I am officially forming a sprawling musical collective named Team Participation. Areas of interest will include Eurotrash repetitive techno and party rock songs, but we will specialize in live cover versions of easy to remember call-and-answer songs found on Muchmusic Dance Mix albums from the 1990s. We will tour the earth with the sole goal of having a good time. Also, we will try and figure out who these guys are. I figure forming a band is the best way to do this. As of right now, I am the only member, have no musical instruments, and my musical aptitude starts and stops at the bass line to My Prerogative by Bobby Brown, but I figure this is the sort of thing that'll work itself out.
Also, my brother Scott just formed a slo-pitch softball team in an advertising agency league. His team is named Team Participation. I plan to play on the team from time to time when I'm in Vancouver. The two events are completely unrelated.
Get in touch with me if you want to be part of this.
Kyle
Abandoned buildings are good places to pile snow
Word on the street has it that those cones are on the balconies for safety.
Mangled Bikes in Montreal
It snows a lot in Montreal. After it snows a lot, many different types of machines come along and push, scrape, lift, nudge and press all of that snow...and whatever is under the snow. My favorite are the tracked sidewalk snowplows. They're driven by anonymous superheroes who make shoveling your sidewalk a thing of yesteryear. These superheros also mangle bikes locked to pole and fences along the sidewalks beyond recognition. If you need hundreds of mangled bikes for an art display of mangled bikes for your art gallery, right now would be a great time to go to Montreal with a of bolt cutters or a Bic pen.
Pictures of the full set here.
Pictures of the full set here.
Pictures of the full set here.
Pictures of the full set here.
Alumni
Hi Thunder,
I'm so glad to hear from you! Wasn't 'college' the best? Man, it's been so long. The parties were so wild. Hey, this sounds like the lyrics to a Weezer song!
How are the kids? I hope they are doing well. I imagine the nest and the Mrs are treating you well.
So, have you slipped back into a lifestyle of reckless drinking again? I sure hope not. But then again, you were so much fun back in the days when you were a 24/7 sauce fest. You just weren't the same after you hung up the skates, so to speak. Here's to educations!
Regards,
Kyle
>>Save the Date - UBC Alumni Weekend - Alumni Weekend 2008
>>Dear Trekker,
>>Wish you were here…
>>The campus in spring is amazing! The Rose Garden is budding, the cinnamon buns are steaming and thousands of students are about to graduate.
>>I hope you and your family can join me for Alumni Weekend in May. There are so many events to choose from!
>>Check out some of the things I'll be doing during Alumni Weekend below or click here to see the full schedule. I'm going to register today, you should too!
>>Hope to see you soon,
>>Thunder, the Thunderbird
I'm so glad to hear from you! Wasn't 'college' the best? Man, it's been so long. The parties were so wild. Hey, this sounds like the lyrics to a Weezer song!
How are the kids? I hope they are doing well. I imagine the nest and the Mrs are treating you well.
So, have you slipped back into a lifestyle of reckless drinking again? I sure hope not. But then again, you were so much fun back in the days when you were a 24/7 sauce fest. You just weren't the same after you hung up the skates, so to speak. Here's to educations!
Regards,
Kyle
>>Save the Date - UBC Alumni Weekend - Alumni Weekend 2008
>>Dear Trekker,
>>Wish you were here…
>>The campus in spring is amazing! The Rose Garden is budding, the cinnamon buns are steaming and thousands of students are about to graduate.
>>I hope you and your family can join me for Alumni Weekend in May. There are so many events to choose from!
>>Check out some of the things I'll be doing during Alumni Weekend below or click here to see the full schedule. I'm going to register today, you should too!
>>Hope to see you soon,
>>Thunder, the Thunderbird
How to Do Nothing
1. Plan ahead. Whether it's an hour, a day, a week, a month, or a year of doing nothing, cancel all of your appointments for that block of time. Try to pick the most boring week or day, a day where you'll most likely sleep most of the time.
2. Let people know. Tell everyone that you're going to be "busy" and will be unavailable. Whether you choose to tell them that you're actually setting aside some time to do nothing, or you just give them the vague explanation "I'm going to be busy" (busy doing nothing!), tell them not to call, visit, or interrupt unless it's a real emergency.
3. Find a quiet, private place. Go somewhere you don't feel pressured to do anything. This might be your bedroom, the backyard, or a local park. Find that place and go there.
4. Set your alarm. Set an alarm of some kind to go off when your "nothing" time is over, so that you don't have to constantly look at the clock and count the minutes.
5. Turn off the phone. Turn off your cell phone, work phone, pager, PDA, Blackberry, computer,Beeper,Radio,Tv and any other means of sending or receiving calls or messages. These distractions will only keep you from enjoying the nothing.
6. Sit by yourself. Feel the wind, the sun on your face, the chair touching your bottom. Listen to the rustle of the trees, birds chirping, water flowing. Never think about the past or future. Avoid the temptation to turn on the TV, listen to music, write a note to yourself, get a bite to eat, or anything else. The only thing you should do is go to the bathroom (if needed).
7. Learn how to free your mind. Clear your mind of all thoughts of work, worries, family, etc. by simply letting them go. Doing this not only allows your body to do nothing, but your mind as well. However, do not be worried if you find yourself thinking of things. Freeing up one's mind is actually very difficult to master, and often requires more discipline than some free time (Buddhist monks, for example, dedicate their entire lives to freeing their minds).
8. DO NOTHING.
wikiHow is my hero.
2. Let people know. Tell everyone that you're going to be "busy" and will be unavailable. Whether you choose to tell them that you're actually setting aside some time to do nothing, or you just give them the vague explanation "I'm going to be busy" (busy doing nothing!), tell them not to call, visit, or interrupt unless it's a real emergency.
3. Find a quiet, private place. Go somewhere you don't feel pressured to do anything. This might be your bedroom, the backyard, or a local park. Find that place and go there.
4. Set your alarm. Set an alarm of some kind to go off when your "nothing" time is over, so that you don't have to constantly look at the clock and count the minutes.
5. Turn off the phone. Turn off your cell phone, work phone, pager, PDA, Blackberry, computer,Beeper,Radio,Tv and any other means of sending or receiving calls or messages. These distractions will only keep you from enjoying the nothing.
6. Sit by yourself. Feel the wind, the sun on your face, the chair touching your bottom. Listen to the rustle of the trees, birds chirping, water flowing. Never think about the past or future. Avoid the temptation to turn on the TV, listen to music, write a note to yourself, get a bite to eat, or anything else. The only thing you should do is go to the bathroom (if needed).
7. Learn how to free your mind. Clear your mind of all thoughts of work, worries, family, etc. by simply letting them go. Doing this not only allows your body to do nothing, but your mind as well. However, do not be worried if you find yourself thinking of things. Freeing up one's mind is actually very difficult to master, and often requires more discipline than some free time (Buddhist monks, for example, dedicate their entire lives to freeing their minds).
8. DO NOTHING.
wikiHow is my hero.
Are you still trading things?
I probably get asked that question about 500 times a year. Every year. For the past 1.5 years. Yep, I'm still trading things. Just not really keeping a website about it. Trading things is fun, and maintaining a website about it was fun, but I figure I kinda peaked on the awesomeness level with that, so I just trade low pro these days. And yes, sometimes I trade things for money and sometimes I trade money for things. But usually I keep it real, do things the old fashioned way and put everything on my visa card.
I also get asked for advice on how to go about trading things. So today I'm happy to share some trading advice I've learned over the years. This advice is cultivated from personal experience, in the same vein as my experience of getting $4 and a microwave, which I wrote a nice little story about. Sure, some of the expenses associated with the advice may leave you in the red slightly, but that's all part of the game. The following trading strategies are all true, and have worked in the past, except one. Can you guess which?
How to get $75 worth of free drinks:
1. Go to Bangkok.
2. Buy a vintage Montreal Expos baseball jersey for 150 Thai Baht at the Chatuchak Weekend Market.
3. Put the jersey on.
4. Go to a bar on Boulevard Des Forges in Trois Rivieres, Quebec.
5. Order a drink.
6. When bartender offers you $50 for the jersey, say thanks, but no thanks.
7. When bartender offers you $80 for the jersey, take if off your back and place it on the bar.
8. Collect $80 from bartender.
9. Pocket the five dollars the jersey cost in the first place.
10. Place the remaining $75 dollars on the bar and collect $75 worth of drinks.
How to get a free Hot Wheels General Lee toy car and ten pieces of Dubble Bubble chewing gum:
1. Wait for the weekend.
2. Drive a Toyota to the flea market in Cloverdale B.C.
3. Find a table selling used CDs for $2 ea.
4. Buy five CDs for $10.
5. Find a table buying used CDs for $3 ea.
6. Sell five CDs for $15.
7. Walk over to the nice man selling the General Lee toy car and trade $4.50 for it.
8. Drive to gas station and buy ten pieces of delicious Dubble Bubble chewing gum.
9. Spend the remainder of the weekend playing with your General Lee toy car and laugh at Pud's latest exploits.
How to go rafting on the Bow river in Calgary for free:
1. Go to a big hardware/outdoors store, like perhaps the NW Calgary Canadian Tire location at 5404 Dalton Drive NW that has the following phone number: 403-288-1100
2. Purchase an inflatable boat and foot pump.
3. Drive a spare car to the city centre of Calgary, and leave it there.
4. Place the boat and pump in a 2001 Jeep TJ and drive upstream a ways.
5. Inflate boat with pump and toss it in the river.
6. Jump in boat before it floats away.
7. Enjoy an afternoon of river rafting.
8. Get out of river when you get to your spare car.
9. Deflate boat, put it and foot pump back in box and on the way to pick up 2001 Jeep TJ, return both for a full refund.
How to get a 1990 Burgundy Dodge Caravan:
1. Go to a convenience store on Commercial Drive in Vancouver.
2. Purchase a Mustache Match scratch and win lottery ticket for one dollar from cashier named Wally.
3. Scratch to reveal three handlebar mustaches, a $1000 prize.
4. Collect your winfall.
5. Buy 1000 Mustache Match scratch and win lottery tickets with the $1000 winfall.
6. Spend all day scratching the 1000 Mustache Match scratch and wins.
7. Return to convenience store to collect your winnings.
8. Realize your winnings are only $493 dollars.
9. Walk to the sidewalk with $493 dollars in your hand.
10. See 1990 Burgundy Dodge Caravan for sale on side of road for $450 dollars.
11. Call number on for sale sign.
12. Talk to Wally, person selling van, and realize he is the same Wally who was the cashier in the convenience store.
13. Offer Wally $493 for his van.
14. Drive home in your new van.
How get 2 sundaes and a dollar of store credit at WAL-MART:
1. Buy bicycle from garage sale for $10.
2. Go to WAL-MART and buy cable bike lock, on sale for $12.
3. Lock your bicycle to a metal fence in Montreal.
4. Cross your fingers and hope that if somebody steals your bike they have the courtesy to leave the clipped remains of the cable bike lock on the sidewalk.
5. Uncross fingers after that happens.
6. Wait a few days until the bike lock is no longer on sale and return, without a receipt, remains of the cable bike lock to WAL-MART, as it was a faulty product.
7. Get Wal-Mart store credit for $25
8. Go to in-sore McDonalds and buy 2 sundaes for $2
8. Enjoy sundaes and think of all the wonderful things you can purchase with your one dollar of WAL-MART store credit.
How to get a matching set of beige suits:
1. Walk along a sidewalk in Vancouver until you come to a low-hanging Billboard covered in actual bobblehead NHL hockey players.
2. Wait for lady passenger in a convertible to pull up to the light and say: "Hey, wanna grab me an Inginla?"
3. Grab her an Iginla.
4. Convince lady passenger in convertible to buy Iginla bobblehead for five dollars.
5. Drive to sale in gymnasium of nearby school and buy two plastic goalie masks for five dollars.
6. Take goalie masks to Sport Junkies and exchange them for twenty dollars.
collect ?``
7. Go to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul charity thrift store at the corner of Main and 12th and purchase two beige suits for nineteen dollars and twenty five cents.
8. Tell the cashier to keep the change.
I think that's enough advice for now, but if you need any more trading strategies, please feel free to ask.
Your pal,
Kyle
I also get asked for advice on how to go about trading things. So today I'm happy to share some trading advice I've learned over the years. This advice is cultivated from personal experience, in the same vein as my experience of getting $4 and a microwave, which I wrote a nice little story about. Sure, some of the expenses associated with the advice may leave you in the red slightly, but that's all part of the game. The following trading strategies are all true, and have worked in the past, except one. Can you guess which?
How to get $75 worth of free drinks:
1. Go to Bangkok.
2. Buy a vintage Montreal Expos baseball jersey for 150 Thai Baht at the Chatuchak Weekend Market.
3. Put the jersey on.
4. Go to a bar on Boulevard Des Forges in Trois Rivieres, Quebec.
5. Order a drink.
6. When bartender offers you $50 for the jersey, say thanks, but no thanks.
7. When bartender offers you $80 for the jersey, take if off your back and place it on the bar.
8. Collect $80 from bartender.
9. Pocket the five dollars the jersey cost in the first place.
10. Place the remaining $75 dollars on the bar and collect $75 worth of drinks.
How to get a free Hot Wheels General Lee toy car and ten pieces of Dubble Bubble chewing gum:
1. Wait for the weekend.
2. Drive a Toyota to the flea market in Cloverdale B.C.
3. Find a table selling used CDs for $2 ea.
4. Buy five CDs for $10.
5. Find a table buying used CDs for $3 ea.
6. Sell five CDs for $15.
7. Walk over to the nice man selling the General Lee toy car and trade $4.50 for it.
8. Drive to gas station and buy ten pieces of delicious Dubble Bubble chewing gum.
9. Spend the remainder of the weekend playing with your General Lee toy car and laugh at Pud's latest exploits.
How to go rafting on the Bow river in Calgary for free:
1. Go to a big hardware/outdoors store, like perhaps the NW Calgary Canadian Tire location at 5404 Dalton Drive NW that has the following phone number: 403-288-1100
2. Purchase an inflatable boat and foot pump.
3. Drive a spare car to the city centre of Calgary, and leave it there.
4. Place the boat and pump in a 2001 Jeep TJ and drive upstream a ways.
5. Inflate boat with pump and toss it in the river.
6. Jump in boat before it floats away.
7. Enjoy an afternoon of river rafting.
8. Get out of river when you get to your spare car.
9. Deflate boat, put it and foot pump back in box and on the way to pick up 2001 Jeep TJ, return both for a full refund.
How to get a 1990 Burgundy Dodge Caravan:
1. Go to a convenience store on Commercial Drive in Vancouver.
2. Purchase a Mustache Match scratch and win lottery ticket for one dollar from cashier named Wally.
3. Scratch to reveal three handlebar mustaches, a $1000 prize.
4. Collect your winfall.
5. Buy 1000 Mustache Match scratch and win lottery tickets with the $1000 winfall.
6. Spend all day scratching the 1000 Mustache Match scratch and wins.
7. Return to convenience store to collect your winnings.
8. Realize your winnings are only $493 dollars.
9. Walk to the sidewalk with $493 dollars in your hand.
10. See 1990 Burgundy Dodge Caravan for sale on side of road for $450 dollars.
11. Call number on for sale sign.
12. Talk to Wally, person selling van, and realize he is the same Wally who was the cashier in the convenience store.
13. Offer Wally $493 for his van.
14. Drive home in your new van.
How get 2 sundaes and a dollar of store credit at WAL-MART:
1. Buy bicycle from garage sale for $10.
2. Go to WAL-MART and buy cable bike lock, on sale for $12.
3. Lock your bicycle to a metal fence in Montreal.
4. Cross your fingers and hope that if somebody steals your bike they have the courtesy to leave the clipped remains of the cable bike lock on the sidewalk.
5. Uncross fingers after that happens.
6. Wait a few days until the bike lock is no longer on sale and return, without a receipt, remains of the cable bike lock to WAL-MART, as it was a faulty product.
7. Get Wal-Mart store credit for $25
8. Go to in-sore McDonalds and buy 2 sundaes for $2
8. Enjoy sundaes and think of all the wonderful things you can purchase with your one dollar of WAL-MART store credit.
How to get a matching set of beige suits:
1. Walk along a sidewalk in Vancouver until you come to a low-hanging Billboard covered in actual bobblehead NHL hockey players.
2. Wait for lady passenger in a convertible to pull up to the light and say: "Hey, wanna grab me an Inginla?"
3. Grab her an Iginla.
4. Convince lady passenger in convertible to buy Iginla bobblehead for five dollars.
5. Drive to sale in gymnasium of nearby school and buy two plastic goalie masks for five dollars.
6. Take goalie masks to Sport Junkies and exchange them for twenty dollars.
collect ?``
7. Go to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul charity thrift store at the corner of Main and 12th and purchase two beige suits for nineteen dollars and twenty five cents.
8. Tell the cashier to keep the change.
I think that's enough advice for now, but if you need any more trading strategies, please feel free to ask.
Your pal,
Kyle
Harvey Ghinder
I've been hanging out at Home Depot a lot lately, well, actually, let me rephrase that: I've been hanging out in several 1990 burgundy Dodge Caravans and at Home Depot a lot lately. And by 'a lot' I mean pretty much every day. All day. The cool thing about Home Depots in Canada is that many of them have Harvey's restaurants in them. And at Harvey's, you can up-buy to poutine in a combo for like only an extra $1.79. And that's a beautiful thing:
Also, in Belgium you can buy license plates from people in vans:
Which is nice.
Later,
Kyle
Also, in Belgium you can buy license plates from people in vans:
Which is nice.
Later,
Kyle
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