Blogger Bogged Down

Well, an inauspicious start to the day as I try to get a blog entry going and find that blogger is bogger now. The last few sessions I've noticed a sluggish behaviour and often publish attempts fail, and I have to try again. The good thing is that the failures are pretty well behaved, and I haven't lost any text yet. I'd hate to type ferociously away and hit "Publish/Post" and have it throw away everything.

Then again, maybe it would be good for the readers?! Ha, what am I saying. There probably are none of those, as search and browsing capabilities for blogs are still almost useless. I have blogs which I've had for months on other, very specific topics and I can't get a hit when I search for my own stuff.

Anyways, Friday's a decent day. Didn't get on to blog yesterday. I'm endeavoring not to miss a day other than occasionally on the weekend... but project 1 had me busy yesterday. The consultant's life is a wacky one. You work wildly away on a topic without getting a cent, other times you work wildly away on something and get a big bag of money. I think I prefer the latter.

Today has also been seeing some work on project 2. Finally identified a company for whom I'd be very interested to work. An exploratory company with an interesting semiconductor related product, just in the early stages, with about 7 employees. Went over and button-holed the president, and there were a few good connections on my resume to his team's activites. I'm not too enthusiastic, as these things rarely go anywhere, but I've only once before made the effort to go drop off a resume rather than the usual email thing, and it was a good connection that turned into a long discussion.

My biggest priority right this minute is to get up and get a cup of tea! I've been trying to do that for about 2 hours, but without any luck. There's always one more thing to check, one more thing to type. Hey - I'm doing it again. Help me, will you? Let's both go get a cup of Java or something... Here'we go!

Back With Beverages
Well, that was ironic. As I tried to save the blog, the system crapped out again, and I had to copy all the text to the clipboard, and try again after I got my tea, and started a big roast marinating. Luckily though, Blogger is working again. Not too impressive. Perhaps late on Friday afternoon is a popular blogging time.

Critical Shortages
We have a desperate lack of cookies. I could find no snackable options at all. I stared at some beef jerky I made a few weeks ago. Oh sure, it's tasty, but not a good complement to tea. So I'm snackless, I repeat, snackless.

But my tea is in one of my favourite cups - a bone-white fiestaware cup. It's not huge, but it has is very good dimensionally and functionally. I got it cheap at an antique shop, where they seemed to have many, I suspect they were factory seconds. The glaze is a tiny bit imperfect where the circular handle joins the body. But for me to enjoy tea or coffee, I really prefer a cup that has the characteristics of an old diner cup. So thick, white (inside at least) and smooth lines. The lip should be rounded to (this will sound weird) match the roundness of the flavour. Perhaps it's a strange synesthesia thing, but I associate a very hot tea or coffee, with a roundness and fullness of flavour that matches a perferred shape.

I've seen some lousy cups out there. A sharp, thin edged cup - even if white has it's appeal. Not sure what I'd want to drink from it. Perhaps if it's a classic squat, victorian tea cup with a saucer. That's not too bad. Fine, thin, fragile china. But still I like the thick heavy cup that says "it's raining out there, and cold but I'm inside in this middle-of-nowhere diner and I've got a hot cup of coffee and a big bowl of soup. That's a reall mug. So cuppy it's muggy.

Okay, probably too much on cups - I'll wrap by saying the worst cups to drink from are clear glass ones, and black ones. I don't mind a black cup with a white inside, but I need to see some contrast between my drink and the cup - I'm sorry. That's a requirement.

What do you drink out of? Lemme know.

Ottawa Media Rant Update
Readers of the Life Without Practice Blog (LWoP) will know I've ranted about local Ottawa Canadian Broadcasting Corporation programming and personalities before. There are some updates to their lineup that deserve comment (and supplemental ranting). But first let me say, I have to remain faithful as there is no other commercial free radio when I'm away from my computer, unless I make the effort to hook up my mini FM transmitter and retransmit an internet feed from BBC or Aus Broadcasting... or occasionally NPR.

But I always come back to CBC (as long as it's not at lunch time, and I know that Neal guy is on the air.)

Well, changes are afoot. I knew the brain-numbing Alan Neal was moving away from the lunch time show. Thank go, I will finally be able to listen to some radio with my sandwich again - rather than occasionally discovering a stand-in is working. But other moves are afoot!

So I have to right off the weekend music shows, where Mr. Sarcastic Wheeze-Laugher is headed. No problem. I'll miss out on some interesting music, but I can find that on the web anyway. BUT the other changes. The morning show long-time stand-in chick Lucy Van Oldenbarnveld (good name fun for the titles guy on TV) is leaving, as has long been expected. She did side-kick duty for a while, but took over hosting for big swathes of time while the searched for someone else. She'll take over for the evening TV news chip, whom I'll get to in a second.

Well someone new starts soon, and I'm eager to see what the replacement will be like. Another woman - I hope it's a decent morning voice. The noon show is being taken over by my old nemesis, who is now doing evening TV news. The former morning sidekick chick Giggles! (Aka Rita Celli). She used to be the woman ont he street sidekick, and had a huge inferiority complex as well as an incessant giggle. She could giggle her way through any interchange. And anytime someone referred to her as a 'sidekick' or something less than a co-host (she certainly wasn't that), she seemed to really get her back up in a hurry.

Finally they retooled the morning show a few years back and Giggles was somehow picked for the evening TV news spot. She brought her usual irrational giggle approach to Television and somehow held on to it. It's been moderately entertaining to watch, as you can't figure out when she's going to laugh innappropriately. The weather guy Ian Black looked for ages like he despised her, as she would launch an inane, giggling question to him during the 'witty banter handover' and he would not respond for an awkwardly long time, but rather make a strained look at the camera, and mumble a response. There seemed to be a seething, dismissive element to his demeanor. Someone must have given him a talking too though, as finally he tried to get more personable with her.

When she's not giggling uncontrollably, she seems to have to concentrate way too much while reading the teleprompter. A super concentrating expressionless look on her face and trying to get through, often pausing at the wrong spots on syllables in the middle of a word.

Sorry, Rita, I'm sure you're a fabulous person, but you should either explore a non-audience facing role, or take some serious giggle suppressants. Anyway, she'll be giggling her way back into radio. Perhaps they were getting marginal feedback from others who shared my view.

The drive home radio guy - on right now - is Adrian Harewood (sp?) and he ssems to be still doing a capable job, but utterly humourlessly, and without any interpersonal connection. There used to be witty banter with newsreaders or regular guests, but there seems to be a real distance there now.

CBC National news at supper time has some very sharp and talented staff. Gloria Makarenko is sharp as a tack, or at least comes across that way. Professional and poised. As is her alternate Ian Hanomansing (the ladies call him 'handsome man thing'). He can read and seems coherent and in control of his faculties. A strong newsreader. Though, I think some of the public comment from women on his looks and such would be career-ending sexual harassment if we heard a male making the same comments about a female news anchor. Whoa, Wendy Mesley, mmmm. Actually Wendy is probably past her prime a bit now - she was fine around 1989, oh yeah.

The Competition
The alternative for local television is Mr. Creepy Max Keeping, on the local CTV affiliate, CJOH. Imagine a 60 year old, effeminite guy with about a gallon of bourbon in him, trying to struggle through sentence. Slap an uncomfortable smile on him and you're all set. I won't even pursue the other stuff I'd like to say about the guy. (Ah, sweet anonimity).

But, I hear he's super-popular with the shut-in crowd, and somehow he seems to be the owner of the station or something, so nobody can drop him.

I won't get into that freak-job guy they have doing the late news. Big Leigh Chapple has also been hosting late night, and I think she's decent. She's probably had a hard time in her personal life with a wildly swinging body weight problem. That can't be easy for anyone, let alone someone on the news every night. She does a capable job of reading the news, and I won't fault anyone for their looks or problems like that. But that whack-job that hosts sometimes, man - oh forget it. I won't get into that.

Ah, radio and television information programming... So challenging to find good people, it seems. One of my favourites is Anna-Maria Tremonte. She's a real pro, and you get the added bonus of listening to hear what her interviewee's call her. She gets everything - Annie, Anna, Ann, Ann-Marie, Marie, Mary - but almost never Anna-Maria. It's great fun.

Am I Alone on this? Do you have strong opinions about the people on your local media sources, or national media? Give me a piece of your mind, let me know what you think about these talented folk. Slam me for being a judgemental cad (hey they chose a public career, I know I'd be lousy myself, that's why I stick to blogging. Rita would probably be an awesome blogger tee hee hee).

She should talk with an internet accent. She could say "In other news, el-oh-el, Saudi Arabian foreign minister, el-oh-el, said today, el-oh-el..." and so on. That would be more interesting.

Cooking and Eating
Well I thought I was going to make a short posting today, but I realized I had a lot of pent up comments on the shifting of the local media. I've got a big roast I've thawed out and am marinating a bit in some home made red wine. Yes - you read correctly. Home made. But you might have notice me claim gourmand status, and wine afficiando status earlier? Well, I purposely went and made a batch of cabernet purely for cooking purposes. Like all other home-made wines I've tasted from any source - it's swill. But it works well for cooking.

I'm also contemplating some yorkshire puddings. I haven't made those in a decade or more, and the severe cookie shortage mentioned earlier is pushing me towards making an extra tastey supper. Best get down there and start.

Wrap Up
Hmmm - for readers in the bitPlayer's timezone, it's nearing 5:30, and so an appropriate assignment for you today is to stop what you're doing now and GO HOME (if you're working). If you are reading this later and want something creative to do, go and google the phrase "Downward Dog" and surf the links until you find a step-by-step picture set. Then do one. Tell me what you think? Have you done that before? Try doing 5 a day for a week and see if you feel more chipper after a week.

PS. Ensure the adult filter is on in google preferences - I have no idea what might come up if it's not!