February 21, 2012

Finance » Canada's Federal Debt 2012: Still Rising

federal_surplus_defecit_2011Canada is going deeper into debt - federally, that is. This is the third fiscal year in a row where the Conservative Party of Canada have carried through on their plans for a non-balanced budget.

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Posted by Hammer at 12:53 AM | Comments (0)

February 13, 2012

Current Thoughts » Move Twitter Content Pane Left

twitter_content_paneI have been using Twitter for a while, and each time they change their site design it takes a bit of time to get used to it again. However, their last change (which I only recently inherited) didn't sit well with me; I don't like the content pane on the right. Here's a way to move it back to the left...

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Posted by Hammer at 09:37 AM | Comments (0)

February 12, 2012

Nostalgia » First Years in Residence

university residenceI spent the first two years of university living in residence. These were segregated dorms rooms, just large enough to hold a bed, desk, and dresser/closet. Living in residence was both a blessing and a curse...

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Posted by Hammer at 11:45 PM | Comments (0)

February 09, 2012

Technology » 11 Year Old Game Development: Happy Cats

Happy CatsEver since my daughter decided that she wanted to develop an iPhone game, she's been wracking her brain for ideas. Then after she comes up with an idea, there is a rapid-fire question and answer period with Dad (me). Here's her idea for "Happy Cats".

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Posted by Hammer at 01:29 PM | Comments (0)

February 01, 2012

Technology » The Cloud Brought Me Back Down

macmini.jpgIn 2005 I wrote an article How Do Normal People Survive With One, in which I outline all the benefits of running multiple computers. In just over six years, it seems that everything has changed...

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Posted by Hammer at 12:16 AM | Comments (0)

January 25, 2012

Stories from Others » Christmas Morning Flasher

woman-stretchingThis is one of the lesser-told stories from my Dad. Early one Christmas morning, my Mom and Dad went out for a walk along their street. It was December 1968, three months after they were married.

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Posted by Hammer at 12:01 PM | Comments (0)

November 22, 2011

My Life is a Stereo » Lavender Blue

lavender blue coverIn the fall of 1985, I was listening to a cassette tape of Misplaced Childhood by Marillion. I'm pretty sure I stretched the tape by playing it so much.

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Posted by Hammer at 12:02 AM | Comments (0)

October 28, 2011

Nostalgia » They Call Me Beef

hello my name is.pngChildhood nicknames are a wonder. They range from insightful to cruel, from flattering to confusing and beyond. They can be based on the person's real name, their hair color (or some other physical feature), their favorite sport... the list goes on. There is one nickname I never could figure out, though...

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Posted by Hammer at 07:04 PM | Comments (0)

October 11, 2011

My Life is a Stereo » On Every Street

empty streetI'm usually living in the present (or these days, the future), so it isn't often that I'll reminisce about a past relationship. Sometimes a song will remind me of a specific time or event...

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Posted by Hammer at 11:50 PM | Comments (0)

October 04, 2011

Current Events » Someone Saved My Life Tonight

accident tapeI was driving home after a game of curling tonight, traveling the same route I always take home, around 11:30 pm. I was sitting at the first controlled intersection, waiting on the red light to turn green...

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Posted by Hammer at 12:44 AM | Comments (0)

August 18, 2011

Camping » Sand Sharks, Alligators and Penguins

alligatorThis is the sixth summer of sand sculpting for me. How time flies. The weather was awesome this year, the sand was clean, the wind was perfect - and inspiration came easily.

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Posted by Hammer at 10:29 PM | Comments (0)

July 23, 2011

My Life is a Stereo » Just One Day

I stumbled upon this song "Just One Day" by RJ Chevalier and really liked it. However, it didn't include the lyrics. Here's my attempt at transcribing them...

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Posted by Hammer at 12:36 AM | Comments (1)

July 19, 2011

Interesting Links » Vote For The Song A Day Album Tracks!

songatron.jpgJonathan Mann is asking for our help - he wants people to listen to the 30 tracks he created in June and vote for the ones that should be included on his album: http://vote.songatron.com/

I encourage you to vote when you have more than just a couple minutes, since it will take time to listen to the tracks. I think at least half an hour is needed since you probably want to listen to a minute or so of each track. It's pretty fun, try it out!

Voting is only open until the end of July 31, 2011.

Posted by Hammer at 10:54 AM | Comments (0)

June 20, 2011

Technology » Welcoming The Cloud

cloud_computing.pngI just figured out that I am suddenly in favour of "cloud computing". I have switched my opinion 180 degrees on this just today. Here is my revelation...

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Posted by Hammer at 04:38 PM | Comments (0)

June 14, 2011

My Life is a Stereo » Song A Day Streaming Entertainment

songaday_mann.jpgI first heard about Jonathan Mann some time in the summer of 2009, around the time that his video for Bing Goes The Internet was spreading from geek to geek.

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Posted by Hammer at 11:51 PM | Comments (0)