Bloc party

Just in case you were planning on getting me a Christmas and or Birthday present, I have some hints posted on the right. No pressure though ;)
So this past weekend I got a horrible case of Cold Sores. Five on my upper lip. I looked like a leper. They are mostly healed now but it was pretty uncomfortable for a while, not to mention ugly.
The really cold weather also gave me a new un-appreciation for the C-Train. The colder it gets the more unreliable the C-Train gets, so there was plenty of standing in the cold.
On the plus side Shawn and I went to the Flames game on Tuesday. Shawn had never been to one before and it was a really good game to make your first. Calgary scored 4 (technically 3) power play goals plus one even strength. It was enjoyable. Props to Shawn for inviting me! (I am not sure what props are but I assume they are propellers. Everyone wants propellers.)
I am feeling pretty settled at Headplay now. I am comfortable with the work I am doing, but still find challenges in it. Getting to know the people more is good too. Today we tested out a Nintendo Wii on our device. It is a really fun gaming system. The controller has motion sensors so you actually swing your arm to play games like tennis and baseball.

And the winner is

So I got my results back from my APEGGA test. I passed! One step closer to being a professional engineering. Yay me! Crazy week so far. I am longing for Christmas.

Ramer Weekend II

So the Ramer weekend has passed and by my account it was successful. Just look at those smiles.
We went to Elkwater which was a good middle point for Damon coming from Sask and us coming from Calgary. The hotel was quite nice, even including a heated swimming pool. There was much time spent in there. As is common with Ramer retreats there was also much games played. A classic scene below. Unfortunately everyone assumed others would be bringing games so few games were brought. We had to make up the games ourselves, i.e. coming up with our own categories for Scategories.
We even went on a hike with an actual guide and discovered the treasure of Old Baldy. Oooo.... It turned out to be a film container of coins from around the world. It was quite a nice hike, even if a little cold.
The only complaint would be it was too short, but that is the nature of a weekend.
On a totally different path, I think I have discovered a major lie in my life. I feel that at a very base level, I don't trust people. Subconsciously, I am always waiting for them to betray me. My response is to keep people from getting too close to the real me, even people who I am close to. It can be a little frustrating to get to this point though. I recognize the issue, but I also recognize I am powerless to correct it. All I can do is keep praying about it and hope that God will remove it. I am not very patient that way though and I usually just push the issue away and stop thinking about it. I guess I need to pray about that too. *sigh*
On the plus side, the Flames have won 5 in a row! Yay!

Phones

So here's a little story about my adventures with phones, or lack thereof. Kris and I don't have a home phone, we just use a cell phone. However, we only have one between us. This usually isn't an issue as I don't need a cell at work. If we are doing different things in the evening we can plan out who needs the phone. Yes, I could feel pretty smug about saving money on phone usage.
Tonight I did not plan things out very well and I had a soccer game while Kris was out with the phone and the car. A friend was supposed to pick me up for soccer but I hadn't arranged what time. I figured the solution to my problem was a pay phone, so I set out walking around downtown trying to find one. There appears to be a disturbing lack of pay phones in this city. I think it is because of that movie Phone Booth. (It's a lame movie). After several blocks of walking and some directions I did find my pay phone but was unable to get a hold of my ride. Fortunately he picked me up anyway and I only had to wait outside for 15 minutes. Unfortunately, we lost the game. The moral of this story seems to be that I need to get a cell phone.
To make this day more unpleasant I missed lunch with uncle Mal and had to eat soup at my desk. I am sorry Mal, I was punished for my offense.
All in all it was kind of a cruddy day. Not so much that I really have anything t complain about, but it's my blog and I'll cry if I want to.
At least this weekend is the famed Ramer Getaway. Here is some exciting pictures from last years trip.

It's that time of the week

So on Tuesday this week I moved to my company's main office in the Chinook area. I feel so much better there. It is much nicer not to be in a single room office. When I need a break there are more places to go rather than just the bathroom. There are more people around too and it makes it feel like an actual business atmosphere.
This weekend Kris is on a retreat with her department (Spiritual Theology for anyone not in the know) in Montana. They get to meet Eugene Peterson. She was very excited about the trip. I expect she is on her way back home now.
So that meant I had to entertain myself this weekend. I managed to work my way into a "Guaranteed Fun Night" with some friends from Mentor, or at least a partial one. I had heard about these nights but never seemed to be invited to them while I was working there. It consisted of eating ice cream and watching videos of a trip to France, but it lived up to the name. I think it is the hilarious conversation that is so fun.
On saturday Corey and Dale (visiting from Chiliwack) came over and we played Civilization: The Boardgame for six hours. Games of this type and length usually aren't appreciated by our wives so it was a good opportunity to play. I am now hoping for some time over Christmas when we can have a long game with lots of people.