My debt to waiters/waitress is paid... Well, not all (and other stuff)

Today, I was half an hour late for my exercise class, because I realized about halfway to the gym that I forgot my music to teach the class. So, by the time I ran back, got my music, and took the metro back, I was about half an hour late. :(

I then spent the day at La Ronde with Flavio. He got a headache after riding the Monster, so we went home. I decided to go and get some Indian buffet for dinner, because I had a hankering for Indian buffet. At the end of my meal, which came to $15.90 with tax, I paid a $20. The server came by and she took my money, and got changed. When she was approaching, I looked at her, and I thanked her. My original intention was to thank her for bringing it back to me, but she took that as "thank you, I don't need change.", and thus she put all the remaining portion ($4.10) into the tip box. Now, the service was not spectacular, but it wasn't horrible, and I'm not that cheap that I need to ask for my $2. So, today, I left $4.10 in tips. Since tips is calculated on the pre-tax amount, which was $13.95, I will find out what percent $4.10 is.

$4.10/$13.95 = 23.39% tip.

I consider my debt to all previous servers paid in regards to tipping. I will now continue to tip 10 - 15% of pre-tax total. I now also know to not say anything, and get the server to bring me back the change.

On the way back, I also witnessed the aftermath of a bus hitting a pedestrian. There were two ambulances, and body sheets/bags. :( I hope no one is seriously hurt, but I wouldn't know.

What an experience today!

Today, I went to the launch of Audrey de Montigny's second CD. I got to the location at 7:15 p.m., and she was there signing autographs.

I was meeting Flavio at the location, and we lined up and got our CDs signed. Audrey signed my copy of my second album and the first single that I bought. After, Flavio and I took a picture with Audrey. She's such a down to Earth person. She's very nice, and she's got a nice smile.

After the CD launch, Flavio and I went to quartier chinois to have the buffet. We had some interesting conversation. For example, we were talking about this restaurant in China about they cook rats for you. You pick the art, you choose the suace, and then they cook it for you. Then, we retaliated with the restaurant where you eat penis. Anyway, it was fun, but kind of disgusting at times.

This looks like another Roman situation. * Sigh *

Les Fauteuils d'orchestre (Orchestra Seats)

Today, I went to see the film Les Fauteuils d'Orchestre - translated to English as Orchestra Seats. This is a movie about peoples' lives, and different types of love and/or sex. It's similar to Love Actually, but it's quite different at the same time.

This movie follows the stories of only about three couples, as opposed to eight or nine in Love Actually. And each of these three couples have a different form of art that they like. One couple is a concert pianist and his wife, who is a former cellist, who gave up her career so that she can fully dedicate herself to forwarding his husband's career. However, the husband is burning out from all the playing that he's doing, and he wants to take a break by living in a country house, playing for people who don't have access to music education, like in hospitals, orphanages, etc. Another couple is a young female who broke up with her boyfriend, who then stumbles across a guy whom she starts to like. This guy ends up being the son of the art broker who's selling everything, for his retirement. This art broker is also sugar daddy to this really young girl. The kicker is that this young girl had a three month affair with the art broker's son.

Most of these people in the movie are related because they either work in music, drama, or the cafe that's close to the concert hall and the drama building. The people in non romantic relationships are Valérie Lemercier, who plays a bipolar actress in a very famous soap opera, and she has this relationship that's similar to a love/hate relationship with her agent. She also meets this director who works with this really nasty writer/producer.

I also saw this movie with Flavio, the guy whom I met last Friday at Lambda. He's a nice guy, he's in my opinion, attractive. We went on a walk last Sunday, and he invited me to go to this thing at MusiquePlus for Evanescence, but I couldn't make it because I had to teach. However, we did see this film together.

I also discovered that he likes Lorie, and Audrey de Montigny. He's very much into CDs, like myself. He bought a copy of Audrey's new CD for me, which I paid him back for. We both like Audrey so much that we are planning to go to her CD launch party. I don't know what Flavio thinks of me. He has told me that he thinks I'm a nice guy, but he doesn't make any moves regarding hugs or whatever. Today, I made the effort of shaking his hand.

Also, Louis at the YMCA, I found out that for his birthday, he spent his birthday relatively quiet, and that he just dined with his friends. Now, he could have not told me the whole truth, but he doesn't seem like that type. He didn't mention any partner or wife, children... However, I think that the YMCA trains you to be non-heterosexist. Who knows.

The Chinese version of Cafe Europeen

Today, I found a Chinese restaurant in Quartier chinois of Montreal whose service and food were very similar to Cafe Europeen in the village. Let me explain.

Cafe Europeen in the village is known for OK food, horrible service and uppity waiters who demand for tips as if it's their right to have some.

I tried out a youth orchestra (Westmount Youth Orchestra) today. After, there were two people there whom I knew, so we decided that we would hang out. I only wanted a bubble tea, but they wanted food and a bubble tea. I was persuaded to go to this restaurant called Mon Shing, since they had some very cheap lunch specials... I got a Cantonese style chow mein for $4.95. Although the servings, in my opinion were small, they were a good size considering that it was only $5. However, it was when we were leaving the restaurant that I decided I would never go back to this restaurant.

Now, in popular restaurant etiquette, you tip 15% before taxes. And since each one of us had a meal that was $4.95, let's do some calculations. We're going to round to $5 for nicer numbers.

To calculate 15%, let us first calculate 10%. 10% is easy to calculate, since you move the decimal one place left. So, 10% is $0.5 (50 cents)

And to calculate 5%, we will take 1/2 of what we got for 10%. So, 1/2 of $0.5 = $0.25 (25 cents)

Therefore, the total tip (15%) is: $0.5 + $0.25 = $0.75.

And each of us left $6 for the bill.

The waiter had the never to call after us and say, "You're not leaving a tip?". This was the exact type of crap that made me not go back to Cafe European. It's the waiters demanding that we tip. I realize that waiters make less than minimum wage, because they get it back in tips. However, the food was only $5. By my calculations, $1 in tips is more than 15%. In fact, it's 20%. 1/5 = 0.2 = 20%. Either this waiter was stupid, or he can't do math, or both. How dare a waiter ask for tips, especially when the amount that was tipped from three parties all went beyond 15%?

If I had been in a bad mood, I would have said, "Actually, no, I'm not leaving a tip." and I would have taken the change that was left, and I would have left.

Hmm...

Today, at Jeunesse Lambda, I met someone named Flavio. He's Italian. He's 20 and right now, he's working at McGill installing software, etc. He is cute, appears to be a nice guy, and after the meeting today, we hung out at Second Cup and chatted, and after the tea, I invited him along to see if he wanted food (since he hasn't eaten all day), and he accepted. He's kind of shy, but I think we have good conversation. Although, I seem to be the only one talking. He offered his MSN address to me, which I think is good. So, we'll see where this takes me.

After we had Chinese food, we took a fortune cookie, and I was joking with him about how each of the fortunes always makes sense if you add in bed. And he was joking about you like hot dogs in bed. He's also a music lover like me, he rarely downloads songs, and he has a huge CD collection.

Now that you all think I'm disgusting and that I'm a leper

Now that you all think I'm a leper, and you're avoiding me and my blog like the plague, I'm still going to post things. And I don't care, really. I mean, come on.

I found out today that it's Louis' birthday this Saturday, Sept. 23, 2006. I was surprised, Louis is 40 years old! He looked at most 28, 29 or early thirties, max! Someone who's 40, is probably married, or at least in a relationship. Anyway. We'll see where this leads me.

I recall a bit of a conversation I had yesterday. I was saying how I didn't want contacts because I didn't want to poke my eyes, and that I'm nearly blind without my glasses. And I was saying how I think I look more handsome with glasses, and Louis' comment was that, "Well, your glasses are so narrow that it really doesn't make a difference."

It's official...

So, it's unofficial... I have now gone over to the dark side (so to speak). Well not really, but let me explain.

In Asian culture, not much emphasis is paid to body odours and products that eliminate or cover them up. Also, in Asian culture, the sensitivity to body odours and perfumes and colognes are not as sensitive as the North American culture.

Why do I bring this up? I've been now officially told twice that I have a BO problem. Since I grew up in a relatively Asian household, I got accustomed to just washing my hair with shampoo, my body with soap, and that's it. I may occasionally put on cologne, but never have I thought about using deodorant or anti-perspirant. However, since this is a problem, I'm going to have to deal with it. I've bought anti-perspirant. I'm going to maintain even better hygiene.

Though my friend told me, "Well, if a guy goes on a date with you, and you've got BO, then it breaks everything, no matter how cute, how intelligent you are." So, I guess this is why I haven't had a boyfriend. It's my BO problem. But the funny thing is, it doesn't work in reverse... For example, if I have a neutral odour, then it means that men are going to flock to date me. In fact, I highly doubt that it'll be different. It'll just be same old me, not dating people, but now spending money on anti perspirant.

Not to mention, I also had a horrible day. I get up early enough, to get downtown to get to my MATH 206 tutorial session, but then of course, when I get to the station, the bus has disappeared. I was there about 10 minutes early, and it wasn't there. Perhaps I remembered the time wrong, this is quite possible, but I ended up having to detour my route, and I ended up only arriving ten minutes late to my session.

And of course, me being late, I was walking up the left side of the esculator. I thought on one side of the esculator, it's walk, the other one, it's stand. And as I sighed a sigh of defeat, because I was at that point at Guy-Concordia metro and about 7 minutes late, two girls had the nerve to say behind me, "Well, if you want to walk, you take the stairs, they are right over there." So, on the second trip, I just took the stairs, because it would have been the same people who decided to stand on the walking side.

And then, I decided to try this Chinese restaurant close to my house (their take out), because they offered a 10% discount on takeout. However, what they didn't advertise (or they did, but in very, very small print), the 10% discount is only applicable on $10 or more before taxes, and since I'm only one person, I really couldn't order $10 worth of food. So, I ordered a satay beef rice noodle, thinking that no Chinese restaurant, even one that offers fake Chinese food, can screw up satay beef. But let me tell you, this restaurant/chef did. There was no taste to the noodles, the beef was chewy, and since it was $7.50 + tax ($8.55 with tax), the amount of food I got for this price was ridiculously small. Never will I be going back to this restaurant. I can just see this restaurant folding in about three months.

I suppose some good did come out of today. I did talk to the guy who winked at me at the front desk at the YMCA. I had some chit chat. I asked him if he took courses, and he said that he was more of a solitary workout person. He told me that he weight trains, and that he swims. And after, I shot the shit with him, just to get to know him better. I found out that he works at the YMCA five days a week, and that he gets off around 7:30 p.m. or 8:00 p.m. (I had asked him if he finishes soon. I don't know if I asked him when he finishes, or if he finishes soon, but I found that out) This time, when I left, he didn't wink, but he did I did see him look back to see if I looked back. I don't know if I caught his eye. But maybe he just needed to turn his head to check something, I don't know. I consider myself lucky that he wanted to talk to me, since I had such horrible BO.

So, tomorrow marks my first day on my new hygiene routine.

Hollywoodland and other things

On Tuesday, September 19, 2006, I went to see the film Hollywoodland, starring Diane Lane, Adrian Brody, Ben Affleck, and some other high profile actors. (Like Bob Hoskins, for example).

This story is based on the true events of the death of George Reeves, who was an actor who played Superman on the TV series. This was a very well written films, and the performances by Brody and Affleck are spectacular. I don't know how true the events depicted in this film are to the events that happened in real life, but as a movie that passes time, it not only does its job, it does it in an amazing manner. The only criticism I have is that the film starts to drag a little towards the end, for the last 10 - 15 minutes or so.

And now, onto other matters/comments. Today, I tried the Buffet Maharaja, which is an Indian buffet that is close to Concordia's downtown campus. It was not impressive at all. In fact, their best dishes were aloo ghobi and French fries. When your best dish is French fries, something is not right. Their Tandoori chicken was okay.

Audrey de Montigny, the 4th runner up in the first season of Canadian Idol is releasing a second CD. I cannot wait to hear it. It's entitled: Si l'amour existe (If love exists). It's scheduled to be released next week, September 26, 2006.

So, when I taught step today, I ended up falling flat on my ass. I laughed it off, and I'm glad that some of the people wanted to know if I were okay, which is good. I just feel a bit embarassed. I started off with ten people, and I ended with about four. But people who left told me that they were leaving earlier, or they were going to yoga class.

At the end of the movie, when I was exiting the theatre, someone who worked there followed me as if I were a criminal. I stayed until the end of the credits, and then I got out of the theatre, and she followed me. I went to the washroom, because I needed to do number one, and after I came out, there she was again, following me... I went up the esculator, and went out the door. It was only when I went out the door that she went the other way. I realize that when a cinema is closed, you want to make sure that only staff are left in the cinema, but there must be a more discreet way to do this, a less noticeable way?

Speaking of cinemas, I saw a trailer today for Trailer Park Boys, the movie. I screamed out in the theatre, "Whhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhy? Whhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhy?"

And then, when I was waiting for the night bus to get home, because I stopped by and was bad, and got a satay beef chow mein, I bumped into someone, and started chatting. It turned out that this guy, Matt, also went to Queen's, and did his degree in music (guitar major). And as we conversed, we discovered that we graduated in the same year, and then he reminded me that he and I auditioned in the same Gael group! Small world eh? He now lives about two blocks from me. Unfortunately he didn't offer me his phone number. I suppose it's one of those nice surprises, but probably someone whom you'd not call? (Or who wouldn't call?)

Last but not least... Louis at YMCA winked at me again when I left today. And this time, there were no girls around me, so he was definitely winking at me... What does it mean when a guy has winked at you on two different occasiions? Do straight guys wink at other guys? It's something that doesn't seem very straight, to wink at another guy. But I don't know. I think I'm just overreacting. Thoughts on this?

The Cafe Toscanini in Fremolia

I thought I would use this opportunity to help my friend with her endeavour as an author.

My friend recently published a historical-fiction novel through iuniverse. The title of the book is called The Cafe Toscanini in Fremolia, and it's a story about how a war affects the lives of the citizens in Fremolia, a quiet and peaceful town.

If you want more information, here is the link.

The cost is $18.95 (CAD). However, if you order through Chapters/Indigo (online), there will be a discount of $1. Note that this book is only available online via the net. No paper copies will be found in any Chapters/Indigo bookstores.

One year anniversary

So, I believe today marks the one year anniversary of my blog. I can't believe it, I have blogged for a year... There is about a year's worth of stuff on here. It's amazing how time flies.

One thing is still the same though, still single, and still dealing with men...

I got an e-mail today regarding being a member of the orchestra. That's great. I can't believe I made it with my audition. I actually wouldn't mind being second. lol

Stupid people...

According to this link, sting rays are being found dead on beaches, with their poison stingers cut off.

I realize that Steve Irwin's death is a loss to Australia, as well as to the world of science/nature education, because he would be daring and try to film documentaries so that the general public could learn more about nature. However, killing innocent sting rays is not the solution. Killing sting rays will not bring him back. In fact, he was a nature lover, he would not have wanted sting rays to be killed for whatever reason.

And according to this link, don't stuff marshmellows in your mouth and then try to talk. It's called a choking hazard people, even if there are others around you who can perform the Heimlich maneuvre and/or CPR.

My birthday

So, September 14, 2006 has rolled by and I'm another year old. Am I a year wiser, perhaps... But perhaps not...

I didn't do anything too special today. I had coffee with Claude, which he paid for. That's a nice birthday gesture. I went to a step class, I went home, did laundry, had some poutine. I didn't really celebrate my birthday today. Because I am planning some celebrations for Friday and Saturday.

On Friday, I am going to have Indian buffet with my friends Mallory and Chris. Though I do seemingly do this every Friday, it is nice to do it with someone, and in a way, as a celebration. Maybe I can treat myself to a coffee tomorrow at the restaurant or something. I also hope to go to La Ronde with Gabriel on Saturday. I have to teach aerobics in the morning, but we could go for 3:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m., and then do something like a dinner after.

I guess it pays for the dull birthday today. I mean, it's hard to celebrate on a Thursday. People have to go to work tomorrow, or school, or both, etc.

La Vie Secrète des Gens Heureux (The Secret Life of Happy People)

On Tuesday, September 12, 2006, I went to see the movie La Vie Secrète des Gens Heureux (The Secret Life of Happy People). I thought this film was a comedy, but it ended up being more dramatic than comedic.

The story is about A family who sends their eldest daughter off to England, because she is going to get a job in the paramedic industry. That's about all the time she gets in the film. The rest of the film is about the father, the mother, the younger son, and their lives within a time span of about two to three months. The father is a very successful leader in a architecture/design firm, the mother is a very good trivia player who is also a school teacher, and the younger son is finishing his architect degree. Things get interesting when he bumps into an attractive girl whom he asks to be his son's girlfriend, so that he has an inspiration to finish his degree.

This was an okay film, but it's got your typical formulaic Quebecois elements. For example, you have your token gay person, or couple. You have your nude scene, you have your sex scene, you have your older men liking younger women, and/or older women liking younger men. You've got your typical heterosexual man cheating on his wife, or falling out of love with her. I think almost every Quebecois film cliché is in this film.

This film however, made me think if love really is forever.

And the step class I replaced today. Boy, was that bad... I was going down in flames... It started bad, and it just continued being bad. I forgot my running shoes, the warm up CD was skipping, and I was preoccupied with my application for the scholarship. It's due Friday, September 15, 2006 at noon, and the person whom I have asked for a letter of reference still hasn't gotten back to me. So, I had to ask a second person, in case my first person doesn't come through. When thing start off on a bad note, it's difficult to turn it around, especially since I am a newer instructor. Older instructors have more experience, and know little tricks, I believe to not let a bad start let them hinder their performance. I started with 15, by the end, there were 6.

Since when was tipping 15% cheap?

Last night, after orchestra rehearsal (and with my performance, I probably didn't get in, but oh well). Chris, Mallory, Sean and I went for a beverage. (Sean being the incredibly talented musician who plays three instruments, one of which being oboe)

I had one iced tea, which came to about $2.95 + tax. Now, the tip is 15% on what you paid before taxes, so I thought that leaving 50 cents was more than 15%. But Sean was saying that I "shouldn't be cheap", and that I should leave a dollar. Since when was leaving more than 15% cheap? The tip is calculated on the value of the item, it is not max (15% of item, $1.00)

I realize that servers get paid less per hour, because they make it up on their tips. And in Quebec, you have to declare your tips. However, I doubt that any server declares all their tips. It's amazing the thoughts of some people, unmathematical people.

When Sorry is not enough?

Today, I ran an errand at IGA, and I nearly hit someone who was pushing a baby stroller (the old fashioned typed, without any protection) with my groceries. Now, this was clearly my fault, and I apologized. However, one apology was clearly not enough, as the dude had to say loudly, "Hey, watch where you're going!". To which I said again (more loudly this time), "I'm sorry, I did not see."

And then on the way out, the guy with the stroller nearly hits me (or, I nearly hit him) again. But this time, I turned, saw him in time, and dodged him.

Since when was one apology not enough? I mean, I said it in a courteous manner, and I meant it. It wasn't like a teenager who is saying a without any meaning behind it, and is saying it because he/she is forced to. Where did common courtesy go?

People are not perfect, they make mistakes. They also do not have eyes at the back of their heads to see objects coming up from behind them when they turn around. Why is it so hard to just accept an apology, realize the person did not do it on purpose, and move on? No need to raise your voice and yell at the person...

I suppose these are one of my naïve ideas of the world. But I would think that if people acted in a more courteous manner, the world would be a better place. We have other problems we need to worry about, like global warming!

Also, on the way back, because I had to run back to the IGA about something, I had missed the bus (at that time) that would take me home. So, I thought, OK, I'll take the metro. However, I got to the metro station, and I hear that due to "une personne sur la voie" or "a person on the rails", the service on the green line is stopped. By the time a metro rolled around, it was about five minutes from when I could get on the next bus to go home, so I decided to it.

I believe that "person on the rails" means that someone committed suicide... What a lovely way to go eh? Right in front of everyone, blood splattering everywhere. Traumatizing at least a dozen, and requiring many people to need therapy/counselling.

One mystery solved...

So, I found out today the name of the cute guy at the YMCA, the guy who winked at me (or possibly winked at me) the first time I was there, when I was not teaching a class. His name (drum roll please) is Louis. Yes, L-O-U-I-S... Louis... That's such a cool name. I'll see if he's got a ring on his ring finger. I don't recall seeing anything though.

Mmm... Louis...

And on a side note... Peter's partner, who said that I have lots of luck, just not good luck... There was an insect in the glass of water that I had with my meal today. I didn't bother complaining, because a Chinese restaurant, and I had already finished my food.

But Mmm... Louis...

Who Killed the Electric Car?

On Tuesday, September 5, 2006, I went to see the movie Who Killed the Electric Car?. I'm in the mood for documentary as films, so I thought I'd go see this one as well.

This was not as good as An Inconvenient Truth, but the facts are very well laid out. The information is presented in a very easy to understand fashion, and an interesting manner. When the electric car was hip and happening, and people were considering it as an option, I was too young. Now that I have seen this documentary, I am seriously considering a fully electric car or a hybrid (or a plug-in hybrid) as a car that I would buy.

It is also quite disgusting what the auto companies did to kill people's interest in the electric car. All I can say is shame on all the auto makers. In fact, if they refuse to make any electric cars, I'll have to look into an alternative company that does provide them. Hydrogen fuel cell is a piece of shit, used to delay people into thinking that there will be a environmentally friendly alternative. Not to mention, hydrogen fuel is expensive! Plugging into an outlet to charge your battery only adds at most $100 per month onto the hydro bill. $100 would not even fill up your tank in a hydrogen car.

You may think that I'm easily influencable. I just think that the arguments for an electric car is very sound, and getting one would help our future, as it would help save the environment.

Today was a day of last minutes. Well only two, but still. I was supposed to have training for my tutorial session job today, but I got an e-mail cancelling it last minute, so I was free this afternoon. I went to run an errand, I went to the Zellers to buy a zippered mattress cover/protector, and when I got home at around 1:45 p.m., there was a message on my answering maching asking me if I were free and available to cover a step class at YMCA for 5:30 p.m.. I was available, so I covered it. This was my first step class completely in French, and I guess my first step class ever, since I never apprenticed with a step instructor, and I have not had too many opportunities to teach step myself.

The cute guy was working at the YMCA today. When I was leaving however, he was tending to a recycle paper bin, so I don't know what that means.

Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2

On September 2nd, 2006, I saw the movies Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Kill Bill Vol. 2 on DVD, marathon style, and I really enjoyed the movies. Well, of course, since I own them.

But this got me thinking about a few things. First of all, it got me thinking about a comment that someone made regarding love in the gay world yesterday (Friday, September 1st, 2006). This inividual was asked if he believed in love, and his answer was, "Non, je n'y crois plus (I don't believe in it anymore) - he was francophone", and he said that love in the gay world exists * here *, and then he boxed in his crotch. And he appears to be very true, but I think there are a few gay men who are looking for more than just the crotch. There is at least me who look for personality, despite the fact that I haven't had much success...

And then when I saw the movies again, it made me think about if I were to ever have a Death list (insert number here)... This number would probably be huge... I can already think of three people who have broken my heart... Of course, they didn't come and kick me in to near death on my practice wedding, but still.

Oh well, keep a positive attitude. That'll help.

What the hell is he doing?

I was at Jeunesse Lambda tonight, since it was my turn to run a discussion. At the end of the discussion, Claude came in, and he gave me back my money. But throughout the time that he was there, he kept sticking his tongue out at me, and poking me in the belly. He however doesn't do this with André, his good friend, who's also Asian.

First he tells me that he can't offer me what I want, but then he does these things that makes me think that he wants to be friends with privileges... What the hell is this? I'm not a sexual trade worker...

Sigh... Round Two

Today, I was doing my laundry, and it was time to wash the bedsheets. To my dismay, I discovered that there were BED BUGS! Now, I'm lucky * knock on wood * that there was only one skin, and something that looked like it was a bug. I vacuumed the mattress everywhere, with a hose attachment. I chucked the bag.

I'm hoping that this is the end of the problem. I was keeping constant watch to look for new bites, new blood spots on bed sheets, and at first, there were things that I thought were such signs, but then they stopped. So I thought, oh, OK, it's just my imagination. Now, I'll keep watch again. I will probably wash my bedsheets, pillowcase next time I do laundry, in two weeks. Then, I will look again, to see the situation.

I may also ask around to see if I have friends that have a steam cleaner. I may run that over my mattress.