Blane

ok, so when I first came here I wanted to get a thank-you gift for the head of the program that I'm working with for helping me sort out the details of moving to africa. I picked up a pretty good bottle of wine (like 45 bucks in the UK) on my way here and gave it to him. Now I'd drank with the guy before a few times and know he likes wine, but that was a couple of years ago, and not in his home country. So anyway, I gave him the bottle in June when I arrived, he thanked me and put it on the shelf in his office (still in a plastic bag). It's now august and the wine is still sitting there! For a while I thought maybe he hadn't gotten around to taking it home but this is a bit rediculous now. So I wonder, is it that he doesn't want it, or can't bring it home for some reason (remember it's a muslim country, though he's clearly not muslim), or is it just that he's saving it for something. I'm 1/2 tempted to say "hey, if it was a bad idea for me to give you that wine you don't have to keep it" but i don't want to make it sound like i'm pissed off about it or something. Still, it's a shame to watch a good bottle of Margaux bake in the 35 degree temperatures of our office, and I'd feel bad if he just didn't know what to do with it. what would you do?

admittedly I'm on facebook. but at least my picture is a photo of a monkey, meaning I'm sorta running a monkey shrine more than anything else. My tribute to the Nepalis let us say.

i saw facebook described by one writer as people's "shrines to themselves". i thought that was pretty fitting.

introduce this shit in italy. it'll create anarchy. the whole fucking league will collapse. http://www.youtube.com/?v=m3qpE8WZMt8 Brilliant soundtrack to this one! Honestly, until this issue is resolved i'll never be a fan of the sport.

Same logic applies folks! If the CIA wants to know that I was born on Oct. 26th have a picture of a monkey as my profile, and want to travel to Nunavut, they're welcome to it. That's about all they're gonna get.

Never mind the CIA (regardless of whether or not it's a conspiracy theory, which it may well be), clearly police forces and schools have already been using Facebook to dig up evidence on people. I think the point is that people need to realize that putting things online is no different than broadcasting them on TV or the radio, except even more permanent. If you don't want them to be shared with the entire world, potentially for your entire lifetime, then don't put them up there. THe number of people willing to put up photos of themselves packing a bong or in some other "compromising" position is pretty amazing, IMO.

Sens re-sign Kelly to a one-year contract. no figures yet. Seems kind of a lame deal to me. Next year is when things get REALLY shitty for the sens in terms of free agency. Why add another egg to that already-full basket?

hang on, I'm certain that my buddy Mark (jahdawg) would like to go just have to try to reach him!

mardi 31 juillet (Greenland & GEG Presentent) YONDER MOUNTAIN STRING BAND + NOTRE DAME DE GRASS CABARET DU MUSÉE JUSTE POUR RIRE 2111 SAINT-LAURENT 20.00$ + f.s. à l'avance et à la porte Billets en vente à la billetterie du CABARET, et sur le réseau ADMISSION.

I remember being 12 years old, at hockey practice, and Joey Alberta was singing Paradise City in the locker room. My first exposure to Gn'R. Was one of the first CD's I ever bought, and I still have the same copy. They were my favorite band from 7th grade 'till about 10th grade, and were basically the reason I learned to play the guitar.

with even 3 seconds of forethought she should have realized what a bad excuse that was. "Officer, those aren't my pants with coke in them", now.. pray tell... what MIGHT the cop ask next? And how do you answer that? "I can't tell you, it's a secret?" ... "I don't knwo I just found them here?"

the one on Mt. Royal is much further east than that. there was a problem with your map. It's at the corner of Christophe Colomb, here; http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1127+Mont.+Royal+east,+Montreal,+Quebec,+Canada,+H2V+1X9&ll=45.528300,-73.579200&spn=0.063965,0.078467&hl=en

brad, you gotta go to the ones on St. Viateur, or to Fairmount bagel on Fairmount. Gotta have the real deal. IT's SUPER easy to get there from Parc. Just take the #80 bus that runs up and down parc every 5 minutes or so. Easiest way to quickly get north-south. Stops 100 meters from the bagel shop. Much easier than going all the way to Mr. Royal.

In that neighbourhood I recommend Chez Doval for Portuguese grilled goodies (try the fish of the day, it's always a good bet). Get there early (pre-7:30) or be prepared to wait. This is more dinner-oriented. Cafe Jose (fuck I hope that's the name) at the corner of Hotel de Ville and Duluth is a lunchtime staple. Great seafood soup, empanadas, sandwiches, smoothies, and sweets for really really cheap. Totally iconic montreal style too. Often rediculously hot waitresses. Casa is fun (see other post). If you want a bit of a more upscale treat (price wise not vibe wise) DEFINATELY try La Sala Rossa. Spanish tapas. If you go there you MUST eat the goat's cheese balls with caramelized onions. This is a perfect stop to pair with a concert upstairs if you can swing it. They've got cheap house wine too. Across the street from Casa. oh yeah, and if you are feeling like totally bumming it, go to Copacabana (dive bar) and eat some of Jay's yummy indian fusion stuff. It's not top notch, but it's very tasty (the tilapia is great!) and it's like eating in the dominion tavern. Those are what come to mind immediately. Thought of one more, but out of your way a bit. ON the 1000 block of Jean Talon (taxi or bus from where you are) is an indian place called Bombay Mahal. For about 6 dollars it has FANTASTIC indian food. Go for the Chaana Samosa the Bhartha (smoked eggplant), or nearly anything else. Bring your own beer. Oh shit, one more (these keep coming to me). Golden Curry (corner of St. Laurent and Fairmount) has delicious indian for a good price (more expensive than Bombay Mahal though). Smallest restaurant in montreal? Possibly. I forgot to mention the curry garden (rotis) and the Euro Deli on St. Viateur (more in the 5000 blocks of St. Laurent but who cares) for a lunch of pierogies and borsht. Ask the bouchards. Heavenly. And brad, don't leave montreal without a night at Dieu du Ciel doing a round of tasters. Their website will tell you which beer they're brewing at the moment. they have tasty nachos.

Brad, it's a great place for a light afternoon meal (esp. veggie sandwich) with delicous beer on tap. It's frustrating 'cause I'm sure I've posted my favorite places to eat in Montreal 50 times here but can't seem to find them. http://www.jambands.ca/sanctuary/showtopic.php?tid/236119/post/390981/hl//#390981

I actually taped you guys twice from the SBD (at the upstairs club), and I think I actually transferred one of them to CD a number of years ago. Probably have them stuffed away somewhere.

the back terrace of Casa del Popolo in Montreal, drinking a St. Ambroise Apricot ale with mah peeps. Won't be happening for a while though.

hey, I used to check your shows out a lot in the '90s in Ottawa. Liked them a lot. Some of the stuff with your bluegrass band (with Eric Lackey and Terry Joe) was particularly fun. Did you record any of that? Can't seem to stream anything because of my connection here, so sorry if that's the stuff that's already up.

as a child my family was really into camping. we (4 of us) drove from Blind River, ON to Vancouver with a trailer, countless trips to camp (single-lane dirt roads on St. Joseph's island), annual summer camping trips (towing a trailer) to Manitoba. My dad also used it for 200+ km daily commutes from Blind River to his office in Elliot Lake. All in an early '80s shit brown toyota hatchback. oddly, we always seemed to make it there and back, and never had a winter accident (living in northern ontario, on Highway 17).

that's not too bad actually. Still cheaper than his backup!

I almost wrote a long detailed response to this, but then I realized what a fucking waste of time it would be. Enjoy your hummer.

I'm a fan of the ubiquitous Maggi sauce: The 3rd world's seasoning for decades! Brought to you by the good people at Nestle. According to Wikipedia Maggi is almost like soy sauce, except it doesn't actually contain soy. So in fact it's more like brown liquid salt. And a fixture on every restaurant table from here to the South Pacific.

It's interesting because I thought they were a lot further along than that. But then again those guys are total disasters in terms of having their shit together, so I guess it shouldn't surprise.

and warm!

Looking good!