Work Sucks

Busy again at work, no beds in the hospital, everybody bringing in their kids for the sniffles. I remember when I was kid, I did not go the the hospital for every little cold or flu, even if Ihad vomiting and diarrhea. Parents these days bring their kids to the ER for diaper rash. Some even call 911 to get a ride in!

Good News for Canada

I love LL Bean, it is an awesome store and now it may be easier for people in Canada to order from them in $CAD and items would ship from CANADA. Now if only Target would head north!

L.L. Bean looking to expand Canadian presence
Last Updated: Saturday, January 27, 2007 | 11:00 AM ET

L.L. Bean, the Maine-based retail catalogue giant, says it wants to significantly increase its presence in Canada.

The company said that could ultimately include building retail stores in Canada, as well as a Canadian website and Canadian catalogue.

Currently, the only way for Canadians to buy L.L. Bean's outdoor gear and clothing is to order it through the U.S.-based website or from the thick catalogues that flood into the country by the hundreds of thousands each year.

As a privately held family company, L.L. Bean does not release much financial information. But it said its interest in establishing a bigger Canadian footprint was sparked by a 30 per cent annual increase in its Canadian business in each of the past three years.

"We are … looking to boost our presence in Canada with an in-country catalog, website and ultimately a retail presence," said Zane Shatzer, who was recently named as L.L. Bean's general manager of international new market development.

Shatzer has led L.L. Bean's expansion in Japan, where the company now has 15 retail stores. It has 22 retail and factory-outlet stores in the U.S., and a huge flagship store in Freeport, Maine.

L.L. Bean is also looking to expand its retail presence in Latin America and beyond Japan. Company CEO Chris McCormick said "it makes sense" to think about diversifying into other markets. "Of particular interest are international locations with a strong outdoor orientation," he said.

In Canada, L.L. Bean would face a lot of competition in the bricks-and-mortar "outdoor" retail market. Rivals would include Vancouver-based Mountain Equipment Co-op — which has 11 retail stores in Canada and a catalogue business — as well as Canadian Tire-owned Mark's Work Wearhouse, which sells casual and outdoor apparel at its 300 stores across Canada.

Roots, Eddie Bauer and Bass Pro Shops all have stores in Canada that cater, at least in part, to the typical L.L. Bean customer.

Tactical Knife Training

Went to a knife defense seminar at Krav Maga today. We used shock knives to stimulate getting cut for more realism it was awesome. Click here to view a video on shock knives.

So we switched to green power

100% of the energy coming into our house comes from renewable power sources (97.5% from wind and 2.5% from solar). Here is a certificate that puts the impact of this into perspective.

My orange belt.

This is what I nearly killed myself for for 5 hours. The funny writing is Hebrew. I have already started working on the Green Belt material.

Dispute flares up again over Quebec-Labrador border

Above is how the Quebec government sees Labrador (no one else shares this view but them and no treaties support this)

This is how Labrador is seen by the rest of the world and this is supported by documents.

A decades-old border dispute involving Quebec and Labrador has resurfaced, this time over the management of wildlife. Click here to read more....

Why do we put up with Quebec's BS. They refuse to recognize anything, Quebecers can't even enter into most contests open to residents of Canada and the US because they are so fussy no company would ever want to open up that can of worms. How many offers have to be "void in Quebec" simply because no one wants to deal with them and their weird rules. Now they are arbitrarily redrawing the Labrador border to suit their needs. I say bring Quebec in line or cut them off from the social programs they enjoy courtesy of Canada's tax dollars. What they are really after anyway is Labradors resources...duh!

Put my money where my mouth is

So here is what I have done to decrease the carbon footprint I leave on this Earth.

1. I replaced every bulb possible (some light fixtures I have cannot take these type of bulbs) in my house with compact fluorescent light bulbs.
2. I signed up for Santa Clara Green Power which means I get charged a small amount more for my power but the money goes to supporting 100% renewable energy which projects like these.
3. I recycle everything I can.
4. The next car I get will be a hybrid.

An Inconvenient Truth

YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE. IN OUR LIFETIMES, OUR ABILITY TO LIVE WILL BE PROFOUNDLY CHANGED...DO NOTHING AND YOU WILL SEE FOR YOURSELF BUT BY THEN IT WILL BE TOO LATE...THE CLOCK IS TICKING.............

Tragically Hip Coming to town.

March 26, 2007
San Francisco, Ca
The Fillmore

Age : All Ages
Tickets : $25.00
Tickets Onsale : January 21st @ 10:00am (pac)

Tickets are available for purchase at all Ticketmaster outlets including Wherehouse Music, Ritmo Latino, select FYE stores, select Save Mart locations and Tix Bay Area in Union Square.

Call (408) 998-TIXS,(415) 421-TIXS, (510) 625-TIXS, (925) 685-TIXS, (707) 528-TIXS, (916) 649-TIXS or (559) 485-TIXS to charge by phone.

Tickets may be purchased on-line at www.www.livenation.com.

Tickets available for all Fillmore and Warfield shows are available for purchase at The Fillmore Box Office with no service charge Sundays between 10 A.M. and 4 P.M.

Burgeo Old Days Photo Slide Show

Another video posted to You Tube by Crystal Pink

Burgeo

Video put together by Crystal Pink on You Tube

Cold

So it is -7 C wind chill or 20 F this morning at 3:36 am. Starting to feel like Canada here. I came here to get away from the cold! 2 More nights and I am off again for two days.!

Tired

First night back to work after 6 days off, I am tired. It is cold here today, -1 c windchill. It will get below freezing tonight! You don't think of freezing when you think of California but hey it is a big state. It is warm in San Diego and LA but up here winter is like an extended autumn in Canada.

Finally Moved in

So we are finally moved in to our own place here in Santa Clara. It is awesome to finally not being paying rent to someone. I will have some pics posted in the future as the place get more organized. We have been to Ikea a bunch of times already and will probably hit Crate and Barrel tomorrow. Marsha installed a cat door in the door leading to the garage tonight so we finally don't have to smell like we own a cat, as his litter is nice and poked away out there. Nico likes it here but she already has nail mark on the hardwood on the stairs we now we have to get mats for the stairs from skymall, better than having to replace the hardwood later on. The heating system is weird here being from Canada. There is no furnace or radiators or ducts so no dust blowing around. Instead there is a network of PVC pipes buried in the floor and link up to the hot water tank. You turn up the heat and the floors get warm (radiant heat). It is supposed to be more efficient that traditional methods. Anyway pics to follow.

Thanksgiving Trip

Went to Maryland on Thanks giving with our friend Kate. To see Pics of our trip click these
links.



Maryland Thanksgiving
Maryland Shooting Guns
New York Trip

I got it!!!

Got the e-mail today and I passed my orange belt test so I am so happy because I did not want to go through that again anytime soon. I am still too sore to walk (and my back is sore).

Orange Belt Test Krav Maga

Will I took my orange belt test today in Krav Maga and now I am officially dead. It started at 1pm and we were not finished until 6:30PM (it was only supposed to go until 5pm but these things are notorious for ending late).
We began by jogging to Safeway about 2 miles (3.2 km) return trip and then began a sequence of drills that were designed to exhaust us and they did. After about an hour we were broken up into those testing for yellow belt and green and those testing for orange. We then had a 2 hr 30 seminar that covered all of the orange belt material. Also, we could not half ass it during the seminar or we would have been denied the opportunity to test at all so it was 100% all day.
After the seminar we had about a 4 minute break and went directly to the testing phase and covered everything that we had just gone over. At so many times I felt like quitting. Like everyone we all had periods of dizziness and nausea and mouths as dry as sand. Sips of water when we could get them (and these were few and far between) were like heaven. The good news is that I survived the ordeal but the bad news is that I may not have even passed and may not know for a couple of days. Whatever the case I am glad I made it though because I know I had nothing left to give at the end of the day.

Glad we just bought a townhouse in Santa Clara!!!!

(11-09) 11:14 PST -- The San Francisco 49ers will abandon their namesake city and look to build a stadium in Santa Clara, after concluding that their plan to build a stadium and retail-housing complex at Candlestick Point will not work. click here for more

Mind of Mencia

Drive by shooting school...whether its East Palo Alto or East LA these lessons ring true in any hood.

Moving to Santa Clara

So we are closing at the end of the month on the townhouse in Santa Clara. To find out a little more about Santa Clara click here.