Protests, again?

OK, so I just found out that tomorrow is the National Day of Protests, and that the Mohawk Nations decided to blockade railways and highways... VIA Rail has cancelled all trains tomorrow. They are also not offering alternate service (i.e. shuttle buses). I am scrambling to find a way to Toronto. Worse comes to worse, I suppose I arrive on Saturday, but I'd miss my Chinese herbalist appointment, which I do not want.

They already protested once, why are they protesting again? I suppose that the point of a protest is to inconvenience people, so touché, I suppose.

New Taste of India

On Wednesday, June 27, 2007, I was persuaded to go and eat at this Indian restaurant in the village. Now, I personally wanted sushi, the all you can eat variety, but my friend persuaded me to go and try the restaurant, because it could be the "best Indian food that I've ever had". I stupidly went along and actually took up the suggestion and tried the restaurant.

I don't recall exactly the name of the restaurant, but it's situated on Ste. Catherine Street east, west of Papineau.

Don't go there. The food is not very tasty... The oniono bhaji tasted like charcoal, the servings are small, the service is bad, they didn't have aloo ghobi nor a mango lassi. How can you not have mango lassi on an extremely humid day that is about 32 degrees with humidex? That's just a stupid business decision right there.

I ordered an Aloo Paneer (spinach with potato - sort of like a saag aloo, but the spinach is a bit more creamy), and a chicken korma. Conclusion? The Aloo Paneer didn't have enough flavour, nor did the chicken korma. (How can you screw a chicken korma up?) I ordered a Biryani rice, but it wasn't very tasty either, and the naan was just a badly gone wrong Indian pancake.

For the price I paid, I could have enjoyed myself at sushi, but I ended up with bad service, bad food, bad experiences, a bad meal, and bad food to take home.

After this bad dinner, I went to go see the fireworks. Now, there's nothing wrong with that, but I was watching them underneath the bridge. There's nothing wrong with that either. However, if you're watching it underneath the bridge, you expect that the shit from the fireworks (the extinguished ones - you know the dust, soot, etc.) to fall on you... If you were on the bridge, that stuff falls less on you, because gravity works faster, most of the time. Don't get me wrong, there are times when the wind works faster, but today, gravity won out.

It was hot, humid, and I just wanted to either go to a bubble tea or to go home... My friend insisted on checking out this bar in the village, and thank goodness we only went for two minutes, not even. There was no one there, so we left. At that moment, my friend wanted to continue to hang out in the village - I have no idea why, but I just took the metro home. So much more relaxing, and I actually was indoors when the thunderstorm hit. It was nice to be able to watch it from home.

Oh really? Sang froid indeed...

So tonight, June 23, 2007, I went to have dinner with the boy who said he wanted a bit of space... For simplicity sake, let's call him Felix. Now, Felix and I originally plans, or I thought we did, to meet at Place d'Armes metro station at 7:30 p.m., and then we could go to the restaurant together. I admit, I was running a bit late, so I got there at about 7:40 - 7:45 p.m.. Since I was under the impression that we were meeting at the metro station, I waited, and I waited, and I waited... At about 8:00 p.m., I decided that maybe they misunderstood me, so I went to the restaurant, and I peaked inside. However, I did not see them. (They were at that point, already there, but they sat behind a pillar, so I cannot see them while I was peering through the window). So, I decided, "Okay, they are not there yet, so I am going to wait back at the metro station." I waited until about 8:25 p.m., and I thought "OK, I'm going to go back to the restaurant and do a walk around. If they are not there, I'm going to go to dinner myself." This time, I went into the restaurant, and I did a walk around, and saw them. Felix has already finished eating, and Felix's friend was still in the process of eating her Singapore noodles.

When I got there, I sat down and I said, "I thought we were meeting at Place d'Armes." I don't recall exactly what I said, but it was not very nice, as I was pissed for waiting 45 minutes. Felix replied, "Oh, I couldn't hear you, and it was on the road with the cars and buses, I just thought we would meet at the restaurant." I was visibly not pleased, and Felix had the nerve to state, "If you're upset, then let it go, because I was on time." At this point, I was very close to walking out on him and be like, "OK, see ya. I'm going to go and do dinner elsewhere." but I stuck it out, I calmed down, and we made an evening out of it.

However, in my opinion, Felix is digging himself deeper and deeper in the hole. He had the nerve to say to me, after telling me he wanted me space, that "I don't care about him anymore", and "I don't listen to him", and that "I'm aggressive."

I would like to take the opportunity to reply to these points in detail... I did give him some oral explanations, but they wouldn't be as detailed as they would be here, since I am writing them out.

1) I don't care about him anymore. This is not true, I do care about him as a friend. I am interested in what he does, and what is happening at camp, and how he's dealing with it. However, since he said he needed space, I feel like I am walking on egg shells, since I do not want to do anything that would make the situation worse. This is what happens when you ask for space... People give you space. You don't expect to tell someone that you need space, and expect them to act the same way they did before. If they did, they would not be respecting your opinion. I may not care at the particular moment about him as a boyfriend, because he was the one that wanted things to cool off. This, I am guilty of, for sure, but I do still care about him as a friend.

2) I don't listen to him. This is also not true. He blames me that I always speak, and I never give him a chance to speak. That is complete bull. I explained to him that maybe it's a difference of culture and vision of what is the end of a conversation. Perhaps for him, what he needs is complete silence to signify that someone has finished his/her point. For me, when you're done, I like to jump in and continue the conversation, because I don't like "chat" conversation. This is when one person makes a point, and then there's silence, and the other person starts off on another topic. This is not a real conversation, this is more like a real-time chat. Felix then stated that perhaps he does not know how to converse, but that is not true, I really just believe it's a difference in viewpoint. Also, he felt that he doesn't have enough time to develop his ideas, as I'm always constantly developing mine. This is perhaps due to my training, as I am a logical person. Who knows... But I do not like the comment of how I do not listen to him. If I didn't, I would not be able to tell him what was going on at camp, and recall the stories that he told me that I thought was droll.

3) I'm aggressive. I am not. Plain and simple. I do not go out of my way to make sure that everyone notices me, and knows that I am in charge. I do not make it my mission to make sure that all my friends know that I'm superior to them, and that I am in charge, and I'm the one who calls all the shots. I do not make all my friends feel small, to feel big. I do not believe that I am God's gift to all men and women in the world. I do not believe that just because I'm a fitness instructor, it means that I'm better than everyone else. I am not a fitness diva, nor will I ever be. What I can agree to, is perhaps I am assertive. I feel that I am outgoing, and I like to get what I aim for. However, this is not always the case, not everyone gets what they want, so in circumstances like that, I back off. I explained that perhaps since Felix used to be a very shy individual, and even though he has come a long way, he could have met me, someone who is very outgoing, which he may perceived as aggression.

I have had other people tell me that due to the speed I process ideas, other people may be indirectly intimidated by this. Perhaps this is the case that is happening here. I don't know.

You cannot ask for space, and then expect the person to act the same way that they did before. This is however, just my opinion, and you are feel to disagree. I personally find it difficult to act the same way before, because I don't want to overstep boundaries, out of respect for the other person. Perhaps other people can do it, and I think that's great! You cannot have your cake and eat it too.

Mr. Brooks

On Tuesday, June 19, 2007, I went to see the movie Mr. Brooks starring Kevin Costner, Demi Moore, Dane Cook. The story is about Costner's character, Mr. Brooks, struggling with his dual personality of vice, who loves to kill.

Things turn awry when his latest killing didn't go as he had planned. When he performed his act, he did not note that the curtains were open (the couple loved to have sex with the curtains open so that everyone can see), and so he went to close them, and did the posing of victims thing. Next thing he knows, someone shows up at Mr. Brook's office, with pictures incriminating him of the crime.

We also see the detective working on the case - Demi Moore. She's working on the case, one of the killers she put behind bars has escaped, and she's going through a messy divorce. There's a really greedy divorce lawyer, and her ex husband who cheated on her with any woman that walked into the house.

Then, we throw in Mr. Brook's daughter, who has unexpectedly dropped out of college. She claims that the reason that she did it was because she was bored, and was interested in the box business. However, as the movie continues, we realize that this is not the case. We realize that there is some sort of dark secret that she's hiding, and we eventually find out what it is.

And the rest of the film is of these storylines intertwining, and how sometimes, they cross each other. Kevin Costner's acting, as well as Dane Cook is superb. Demi Moore is okay.

There was not too much blood, but it's just the right amount for a drama/suspense movie regarding killing.

On another topic, David was in class today, and he didn't say hi, nor did he say bye... He's acting kind of like he's two different people. Sometimes, he's friendly, and other times, he's not. He looked very hot today though with his white t-shirt and jeans. So hot!

A new form of sound pollution

Now, I don't know how new this type of sound pollution is, but I've noticed it two times now within the last two to three months, so I'm going describe what is happening.

The new trend for some people nowadays is to share their music in public places. Thus, instead of just listening to their portable CD player, or in most cases, Ipods with headphones, they now have these contraptions with speakers in them (i.e. either a bag with speakers that you can plug a portable player of some sort into), or a case where you can fit your portable player and speakers, but it looks like a CD wallet.

I usually have an issue with people who listen to music really loud in the metro. But, it's only their ears that they are killing, so if they want to have the hearing capacity of an 80 year old by the time they are 20, that is fine with me. However, this new trend of sharing your music with everyone is really terrible, and such a loser thing to do.

What bugs me even more is that now people play their music, which I don't need to listen to, on the metro or on the bus, through their little contraptions that play their music loud. No one needs to hear your music, keep it to yourself. This goes the same for rap/hip-hop, to Pussycat Dolls to classical music by Dvorak. Although, I have noticed that most of the losers who do this tend to play rap/hip hop music, and I tend to hear Eminem.

When you're dating someone, please do not get as whipped as the following character...

I would like to take a moment and rant about people who are dating, who start treating their friends as Plebs, because they put their loved one first.

Now, granted of course, I do agree that you should put the love of your life first, to a certain extent. However, if you're canceling on your friends to accommodate for your loved one... When you're changing your habits for your loved one... This is in my opinion not healthy. Either that, or whipped.

Take for example, my friend Raoul (fictional name). Now, Raoul is a relatively good looking dude, and he goes through boyfriends how I go through kleenex when I'm sick. Anyway, so Raoul recently met this dude, whom we shall name Rupert (again, fictional name). I have met Rupert in person, and he's an amiable character. However, as I get to know him, I find that he's a demanding little diva. He's so demanding, he makes J-Lo in her pre-diva days look like nothing. Robert has got Raoul so whipped (or wrapped around his finger, if you will), it's not even funny.

Here's what I have to base my judgement: One time, Raoul was meeting friends that he used to work with at a hardware store in West Island of Montreal. So, we went to the parking lot, and picked up the two friends. Robert had said that he would be ready for 6:00 p.m., so we drove all the way from west island to right in front of Robert's apartment. Raoul calls Robert on his cell phone and says that "He was in the neighbourhood" so he could pick him up. Robert then flatly states that he is not ready, and that he will need an hour to get ready. Now, if I were Raoul, I would say: "I'm outside of your apartment, GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE.", but all Raoul said was, "Oh, OK... I'll come pick you up at seven then.", and proceeded to drive us back to West island and have dinner at a restaurant in West Island. During the car ride back, Raoul's friend kept making comments about how "whipped" he was... I totally agree.

Raoul and I also made plans to go for all you can eat sushi, supposedly on Saturday night (June 16, 2007). And Raoul was really looking forward to it, because he didn't get to come home to Montreal last weekend. However, on Thursday afternoon, I got an instant message from Raoul saying that he would have to cancel, as he was spending the whole day with Robert at La Ronde (amusement park here in Montreal). And I finally got a confirmation of cancellation Friday evening. The new suggested date was Sunday evening, June 17, 2007, but at the rate we're going, I would imagine that I would be canceled upon tomorrow too. Also, did I mention that Robert doesn't like sushi? And he has no intention of trying it? So, it feels to me that Raoul has to suffer because Robert doesn't like fish?

And finally, I got a phone call from Raoul, asking me if I was going to go and get breakfast tomorrow. (This happened maybe about ten minutes ago). I said, "Yes, of course... I'll be done at 12:00 p.m.." and here's the bomb: "Well, I want to go to breakfast, but Robert and I don't want to go to Resto du village." Resto du village is one of my favourite diners, it's cheap, friendly, good service, good sized portions, and great coffee. And usually, Raoul doesn't mind going there. However, tonight, it was a different story. My guess is that for whatever odd reason, Robert doesn't want to go to Resto du village, so everyone must accommodate him. I don't know whether Robert doesn't want to go there because he's not out, or he's just a prissy little princess that's very demanding, or both... But Robert has Raoul so wrapped around his finger that he has this type of control over him... Wow...

They must have some fucking wicked sex.

If you're dating someone, please do me a favour and also be from time to time your very own Independent diva... You do not need to spend 24-7 with the new found love of your life... Because, if this turns out not to be the grand love of your love where you get married in the chapel and have 2.5 children... Your friends are not going to be very sympathetic when you get dumped.

Georgia Rule

On Tuesday, June 12, 2007, I went to see the film Georgia Rule, featuring Jane Fonda, Felicity Huffman and Lindsay Lohan. The story is not really about three generations of women living underneath the same house hold... The trailer, in my opinion, does not give an accurate portrayal of what the movie is about, and what you are in for.

This story is about how three women, across three generations, bond together when a shocking secret gets revealed, and how they stick together and help each other. In the process, they also battle each other's demons, and get each other to open up and admit to their faults and change their ways. They all spend the summer in Idaho, at Jane Fonda (Georgia's) house. Lindsay Lohan's character tries to adapt to life in a small house - Hull, Idaho, from life in the city - San Francisco.

Of course, I am not going to say what this big secret is, because that would be spoiling or ruining the movie, in my opinion. The movie is packed with laughs, and most of it is intelligent humour.

One thing I found annoying about the movie though, is that I found parts of it hard to follow. I found it annoying that the "big secret" that was divulged... I didn't know if it was true or not until the end of the movie... This was a bit annoying, but I guess it's good, since it wasn't predictable. Perhaps a bit annoying though. lol

I was supposed to have dinner with a friend, but the restaurant that I always go to didn't have electricity. So, I couldn't eat there. We had to go to another restaurant, which was up the street. The prices there have been raised, so they are no longer close to the prices at the restaurant where they had an electrical outage, and today, I found the quality of food not very satisfying. They raised their prices, but the quality of food hasn't risen... I personally don't think it's good, and I don't know if/when I'll be going back. I believe the last time I went to the restaurant was about 3 - 4 months ago? Quite possibly six?

Fashion Fest

On Friday, June 8, 2007, I went to check out the Fashion Fest. It's also the Grand Prix weekend, and I did a bit of checking out today, but I'm really not into the latter.

I was there for a bit, and was able to catch the Tommy Hilfiger fashion show... And the clothing was pretty ugly... He had these red stockings which were terrible, and I wouldn't be caught dead with. In fact, I wouldn't be caught dead with about 90% of the clothing that he displayed. Maybe he decided to display all his mistakes in Montreal, and warn us what not to wear...

After, I went to bubble tea with two friends, and then one of them friends and I went to grab a bite to eat in the village. We joked about going to Espresso.net to say hi to some Lambda people, but we finally didn't get around to it. However, we did still bump into some Lambda people. We were at Berri-UQAM, and we were walking towards the end of the platform, and there, we bumped into three Lambda people, two of whom were on the CA.

Now, instead of just ignoring them, which would show them that they won by suspending my membership, I decided to say hi and make small chit-chat. Granted, I didn't chit chat with them a long time across the opposite platform, but still, I made an effort to say hi and make small talk. This was suggested to me by my former French prof, which I believe is great, as this shows that the whole issue didn't bother me, and that it's all water underneath the bridge. I'm the bigger person, and I am mature enough to still see them as people. However, I think at least one of them didn't quite see eye-to-eye about that. Oh well, you meet people whom you like and whom you don't like in life, and not everyone you meet is going to like you. You just keep on truckin'.

Fracture

On Tuesday, June 5, 2007, I went to see the movie Fracture, featuring Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Ryan Gosling. It also featured Rosamund Pike, who played a boss at an exclusive private law firm.

The story is about Ted Crawford, played by Hopkins, who learns that his wife is having an affair with Rob Nunally, who is a detective, and a hostage negotiator. He arrests Crawford, and obtains a written confession.

Next, we hop to Willy Beachum, a lawyer in a prosecutor office who's wanting to make it into a big company. He is trying to tie up loose ends in his old office before heading to the new one, and he gets a case from his boss. He initially didn't want to take the case, but his boss said that the detectives found the murder weapon, and they also have a signed confession from the defendant, so it's a pretty easy case.

Now, Willy Beachum is an over-confident prosecutor. So, when he got this case, with the gun and the signed statement, he thought he could win the case, and was supremely unprepared for it. However, Crawford completely pulled a fast one on him and completely dismissed his key witness, and as well in a private meeting with the judge, voided the signed confession.

This started the battle of wits between Crawford and Beachum. The rest of the movie is about each person playing mind games with the other. Beachum is trying to find the murder weapon, and Crawford is just being coy. From this point on, the audience keeps wondering whether or not Crawford is going to get off scott free, or if Beachum will find a way to prosecute him for the crime of attempted murder.

Hopkins and Gosling both played wonderful characters. I always know that Hopkins is excellent as an actor, but Gosling is quite the up and rising star... I saw him in Half Nelson, and I was impressed, but this role was better than his performance in Half Nelson!

Does Crawford (Hopkins) get off scott free, or does Beachum prosecute the defendent? Well, only watching the movie will answer that question!

I am all for equality, but this is too far...

I believe that women are just as good as men for any position, provided of course they are qualified for the position they are applying for.

I also believe in equal rights for all, regardless of gender, race, ability, etc. However, I have a huge issues with radical feminists who attempt to get "equality" by taking down the power of men.

A friend just recently sent me an article about a man who is filing a human rights complaint because he tried to sign up for a membership at Curves, and was refused membership, because the gym was "women only." Now, normally, I would believe that this is a total waste of time and money, but then I found out why he did it...

Audrey Vachon, a 20 year old female, has filed a complaint against Le Stud bar in the village, because it refused her entry.

Le Stud is a leather/fetish/bear bar. Or that's the general consensus of it. The scene is mostly male... I'm sure there are female bears, but it's rare. There are leather women, but unfortunately those are also rare, but probably less rare than female bears. What type of an idiot would demand access to Le Stud? There are plenty of other bars in the village who will let women in. Unity, Sky (and the clubs on each floor), etc. etc. If Ms. Vachon is indeed a bear or a leather woman, then I totally believe that it was wrong to refuse her entry. However, the idea that I get is that she's not... And that she's a shit-stirrer.

Why do random objects (and in this case, I'd want huge objects) not fall out of the sky and fall onto useless people who stir up shit like Ms. Vachon? Jeez, find better things to do with your time.

I am 100% in favour of Rick Matthew's quest. I normally would think that he was wasting taxpayer's money, but I believe that this complaint needed to be filed. I am getting a little peeved about radical feminists demanding access to "all male organizations", because this is discrimination by gender, but then they don't have to open up their doors (i.e. doors of all female organizations) to men!

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against feminists... I am a feminist myself, I believe in equal rights for men and women, but true equality, which means that we raise the level of pay (and what other things that are needed so that women are equal to men. I do not believe in equal rights for men and women where people strip men of privileges, and at the same time, demand more and more for "equality".

Why do I always get to deal with ignorant idiots?

Over the past three days, I've had to deal with two cases of ignorant idiots who they that they are hot shit when they are in reality just shit.

The first incident occurred on Thursday, May 31, 2007 at YMCA Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. I was in the changeroom, changing and getting ready to shower and head to my class at UQAM. In walks this dude with his friends, and they are talking about tattoos and stuff. They were commenting how tattoos are hot, and that girls love guys with tattoos, and thus they started to discuss where they could put tattoos. This dude also had a tattoo of the outline of the Quebec province, with the provincial flag shaded in. He commented how tattoos no longer look hot when you're 50, but for "son pays" (his country), he doesn't care. He also used some expression with "fife" (faggot). I am not sure if he was talking about me, or if it's just part of his natural speech, but I didn't feel comfortable. But then, I don't really have high regard for him, as he's a separatist, and ignorant... I have as much appreciation for separatists as I do for canker sores.

The second incident happened today, June 2, 2007 on the metro (in between the tunnel - while I'm on the metro - between Champ-de-Mars and Place d'Armes). There was this dude, who looked like he hasn't washed for days, but he could be homeless who knows... I don't think so though, as he was with two individuals, one of whom had a bike that blocked passage from one end of the wagon to another. Since I needed to walk through the wagon, I asked politely "excusez-moi" (Excuse me), and he said: "It's no excuse, you're Chinese." When I heard this, I turned around, looked at him and stated firmly: "That was not funny." At this point, he was trying to get me to go over and start a fight, as he stated that "If I have something to say, I should say it to his face." I just got off at the next station and switched into the next wagon, and I continued to do so until I got to the end of the metro.

Why do stupid things not happen to people like this? You know, random huge things dropping out of the sky and flattening these people so that they are as flat as a pancake? I personally don't believe that these people offer anything to society.