Greetings Earthlings. I just watched a really good movie called What's Cooking. I just stumbled upon it in between doing laundry in the basement. It was a really excellent story about 4 families in LA and how they each celebrate Thanksgiving and have issues. Despite multricultural differences, they all experience the same kind of hardships and issues that all others do. It was directed/produced by Gurinder Chadha, the same director of another classic, Bend It Like Beckham. I must say that What's Cooking sucked me in because of the realism of the families. There were typical stereotypes of course but excellent use of those stereotypes to really add to the story. Family issues and cultural differences were displayed quite wonderfully as well. I don't want to say too much about the actual plot in case some of you see it...but I do think it was a good film.

Last night, went to the Jays game (a 13 - 2 romp) over the Boston Red Sox. Man, that was a good game. They are playing really well and this is exactly what Toronto sports fans need after a dissapointing season by the Raptors and a dissapointing first round by the Leafs. Let's hope the Jays keep it up... After the game, went to the Karsh Kale concert at the Bambu with Tchao, Smith, Sach and KB. It was a good show and of course - Karsh was great. I thought this time though that the vocals were too overpowering. At times, they took away from the amazing instrumental sets that were going on. The other crappy part was that all the other acts that were on the ticket didn't show up. It was pretty annoying actually. So, the concret didn't start until 11:30 or so and went till about 1:00 but there was so much time for more. Unfortunate but really, what can you do? If performers are booked and then don't show up for their commitments, the promoters can't be faulted. But the patrons shouldn't have to pay either cause I assume that the performers who didn't show up won't get paid for their portion of the gig. I ask...what happens to the x% of my ticket that was supposed to go towards those performers? Should I get a refund? Should it go to charity? I think my $x and that of the other 500 or so people will be going straight into the pockets of the promoters...

Last night, Smith, Tchao and I did a lot of talking about life, relationships, family, work and everything else. These conversations are always reassuring and definitely nice because I know that I am not the only one questioning things. It's just tough though because I have such an easy life...no problems really to worry about. Yet I am still not satisfied. Am I ungreatful for what I have? Do I want more? I'm not sure what it all means. It's tough to really get a handle on things because there are so many variables. The one thing that I know is for sure is that I don't have any substance in my life right now. I work, I go to the gym, I go to Dragonboat practice, I eat, I hang out with friends, then I sleep. Then it all starts up again the next day - there is no time for anything else...it's all so rushed. Work is the central piece of that because there is an unwritten expectation to always be working as well. Gone are the 9 - 5 days and as a result, the time that I can use to add that substance to my life. I don't know what that substance is but it involves passion and dedication. I can sit around and chat with others and think this stuff all the time but it just keeps ending up with the same result...no answers; just more questions. It's weird to think about it from my parents or other elders perspective too. They all sacrificed so much coming to a new country and starting fresh so people like, my brother, Tchao and whoever else could have a nice fresh start in this wonderful country. We had that and have made the most of it so far but I'll only speak for me (but I know many others feel the same way) when I say that I am not satisfied. I am not sure what is missing (other than that aforementioned substance) but I wouldn't want people like my parents and other elders to not be proud of me. I know they are...they are happy that I am healthy, happy and "succesful" so far. That is good I suppose but there just needs to be more. "success" and "happiness" have different meanings for us all. That is what we are striving for. I'll leave my thoughts at that for now...enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Going to Montreal for work tomorrow for 4 days. Should be fun.

It's been a couple days since I last wrote. I am just about to go to bed but wanted to say hello before my head hits the pillow. Today was a whirlwind day. Did some suit shopping!!! I picked up two nice suits at Tom's Place - a Navy Blue suit with flat front no pleated dress pants and a Traditional Charcoal Grey suit with cuffed one pleated pants. I like them both and can't wait to pick them up (after alterations). The service at Tom's Place was fantastic and I must say...I don't regret the purchase at all. Typically when I drop a lot of cash on clothes or other ish as I did today, I am always so hesitant about it and rethink and reponder over and over again. This was one of the first times that it felt good. I knew that I was making a good investment with these purchases... These are my uniform for my job so I gotta look money. And damn, it is gonna be nice. Went to the driving range tonight and my swing is definitely improving. Got a lesson on Saturday morning to I'm excited to see how things go. Tchao and Flo - I am definitely going to try and come with you to the range one of the next times you go.

I almost didn't get tickets for the Karsh concert...they were sold out at the place I went but they had a second block of tickets available so I imagine this is gonna be an awesome show. And, I might hit up the Jay game with Smith and Tchao tomorrow before we head to the concert. In any case, this weekend is gonna be awesome and very chill with my buddies.

Question I thought of while driving home today. Those private security companies that have company careers that say "Brecker Security" or whatever other name they have - those damn cars are so similar to police cars sometimes it really sucks. Here I am zooming along on the 401 when I have to quickly start breaking cause I see what I think is a police car only to find out it's some chump security guard from the movie theatre or Walmart or something.

My cell phone randomly decides to turn off when it feels like it. It is very very very annoying. Also, I am waiting for those idiots at Telus to call me back cause they said they were giving me a bunch of features free (like caller Id, voicemail 25, etc). But when I called the other day, I was told that I'm being charged $7 and I didn't agree to that. I've left 2 stern messages so far and haven't heard antyhing...not sure what to do next but I'll figure it out.

It seems that these days go by so fast. It's already 11:00 pm and I haven't done much tonight. After work, I had a great workout. I got home and my cousin Vish from Montreal who's in town for business came over for dinner so it was cool to chill and chat with him. Then, it was time to check my e-mail (that I can't get to while at work) and sit and reply to messages and plan my weekend.

Friday night should be awesome. I am going to go to the Karsh Kale concert at Bambu on the Lake. It WILL be wicked cause Karsh is awesome live. He is one of my marathi brothers as well so that is cool...I guarantee that you will enjoy yourself if you go to this show!

Saturday - doing a charity 5K run in support of quiting smoking. It's called Kick in the Butt
Then in the afternoon I am going to check out the RBC Taste of South Asia festival
Then at night - I am going to Cristine's Team Dragonboat fundraiser at the Chocolate Lounge...Check it out - it should be fun.

On Sunday, I leave for Montreal. Will be there for work until late on Wednesday the 4th.
Good night - gotta sit through training all day tomorrow and then go to dragonboat practice.

i've been trying to haggle with telus for the past week on rate plans, a new phone and accesories. those guys make so much money and i am trying to get a little back. trying to use the negotiation skills i have so called learned. so far, i've received evenings and weekends free for the next 3 months, assorted features for free like voicemail 25, call display, conference calling and call waiting. and up to $300 off a new phone purchase if i sign up to a contract. will have to check that out and decide...who knows anything about cell phone contracts? have you guys signed up to contracts or are you still on pay as you go type plans?

had dragonboat practice tonight. it was a great practice and an awesome workout. i am so tired now...gotta get to bed. this sucks cause i got home from practice at 9:45 and now it's 11:25 and i'm going to bed. not much of a day considering i woke up at 6:35 as well. damn, this stinks.

went suit shopping at Tom's Place today and found some good deals. i am really sold on a couple of the suits and i'm leaning towards purchasing them. just a bit sucky cause they are a bit on the pricey side (and definitely more than what i was initially willing to spend). that being said...i need to start spending more money on clothes. i have had the same basic wardrobe for years and i wanna mix it up. i have some nice clothes but i gots to get some new threads. now that i have some coin...why not spoiling myself a bit (don't do that enough). so, hopefully the next time you see me, i'll be all pimped out in a new suit. we'll just have to wait and see.

i am also still looking at digital cameras. tell me what you think of this one. this is the Casio EX-Z3 and it looks pretty money. Techno peeps(Tchao, Tai, Kevin, Karen, James) - I need your help...

as my messenger name currently says...How do I transfer my contacts/calender from my work computer outlook to my personal computer outlook?

The weekend is over. It's time to go to bed and start a new wake. Now I wish I was still in Milwaukee cause tomorrow is Memorial Day and I would have ANOTHER long weekend. Wouldn't that be money? Today was chill. Hung out with G and Andrea - saw her condo and we went rollarblading. I need new blades cause they are damn uncomfortable (or I need orthodics...should maybe check that out). But the blades will have to wait cause there are plenty of other things to be purchased...most importantly some new suits for work. Yep - I am currently doing some suit shopping. Gonna hopefully pick up a couple this week. Was watching the Simpsons - Behind the Laughter episode this evening. It's a repeat from early in the year I think...they said that the Simpsons were a family from Northern Kentucky. Did they let the cat out of the bag? Are they actually from Springfield, Kentucky? (if there is such a city?). Made dinner for my family tonight...risotto, burritos and asparagus...and James - they were all YUMMY.

Yesterday, saw Matrix Reloaded. Thought the movie was pretty good. I don't totally remember the first one but I thought this was entertaining and I think that I followed it pretty well for the most part so that is good. I think that it set up the final movie very well. I just read Kevin and Tchao's blogs about the movie and I must say that they really dove deep into this movie. I did make one similar observation to Tchao and that was related to minorities and more specifically...the amount of Asians in the movie. I didn't expect to see so many but whatevs really. I probably just noticed it cause there were no prominent brown people. Check this out though - In Spellbound, 3 of the 8 kids are brown so take that!!! (I didn't see Spellbound by the way...I just heard about it). Oh yeah, I almost left after the credits and then remembered that the preview for the 3rd Matrix was after the credits. I must say though...after waiting through about 7 or 8 minutes of credits - I finally saw the preview and wasn't that impressed. Speaking of previews, during the preview and commercial half hour prior to the start of the "feature presentation", I saw previews for Bad Boys 2, T3 and The Last Samurai - all look really good. Last night after the movies...got together with some peeps (Sunil, Cris, Jen, Tai, Dan, Agnes, Carolyn) and we went to the Shallow Groove Lounge in Little Itally. Had a really fun time. Maestro put me back in a great mood. Man, I love that song. Let Your Backbone Slide is such a Toronto song...it is awesome. Whenever it gets played at clubs here - everyone goes nuts and most of the guys know most of the words (it's the only song that I know all the words too). Just thought you'd like to know that last thing...

Time for another week of work...
Until later,

So, it's the morning now...I have re-read my past two blogs (which have been quite serious) and...I change nothing. Gun control in America sucks and the pollution and degradation of our planet throughout our entire society sucks. Why can't it be against human nature to waste and litter? I wish it was that simple. I know that I've commited both problems in the past but I have also done my share of help by picking up garbage and trying to clean up litter. This problem stems further down to our psyche...it isn't just a physical thing (that we choose to do). The problem could be related to our upbringing these days. There really isn't much regard for our society. At some point...we will probably run out of food. Actually - we already have in many other parts of the world. I wonder if that will ever trickle to North America or parts of Europe.

I don't know the answers but I feel like I need to do something...
Guess there is a lot of thinking ahead.

Any help? Thoughts?

p.s. Lebron James is NOT worth $90 Million. That is ABSOLUTE CRAP

It's 2:45 in the morning. Time for bed. I couldn't go to sleep until I wrote this blog though. Reason is...I just watched Bowling for Columbine, The Michael Moore film about gun violence and gun control in America. What a scary scary movie. The views expressed by people in this movie are utterly mind boggling. I don't care that your damn 2nd Ammendment says you have the right to bear arms. What the hell is wrong with this picture? The stuff that he unfolded...especially crap related to the NRA, Charleton Heston and Racial issues. All the stuff he brought up about differences between countries and the amount of gun related murders in each ranging from 37 in Japan to 165 in Canada to 11,387 in the U.S. Yes you have to take into account the difference in popoulation size but damn...what the hell is up. Then, the whole montage he had about how Americans have done this and that in all these coutnries including training Osama Bin Ladan and funding his army in order for them to beat Russia or giving Saddam Hussein military aid and training in hopes of them beating Iran during their war. Look at how all that crap backfired...

The basic simple clear message was that the American society is all about two things today. Fear and Consumption. The fear is manifested by everyone and everything around them (most notably the media especially when tey talk about their daily terrorist warnings - like today was a code orange). Consumption is a result of this fear...whether it's buying weapons to "protect" yourself and your family, or buying supplies in case of Y2K or consuming all this media crap that is being spewed through the airwaves...it's all CONSUME CONSUME CONSUME.

I haven't proofread this blog cause it's all free flowing emotion right now.
I'll re-read it in the morning and decide then if I want to change anything
Now, it's time for bed...

10:42 pm. I am going to London tomorrow morning to a client site and I have to be there at 9:00 am so that means leaving Scarborough at 6:30 tomorrow morning. Man, that is going to be a real treat! Traffic hopefully won't be that bad that early in the morning. But I'll wait for judgement until that time.Speaking of traffic, it's been quite weird or late. Tuesday - took me 35 minutes to get to work (I even took the shortcut Tchao told me about - 409/427). Then on Wednesday, one little accident on the 427 south (I didn't take the short cut as a result) and my drive was 1 hour and 15 minutes. Then today, it was 40 minutes. So weird and inconsistent. Hopefully everything is smooth tomorrow.

YEAH it's almost Friday!!!

So it appears that Toronto might have 4 new cases of SARS as of this evening. That is kind of scary...Is this going to just be around forever like the common cold? Quite possibly. I was thinking this evening - there are so any of these diseases and other issues affecting our world's growing populaiton. Mad Cow, SARS, West Nile - these are all ways to just try to attempt to control our population. Our world is so overcrowded in general (definintely not Canada though). This excess of 6 Billion people is taking it's toll on the environment. Look at all the damn garbage we produce every year. Is that ever sorted for recyclable things? I don't think so...And look at all the water bottles in our society today - I'd say that the average person tosses out 1 - 2 bottles of water in the garbage every day either in the U.S. or Canada. Then, you go to Asia whose water is horrible for the most part. There are bottles of water everywhere and all are so bad for society..

I am falling asleep....don't have time to proof read this. Hopefully it's okay.

Oh yeah...one more thing - the Raptors got the 4th overall pick in the NBA draft lottery this evening so they'll probably choose Ford from Texas or Dwayne Wade from Marquette in Milwaukee. It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out...

My Canadian Brothers and Sisters. Please read this article in the latest edition of Time Magazine, Canadian Edition. What the heck is up with this? And did you look at the headline on the cover? I am going to read these articles over my lunch break and then share my thoughts...One more article is the Star's review/rebuttal that you can find here.

sparks...you gots to make your links come up in a new page so that your page doesn't get burried. i think you've gotta use a target="_blank" tag in your link. wow - i am giving computer help to a computer engineer! i am the man.

well not really...but i'll keep dreaming.
word.

my neck hurts. my back hurts. my feet hurt. wow....am i getting old? i had dragonboat practice tonight and went for a run before hand - damn, i feel great but have a few little aches and pains. alls well though. i am working out a lot, watching what i'm eating. within no time - i'll be back at the weight i want! this is a vow...

wow...great hockey game tonight. quite an awesome overtime with end to end action. i am happy that ottawa pulled it out and now it'll be great to see what they are really made of on friday night in front of their own fans.

work has been fine of late. i am finalizing my territory tomorrow with my manager so once that is done, i will actually have real life customers and accounts which is pretty freaky. "Hello Dr. ______, would you like to buy this _______________ machine from me, the young 24 year old kid who is younger than your grandson?" we'll see how it all goes. it proves to be some funny times...

so i was curious - didn't watch it at all but it appears that Ruben was voted as this year's American Idol. it's interesting how this played out. the white guy vs. the black guy in the end. the white guy - small, scrawny and geeky. and the black guy - big, melodic voice and screaming fubu. what would have happened if the white guy won? chants of fix and racism? what will happen now though since ruben won? chants of affirmative action? in any case - i'm told that ruben was actually the better singer so if that is the case then it's good that he won.

time for bed. i don't get enough sleep every night...
gotta work on that!
night.

blogger SUCKS again!!!!!!!!
can anyone read this?
let me know...

I saw X2: X-Men United tonight and I must say...I really liked that movie. I don't totally remember the first one but I know that I saw it twice and neither time did it really make an impression on me. This movie was cool though...some good character development and some great plot development. There were a couple of times when I didn't really know what was going on but all in all, i think that I figured it out. Especaially the Mystique scenes...cause she can be anyone. I was just playing on the website as well...check it out! They've done a really cool job.

Well, the Sens stayed alive this evening which was good. Hopefully Wednesday night has a similar outcome but playing in New Jersey will be tough. Smith - good call about Spezza buddy. Perhaps you should be the coach...guess you just didn't think of Chris Neal and the pine-rider, eh?

Mowed the lawn today. Washed the car. Did Laundry. It was a successful day - I just didn' go for a run or rollarblade but I've got the gym tomorrow so I should be fine. Some questions for the peanut gallery...When washing the car, how do you not get streaks on your windows? What kind of cloth should I use? And, do you use Armour All? Do you like what it does? I find that it just made things look greasy and splotchy...not a big fan but again - I probably didn't do it right. So, if you've got any car washing tips or suggestion - please send me a message

Good Night

Back from the cottage. Refreshed. That is the word I will use to describe the weekend. Relaxed could also fit as well. Damn, I really like cottage life and I totally see how city folk love to get out of the busyness and crazyness of the city to get out to tranquil water and air. It was definitely a great weekend away at Marty's cottage. Tchao and I left a bit early and got home last night...the drive wasn't bad at all (2.5 hours). And, that whole worry about Black Flies! Nothing. Well, there were some but it wasn't that big a deal at all. A couple of us got a few bites but nothing major...those little shits defintely take a chunk out of your skin though! Martin - thank you very much for your hospitality...it was awesome to spend the weekend up at your cottage and hang with the boys. I must say the weekend of poker, guitars, golf and bbq-ing was exactly what I was looking for. IT was too awesome... The other thing I wanted to mention was that Marty, Sparks, Kyle, Kidd, Smith and Tchao - you guys are all awesome on the guitar - thanks for all the jamming...

It's Holiday Monday now...and beautiful outside. I think that I'll wash the car this afternoon and hopefully go out for a rollerblade or play some golf or tennis or something. Speaking of golf, I played quite possibly the best round of my life yesterday. On 18 - I shot a 103 but that was with a damn 12 on the 9th hole when I just lost concentration. I was driving really well the whole time and I was 1 and 2 putting almost every hole. I had about 4 pars which was sweet. All in all, a great game to get the season rolling (I won't count Collingwood a couple of weeks ago). Have to itch to get out and play again soon.

Some of my Milwaukee peeps might be coming to visit soon so that could be cool. Maybe next weekend? Cause it's Memorial Day? Cool.

Well, I am going to eat some brunch and read the paper...more to come later I am sure.

I have just been trying to connect my work laptop into our network at home using my wireless card to no avail. I am a computer retard ladies and gentlemen: i was struggling with my damn blogger website the last two days trying to change the template and add some links/nav bars to it. Couldn't do that. Now, I was trying to connect my laptop to the Internet using my Wireless card but couldn't do that either. What the phug is up with that??? Kevin was trying to help me through the wonders of MSN but we tried everything he could think of - still no dice. That really sucks...guess I'll have to wait till tomorrow to figure it out. Once that works - then the next challenge is to get my network actually working so that my computer can talk to my dad's computer (and vice versa) and so that they can both talk to my work laptop. I want to share the scanner and printer so that I don't have to plug/unplug them all the time...

Who's seen Matrix Reloaded yet? I haven't. In fact, I am quite behind on most of the action movies of late - never saw Spiderman, Daredevil and X2 either. Will have to see all of those at some point. Not sure when but it'll happen.

This weekend - going up to Marty's cottage with the boys. That is going to be awesome. I can't wait to chill out with the UW posse, have some beverages and other ish, play some poker, some basketball and beat off black flies - it's gonna be great!

The Lakers lost and are gone from the playoffs tonight!!! YEAH!!!
Go Mavs...it's all you now.

Today was a great day for me...in terms of working out. I ran the treadmill, did lunges and abs for an hour during lunch. Then, after work tonight - I had dragonboat practice. So, it was definitely a great day for physical activity. I also ate really well today - lots of fruits and veggies, a bagel, egg whites and great Indian food for dinner. This workout and eating routine that I am trying to stick on is going to work out great. The motivation behind all this is that I weighed myself the other day and I've never been this big. I am no porker or anything but damn, it ain't nice. I gots to tone up and look tight. Will take some time but I am determined. I wanna lose some serious weight (approx 15 pounds). There, now that it's in writing and all of you are reading it...I better succeed. Please keep me in line whenever we are together eating, etc.

I saw my niece this evening. She is 6. She is awesome. I love that girl. Man, I hope that my kids are as awesome as she is. She is the best behaved kid I know...so cute and so smart as well. Who knows though - when she's at home, maybe she throws tantrums etc.

Okay so I have to say that J.S. Giguere, the Anaheim goalie in this years NHL playoffs is playing unbelievably. Currently, there are 4 minutes left in Game 3. If it ends the way it is. That will be three games (11 periods) of shutout hockey by him over the Minnesota Wild. Craziness!

What the hell is going on in the world today when something so effed up as this occurs. Man, I just don't understand this. My dad told me tonight that on the news - they said that out of Ontario's 500 "declared dangerous sex offenders" who have been released, there are approx 260 living within 3 km of Holly Jones' house. And none of the residents in that area were made aware of anything. That must be the case throughout the entire province as well. What is up? How does that work? Also, the Federal Government program in place to supposedly take DNA samples or create some sort of criminal database on dangerous offenders (sex, murder, etc) is so far behind schedule. It just ain't right. If they need money to set this up...then do it! Take money out of other stuff. This should be of paramount concern because people's safety is at risk, especially that of children. It really sucks that people have to live their daily lives in fear. I am not saying that this doesn't happen elsewhere cause there are plenty of countries in the Middle East or other parts of Asia, Africa and South America that this is a daily occurence. I guess fear in society is something that we have to live with from now on. You see it portrayed in the media every day. There is just too much out there...it's not healthy.

So it appears that I am getting a little slack for my terminology in some of my blogs. Apperently it's a bit too proper or something. You don't like yummy food Sparks? All kidding aside, I was just catching up on James' blog and I must say...that is some funny reading. Dude, I am impressed - you are a hardcore reader. I wish I read more. That is something that I really gotta start doing. Well how about that...currently, I actually am reading something. It's Stupid White Men by Michael Moore. Interesting so far but at times, seems just too well orchestrated...where did he really get such great info? Or could he be like that guy for the New York Times?

Etch, I 100% agree with you regarding Mike Myers performance on the Tonight Show last night. That was absolutely fantastic. I was watching the entire thing waiting for him to talk about Toronto. He came out wearing a Toronto Maple Leaf Sweater and after the break, Katie Couric gave him some time. And it was perfect. He spoke eloquently and simply. It was the perfect message to an American society brainwashed by their own media. I love the shot he through in about the media as well. And at the end - total class to awknowledge all the health care workers in Toronto that are the real heros.

Speaking of healthcare workers, today I was at Cambridge Memorial Hospital doing some work and encountered my first experience with SARS at a healthcare institution. I had to fill out a form, make sure I was okay, rub some hand sanitizer and then I was on my way. Not that many people inside the facility were actually wearing the masks but they are still limiting the amount of people inside hospitals. That is in Cambridge too...imagine Downtown Toronto and Scarborough.

Congrats to Team Canada on Sunday. And a hearty congrats to Anson Carter, another fantastic Scarborough Superstar (in case you didn't know - Mike Myers is from Scarborough as well). That was sweet to see Carter score that goal and it's always awesome to see Canada win a Hockey Championship. Damn, I would love to represent my country in an event of that magnitude.

ladies and gentlemen...boys and girls
look who's back...it's goks with curls
well no, not really; but it's a new look
short hair, chic glasses; an aspiring cook
blogger was bringing me down for some time
now i'm back though, ready to rhyme.

back in the tdot after 6 months afar
milwaukee, wisconsin...there and back in my car
zoom zoom zoom it goes
couldn't stop me and my afro
4.5 inches...it was the longest ever
now it's gone and back some time? never.

been home in toronto for 10 days now
getting settled in, but the job still ain't wow
NHL and NBA playoffs have been off the hook
too bad the Leafs and Raptors got fooked
that was a play on words if you didn't catch it
keep reading the dictionary, you gots to learn that sh*t.

it's nice to be back...more updates to come
the webpage will be changing...no more looking dumb
good night to all of you
hope to see ya'll soon.

Tonight for Mother's Day - we went to The Matahari Grill. It's on Baldwin. It was excellent Malaysian food...I definitely recommend it! Baldwin in general has some fantastic restaurants - great in the summer time too with all the patios. Can't wait to get out on the streets of Toronto this summer and eat all sorts of yummy food.

By the way, I am working out (gym, dragonboat, running - all currently and volleyball, roller hockey - soon) but like Tchao, I need to start altering my diet a bit to really notice changes...