Summer: Relaxation Bliss

August 4th, 2008 Thomasso

For me, and like many others, these long weekends are like once in a lifetime events because we value them so much. I am so glad that I have the day off from work so that I can enjoy another day of summer, and I decided to spend this morning doing an unannounced hike along the Fort to Fort trail. When my body was tuned to spending yet another day working for the man, I instead got up and left for a hike around 6:00am when most people are still dreaming, tucked away in their beds and under the covers. The streets were empty even though the sun had risen.

Walking through the streets of Fort Langley at this time of day is so weird and unusual for me because I am so used to seeing the people and the traffic constantly and all around. The sounds, of human voices at the sidewalk café, the restaurant exhaust vents and rumble of wheels from the streets all creates a normal environment for me. To have that missing feels like a Hollywood film, when some mysterious plague wiped out the human race and I am the only left alive. This is the felling that is so nice–no one around.

The trail was different because I met over ten other hikers all doing the same thing I was, taking advantage of less people to spoil the moment. Here there is lots of traffic. You can meet the most interesting people in these trails. One of the hikers, a women who dressed in a full body-multi panelled yellow and black spandex suit, was very talkative as I rested with her group at the Pump house. She was from California and was on a cross Canada trip starting at New Brunswick and heading West. Another hiker, a local, said that he knew me, although I could place a name to his face. With all this traffic along the trail I thought that the town was up extra early.

To my surprise when I got back onto Glover Road I saw only one vehicle, a police car, before I got home.

It was the perfect way to start a holiday Monday. I feel so good after that walk. I am not one of those guys who gets all dressed up with special gear to go out for a hike. I am not a competitive person. I see people in spandex hiking outfits as a little excessive, especially on a trail that takes me only 30 minutes to hike. Jeans, t-shirt and running shoes are my hiking cloths. I just do not want to tire myself out on my day-off and spend as much time preparing for it as I am doing it. That is way too much!

Now the town is in full swing as people have been pouring in to it since 8:00am and onwards. This is BC day, the day that is marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of our province, British Columbia. It is been promised by the weather prognosticators that today is going to be a hot one, at 32C with nothing but unobstructed sunshine. I think a mid-day swim is in order!

[ADDED]

I just saved all my photos that were on my camera. I had photos from the last three weeks on it, so I figured that it was time to get them off there so I can fill it up today. When I was going through them, I came across these, my trip back from Agasszi, B.C. from when I was at a seminar at Corrections Canada, Kent facility. I must of done this trip fifty times now. Not only do I travel up to Agassiz, but I also drive to Chilliwack as part of my Monday schedule at work.

I remember my first trip through this part of the valley after I moved down to Vancouver. Looking at these mountains seemed so breath taking after not seeing them for so long. The sight of seeing such steep and high mountains in the middle of a summer day is breath taking. When I have passengers, it never fails, they do nothing but stare out the window up at the skyline.

These photos show the trip back from Agassiz heading back just after Chilliwack going towards Abbotsford. Towards mid afternoon the traffic is light compared to the afternoon rush hour.

Maybe one day when I get lots of time I will grab my camera and drive up one of those mountains and snap a hundred or so shots of the valley. That’s the disadvantage of shooting through a window in a moving vehicle–bugs.

Posted in General, Holiday, Photographs | Comments Off

Thinking, Listening to the Wind Out Side

November 11th, 2007 Thomasso

Right now I am listening to the wind out side, and I am thinking about a lot things today, but the wind is kicking up the leaves as they stick to my window. Today is Remembrance Day, a day to reflect on wars past and present, and the solders who gave their life for our freedom, and it is about the fallen and the living from these wars. I think about that a lot now days, the wars, the solders, and the people. Today, while I was at work typing and clicking on my keyboard and mouse, I stopped at 11:00am and closed my eyes for two minutes because It was the least I could do–to remember. Sure, it sounds corny, I, all alone, to stop working for two minutes, but I felt it was the right thing to do. In all my former jobs employers would have punished anyone who dared stopped working, even if it was to remember, but they were hypocrites because it if were not for those who made our land free, they would not have their business and the economy that makes them their money! Oh how does the capitalist forget who got them here in the first place…. But I was alone, so no harm. I am sure there are employers out there who do care, and would honour the those today?

It is windy out! The wind is really picking up. I better hurry and save this before the power goes out.

So far, so good: the electric is holding. So I did some homework today; getting ready for the finals in three weeks. Another semester almost gone, and a little closer to the end of the last course. It is a nice feeling to be almost done, finished, completed. I read some old papers from when I first went to college way back when, …and wow, I have come along ways since then. I think I have surpast even my wildest expectations because I had no idea ten years ago that I would here be today doing what I am doing right now. My papers then, well, sucked. I cringe when I read them. They make me think about how naive and ignorant I was, and how I first embarked on answering the question, “why.” I remember going into the classroom for the first time, since high school, thinking, “what the heck am I doing here…” It was scary, but I stuck it out–and I am sure glad I did. *smirk* I still haven’t found an answer to the question, “why,” if you were wondering? But I am thinking about it. But I remember!

Posted in General, Holiday | Comments Off

Ooooo, What Pertty Sunset

July 1st, 2007 Thomasso

Oh of course the weather office lied about this weekend’s forecasts. It even says on their website that Environment Canada’s prediction rate is 80 percent of getting the weather forecast right, and the rest of the time it is a best guess. Well, this weekend’s forecast is in the remaining twenty percent of their prediction rate, and not surprisingly, our cool, rainy, overcast holiday took a turn for the better with nice warm sun, shining down for most of the day. Here, check out this photo of the sunset:

It is amazing how a little sunlight can change one’s mood, make their day go by much better and getting-the-job-done becomes a pleasure rather than a chore. So I guess I need to turn off the “Complaint Switch” and enjoy the unexpected sunshine.

Happy Canada Day! [Added] Oh, and here is a little fact-web-site about our national anthem. I thought is was interesting because I did not even know this?

Posted in General, Holiday, Photographs | Comments Off

It was the Day After New Years…

January 1st, 2007 Thomasso

This is a passage from my journal about fifteen years ago. Slightly edited and made for the weblog, I felt this little bit of story telling would be good for those who just woke up and who are making their fist cup of coffee of the new year.

—

Poor fella my next door neighbor is, because he has a slight hangover from too much drink last night, and he is a little grumpy when I went to the store this morning to buy bread. Why would he be a little grumpy when I’m just going to the store, you ask? “Well, because I had to start my vehicle and make some noise–that’s why.” So I also thought to myself, “self, why does he care so much about the sound that my vehicle makes when he has heard that sound so many times before?” Then I answered my myself, “because he drank too much last night and he has a hangover now.”

So I thought about what he had said this morning, when I came back from the store in my vehicle, the point of him being grumpy from drinking too much last night, and now has a hangover… So, I made my counter argument to him, as he came back out from his patio deck and confront me yet again, one that, this time, made him hiss at me, and then he stomped off back into his house. Yesterday in the dead of night, I heard the sound of vehicles, about 3:00am in the wee hours, that seem to have awaken me from my sleep, because I remembered hearing it. So, passing that bit of information back to my next door neighbor makes him just as guilty as the finger that he points at me.

The moral of the story is: in your moment of celebrations, and the cause of your morning pity–you’ve probably committed the same action that you yourself are accusing me at this very moment.

Happy New Year!

Posted in General, Holiday | Comments Off

So, 2006 is here at last

January 1st, 2006 Thomasso

Happy New Year everyone. Hope all those New Year’s resolution are kept and everyone was well behaved during the festivities. I stayed at home (again, for the fourth year in a row) and watched the fireworks on Millen Island as the final seconds passed away from 2005 into 2006. I have an amazing view from my bedroom window over looking the Fraser River and the Island. They were quite pretty this year as the entire barrage of lights flashed up into the night sky for about one minute.

So here is my list of New Years resolutions!

1. Loose some weight! I’m tired of that mid-line girth.
2. Work in my chosen field rather than picking another looser/labourer job in a dusty warehouse.
3. Travel more often. Destinations like Brazil, Turkey, Europe and maybe somewhere in Asia.
4. Buy a new car/truck.
5. Save as much money as I can to buy some real estate on Vancouver Island–I like it there.
6. Finish my degree in College. (This should be number one on the list.)
7. Quit buying gas station coffee every morning: to expensive!
8. Make my own coffee every morning: I do own a coffee maker with timer: Sheeesh.
9. Cut way back on my Cell Phone time.
10. Buy some plants for the home and make it look alive again. That watering thing was what put me off from having them in the first place.
11. Do a full maintenance on my RV. It needs some TLC.
12. Clean out my junk bins of old computer parts. Heck, it is all outdated now, why keep them!
13. Organizing my filing cabinet. Huge task there!
14. Reclaim all the books I lent out to friends and family and consider charging late fees. If libraries can do it, why can’t I?

Posted in General, Holiday | 2 Comments »

The Big Red and White Guy with Gifts

December 25th, 2005 Thomasso

The big guy has come and gone leaving gifts of toys and fun stuff for the holidays. Yes sir, the big guy, Santa Clause, had made his way to the little town of Fort Langley, managed to craw through my furnace chimney and stuff the bottom of the artificial tree positioned carefully on my living room hutch which is just big enough to support it and the stand it sits in. With the wind and the rain outside, the theme inside was almost wintry. With the exception of the 13C temperature and sudden gusts of wind, if I closed the window blinds you could almost think is was snowing outside. I am glad however that it is not snowing out side and the temperature is above zero–this would mean constant trips outside making sure waterlines are covered and the neighbour’s cats are not living underneath the patio stripping away the insulation between the house–this had happened last year.

I spent the early part of today creating yet another Word Press Theme! Yes, the Red and White Theme is almost complete except for a few bits of tweaking and image adjusting, it should be up and running by this afternoon. I was trying out some new ideas I had from the last theme I made, which did not turn out that great. you could say I learned some valuable lessons from a mistake that took more than five hours to sort out. In the end, I think I have a really cool and unique theme for Word Press.

Instead of making the Christmas turkey and other traditional meals, I went with the Christmas Spaghetti and special meat sauce boughten only in a can. My favorite homemade meal that I enjoy cooking. Not a good meal for one who should be on a diet, but when you want a meal with lots of left-overs, this is the stuff to make. I even went and spoiled myself with white cheese and Italian spices for that real authentic taste! Now that is what I call a traditional Christmas treat.

Posted in Blog and Web Tech, General, Holiday, Photographs | Comments Off

Winter: Now the Days get Longer

December 21st, 2005 Thomasso

Winter has come upon us and as we sleep through the longest night we will be greeted with ever lengthening days from here on in until the cusp of Spring and Summer. Of all the days celebrated in the seasonal holidays for me this day is the most special. I plan my events around it and pay particular attention to it as it represents, as did the ancients, the rebirth the new year in terms of celestial events. So as you can see, if you read further on down, I plan my big events and mark changes on this day. I feel that in keeping with the rhythm of Solar System and the Earth, I can keep the rhythm of the things around me and use the ebbs and flow of these changes to my advantage. In 15 weeks the warm season will be here and along with it, hopes and promise of great things to come. So bring on Winter!
:kaffeee:

Family note

I got a new phone number on my mobile–please see email I sent out today. If you are not sure you have received it, then email from your address and I’ll update my address book and resend you the number.

More News

Today I gave notice to my employer of almost 11 years my resignation of employment. Best dam feeling I had in Ten years! My last day will be December 30th, 2005 and My new job should start around January 13th, 2006. I’m looking forward to my unemployment.

I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year and Seasons Greetings. May 2006 be the best year ever!

Posted in Astronomy, Bitching about work, Family, General, Holiday | Comments Off

New Toys to Play with

June 12th, 2005 Thomasso

My holiday, or as some people have corrected me, time off from work, because I really never had a holiday, or vacation as I like to call it, is now over. All good things come to a end. But, just before I return back to the throws of work and put on the ball and chain, I purchased a brand news laptop on Thursday, so I have something to keep happy during breaks and lunch times. I waited for some deals to come up and then pounced on them when they reduced the price by $300.00 just before they started the clearance for new stuff. I’m really hyped about it.

I had a “cheaper” laptop while back: it was old, slow, and out dated, and then some kind sole took it off my hands from a single moment of leaving it unattended at the college parking lot. I guess they needed it more then I did. Fortunately at that time I have nothing of real value in it, well, to me, anyways such as homework, however, I did learn a harsh lesson of college file, even college students are criminals too. This time, I have security on it. First, if they think they are getting some common Windows product, they are in for a shock! I have LINUX on it with full encryption and you would require several layers of passwords to get at the hart of the machine. I’ve also had a friend of mine install a security chip, so that it can be scanned by the police if it was taken.

Anyway, I have learned from my past and I will be keeping it very close by when in the public sphere. Obviously, I’ll be using it during classes, so as they are not that common on campus, I’m sure I’ll be noticed. I’m hoping being male, somewhat older and tend to hang in crowds of two or more, I highly doubt that someone would “jump” me for it. But Surrey, BC is getting out of hand for general street level crime, I won’t let my guard down! Sad eh?

Posted in Blog and Web Tech, General, Holiday, Law and Order, Photographs, Social Justice | 2 Comments »

Lots of Stuff Going On

May 30th, 2005 Thomasso

This has certainly been an action packed week. One, that if it were not for the fact that I could not of taken time off from work, would of ended up in a panic-attack or failing grades and unfinished work. Nevertheless, being granted time from work has saved my first series of mid-terms examination; the extra much needed time certainly lowered the stress level to a much more manageable pace and allowed for qualitative study time.

*WORK:*

As I mentioned before, I’m taking some time off; “time for good behaviour,” as I call it. As a Criminologist, I sometime equate situations in life to penal, or prison jargon. This helps to add humour to a dull ritualistic employment setting. Although my employer may not see this in the same perspective as I do, they seem to go along with it? So, I’ll be posting at unusual times than my normal pattern. Its amazing how much time in one’s life work really takes up, isn’t it?

*COMPUTER/TECHN ICAL:*

In the LINUX world, for those of you who follow the LINUX RedHat and FedoraCore projects, FedoraCora4-test3 (FC4-T3) has just been released, and the final release for FC4 will be sometime around June 10, 2005. I’ll be upgrading my current Operating System to FC4-T3 effective Thursday, because I find that installing bug-fixes are much faster than installing the final cut, then, install bug-fixes afterwords. In short, someone has already taken the time to make the RPM files (I know, you MS people have know idea what I’m talking about, do you..) and they install more cleanly.

*FAMILY:*

Mom, your computer is on it’s way! Yes, I shipped it though the Post and you should see it on Friday, barring any mishaps and natural disasters. The unit is insured for total cost. And NO!!!! I did not send it C.O.D., as Dean jokingly stated! How could I do that to my own Mother! LOL.

Posted in Bitching about work, Criminology, Diatribe, Family, General, Holiday, Homework and deadlines, University classes, Vacation and Travel | Comments Off

The Long Weekend, Finally!

May 20th, 2005 Thomasso

So, I’m into the third week of classes. As I type, there is a killer thunder and lighting storm heading over top of Fort Langley and I have my generator ready for the power outage! According to the weather office, rain, clouds and wind are in the forecast till Monday. Bummer! Just when I was ready to enjoy the upcoming May-Day parade this Monday, it will be rained upon. Crap! The thunder is getting louder?????

Some calendar notes I must take care of:

*Mom*: your computer is still in the box. I had no time to get it ready for this weekend and sent up to your neck of the woods. So, this weekend, I’m going to get it running and I’ll hopefully have it en route to you by next week. Sorry about that, my classes are swamping me–time, time, time.

Posted in Bitching about weather, Diatribe, Events, Family, General, Holiday | 1 Comment »