My 2007 Hope-To-Do List

1. I've been asked to build two websites already. I hope to accomplish that, and wouldn't it be a cool acomplishment to get that done (under the Beachlime banner) before the end of January?
2. Revitalise the Forums. I had problems maintaing them and making them grow because of all the spambot attacks. If I can decide on an identity (ie Bermuda-centric, Caribbean-centric, personal or all-encompassing) then I'll have some motivation to proceed with a relaunch.
3. Follow my damn heart and instinct for once :-)
4. Get my ass in the damn gym already
5. Car? Ought to even if just for the occasional drive.
6. Save properly
7. Put more effort into developing my career, especially if it involves opportunities abroad
8. Enjoy life more, and spend less time worrying about ifs and buts
9. Help somebody in an unfortunate situation. I mean, like Haiti-poor, not "I need a new dress"-poor.
10. Try to be healthy physically and mentally. That probably includes getting sleep at night :-)
    

End of Saddam Hussein

They went ahead and executed the former Iraqi president this morning. It's probably the most significant news story of the year, and the ramifications of this are bound to be felt for quite a few years. How will the citizens of the country react? And what about Saddam's former allies and countries that oppose the U.S. and Britain?

In something closer to home, I was reading the Nation online and came across a thought-provoking letter from a David Gittens who proposed a permanent change in local time for Barbados. With daylight starting at around 5 each morning and ending around 5:30/6 in the evening I would be in favour of moving clocks ahead an hour, a move that would save a lot of money in terms of electricity bills. Of course there are potential issues with not being in sync with other Eastern Caribbean nations, and it does nothing to change the fact that in the spring and summer while North America and Europe push their clocks ahead an hour and Barbadians would still need to adjust in terms of travel and financial trading. But I'd like to see that issue debated.

Oh, and I just saw this after I posted, but yep, I have to update yesterday's (29th) post as someone else just died on the roads. While I don't know for certain, I think that puts Bermuda at 13 for the year. Barbados, I think, is currently at 14. And to think that Bermuda has better roads, better serviced vehicles on average and a far smaller population. Sad.

Unruly behaviour in Barbados

This is one of the worst things I have ever read, and perhaps the most shameful thing that I have heard about pertaining to Barbadians. For people to storm a store, breaking things just to get a chance at a huge discount, is nothing short of disgusting. Criminal charges should be laid on as many people as possible known to have caused that.

I read Limey in Bermuda a fair bit, but this issue up for debate here is maybe the most controversial in that what started as a question on if a chef was deported without due process, has resulted in clear battle lines being drawn and it's unfortunate that it becomes a political party thing and worse a race thing when it really shouldn't be. There's a lot of bad blood and harsh comments in this particular thread. Problem is there are some who have exhibited some kind of petty superiority complex issues and I do fear that the only Bermuda blog that discusses events near and dear to everyone, is now pigeon-holed into a biased discussion arena where only one line of thinking is "right".

Catching up slowly

Sorry for the delay, so much I have wanted to blog about over the past two weeks but things have been reasonably busy since my return from vacation. I'll post things over the next couple of days, perhaps even through New Year's.

I have been watching my good friend's cats while she's on vacation, and I realise that (a) cats do like to eat, (b) cats really like to laze off, (c) cats poop more than I thought. I think one of them is a true female version of Garfield.

This Christmas here went by pretty uneventfully. As far as I know nobody got killed on the roads (although someone may have came close), but New Year's is around the corner anyway. Oh yeah, I need to resolve to not be so morbid about our poor drivers in 2007...

It's a Roundabout, not a Stopabout

Seriously, when you're driving bus 2K404 along South Shore road Saturday afternoon, you are not supposed to stop in the middle of the roundabout to let your bus-driving buddy enter the roundabout. It's dangerous and counter-productive to how a roundabout is supposed to make the traffic flow easier.

Watch out! Tidal Wave!

I meant to recap my time in Barbados with my first post after returning, then wanted to mention my stupid actions at the gas pump on Friday, but I think I have a better tale to tell.

Tsunami! Run for your lives! Somehow word got out that large waves were seen breaking off the reefs and that led to rumours that a giant wave was going to crash into Bermuda spreading across the phone lines. And eventually the information presented to law enforcement was not authenticated in any way, and the result was a haphazard evacuation process that was not communicated to the public by radio or TV or even a truck with a megahorn giving any warnings.

What does it mean? Firstly that Bermudians are gullible and don't like to confirm things. No wonder scam artists thrive here. Look for us to be further embarrassed in the global arena once word gets around.

Visit to Barbados

It's overdue and I don't think I'll be lucky to find tickets to next year's World Cup, but I'm heading to Barbados for a couple weeks. I don't know if I'm ready for the heat, heh. But it is good that I'll be able to ctach up with old friends and family in the place that I'm more likely to end up moving to considering the extravagant cost of living in Bermuda.

Hopefully I'll be able to weigh things up in depth - there are so many similarities between the two places and numerous parallels worth exploring.

I was reading this post on IMHO which dealt with the harsh realities of not only shopping but giving things away. Bermudians do indeed like to throw away things and get the newest, latest and greatest. It's kind of silly but it's the prevailing mindset which I'm surely not going to overcome.

In what is not exactly an ironic moment, I'll be travelling down there at the same time as the Digicel (no I'm not linking to them) Cup football tournament which features Bermuda and Barbados who both have hopes of making the final round of the competition. Personally I think both squads tend to underperform in regular competition but heck. I'll predict the Bajans, 2-0.

Free public transport: Not the answer

Not too long ago, our Premier floated the idea of making public transportation free for consumers. What could be wrong with that? Encouraging people to leave their cars and bikes at home would clear up much of the traffic issues that we deal with in Bermuda.

But as one astute reader pointed out, the cost isn't as much a factor as convenience. Somebody living in Spanish Point, St. David's or certain parts of Warwick will never forego their cars because their options are currently quite limited. Bus service to those regions ends by 7 p.m. On top of that, the frequency of the buses is not great.

On top of that, buses are still subject to the same rush hour conditions as every other vehicle on the road. Most would rather be stuck in gridlock in the comfort of their own car rather than smushed up on a crowded bus with the assortment of noise (and smell) that makes a journey unpleasant.

So even with free public transportation, the majority of people will continue to travel by car into our only city and major business centre, bringing along their various traffic-related issues.

What I think needs to be done to truly alleviate the enormous traffic flow:

• Improve the bus and ferry schedules. This includes extended hours of operation and frequency of vehicles.


• If we're to drop prices (I think a nominal fee, say $1, would be appropriate) for bus and ferry, throw in increased fees for parking of private cars. Consider raising the license fees for private vehicles to help pay for the service of busses and ferries.


• Develop new routes, or subsidize minibus services such as those which exist in Prospect to compliment regular government-funded public transportation.


• Along with the extended hours, improve the safety aspect by ensuring lighted areas at all bus stops. Maybe even erect security cameras there as well.

Bermudians simply will not leave their car at home in favour of public transportation, unless they can get a comparable experience in terms of comfort, flexibility and safety. Price is not the issue.

IMHO.bm discussed this at length recently, and Limey also weighs in on an interesting development on the once-a-day ferry service out of St. George's which honestly doesn't make any sense at all.

Saddam sentenced to death

Saddam Hussein has just been sentenced to death by hanging. And you just know the tensions in Iraq are going to pick up just a bit more over the next several weeks.

Evacuate Cedarbridge!

Our mega-school, Cedarbridge Academy, has had to close down temporarily due to discovery of aspergillus mold, which apparently is a pretty dangerous fungus.

It was strange, though, to watch the report on the ZBM news. The news anchor said the website to learn more would be displayed on the bottom of the screen. Great, except for the fact that the world's worst watermark logo obscured the latter portions of the web address. Way to go, Bermuda Broadcasting. Next thing you know they will stop putting these stories on their website... wait a second...

Police blitz! Police blitz! Dozens of officers gathered outside the Aquarium this morning (which must be a welcome sight for visitors), all to pull in vehicles for whatever reason they like, hoping to catch someone without a license or something, I presume, as well as the famous radar gunners relaying messages ahead by walkie talkie or whatever high-tech gizmos they use these days, heh. Fortunately I suppose, I got waved through, even though my own bike didn't have its updated licence sticker on it. Good job, police.

New Premier beckons

I don't comment on political issues often, usually because I'm either dissatisfied, uninterested or purposely oblivious to the goings-on.

ZBM reporter Mike Sharpe cornered me yesterday afternoon to ask me who would be the next PLP leader, the incumbent Alex Scott or challenger Ewart Brown. Personally I was hoping the question would be about sports but no such luck. Anyway, I stumbled to say that Dr. Brown would get the post, but offered no reason except to say it's time for a change.

When I got back to my desk, I thought a bit deeper about it. I think that it is indeed in the best interests of the PLP to change leaders because the present administration has been seen as ineffectual and for that political party to win over the votes of the many undecided people, it needed to present a leadership with a different look about it. A general election will be due within the next two years, and it will be interesting to see how things turn out.

As it is, Dr. Brown indeed won the leadership of the party, and is now slated to be the next Premier of Bermuda. Politics.bm has provided news on how the voting shook out.

The effects of the police blitz

Many people are driving more slowly... which is having the effect of... well, only a bit more frustration.

Meanwhile, this morning, I'm behind car 40119 which makes a turn without indicating. Later this evening, I am walking to my bike and I see a van, licence 38360, run a red light. Then on my way home, in fromt of me is a bike, licence AD408, with no working rear light and also failing to signal a turn.

Oh yeah. We're becoming a clearly safer Bermuda with the police blitz. Joy.

So I don't appear to be completely dissatisfied with "The Man", I have to give major props to TCD for giving me the most efficient bike relicensing process imaginable. I booked an appointment for the inspection process, and it went amazingly quickly. The queue was short for the relicensing, and I was processed in record time. Congratulations! And of course, lesson of today is book in advance :-)

One step closer

One step closer to relaunch of the home page, ironing out some kinks
with stylesheets and feed displays. If I can get some good cross-browser
checking (including Macs) and a couple more things I may bring it out
before month-end. Remember, my web editor is Notepad, heh...

Traffic fun

For some stupid reason, the police are announcing that they're clamping down on traffic violations including illegal parking, speeding and running red lights.

Firstly, I'll believe it when I see it, particularly for the red-light runners. I can believe parking violations since there's little effort needed besides strolling around and slapping a ticket. Anything involving changing inertia, good luck.

Secondly, why the hell announce it? Just enforce the darn law the way you're supposed to. Why give people the opportunity to pretend to drive properly for a month and not learn anything new? Just book us according to the law and see if we change our ways.

Not by coincidence, I'm riding into work this morning and near the Tennis Stadium I come across these two guys holding up a banner of some sort. They were dressed in that shirt-and-tie combo that to me indicated that they were of the Latter-Day Saints movement. Their banner read, "Honk if you prayed this morning".

Me: "Oh dear lord..."

I can't make up this comedy if I tried. Of course I was too late to actually honk after I muttered that. However, wouldn't this be in violation of what the police are looking to cut back on? If I recall, it's an offense to use your horn for reasons other than certain traffic situations...

Limey is one of many weighing in on this bizarre announcement, particularly as it relates to enforcing the 35kph law.

Bridgetown is beyond full

Was reading about things back down in Barbados when I came across this letter to the editor. Firstly, I can't imagine the benefit of another cross-country 'highway' that won't serve any purpose. Bus routes won't be created for this road, the only thing it really does is give commuters another method of going to the airport if they live in the west end of the island.

What I really agree with the most is that Bridgetown is a congested city and the only way to alleviate traffic flow is to divert business centres and the like to another location. I've seen small outlets take shape in Warrens, but I think an ambitious project should be taken up by the Government. Holetown and Speightstown are likely out - maybe somewhere centrally located should be developed into a business centre, and of course with it, restaurants, department stores and the like would follow.

Trust me - rush hour in Bermuda doesn't compare to what it's like getting out of Bridgetown most days...

They got the bomb

So North Korea has the bomb now. Only a matter of time, I would have thought. And for all the talk about trying to persuade North Korea to not proceed with their program, it's hard to give weight to the suggestions coming from the United States which still has enough nuclear weapons to completely annihilate the planet.

Read a take on professional athletes choosing not to represent their country, as it relates to soccer. I'm of the opinion that there's few greater honours for an athlete, and it relays down here even to Bermuda. For some people, and I'd love to ask some of those guys who choose that route exactly *why*, they'd rather not.

Is it money or lack thereof? There've been issues with the West Indies cricketers and the Board over contracts, as well as soccer issues namely Togo and to a lesser extent Trinidad and Tobago. But when you see multi-millionaires, whether in soccer or the NBA, decide they're not interested in representing their country and instead are focusing on their club (admittedly, their employer) commitments, it makes one wonder.

Beware, pirates!

They busted some skulls in Bermuda for video piracy. Watch out, all the Bajan video rental stores, you're likely to be next, what with a believed (my opinion) of more video rental stores per capita than any place else in the world... heh.

Apparently there's a shortage of eligible fellas

According to this article by Larry Burchall of the Bermuda Sun, educated women in Bermuda can't find a guy. Excuse me while I laugh. While I agree that women with well-paying jobs would tend to want to seek a partner of at least the same economic level, it would seem that they... you know what? I don't know anymore. I'm leaving this topic alone.

Trying to repair those stupid Forums as well now. Have pretty much abandoned it since the hackers and spammers over-ran it. So I'm going to give it a go to fix it and hopefully it'll work out. If not, then I can always try again with my eventual new host.

America can only be Goliath

I was reading Frank DeFord's latest SI piece, and he talks about the concept of Americans being underdogs in sports. I chuckled a bit. Even though the US is a relative minnow compared to the giants in soccer, for example, you really can't picture them as sympathetic underdogs when compared to say Togo, Trinidad & Tobago or even Australia. The article is worth a read, however.

Riding home, I saw two bad things happen, unfortunately I could only recall one licence plate number. The rider of AD310 could have caused something bad to happen when he ran a red light, however I was thrown by the cop car which darted into traffic near Devonshire Rec, then pulled to a side without any traffic signal used at all. I'm really sorry I didn't get the number of it. I mean, there's no harm in a police officer actually obeying the traffic laws, right?

Disgusting xenophobia

This? Is sickening and completely unmerited.

Disenfranchised Bermudians, of which I often feel like a member of myself, need to express their thoughts in better and more accurate ways. Threatening to commit crimes like slashing tyres and kidnapping family pets is in no way a suitable response.

And what the devil does "not look Bermudian" mean?

Florence gone

Everybody's okay. Florence skirted past us, causing nowhere near the damage that was feared earlier. Only the Monday was lost for businesses. Electricity was down for periods of the day, but I wasn't too happy to realize that my area was last on the list of areas to be restored power, over a day later than many other areas. But what can ya do. Sucks that the company has a monopoly and has no intention to move power lines underground anytime soon to help their customers' convenience.

Since the power went out I haven't bothered to shave. So now I have a fair bit of stubble (it's actually more than Don Johnson used to sport) and am thinking of doing the beard thing again. It's interesting how some women think it would be good on me while others aren't fond of them. Me, I've had the goatee thing for many years now - not sure yet what I want to do with my facial hair. Besides, if I was going to decide on shaving or not shaving to impress a woman, I'd save a lot of hassle and just decide to carry a money clip fat with crisp $100.00 bills, right?

Two weeks, lots to write

Let's see. Think I'm starting to gain back some weight. Losing money faster than I can earn it. Not good.

Steve Irwin, aka the Crocodile Hunter, died. Government decided to raze our Botanical Gardens in order to build the new hospital. The NFL season has started, yay!

I will admit it, I actually watched "The View" when it debuted, back in '96. I think it was during one of my summer vacation/no job periods and I recall the buzz. And by coincedence I was off Tuesday and saw the 10th season premiere. Rosie's there. Whoo-hoo. No talk about Star Jones though. Bummer.

We got us a storm coming after us. Tropical Storm Florence (soon to be a hurricane, it seems) could cause us a bit of worry Sunday night. So we'll be battening down the hatches soon.

Before the storm, some fun on the beach as the FIVB Under-19 Beach World Championships came to Bermuda for the first time. I was present as a volunteer today during the semis and finals. I have to say that these young guys they brought in, they're immensely talented and ought to have good futures if they go pro. I'm a teeny bit disappointed that representation came only from Europe, North America and Oceania, but that's where the power base of the sport tends to be anyway. Fun tourney though, and only slightly dampened by Florence. Kudos to the BVA and the Ministry of Tourism for pulling it off, unfortunately we'll have no idea if this event did well for Bermuda due to the storm warnings.

Another road fatality

I don't like to be proven right when it comes to deaths on the roads but we experienced another fatality on our roads. And life continues here on its ho-hum pace for the most part.

I've been playing around with CSS and a possible new look for the Beachlime home page to make it more than just a splash page but actually give content to visitors. It's what's keeping me going sometimes when things are in the doldrums.

Our traffic laws are so, so weak

It was bad enough when I was chatting with a woman who said that she doubleparks all the time, and that even if she got ticketed for it, it wouldn't dissuade her from doing it again. I knew that something was amiss and that people are totally disrespectful of the road laws.

Then this scenario, in which a guy sped, ran lights, caused other motorists alarm, and created vehicular damage to another vehicle, garnered the guilty party a measly $500 fine and a one year ban from driving.

Firstly, I guarantee you within the next week or two he'll be driving something, somewhere. The police aren't likely to keep track of him. Secondly, the ban is for too short a period even if the person had every intent of following the court order. Thirdly, a $500 fine is weak. Weak, weak, weak. Hell, jailtime should have been strongly considered.

But, the talk will continue. Talk, talk, talk and nothing will change. And a week or two from now, somebody else will suffer from another bad road traffic collision.

Gloomy days

Ever have the kind of day when you're just miserable and don't feel like talking to anybody because you know you'll only serve to make them miserable (or make them pissed off at you because you're not chipper and joyous)? Yeah, that's been the past two days. Purely coincedental that we're having overcast skies and thunderstorms and plenty of rain Wednesday and today, but still...

Fearless red-light runners

So anyway, I'm at the junction of Church Street and Par-la-ville waiting at a red light when this guy riding a scooter maneuvers to the front of the line, looks around and then zooms right through. There ya go. No respect for the law. I would book the rider of O 178, but I noticed that it was a rental cycle from Oleander. I doubt he was in a hurry to return the bike before he got charged for an extra day's rental...

Cup Match and crazy drivers

I'll get the sports out of the way. In the 2006 edition of the Cup Match Classic, and I must pause to recognize the significance of Emancipation Day in Bermuda, St. George's walloped Somerset to retain the crown for another year. A very nice couple of days out and a much-needed break from work. See here for a set of pics courtesy of BlackandCoke.com.

Saturday, and I was already wondering why the hell I went to town as I not only got a screw puncturing the rear tire of my bike, and was subsequently dumbfounded as the usually excellent and reliable Mobile Fix-A-Flat were closed for business in the early afternoon!, luckily enough found a guy to fix it eventually... but on to the how-the-hell part of the day's events.

So I'm at a traffic light, and a bike simply overtakes this station wagon on the right. No big deal, it would seem. When the light goes green and traffic flows, the guy in the station wagon pulls underneath the guy on the bike and actually sticks an arm out and whacks him. Repeat, whacks this guy on his bike while motoring along! That's perhaps the most dangerous and idiotic thing I've seen on the road in quite some time. Imagine what could have happened if the guy fell over, potentially in the path of oncoming traffic. That ought to be a crime no less than assault, and to you, the careless driver of 30607, yeah an old white station wagon, you are Booked. And a menace.

I'll share the tale of another red-light runner that I witnessed this afternoon at a later time.

Digihell revisited

As if there weren't enough problems with our wireless provider Digicel, and I already wonder how they managed to steal part of T-Mobile's "Get More®" tagline (Catherine Zeta-Jones, we love you!), but I get my monthly statements from them, and for some reason, their envelopes are sealed upside down or something. It's very strange. I'm being kind. It's silly.

Some people complain about poor service, inability to roam or complete SMS messaging, or waiting in line for customer support. I complain about the seemingly trivial stuff (although when it comes to trademark law, maybe it's possible someone could be sued?)

Much going on in the world. For example, talking about the situation in Israel and Lebanon would take forever... so much chaos and tension. What hurts though is seeing on the news people carrying off the bodies of children. Nothing's worth that.

While Floyd Landis prepares to possibly get his Tour de France title stripped from him, I saw that one of track and field's biggest potential rivalries and drawing cards could be in jeopardy as American Justin Gatlin tested positive for doping. Anticipation for a showdown between him and Asafa Powell is going to be severly diminished, if not stumble entirely.

Matter of fact, both cycling and track and field have just taken serious body blows in their efforts to maintain credibility and worldwide interest.

My dyslexic buddies' websites

I don't know why it took me so long to promote thaunderground.net, a site partially produced by my good buddy Kevin. Possibly because it's about hip hop and other forms of music (and reading *about* music and music artists bores me to death), but anyway. Visit there sometime if you're one of the 99% who actually cares.

One of my new co-workers is the designer of vybezalliance.com, a very well-done website (using Dreamweaver along with Flash) with cool-looking components. He's a part-time DJ and could be on the verge of having his own enterprise, so to speak. There's music, videos, model gallery (!) and other featurettes.

The connection? Somewhere, it became cool to misspell words and phrases. Again, when one person does it, it's "fresh" and "intriguing". But everybody's doing it nowadays. So it's more played out than anything, in my opinion. Unfortunately innovation is a dying art around these parts, everyone thinking they're re-inventing the wheel when they're really just being lemmings.

Another shooting

It's happened again. Another blasted shooting.

Got another disapproving look from someone when I told them I have no cable TV or DSL connection and had the audacity to actually be content with that instead of sufferng profusely. My standard of living was called primitive. Good lord. I can admit that I was sheltered growing up, but sheesh.

Surely there is one person in this island besides myself that actually doesn't rank cable TV as a need item on par with groceries.

My first voyeuristic experience

Wow. Totally by accident, I was looking out the window when I saw a couple have an argument, watched them get into a car, and after much hand-gesturing on the guy's part (and bewilderment at why the woman was sitting there taking such stick), saw first an arm slip underneath the seat for a few minutes, then both parties migrate to the back seat. Next thing you know, the car was bouncing in that way obvious to everyone that intercourse was under way. It was just bizarre to see this happening in a public place, during the time that evening rush hour was occurring. I mean, the car had tinted windows but still.

Afterwards, both parties returned to the front seat and the argument seemed to resume in some fashion. The man appeared to be pleading a case of some sort to the woman who just seemed distraught. But why was she taking the seeming verbal diatribes, then turn around and screw the guy, then come back and go back to where it all began?

It was a weird episode, but that's not the crux of this. Why was this fascinating to me? I have heard of voyeurs and the like but didn't pay it any real mind. Maybe you have to see it to know how compelling the scenario I described was.

Sex in a car in a public place is one thing... this, was a bit disturbing. But I don't know the situation at hand and ought to reserve judgement, right?

Snakes in the grass

From Barbados... yikes, a 7-foot snake!

Boa constrictors in Barbados, centipedes and scorpions in Bermuda,... no place is safe these days.

Was watching some of the Stanford 20-20 last night as Barbados beat Anguilla. When Barbados was batting, one of the players lofted a ball straight to long-off and the fielder failed to make the catch but instead tapped the ball over his head for a six. Commentator Jeffrey Dujon: "Inexcusable..." Ian Bishop, one of the appointed "legends", quickly moves to indicate that the player was young, in perhaps the first time playing in front of a large crowd and on television, he'll learn from the experience, and other non-condemming statements. Good on Ian, although perhaps the fact that he has been appointed to keep an eye out for young talent and not be overtly critical of the younger guys may have led to a more amiable statement from him.

Unfortunately Tony Cozier's still the worst of all as his anecdotes of who he knows and what woman's tickling his fancy and over-the-top criticisms just make me cringe more and more over time. Shame, because he's as knowledgable of the game as it gets.

Cable TV is a necessity

Once upon a time, cable TV was a luxury item in Bermuda. It was a perk, a treat. But now it's almost equivalent to groceries and gas. People go bonkers if their cable TV is gone. I missed the boat on this, maybe because my folks weren't bothered to join the craze when it first started and when I went to Barbados subscription TV again was only for the well-to-do and as such, I never had a chance to experience and then get attached.

So I missed the boat and still think that cable TV is not a necessity. There's at least one soul out there that tends to agree with me - I would like to have a special sports package on cable but if I don't have it, heck I can always go to a sports bar if I need to.

I will say this though - if your cable TV bill exceeds your groceries bill for the month, then something's got to give.

Signs, hints, and the like

I was talking with my old friend Stace online last night and one of the things that came up was my failure to recognize the signs or hints that women can drop at times when interacting with a fella to show any possible interest.

Historically I'm beyond clueless. And I've felt oftentimes that I've missed at least a couple opportunities to get to know someone better.

So what happens today? I butt up on a young woman that I knew for some time, have some interest in and am pretty cool with. Now, I don't have a clue if she has interest on her part or dropped any of those so-called clues, but as we went our own ways, the question popped up in my head as to why I didn't at least venture a coffee-break if not a lunch or dinner? Do I disqualify myself from consideration even before testing the water?

Stace, I've already lost the bet. Feel free to slap me with that pillow.

Hey, maybe it's bronchitis

One thing for sure when you have some ailment is that everybody has their opinions on what's causing it. Case in point, I appear to have another chest infection. Been coughing the past few weeks. Last time I seemed to have one, the doctor prescribed some asthma medication.

Now because I'm a dumb workaholic reluctant to take half a day off to see the doc (they're based in St. George's; it will take half the day to get there, get examined, etc.) plus the fact that my insurance didn't pay for the last visit (and I can't be bothered to investigate why), I haven't seen anybody yet. So that's mistake #1 anyway and everything that follows below is moot.

Anyway, friends and family have given me completely different opinions on what's wrong and in some cases how to remedy it. One person says it's the accumulation of mold and milddew etc in the house (andd I agree that the place needs a good hosing). Someone else says it's riding on the bike that's caused it. I've been given (again) the brown paper bag theory regarding the bike. Yep I won't look like an idiot at all sticking a paper bag in my shirt. Nobody's yet supported my diesel smoke claims for some reason. For all I know, I could have lung cancer, and wouldn't that be a great statement on behalf of those who believe second-hand smoke is deadly?

Is it any wonder I don't think I'll see 50?

Forza Azzuri

Congratulations to Italy on winning arguably the most coveted trophy in sports, the World Cup. While they may have been fortunate to squeak past the Aussies in the round of 16, they bulit up momentum and in my opinion, are worthy champions.

The summer sports bonanza is not yet over, as the Stanford 20-20 cricket tournament has gotten under way. Sure it's not going to be noticed outside of the Caribbean, but I tell you this, from what I've seen so far I'm excited. I got my first taste of 20-20 cricket at the World 20-20 Classic held in Bermuda earlier in the year and this version of the sport I'm sure will garner attention and interest in the game as a whole.

Unfortunately, things in Bermuda aren't going too great. We had back-to-back road traffic fatalities and the other night another collision led to a couple of people in hospital. I'm convinced; people will not listen to calls to slow down and be more cautious.

Another disturbing thing is this incident involving a man of Portuguese descent being attacked by youths after watching the World Cup semifinal at a popular bar/restaurant. It goes beyond disturbing and despicable. I hope they catch the guys and put them away for a long time.

A blurb on Rebecca Middleton

Ten years and a day ago, Canadian visitor Rebecca Middleton was raped and killed under brutal circumstances. Nobody has been convicted of any crime against her with the exception of a guilty-plea from one person for being an accessory after the fact.

I think that I was on summer holiday back in Bermuda from university when the crime happened and I had figured that it'd have been solved pretty quickly once they had the accused persons in court, showed the forensic evidence, quick conviction. But somewhere down the line, the legal system hiccuped.

CBC recently reported that the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board awarded Rebecca's family a total of just over $2,800. Scanty, to say the least.

Bermuda is a very safe place to visit. Many of us are friendly and hospitable to visitors. However, we're quickly assembling a pretty ugly laundry list of gaffes and butchered crime cases.

Thinking ahead to a birthday

I was chatting with a friend at work today and the subject of my age came up. I'll be thirty later this year. Yikes. I asked a couple of people what they did on their thirtieth birthday. Responses ranged from first-time sex with their future spouse to simple tours in a foreign country.

I think I know which I'd rather prefer. Birthday sex... mmm.

Heh.

Portugal defeated England in a World Cup quarterfinal, and predictably there was much celebrating along Front Street. Brazil stumbled mightily and lost to France, meaning that the last four teams all hail from Europe. Not good if you believe that the power base of the sport was shifting to the less-heralded nations. Ah well. I've cast my lot with the Germans to triumph now.

Also, there was a drive-by shooting incident in Bermuda recently. Don't know the full details but it's pretty sickening to hear that such things happen in this little island. And for some odd reason, crimes involving gunplay often don't get solved...

Kid dies after overtaking on a corner

After thinking about the collision yesterday as reported by the Gazette (it was broadcast on the TV news as well), I realized that for all the talk, Dejon Simmons's story in the end, meant absolutely nothing to at least one young person. Pity.

Good for Oprah

I butted upon this article from the Detroit Free Press today - it regards certain male hip-hop stars whining that Oprah hasn't given much attention to rap and hip-hop. The author quickly rebuked them on the grounds that a lot of the stuff that they sing and dance about involves the degradation of women, particularly (and I swear I'm not stealing this phrase from Renee Webb), people who look like her.

Good on him for putting those jokers in their place. And good on Oprah for not paying attention to the whiners (who are just looking for the publicity anyway). Bet they're going to accuse her of not being black next.

World Cup news. Spain flops again. Glad I didn't put any money on them (I had them making semis, but from a different bracket - hint, Ukraine may turn out to be that team). Brazil beat Ghana, so once again the final eight contains no teams outside of Europe and South America. Dang. People have talked about a power shift outside of those two confederations since 1990, but as of now the best we got was Korea dubiously making the semis in '02 when they hosted.

How do people get sick in June?

Been under the weather the past couple days. Not fun when your bones are aching. And of course it's good timing as it's now crunch time with the big projects at work.

Managed to make it to my new godson's christening/baptism/dedication ceremony/whatever it's supposed to be these days. He's such a happy kid, and maybe if I'm lucky I'll get to post a photo of him sometime soon.

World Cup continues of course, my pick to win (Argentina) is still alive, but I think I can't win any of the sweepstakes pools I've entered. The action has sort of stalled in early second-round action. I'm glad I missed the snooze-fest between Switzerland and Ukraine today. 0-0 and the poor Swiss couldn't even put up a single penalty kick in the shoot-out.

Speaking of which, I wish there was a local version of Television Without Pity. Because after listening to poor Nick Jones deliver mixed metaphors like "put up or go home" or "one-one, apiece" I think I could write up a nice commentary of his analysis.

14 hours of daylight

Sunrise today at 6:12 am. Sun sets at 8:28 pm. The only bad news, I'm likely to be stuck at the office for all but like an hour at the end of the day. Viva Daylight Savings!

I made the mistake of telling an England supporter that I thought it was Argentina's year to win the World Cup. I think the impression she got was that I actually support them. In reality, I prefer quite a few teams to Argentina, including England. I was naturally a Trinidad and Tobago supporter during this tournament, but the team that I probably identify with the most is Spain.

Great qualities, but a tendency to not get it together when it needs to be done in order to advance. But maybe this year it will change. And yes, I'm kind of speaking in metaphors.

Congrats to the Carolina Hurricanes winning the NHL title and the Miami Heat on the NBA title. And the best is hopefully yet to come as the World Cup nears the knock-out phases.

Finally, paycheck's arrived

As the official start of summer begins (what's that called, the Solstice, right?), it's obvious it's going to be another scorcher here. And unfortunately I still have no a/c unit for my bedroom. I should find some time and see what's available, even if I have to buy a mini-fridge and leave it in my room with the door open all day.

Speaking of buying,... boy I need to get paid. Been struggling the past couple weeks due to bills, family emergencies and other things which have drained me. And even though I have a credit card now and am within my credit limit, I'm still very reluctant to use it. I mean, the last few months I have spent more than I have made and that's a terrible trend that I personally need to quit immediately.

That said, there are a few things that I would like to get for myself, once the check comes in and I pay off the bills. Nothing is a need, although many Bermudians would say otherwise. Of course, I'm "slumming it" by having no cable TV and no DSL Internet connection. Anyway.

I'd like to get a new bike helmet. It's old, banged-up and the interior lining is flaking off. That's high on my wish list. I managed to buy a new pair of trousers for the office the other day, but I'd like to have at least one more pair. I think I need a couple of new shirts and ties as well. Selection is fairly small in Bermuda and I may be forced to shop online for those things. One of the obstacles of course is me not liking clothes-shopping for myself. I was looking at swim-gear and didn't feel like buying anything available when I was purchasing the trousers.

But anyway I hope to be able to get back in the black, actually save more than I'm forced to spend, divert some funds to hopefully what will become an investment in a future house in Barbados and simply not feel that my savings are circling slowly down the drain.

Question: Why are Americans so insistent on calling a football drawn match a tie? I know it's technically correct but it comes across as unenlightened. Balls are passed down the flanks, not sides, and go into touch, not out of bounds. Would be nice to see the correct terminology applied, but thank goodness our local World Cup feeds are coming out of Europe and not through ESPN.

I'm not the only one

Sports Illustrated's Frank DeFord wrote a piece which echoed my sentiments regarding this part of the sports calendar. I'd wonder if he was plagarizing except that in typical Yankee fashion he alludes to baseball first and the World Cup last. Sad. I like baseball and all, but the championships for that sport aren't going to be determined for many months. However, champions are being crowned in each of the other sports mentioned. Surely those ought to take precedence as far as a general sports article is concerned.

Portugal 1, Angola 0 and fans here are delirious?

People in Bermuda are insane about the World Cup. Even more than usual. It's so bad that the Portuguese fans and the Brazilian fans are having impromptu motorcades after their respective teams won their first matches of the tournament. It's especially sad for Brazil, who by all accounts are supposed to win their first couple of games with ease. So for them to be celebrating, especially when they've only repeated what they have done since 1930 or so, seems a bit over-the-top.

I won't say the same for Trinidad and Tobago which was expected to get slammed early and often during this tournament, but played Sweden to a gritty scoreless draw in their first match. It's good to see the less fancied sides get something out of the tournament.

I'm thinking that it'd be best for Bermuda if the Czech Republic won the tournament. There aren't many Czechs on the island and maybe we wouldn't get subjected to the honking horn parade if they were victorious on July 7th. Maybe Ukraine. It'd be too much to hope for a Togo victory, though.

Don't get me wrong, I love this time of year (see earlier post of course), it's just that I'm realizing that people here are looking for any excuse to make excessive noise over a first-round match and it's only going to get worse.

Great time to be a sports fan again

The FIFA World Cup.
NBA Finals.
French Open tennis.
NHL Stanley Cup.

Some of the finest athletes in the world are going at it right now. Championships to be determined. Add to the above Test Match cricket, the major auto racing series in full season, baseball going on at this time, the U.S. Open golf championship is around the corner. We've recently seen records made in track and field. Heck, there's even horse racing for those who prefer to see the four-legged ones in action.

The only other time things are this exciting when you're a sports fan is during the Olympic Games and even then you don't always see the world's best in action.

It's going to be hard to pry me away from the television or PC for the next couple of weeks.

Do I work for a lazy-ass company?

The place where I work, which recently was a big sponsor of an event which intended to encourage locals to get more fit, proposed an inter-departmental sports track-and-field day. However due to lack of interest it was cancelled. Talk about a sad indictment. Although, I think if they promoted it with a cash prize incentive, they'd have gotten a bit more support from employees. For what it's worth, I signed up to do a couple track events. But nothing longer than 200m, that's for sure. Heh.

I've been putting off discussing the failed sexual orientation discrimination law proposal going on in Bermuda for some time due more to lack of time rather than lack of concern. It's just funny how hyprocritical people get sometimes when it comes to something considered a sin. People are extremely homophobic when in reality they ought to be more scared of heteros causing trouble. It's more sad that our elected leaders in Parliament chose not to even discuss things.

Africa is not a country, dimwits

I'm reading the Royal Gazette online this morning and I spot the following phrase in this article:
"...leave the Island and return to Africa — the country where her husband was... "

I don't know if to be sad or angry that once again the media treats the whole continent as a bunch of loose regions all under the same banner. There are more nations in Africa than any other continent in the world. While it may be true that many African nations share similarities in economic conditions, poverty and history, they're still individual nations.

I'd expect Bermudians to know better, after all we are quick to point out to unknowing visitors that Bermuda is not the Bahamas or Barbados or Jamaica. We're an individual country and often we don't want to be lumped into a group such as the Caribbean, for example.

By the way, the country in question, is Sudan, which is the largest country in Africa in area and is in the midst of all manner of internal warfare that the rest of the world appears powerless to deal with.

I'm belatedly booking the driver of HA866 for not using their turn indicators (what is it with people here that they only use the indicator as they're turning instead of before they start to turn if at all), but I'd like to point attention to this promising young site, http://bdaroadhog.blogspot.com/. It's like I've found a kindred spirit in the world of dealing with local traffic on the island. I will definitely be adding this site to my Favorites.

Indonesian earthquake

On Saturday, 27 May an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 struck an area on the island of Java in the country of Indonesia. Many thousands of people were injured and estimates of at least 5,200 dead. It's just heart-wrenching. Of course the country had to deal with the earthquake and tsunami in December 2004 and I really can't imagine what life is like for those living there at this time. Hopefully aid will get through to those who need it quickly. I hope to be able to contribute a donation to our local Red Cross and encourage anyone reading this to join in the efforts if able and willing to.

Weaving maniacs, again

I have to Book the rider of BH685 for overtaking on corner going downhill, and weaving between a car and an oncoming bus. I think that if I was the driver of that bus, I'd be tempted not to slow down at all and see if that maniac would enjoy a couple months in traction. Anyway.

Love and Lust

I think in the end, it all just gets frustrating. Met up with someone I used to date and had strong feelings for. And during the course of our interaction what came across my mind was a desire to spend just one night with her. To what end? Not to re-establish something? Maybe just get a release of something in a mutually beneficial experience?

Be honest with yourself and those who you're close with, I have to adopt as my motto. Because pent-up feelings won't do anybody any good.

Irrelevant sports

I realize that in this hemisphere, track and field is something only looked at around Olympic time, but I was surprised to find out during a random search that American Justin Gatlin broke, then was credited with only equalling, the 100m world record.

The title of "world's fastest man", just isn't something that's noticed by those in North America, even when the owner is a bona-fide American. Amazing. I wonder if it was big news in Jamaica where the current world record holder, Asafa Powell, is a citizen.

Congrats to Bermuda for winning their inagural one-day international cricket match against Canada. While Bermuda still doesn't have a facility capable of hosting a ODI, it's good that the side has gotten off to a good start to hopefully a lengthy period at the upper-etchelons of cricket. Too bad they lost the second match comprehensively to Zimbabwe.

Blogspot or Bust

I've made the decision to stick with Blogspot until I get the new web host. Sucks for those using the RSS feeds I think, although I think there's a way I can work around that for the time being.

Too much has happenend recently - I've forgotten most of the things I wanted to post about. Work is intense, the good news is we have some summer students and they're quite good, it seems.

Getting back into sports. Played in the BVA Corporate Tourney and after a long hard day of sweat and tears (mostly sweat), our team were victorious. Hoping to play more when summer beach league starts up. Also, flag football looks ready to resume (finally!) and have been playing tennis on a weekly basis. This can only be a good thing.

Yes I'm a big dork

Tonight, first Happy Hour at Fairmont Hamilton Princess. Also, new happy
hour going on at the former Pier 6. Plus the usual Friday post-work
Happy Hours at Lemon Tree, Cafe Cairo and several other places. Also
worth mentioning, a speed-dating event at BUEI.

Me, I decided to do something by myself and not get caught up in the
whole meet-and-mingle-bit over a drink. Went to watch some volleyball,
which I hadn't done in at least a year. Bermuda's women's team played a
friendly against a team called Halifax Xplosion from Canada and it was
fun to relax and watch the game and meet some of the guys that I played
with back when I was big into local volleyball. I want to get back in,
eventually. More on that later.

So yes, I'm a big dork. Went to watch volleyball solo instead of being
all social with the crowds. Que sera, sera.

Relationship failings

Over the course of the past week I've taken some time to reflect on what happened to not only destroy a fluttering romance but kill off a worthy friendship as well.

I think in hindsight that persistence in trying to make something more out of a sinking ship may have contributed to the eventual anger, bitterness and resentment that arose on all sides and caused a bunch of utterings that shouldn't have been said.

I've tried to not look back and wonder why, but I can't. Maybe we all need some form of closure. Maybe soon it will happen. Maybe not. They say time heals wounds.

I cannot regret the experience overall and think that for me at least it will benefit me long-term. I'm so sorry it had to end in such a horrible fashion - mistakes were made on both sides and although I think that even the lightest of friendship/acquaintance situation is unlikely, some civility can possibly achieved in light of the many positives attained during the experience.

Mmm, tasty

I'd like to thank the driver of 38156 (and the manufacturer of the Clio as well, I suppose) for giving me a taste of his windwiper fluid on the way home from work today. Seriously, who designs those things so that the jet of fluid instead of being useful and hitting the screen, floats needlessly over the roof of the car and into the path of following traffic?

Circus fun and follies

When the driver of 34369 pulled out of Whitney Institute without looking to his left, I thought to myself, oh great, just what I need... a trip to the hospital. Luckily, I had enough time to brake (and deliver a honk of the horn the way you're supposed to, as opposed to the usual greeting honk) and let the deliquent joker ahead of me. He then gave me a wave. He should have at least shouted "Sorry" or something.

Further along, I'm stuck behind the same car and in front of him is some delivery truck, licence HC693, who has decided to become a traffic warden of sorts, as he is holding up traffic on the main road into the city, to allow a heap of vehicles from a secondary road to pull out into traffic. Gaaak.

So that's my Monday morning for you after the Good Friday Holiday weekend. You can deduce that I'm pretty miserable right now. By the way, both drivers, are totally Booked.

Saturday, I attended a circus. First circus I've ever attended, by the way. This wasn't the prototypical Barnum and Bailey type - this was strictly human performers doing feats of balance and athleticism. The hosts, one DNA Entertainment, did a good job of providing talent. Many of the performers appeared to be ex-gymnasts, as they demonstrated their strength and flexibility. There were two guys who although very talented, strong and flexible, gave many of the audience members a bit of a "oh no it's Brokeback Mountain" vibe. The chief clown of the day was very entertaining, I liked when he went into the audience and had select members participate in some activity or another. The show's final performers, a trampoline basketball crew, I found to be very overrated. However, basketball's something that Bermudians would identify with far more than people balancing on things or stretching their limbs in all directions while hanging from something, and I think they got the most cheers even when they missed (at least 5, in my count of) their routines. My companion remarked that typically, the Bermudian public tends to not applaud for things (unless prodded, I suppose). Could be right.

However, where DNA Entertainment failed miserably was the part outside of the 'big top'. The concession stand was crammed underneath some of the bleachers (more on the bleachers later), and there was no sense of order there at all. It was the typical Bermudian "free for all" scenario regarding service and any attempts to form a line or anything was easily averted by the many people squeezing in cut ahead. Also, while taking a breather to walk around outside I was somewhat rudely told "you can't go this way". Now, if someone had put up a SIGN or something to indicate where people were allowed to walk, that would be one thing. As it is, I can bet that many other people received a similar cussing-out during the show's intermission period. The bleachers themselves, were shoddily assembled together, it seems. My companion was justifiably concerned about the creakiness of some of the seats and at least one of the floorboards had come off. Seems typical. And a shame to mar an enjoyable day out.

Bad customer service

I realize that especially in Bermuda, trying to obtain last-minute weekend restaurant invitations is a trying experience often met with "Sorry we are fully booked"-kind of responses, but shame on the restaurants at the Coco Reef and Wyndham Sonesta. My calls (redirected from the hotels' front desks) were met by either constant ringing or a auto voice mail. Yeah, right. Like I'm going to leave a voice mail in hopes of getting a call back to make a reservation. See ya.

Apparently last Saturday, a group of people damaged a fence while putting their cars on the field at Shelley Bay Park. Now, the park is public and free to all, but my understanding is that the department of Youth and Sport (or whatever it's called these days) should be contacted before planning your big event, so that parks officials can at least scout the grounds or monitor things in the event of something going awry.

But if people continue to cause damage, maybe what'll happen is that the public parks will get fenced off completely unless explicit requests are made well in advance. And the public will have themselves to blame for adding red tape.

What's the driving force behind love

I'm going to get sentimental in this piece, sorry for that.

People can love their neighbour (well, that's what the Bible asks us to do, right), love a friend, love a family member. And it comes from usually well-defined places.

But what about romantic love? What is the driving force behind that? Where does it come from? Can a person claim to love (or be in love with) someone and be incorrect in their claim because they've confused it with caring/liking/lusting/feeling obligated to/servitude/miscellaneous emotion?

Can a person be incapable of loving in that way because of lack of know-how, or cynicism or distrust, and possibly be doomed to simply not know true love?

Happy April, guys. Apologies for the multitude of open-ended questions.

We have a littering law after all

Like traffic laws, I didn't think that the littering law was being enforced in Bermuda, but lo! and behold, they actually booked someone as mentioned in this Gazette article. Of course it would be at one of the few times we see Police patrolling around town, because every weekend night there's some disturbance going on at the Ozone nightclub. Now if they'd only fine people who dump their trash all over the roads and bushes during daylight hours...

April is here, thank goodness, and spring appears to have arrived in full. We're coming up to the best time of year in Bermuda, where it's warmer, but not at that unbearably-hot level that we reach in late July and August. Daylight Savings Time, also a welcome sight to behold. It's just so much better for the sunset to be closer to 8pm, as there's a greater chance of us late-workers being out to see it.

Hand out the tickets!

According to this notice for the Traffic Offences Procedure Act, failing to stop or allow free passage at a pedestrian crossing is not only an offence, but subject to a fine of $70.

This law may be outdated, but I for one would love dearly to see this enforced vigorously for a few weeks. After all, they're already enforcing extremely more archaic laws to fatten up their purses.

Seriously, though. $70! I need to put that on a T-shirt or something and wander around near that police station.

$70!

Just imagine if that was enforced...

Me, the cynic

It's a very sad state that when I read this Royal Gazette article on another road fatality, the first thing that came out of my head wasn't "what a tragedy" or "I hope nobody else got hurt", but "lemme guess, the dumbass did something he shouldn't have done".

I've gotten too snarky for my own good and sometimes it's depressing...

Am I a Closet Optimist

When I was in college I think I tended to show an outward uplifting outlook on things. I was friendly to people most times, cheerful and fun-loving. But below the surface I had all kinds of feelings of self-doubt. I was, and still am, a people-pleaser through and through and perhaps to my own detriment went overboard in attempting to please everyone. Combined with my own self-doubt when it came to forging relationships, it's no wonder that for much of my teen-life I spent in solitude in my bedroom reading or fiddling with fictional stuff.

As an adult, I've allowed my daydreams to get the better of me at times. Especially when it came to women. I would look at a woman I was intereset in and rationalize within myself that it would be a perfect match because we'd both like sports or kids or something. Then I'd either get my hopes dashed or be too chicken to give it a try.

My current romantic situation has been a roller-coaster emotionally. I would get my hopes up that things can be smooth sailing, get confounded by a particular situation, try to build things again, get optimistic again and then get pulled back into feelings of uncertainty and self-doubt. Problem is that I have now become the opposite of what I used to be; I'm now a closet optimist who's regularly getting smashed up whenever the positive feelings are at a peak. I think I'm way too sensitive to emotional things and even though I promised myself I would not allow myself to get bashed around psychologically, it's proven yet again to be another task easier said than done.

I'm not going to say that I have made the wrong decisions because I think that I have done the right thing overall, although belatedly. But things are definitely taking a mental toll.

Immune system is shot

I think that I have gotten sick every month since November. While what I'm currently going through (sore throat followed by sinus issues and now painful coughs) isn't as bad as December's illness, it's extremely frustrating. I think my white blood cells have gone on strike or something, because it seems that my immune system is completely shot.

When you're sick, everything takes extra effort to achieve. Plus, when it interferes with your sleep, you're groggy and more likely to forget or neglect things. It's been a major struggle the past week.

Next autumn, I will definitely be taking flu shots and whatever else they're offering. Screw the old He-Man mentality when it comes to dealing with illness.

March is here

March is when you start to notice the days getting longer and feel that springtime is around the corner somewhere.

It's also the time every year without fail that misery and despair come and bump into me. I can sense their presence and I don't know if even now I have the fortitude and will to overcome when it happens.

Yes, it's all Jenn's fault. Heh.

Confusion Reigns

So I'm thinking about Bank of Bermuda's plans to redevelop the Trimmingham's building into a seven-story banking centre with area for retail shopping. There have been objections from people here on the basis that it will negatively affect the look of Front Street, take away the Bermudian charm, etc.

I understood the objections, although I'd still support the Bank's objectives. However, I realized something. Where were the objections when people were allowed to have custom U.S.-styled licence plates, paint their cars all manner of colours, install enormous speaker systems and the like? Please. The old Bermudian charm is already an endangered species.

When a woman that you're interested in is actually encouraging you to date other people and not put all your eggs in one basket, what does that say about the woman's actual interest in you? Perception is an amazing thing, isn't it...

Olympic coverage: Best of Both Worlds

Sometimes it's good to live in Bermuda. The powers that be at the Bermuda Broadcasting Corporation, have in recent years wised up to the fact that the American TV networks are so biased in their international sports coverage, and made the decision some time ago to combine feeds from the American provider and the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation).

This gives us viewers the chance to watch Canadians and people from other countries during the majority of the time and the occasional sputterings from Dick Button and the jingoism that NBC has made not just famous but practically a motto. It was especially useful during the women's snowboard cross final where I wouldn't have had a clue what happened to Canadian Maelle Ricker who took a serious tumble if I was left to the NBC feed alone. Thank goodness.

Now if only we could garner some coverage from a network in Europe, we'd be all right.

I'm enjoying what little I have seen of the Games. The sport of curling has grown on me. So it's shuffleboard on ice, but still, there's a lot of drama and the people that follow the sport, they sure get into it.

Driving while reading

I couldn't believe it when I wound up behind a car entering Hamilton and the driver had his newspaper up directly in front of him as he cruised along Reid Street. Even if the traffic is slow-moving, there's intersections, pedestrian crossings, the chance that some hotshot could be attempting to veer across... so to the driver of 24237, you're Booked, and seriously dude, the paper can wait 5 minutes for you to read it.

Love Day Blues

I have just created the worst Valentine's Day experience ever, thanks to me not recognizing a situation and allowing myself to be consumed by my own insecurities.

Things like this only increase my self-doubt in terms of building relationships, it's partly psychological of course but I still have the ability to control my actions, and suffice it to say I failed miserably last night.

I am going to spend the rest of the week trying to make it up somehow - I have an idea of what I could try - but if it all fails then maybe I'm not cut out for dealing with relationships at this time and ned to mature mentally and emotionally.

Survivor Pearl Islands

Okay, am I the only guy who realizes that Rupert, the most over-rated player ever with zero strategic skill, occupies the head position on the new Pearl Is. DVD, the slot reserved for the winner? If I was Sandra I would be pissed to be second fiddle to that tempermental blowhard.

Sorry, that's my soap-operish Reality Rant of the week.

Superbowl 06

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Steelers on winning the NFL championship title. Of course you won't hear me ever use the term "world championships" for any domestic sports league, but that's another story.

One of my favourite NFL players, Heinz Ward, won the MVP title with a TD reception, 152 yards receiving and 18 yards rushing. Jermone Bettis caps off a stellar career with victory in his hometown of Detroit.

Even though the game wasn't the best-played in terms of gameplay and there were some controversial moments, the best team won. I'm not too happy with the over-abundance of high-school-grade local commercials during the breaks; I'd much rather have seen the million-dollar productions stateside instead of another lame Bermuda.com static ad. Let the local guys stick a banner on the screen if they want to next time.

I was talking briefly to my good friend Attleeboy last night when he informed me of the amazing news that Barbados finally implemented postal codes. Overdue of course, and for some reason I can't yet find out exactly when this change happened. But it's a good thing.

Mind you, I'm posting this from a country that put in a one-year grace period when implementing a much-publicised seatbelt law and to this day wants to bring in larger and larger vehicles knowing full-well that they're not all that suitable for our narrow roads. So who's really blind?

Coretta Scott King

Of course the big thing that I forgot to mention, and it's amazing considering that I actually alerted my friends of this yesterday morning, was the passing of Coretta Scott King, a remarkable woman and civil rights pioneer, a true role model for people everywhere.

What dampens things a bit is that I realized that I knew about Coretta Scott King's work and how valuable she is, but what about the Bermudian equivalents? I have close if not zero knowledge of this. I suppose I can blame myself for not pursuing local history in the past; however Bermuda history if I recall was barely skimmed over at primary school and untouched at all for the three years I did history at high school.

It's almost laughable if it wasn't that sad. I know more about recent Barbadian history in 5 years of study and living in Barbados, than I do in the remaining 20+ years that I've lived, studied and worked in Bermuda.

Yay, a Booking

Have finally been able to identify some law-abusing scum on two wheels - previously I've been unable to get licence plate numbers due to something or another, but today I got two for the price of one.

So to the munchkins on 481 BF and 430 BD, you're Booked for reckless driving including overtaking on a corner and forcing oncoming traffic to slow down so as not to send you flying skywards.

The week in Review: Links

Not much that's blog-worthy, although I'm still trying to redevelop my site using full-out CSS. I wish I had a modern digital camera so that I could re-do the old Photo Shack. It's hard though, because of course my job involves the web and when I get home, sometimes the last thing I want to do is more web stuff. But heck.

This link is proof that if you're in the Internet dating game, be very watchful and for heaven's sake, get the real name. Imagine if the rendevous had been a darkened hotel room kind of thing!

These links show that the myth is true: size does matter. However, it's not all that it's cut out to be...

Finally, sex is good for you. Shoot, that's old news of course. But it is far better done with a partner. So remind your partners to help you and help themselves become healthier.

More delays by our friends in Government

So the plan by Government to build more accomodations has been delayed until 2007 at earliest. Hmph. Probably just in time to take place as a post-election promise by the governing party. Peachy.

Good news, I've now included a new weather service, from Weather.com, for the site home page. If you hadn't noticed, it's now located beneath the old 'mission statement' blurb on the home page. Pretty, isn't it?

The January Report

Well the disturbing news arose from what I thought was a chest infection or maybe even pneumonia or something that I picked up nearly two weeks ago; my doctor theorized that I may have adult asthma. Just peachy. But I'd have myself to blame, maybe. My bedroom tends to accumulate dust and I haven't aerated the place in a long time. If it is indeed that, then maybe that would also explain why sometimes when I do something very physical (like playing flag football) after the first couple of minutes I lose my breath and have to get that 'second wind' quickly.

It's like over the last six months my own mortality has been exposed. First the eye issues now this. So much for thinking that I was immune to anything more intense than the common cold.

People like this guy irk me when they discuss their building executive townhouses as being beneficial to Bermuda with quotes like "It relieves pressure on the Bermudian housing market".

Hmph. Pressure could be more greatly reduced by instead constructing regular one and two-bedroom apartments, so don't try to kid us. It's more profitable to build the townhouses and charge their higher rents to the big-ups so don't feed us B.S. Don't pretend to be charitable when you're only trying to maximize your returns.

The Ides come early this year

One of the things I forgot to mention earlier was my shock at seeing that at Henry VIII Restaurant, a fine restaurant mind you, where I went for New Year's, I was stunned to see the sign at the buffet counter read "Cheese's". Sigh. I swear, I will have some anti-apostrophe shirts and stickers printed off before year-end.

Anyway, more pressing matters. Historically, ever since '96, March has been the month of depression for me. Yes, I blame that girl from college. But anyway. I've already begun to feel miserable as a result of my deep thoughts explained in a previous entry. I expect to go through this for at least the rest of the week as I have issues to resolve with myself and other people.

American college football usually goes by with me paying little attention but last night I saw an extraordinary game with some amazing performances, to decide college football's national championship. Congratulations to the University of Texas and wow, their quarterback Vince Young, what a performance.

Honesty is the Best Policy

Happy New Year, all. I look forward to a new year of blasting careless driving and all the other 'little issues' on the island (and the greater planet). I leave Limey and Christian and even the Sucks guys to deal with the big boy news.

I'm today making a New Year's Resolution for myself. I've been held back from opportunities because I haven't been fully honest with myself and other people. Since I still haven't been able to shake that 'people-pleaser' thing with myself I have held back things in the past year but there's no way that I can go forward until I've let it in the open. So I'm going to try to be more open with the people that I care about and try to control my destiny more. I think it's important to do so, regardless of the situation or whatever excuses I could conjure for myself, because I'm an adult and I need to take responsibility for any actions that I take (or do not take).

The other resolution of course, is to get my corner of Beachlime looking better and more friendly and entertaining for the viewer. Step One could be stealing my sister's digital camera and revitalizing the Photo Shack. I found some old photos from my days at Cave Hill while cleaning my room. Damn, I was slim even in college. So all the blame goes to the office for pushing me over 200 lbs. Whoops. Broke my resolution already. Sigh.