talk about “where we were when” during the process of the whole recording, not to mention a lot of other random topics that my belly is to full to think about. Then the good news passed down.

The record is sitting at number one on both Amazon.ca and iTunes Canada. [matthewgood]

As of this posting, it’s sitting at #21 on the U.S. version of iTunes. Not too bad.

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Matthew Good, “Hospital Music” available now

Today is the day for the official release of Hospital Music, the fourth solo album from Matthew Good, the eleventh, overall release of his nearly fifteen year career as a musician.

The album is available for purchase in music stores all across Canada. In the U.S., you can purchase Hospital Music through iTunes, CDs will be on sale at a late date.

The first single from this album, Born Losers, has been playing on Canadian radio for about a month now. Being that yours truly is working for some radio sations in Vancouver now, I can report that the single has received a lot of spin, not to mention that his show here has been sold out for the last few weeks.

Additionally, Matt has put a call out to fans to develop their own concept for the video to this single. Submissions have been coming in via YouTube, and it’s been impressive to see what people have come up with. The version I have on this post is one of the latest ones, and it’s the one that has impressed me the most so far. Plus this gives you a chance to check out the single for yourself in case you haven’t heard it yet(I’m looking at you, America!).

If you dig that single, you’re going to dig the rest of the album for sure. Dare I say it, there are a lot of musicians that talk about what music is and should be, and for the first time in a long time, this album really feels like Good is walking the walk.

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A job well done

The late night home stretch

A real trooper. She raised just over $400 in about 36 hours during Blogathon 2007, and there were many followers throughout the whole experience. I wasn’t able to be around for most of it, nor could I stay awake till the bitter end like she did. Still, way to go, babe.