Still here

Oh blogging, yeah forgot about that. It seems to have been so long since I last posted all kinds of things have been going on. Doctah J posted for one, telling us of the incredible adventures his job throws up and how he's heading for Sydney for four weeks. Nice place to be at Christmas, I know his wife likes to spend Christmas Eve out and about with handsome strangers in a see-through dress, which is not the worst experience in the world.


And Whisky Dan also got off his pooper to upload photos from halloween. Here's one - note Cole thought he was too cool to get a proper costume and decided a cross-dressing jackass would be the better idea. Idiot.


Speaking of Dan getting round to things, he decided to play around with our internet and put a password protection on it. As a result, it is much much slower, although we do advertise to our neighbours that 'Cole Hobson shaves his balls' as there really weren't any other options to name our wireless connection.

But less of those losers, what about me you ask? Well I'm still working lunchtimes at a Philipino restaurant downtown which is crappy enough but it pays the bills. However, I do have a new job starting soon at a brand new fancy-shmancy restaurant in Halifax. It's called Mosaic and will serve expensive food in the evenings before becoming a cocktail bar later on in the night. Hopefully, I'll get some good cash from it but I have to work hard. Last night, they took the staff wine tasting, as we have nearly forty wines to learn about and recommend. I'm quite excited about this place, it'll be fun. I say now!

Also, I have managed to maintain a relatively healthy, considerably serious relationship with a single member of the opposite sex. I say serious, as it's lasted over a month now and she still finds my jokes funny! Her name is Gameshow and has been getting on very well with Laura. One of the main advantages of Gameshow and Laura getting on are that Dan and I can get rid of them quite easily and have some quality ping-pong time without interruption.

In fact, not only am I still going out with a girl but so is Igor. What the hell is that about? And he's got a proper engineering job starting Monday. Congratulations again but why is everyone growing up and getting things together? I blame global warming.

I'm sure there's much more to tell you but I can't think of it off the top of my head. Congratulations to Rizzo and Rachael back home, for the birth of young Ashton. Wow, more people sorting their lives out. Maybe there's a hidden message in all this, but I ain't gonna look for it, I don't wanna know. Life is good, life is fun. I'm gonna stick with what I've got. See ya!

Very Impressed

This evening marked the end of a four year wait as I managed to find the time to view the latest Bond movie, Casino Royale. Twas good, very good in fact. Now I know both Casino Royale and Daniel Craig have received nothing but exceptional reviews since the film was released but I of course needed to give it my own seal of approval as well.

I have only ever seen Daniel Craig in Layer Cake, a confusing and not brilliant film in my opinion. The only reason I watched it was to find out more about the guy after he had been cast as the new 007 and I liked what I saw, despite the film. However, it was understandable why Craig received so much opposition from Bond fans for his casting, simply because he didn't look the part. I believe he doesn't look right in this poster either.


Nevertheless, I certainly didn't jump on the bandwagon of campaigns such as Craig not Bond despite my anguish that Craig does not have a hairy chest so couldn't quote lines as Connery did, such as "There's a Japanese proverb that says birds don't nest in trees without leaves," an apt philosophy I follow. Rather I became intrigued by the potential new take on the franchise.

And that is exactly what Casino Royale is - a new take, a different perspective. Ok, Q and MoneyPenny are omitted, the gadgets are fewer and Bond is more physical than we are used to. But that closes one door and opens a window - instead of over-filling the film with ambitious stunts, the tension and suspense created throughout is fantastic. The quirks and one-liners have been minimalised as well, to ensure when Bond does deliver a line, it is timed perfectly, perhaps when unexpected, to maximise its effect. Craig is so hard-edged in this film, the one-liners are executed perfectly, you can hear the sarcasm or irony scream, which makes you laugh even more. Certainly I prefer such deliverance over Roger Moore raising his eyebrow, which always made his comebacks a little comedic for me. Personal opinion though.

What's the best thing about the new Bond? Well Daniel Craig himself answered 'the car,' which appears to be a pretty strong argument.


Seriously, how beautiful is this car? And for those who may argue it's no DB5, made famous by Connery in the 60's, well that's in the film too. Could you imagine being asked to play 007, drive an Aston Martin DBS and then an Aston Martin DB5? I'm surprised Craig accepted the pay check, not sure if I would. But is he Connery? Is he this cool?


Meh, doesn't matter. Because the new Casino Royale isn't trying to emulate the past, but enthrall audiences of today. Which it does, absolutely and undoubtedly. Daniel Craig has the look, the glare, the ego in the film to make me wish I could do that. There is a particular scene where he dons a tux and spends ages just looking at himself in the mirror. Front on, side on, for ages. He is James Bond, and loves himself as James Bond. Which is exactly who James Bond is: confident, arrogant in fact, selfish, ruthless, cold-blooded and the best at what he does. I think this pose sums up Craig's interpretation.


I wish I could pull off a look like that. Not for anyone else, but just for my ego. And that's why I think those who made and starred in this film should be congratulated. I wanted to be 007 today watching that film as much as I did when I have seen any other Bond film but for different reasons. His mannerisms, posture, presence were iconic to me just as Connery defined cool when beating Goldfinger in golf or as Pierce Brosnan looked standing next to John Cleese. The acclaim of this film must be twice as satisfying for him given the opposition to his original casting, to which I say enjoy and well deserved.

Cleaning up after Lois

And where have I been for the past however long it's been since I last posted? Well my brother Gareth has been over in Nova Scotia since last Sunday, sent on a mission from back home to work out just why I live here.

However, he was allowed to take a quick break from his investigation and we decided said break should be in the Big Apple. Or if you want a more accurate nickname, the big traffic jam. It was not our fault we missed check-in for the flight back by 5 minutes, it was the fact the bus journey that had taken 35 minutes arriving in New York took about and hour and thirty five minutes on the way back, after leaving 10 minutes late anyway. Burman, don't say anything about the train. No, seriously shhh. Quiet. It was your fault anyway. Apparently they're renovating the city after the havoc you and your friends caused over the six months binge you went on.

But we did get out of the queues for enough time for some posing.



Nice place New York but weird weather. Look at the view here (photos not edited - I don't have as much time as Dan to spare) when we caught a helicopter ride over Manhattan, compared with how intense the sun was, creating a cool shadow of the Empire State Building.



And I won't even mention how much it pissed down and soaked everyone the one day. Oh, too late. Well, now I've mentioned it, I'll also tell you how I'd giggle at the Noo Yorkers running in the rain holding newspapers over their heads to keep dry. But it seemed quite effective, getting themselves and their papers wet at the same time whereas I was only getting myself wet at any given time.

Despite getting wet, missing a flight and deciding I couldn't live with that traffic system, New York is still very cool. I visited four years ago and have planned to go back since. I wasn't dissapointed, it is still a lot to take in and so surreal looking at things that are usually only ever seen on tv. These last photos are some of my favourite sights this trip, though we do have other photos on Gareth's camera. I expect to receive them before I get any Halloween photos off Dan. Do I go on about that enough?

Waiting.........

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you a belated happy halloween. I planned to use this post to describe Double W's Halloween Ping Pong Palooza (or whatever mine and Dan's party was called), using the photos taken that night. However, I had no batteries for my camera and so I'm waiting for Dan to upload the ones he took and I can steal them.

Hopefully Dan will get off his arse soon, stop picking his nose and send me those photos so I can show you them. I guess that'll be by Christmas or the next time Doctah J updates his blog, whichever comes first!