Sunday CLick ArouNd

So, since we're winding down the turbo part of the wedding season, I thought I'd link to a couple of interesting wedding sites...."Nooooooooooooooo!" You cry...but it's ok.
Really.
I'm not a big poofy wedding fan myself. Ask my Sister in Law. She had a Wedding Binder while she planned her wedding. Every time I saw that burgundy binder, I could feel myself slipping into a coma.
For those that know me, they know that our wedding was small. Our annual BBQ is about 3 times bigger than our wedding was. What can I tell you?...I didn't have the fantasy when I was a little girl.
I just might have been a guy in my last life or something.

Anyhow, Vintage Weddings shows a nice progression from normal "I'm getting married" garb to current psycho "I paid 5 grand for my dress...this better be perfect, bitch!". It goes up to the 1970's. I suppose that's when that psycho-Bride trend really started to take off.
A wedding can turn a normal woman into a crazy lady.

World Wedding Traditions covers a lot of different "ethnic" traditions...a lot of them, but not Serbian (natch), so here are the links from a while ago that I took from American for Hire.
They cover the traditions of Serbian Weddings from the The Grooms House to the Brides House.

Old People are Funny is a collection of nutty things old people have done that has been reported in the news. Some of the stuff is pretty crazy, but I guess no crazier than some of the stuff I've read about that younger people do. I suppose those whacky youngsters grow up to be loony oldsters.

The Mister and I were out at lunch yesterday and got to talking about old Kung Fu movies.
I got stuck on a particular actor that was in a lot of them. I couldn't remember his name...and because I'm an OCD freak, this bothered me until The Mister remembered that his name was Jim Kelly, along with his partner in those movies, John Saxon.
That got us talking about old Blaxploitation films from the 1960's and '70's.
The other day, he vetoed my purchase of Cleopatra Jones.
I know that those movies were exploitative, and were negative stereotypes...but at the time, they were super cool! They were the "Gangsta" movies of that time. And now, the fashion statement can't be beat. When we look back at the outrageous styles of the '70's, we totally look back to those movies.
The women were pretty hot, I mean, that can't be denied...Tamara Dobson? Pam Grier?
C'mon.

Dolemite was co-written by Rudy Ray Moore, who ran with the character as a stand up comedian long after the movies stopped being popular.
In the spirit of Rudy Ray's sense of humour and ability to poke fun at his character, here's The Pimp Builder. You can dress your own little pimp...but you need shockwave to do it.

Do you need to know the time in another country, right now? Click here.

Quiz Section:
Burn some time playing Trivia Challenge like I did.
A lot of time, actually.
Because it was pretty easy, and I like the self-esteem boost.
I've done this Colour Quiz a number of times and it's kind of interesting.
Here's another colour quiz it's also kind of interesting.
This quiz is called "Photos you like better" and is supposed to tell something about your personality by the photos you choose. It said that I was a guy...which might explain the wedding thing... However, you'll get Carpal Tunnel before you get any answers.

Are you worried that the way that you lace your shoes has become boring and trite?
Then check out 31 ways to lace your shoes, and break out of your humdrum, boring lace routine.

That's all guys...

Oh yeah, I'm guest hosting at Mr. Anchovy while The Anchovies are in Calgary this week...I'm guesting along with *(Asterisk).
You should check him out too.

That's all.

What signifies the end of summer for you?

All Torontonians will agree that when the C.N.E. (Canadian National Exhibition) opens, it's the beginning of the end.

The fair is a summer staple.
I grew up walking distance from the "Ex" and spent many end of summers either with rolled newspaper at the end of a driveway waving potential parkers onto our lawn, or working at the fair.

My first job was at the "Ex", and you'd be hard pressed to find someone who grew up in Parkdale, hell...in the west end... who didn't work there at least one summer.

The "Ex" was my window to the world.
When I was in my teens, my world was very small, as most kids worlds are. Confined to your neighbourhood, and to your school.
At the "Ex" kids came from all over the city to work, and I made friends from areas of the city I had never even seen.

If you talk to a Torontonian, there are certain things that they remember about the "Ex"...it could be something as obscure as the guy on the Midway who used to shout "DOGGIE, DOGGIEEEEEEE!!!" over and over.
Or it could be (for those who liked to dance), standing in front of the Hymalaya because it was the ride that played the best music.

It could be the ice cream waffle sandwiches, or the tiny doughnuts at the food building. Or it could be the concerts at the Grandstand that brought some of the most famous bands to Toronto.

Is it The Alpine Way? which was a way to get back to the main gates from the Princess Gates.
Once you had walked the whole fair, you could take the Alpine Way, and ride above the crowd all the way back to the Dufferin Gates.

The real glam days of the Exhibition are gone, and the last time that The Mister and me went down to The "Ex", it seemed so much smaller and less exciting than it used to be.
Part of that is because we're adults, but part of it is also what urban planners have done to the fair grounds.

dismantled important elements of what made the C.N.E. special and great to make room for conference buildings, and additions to current buildings for the trade show industry.
I understand that the C.N.E. cannot stand empty, and unusable for the sake of a mere three weeks at the end of the summer, but what the planners have done is taken a part of the feeling of this city, and made it just another roadside attraction.

"Bring back The Alpine Way!", I say.

How important is bonding where children are concerned?

I've talked to many people who immigrated to Canada, but were left behind with family in their home countries, and brought over when their parents were "settled".

The Mister was left with family by his mother.
He was 18, and his sister was 9, when they were reunited with their mother, at that time... she brought them to Canada.
I was left behind with my grandparents, and brought to my parents who returned to Europe from Canada and were waiting in Germany, for me to be brought by an uncle so that we could make our way to Canada together.

My parents and my grandparents generation didn't believe in discussing things with children. Everything was on a need to know basis. This was a reoccurring theme in my life, and I am confident that it was like that because they felt they were protecting me.
Shielding us from the confusion of adult decisions, and changes.

When I was a little girl, I was told over and over that my mother was "chak leko, leko" (far, far away), and when she came for me, she would bring me a big doll.
Just like the doll that sat on my grandmothers high bed with her skirt all spread out around her.
The doll I was never allowed to play with or touch.
The doll that was as big as I was.

Yesterday, while the sister-in-law and I were just sitting around in the backyard passing time and talking, we were discussing this subject.
She doesn't remember reuniting with her mother either.

My mother tells the story, and says how she cried and cried trying to convince me that she was my mother.
Mama says that all I kept repeating was that she was not my mother, and that my mother was far, far away (chak leko leko).
Our time away from each other...is lost forever.

My bond was with my grandparents, and as much as I love my mother...I don't think we ever recovered from that separation.
Don't get what I'm saying wrong...I'm just saying that when people talk about the "parental bond", it's a real thing.
It's not something that you can hold in your hand, but it's something that is held in your head.

I'm just sayin'
No life changing decision comes without consequences and sacrifice.

Perhaps this is why I get so pissed off with illegal immigrants who feel that they can just jump the queue, and demand that they get amnesty...and get to stay without going through the legal channels to become citizens.
Right now, at this moment...here in this city, there is a mother who is working hard to bring her children here. Sending barrels home, with toys and clothes and photos so that her children don't forget what she looks like.
Saving money, filling out forms and going to immigration hearings in order to reunite with her children legally.

I'm not saying that it shouldn't be the other way around.
What I am saying is that it is what it is, and people should not be allowed to manipulate the system while others are following the rules.
Valuing the law, and abiding by it.
These are the citizens I think are worthy of citizenship.

Speed up the process in both respects.
Help families reunite sooner...before that time is lost to a parent and child forever.
Deport those that don't respect our laws sooner, and make them do it legally...or change immigration laws to favour families.

But don't allow the manipulation to continue.
It's a slap in the face to those of us who made the sacrifice.

Fainéant Generation

This morning while reading The Glob & Mail , I came across a full "strategic council poll" on lifestyles and attitudes of generations from pre-Boomer age to The Echo generation...which is what the current 20-29 age group is called (apparently. It's here in the left hand column, if you're interested in going over statistics by generation.

So here are the demographics:
Echo (Age 20 – 29)
Gen X (Age 30 – 39)
Younger Boomers (Age 40 – 49)
Older Boomers (Age 50 – 59)
Total Boomers (Age 40 – 59)
Pre Boomers (Age 60+)

I found this portion of the poll interesting:

"Though they are often still living with their parents, a care-free echo generation is anticipating a very bright financial future.
The echo generation is living life to its fullest. Compared with other generations they are more likely to exercise (73% exercise 3 or more times a week vs. 62% of the general population), go out for dinner (23% vs. 13%), have sex (46% vs. 28%) and smoke marijuana (7% vs. 3%). Often still living with their parents (36%), many (35%) acknowledge they may be working fewer hours than their parents did at their age.
Overall, this generation is satisfied with life, and is very optimistic that it will get even better.
Half (50%) report they are very satisfied with their lives, with 43% saying they are somewhat satisfied.
Almost 9 in 10 (87%) say they expect life to improve greatly (52%) or somewhat (35%) in the next 10 years.
They have few concerns for their financial futures. In comparison to other generations, they tend to be confident in their financial security in old age (46% very confident), and expect their standard of life to increase following retirement (39%). And, not only are they expecting inheritances to help them out (54%), they fully intend to have the wealth required to leave one for their children (92% of those with children)."

Isn't that special.

So, let me translate for you:

"Though they are often still living with their parents, the care-free echo generation is anticipating a very bright financial future.
The echo generation is living life to its fullest on their parents backs. Compared with other generations they are more likely to exercise,(because they have a lot more free time on their hands, since mommy is cooking and doing their laundry for them) go out for dinner (because they have more expendable income thanks to not having to pay rent), have sex (in their parents basement) and smoke marijuana (hey...they can afford it). Often still living with their parents (36%), many (35%) acknowledge they may be working fewer hours than their parents did at their age ('cause hey, I'm entitled, and working is tiring).
Overall, this generation is satisfied with life, and is very optimistic that it will get even better, after their parents die and they inherit everything their parents broke their backs to make.
Half (50%) report they are very satisfied with their lives, with 43% saying they are somewhat satisfied, but only because their parents won't spring for that vacation they feel they're entitled to because they exist.
Almost 9 in 10 (87%) say they expect life to improve greatly (52% - parents will have left me everything) or somewhat (35% - parents will still be alive) in the next 10 years.
They have few concerns for their financial futures, any why should they? In comparison to other generations, they tend to be confident in their financial security in old age (46% very confident), and expect their standard of life to increase following retirement (39%). And, not only are they expecting inheritances to help them out (54%), they fully intend to have the wealth required to leave one for their children (92% of those with children)."

That last line kills me.

I know that it's a few generations away, but I don't think that members of the echo generation are going to provide for their children what their own parents provided for them.
It's a selfish generation, and I think that we're going to do a full swing back to kicking your kids out at 18 to fend for themselves.
This last generation isn't going to tolerate from their children what their parents tolerated from them.
They're far too self-revolved.
And I'll tell you what....I'll bet most will blow what their parents built and have very little to leave their children.

Yeah...harsh, eh?
But listen,...I'm not talking about everyone am I?
I will tell you that I'm watching the change and shift in the way in which many younger people view themselves, and what they see as their expectations from their parents.
It's only going to get harder for the generations to come.
The "echo" generation is not nearly as generous as the generation before them has been.

But, that's just one opinion.
This is coming from someone who is watching Gen X'ers run to fix everything for their kids which will only serve to make them weak, and unable to cope with the difficult situations life will surely bring.
Many GenXer's I know depend heavily on their parents to help with raising their own children...so...I dunno...you tell me.

Tell me you don't want to get up and dance...



I thought I'd get in the mood...this weekend is our annual BBQ, so I'm home this week preparing for our fete on Saturday night.

I heard this song, and thought I'd look him up...Here's some info on Desmond Dekker.
He recently passed away.
R.I.P. Ska King.

The Passion of Love Turns the Brain Soft

This morning, on the street where I work, there were signs pasted all over poles, and fences.
Someone took a long time to post all of these signs on bright yellow paper.
I was sure that someone had lost a pet.
I focused on one of the signs, and read what was on it.
There was a picture of a young attractive woman, and underneath the photocopied photo, were these words:

"DO YOU KNOW (the girls name)?
She's the Argentinean whore that stole my husband.
Tell her to send that "idiot" back to his FAMILY"

Now, a few questions ran through my head after reading this.

If your husband leaves you for an "Argentinean whore", why do you want him back?... and if she's a whore, and he left you for her...what would that make you?
And where's the picture of him?
He's the one who ran off on his family.
Why would you post your business out on every pole down a street?
Because if they know her, then they know him, and if they know him, then they know YOU... you stupid moron.

Truly, love can make people soft in the head.

Almost Monday Click Around

Here's a link called Crazy Weddings. The photos are not all that crazy, but I guess if you're talking seeing them in a wedding album, they would be crazy. They look more like outakes.

Ever think about freaking your guests out with food?
Well then, feel free to take this recipe and make a Meat Cake. Yes. A meat cake made with meatloaf, ketchup and mashed potatoes for icing. I wouldn't leave it out too long though.

Chav Scum is dedicated to all things Chav. Here's a little documentary on the Chav in his/her natural habitat. We call them Hosers (ok...they're not exactly Hosers...), Americans call them Trailer Trash, Brits call them Chavs.

I'm not a fan of Jackson Pollock. Sorry. For those of you who think he's a genius...whatever.
Create your very own Jackson Pollock here, and voila! You're an artist too!

I took this "Are you a good eyewitness" quiz.
Ehrmmm, let's just say that you'd better hope that I'm not a witness to any crime.
I suck.

50 Years of World Press Photos is someplace I spent a lot of time. It chronicles 50 years worth of "Photo of the Year" award winners.

I know a few people who could ace Guess Which Movie, but I'm not one of them. Almost every movie they featured in this test was not seen by moi.
See how well you do, and if you do well...don't tell me about it.

Speaking of movies, if you want to see a trailer of an upcoming movie, go to Trailers and watch them. There are a few I'm interested in seeing, but probably not at the theatre. We recently saw Miami Vice and let me just say that I was convinced that Foxx and Farrell forgot how to act. Seriously, they should be paying YOU to go see it.

Do you think you're a poet?
Language is a Virus has a Poetry Generator just for you (plus some ads with jiggly chicks on the sidebar).

That's all for now, guys...

Tragedy

My Uja is a sensitive man.
Outwardly, looking at him...you would never know it.
Talking to him when he's angry...you would never know it.
Being on the end of his wrath...you would never think it.

But he is.

He tries to keep that hard shell showing, but the soft center peeks out every so often.
His store is on Queen Street, and there is no shortage of vangrants, homeless, and those that we generally don't want to deal with wandering into his shop.

A few years ago, I worked in his store on weekends, and while I spent many years above his shop as a youth, I've grown unaccustomed to the regulars on the street.
Dishevelled winos would come into his store, and he would drop them a fin or a twoonie.
He'd call them "Chief", and "Boss", and they would go on their way, thanking him on the way out.

One afternoon, after one particularly filthy frequenter left, I said to him: "Why do you do that? They just keep coming back..."

Uja smiled sadly and said to me "Haney...vee all jast van tragedy from da street..."

And then he went on to tell me the stories of those that have passed through his door.
People who had jobs, and lives, who fell.
Something happened, and they never recovered.

He reminded me that "Vee hev to stay human...",
...and to never forget that it could happen to anyone.

We're Back...



...and what a lovely time we had.

In the little slide show I made, there were only a few pictures of The Shelburne Museum, a fabulous place with quite a collection...from Degas, to Monet to Manet...it just went on and on.
We were lucky enough to be able to catch the Georgia O'Keefe exhibit.
This was a great unexpected thrill for me.
We thought that we would make a trip to Boston, but were having such a great time, we didn't bother.
We'll save it for the next time.

Potter House was lovely, and our hosts Mike and Jean were absolutely endearing.
Fabulous and elaborate breakfasts, and waking up from sheets smelling of fabric softener to coffee brewing in the morning rather than hotel sterility.
A chance to meet and speak to people who can tell you the history of where you're visiting, and are more than willing to share their knowledge of the most interesting places to visit.
The Mister and I gave up hotels a long time ago, and always stay at B&B's whenever we go away.
There's no comparison.

As much as we like to go away, it's still nice to come home.
When the border guard says: "Welcome home", there is still that relief that you're where you belong.

Now...it's back to the grind...

Optimist Cat

Click on image...and then Make your own

I had a good time with this...

These Shoes Were Made for Walkin'

Not really.
They're made for dancing!
But seriously, don't those shoes look like I should learn swing?
I have just the little black vintage dress for them...
I bought them today with the birthday gift certificate my sister-in-law gave me...and we are walkin'...The Mister and me are road trippin' again, so the Stepson is on his own this weekend.

We're headed to Vermont via Quebec, which means we'll stop a bit in Montreal, and we might even get as far as Boston, Mass.
We'll come back up through New York.
We've booked our Bed and Breakfasts and are pretty well ready to go.

I stopped into my favourite Indian Flute Salon for a cut and colour, and my Salon friend Kami was happy to see me...she had been waiting for me to come in to give me the movie she had told me about the last time I was there.
She leant me Saathiya a Bollywood movie.
She knows how much I love them and is slowly lending me the movies in her collection that she loves.
I watched it tonight and it didn't disappoint...drama, love, misunderstandings, parental guilt, and DANCING!

I promised her a Serbian movie when I returned her movie.
She was all excited because she's never seen a Serbian movie before...listen, I'll have to choose carefully since Eastern European movies are not nearly as fun as Bollywood movies are.

I hope I don't depress her.

Twats Next Door

This afternoon while puttering around the house, I heard that Steel Pulse was going to be at some festival here in the near future.
It's been a long time since I've heard anything about Steel Pulse, but I did like them a lot years ago, when reggae was...well, let's just say...different.

When The Mister and I lived in our second apartment together, our neighours were two young guys. They were roommates, and they partied. A lot.

We never knew their names, but they would on occasion knock on the door to borrow a blender, or screwdriver...or something...anyhow, when these two twats liked a song, they killed it.
They played it over, and over, and over.
One afternoon I heard "Wild Horses" by the Rolling Stones about 63 times...another time I heard Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl" all afternoon, back to back...A song I always loved, but after that afternoon I never had the desire to hear it again.

Here is Steel Pulse's version of "Brown Eyed Girl", and can you believe it?
I heard it, and remembered the two gearheads that used to live next door to us.

Behold!

Almost every day I pass a billboard that from time to time is rented out by someone who's really into Ezekiel, and I don't think it's because of the movie Pulp Fiction.

Ezekiel, the end-time Prophet; and this person, who has enough money to frequently rent this billboard.

I guess it beats standing on the corner with a sandwich board with the words, "The End is Nigh" written on it.

And frankly, I can appreciate the billboard more than someone stopping you on the street with little pamphlets, and trying to "talk to you about Jesus".

At least while I'm stopped at the corner and look up, I always read the billboard and think about what "it_is_written.hotmail.com" has decided to put up this time, and think about the verse he/she chose.

I think it's a ground breaking approach for fundamentalists to take.

And that way, they can leave the rest of us alone to worship in our own way.

I agree with Spicy.

The Beckhams are officially plastic.

Click on photo and then shield your eyes...

9/11 Bride

Apparently, a filmmaker named Ned Danny made a film about couples whose weddings were interrupted by the events of 9/11 in 2001.

There is a whole self-righteous website dedicated to Stopping Ned Danny.

Stopping him from doing what?
Doing a film on couples whose weddings will be forever burned in their memories as the day that a disaster happened?

It happened.
Should their weddings have been postponed?

Now listen, I'm the last one to sit around backing Bridezillas...but those people who plan weddings for a year or more..(not me...mine didn't include what others go through for their "special day") should they have stopped their weddings because of the terrorist attacks?

Is it different for us, than it is for others whose lives go on in war torn countries?
Babies don't stay in the womb because a bomb falls.
People don't stop getting married in war torn countries where bombs are falling all the time.

Are we so featherbedded that we feel that life must stop because a disaster happens on this side of the pond?

Sure, who wants the date September 11, 2001 as their wedding anniversary?
But if it was planned a year in advance, who are you to say that it shouldn't go on?

Ned Danny documented, in film the feelings of some people whose weddings were on that day.
So what?
I'm interested to know how they dealt with it.

How is this documentary a "horrible, disrespectful, and unpatriotic film that desecrates the victims and families of the terrorist acts of 9/11 by belittling their deaths and promoting radical conspiracy theories."

As the website claims...

Why?
Because people were asked about how it went?

Oh, get over yerselves.
Fuckin' navelgazers.
And I'm not talking about the couples.

Photo from: Carla Zilbersmith Theatre

Turk Fiction

The "Foot Massage" Scene from Pulp Fiction.
In Dutch.

Titillating Tito

My new visitor Anna, mentioned Tito jokes in an e-mail...which reminded me of something I read on Glory of Carniola a long time ago.
So, while I was re-checking it out, I came across Tito's women.
A list of which "Only women with whom Tito allegedly had children or was married to are listed".

"All other women with whom Tito also had relationships of some kind are (in his own words to Radulovic) "too numerous to find out""

Holy playa'd out Batman!
And it's not even like he was hot or anything.

And just a little Tito Trivia here...while reading through a book on Guyana my elder stepson was using for a project when he was in middle school, I accidentally came across a picture of a bust of Tito at the entrance to the old Anglican Cathedral in Georgetown, Guyana.

"a monument to the four founders of the Non-Aligned Movement - President Nasser of Egypt, President Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Jawaharlal Nehru of India and President Tito of Yugoslavia"

He sure did get around, our Tito.

When Celebrities Attack...

LONDON — Supermodel Naomi Campbell was arrested after allegedly causing a disturbance outside a former boyfriend's home, a British newspaper reported Friday.

Again?

Didn't she just cause $55,000 of damage on Badr Jafar's (whoever that is) Yacht?

Apparently, she lost her temper over a tomato, mozzarella and dried ham starter (granted, who wouldn't? Mozzarella? C'mon...Feta was the obvious choice) and abused the Chef who wasn't taking any of her shit...that's when Naomi went postal on him.

When is someone going to put her ass in jail?

NayNay needs to spend some time being BigBertha's Bitch, noshing on some government cheese and saltines for a refreshing change.

I Learn Something New Every Day...

So, I think that I've often blogged about my lack of understanding about the attraction of tattoos and piercings.

This morning on the way in to work, I was listening to CBC's morning program "Subcultures", and the topic was body modification.

I listened to an interview with a young man who does scarification as well as tattoos and piercings for a living.
He talked about the "spiritual" side of scarring, the "cleansing" and "getting rid of pain" and while he was talking all I could think about is the whole "cutting" phenomenon that has become a problem with many people in the past few years.
A problem that has been labelled a psychological issue amongst teens and young people.

The host, Hal Niedzviecki did a whole monologue on how we're all modified in one way or another, from our blue tooths, to our cell phones to our piercings, and tattoos.

Well, I see what he's saying...but I think that it's stretching it to compare:

This or say, this to carrying a cellphone or wearing a blue tooth.

Dunno.
Call me provincial.