A decent amount of snow finally fell today, signalling the end of the cycling season for me this year, at least assuming we don’t get a big Chinook that melts all the snow again. Having not cycled to work since 2008, I found that the Calgary cycling scene has changed a bit since then. Continue reading
As I am now past the median age in this country, or anywhere for that matter, I can now pontificate on how things used to be, since more than half of you out there were not around to see the … Continue reading
In the vein of “they are out to get you” I’m looking at Google autocomplete phrases in search. Is Google tailoring search suggestions to your previous searches? Are they tailoring the searches to sell you something?
For certain, Google’s autocomplete can be useful in firming up one’s search. It can also lead to endless distractions ending up reading about something completely different than what one was looking for. It also can expose you to something cool you discovered while searching for something more mundane. Let’s drop a few partial searchs in, and see what Google autocompletes with. Continue reading
Mortgage rules in Canada have been tightened up again, with the hope that the high prices of some markets will be reigned in. I keep seeing the media parroting the line “The changes affect properties that cost more than $500,000 — a small percentage of the overall market” I got to wondering if this really is a small percentage.
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Oil is sitting at under $40 a barrel. If that has you worried about your job in Alberta, good – you should be worried as the longer this lasts, the higher the unemployment rate is going to go. If you look at a long term inflation adjusted graph of oil prices, it was only 15 years ago we saw an extended period of under $40 oil, so be prepared for history to repeat itself. For those of you thinking this is really bad right now – you have seen nothing yet. Call me when unemployment rates in Alberta crosses 10%, and stays there.
But what can you do to prepare for a possible long period of unemployment? Continue reading
My analysis of the federal parties, in light bulb jokes:
How many Conservatives does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None! We cut light bulbs from the last budget so you can save more taxes.
How many Liberals does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: I dunno yet, but here are some light bulbs I bought on credit?
How many New Democrats does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Two! We need more light bulbs!
How many Greens does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None! We plan to replace light bulbs with environmentally friendly LED lights!
Now put down that light bulb and go vote on Monday!
One of the things in life that takes me to my happy place is being able to explore a new park. It goes back to when I was eight years old and first allowed to go exploring on my own in Berlin, Germany while my mom was visiting with yet more relatives that I had never met before. The wonder of coming around a corner and seeing what came next in the greenery never has left me, so I was looking forward to exploring Calgary’s newly renovated St Patrick’s Island park. “Renovation” is a bit of understatement, more like rip things apart real good and put them back together in a new way is more like it. Even with the extreme makeover, the island is big enough that they managed to leave a good part of the old trees, and some of the landscape as is.
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My current job involves supporting “mobility devices” in the company I work for, which 99% of the time means cell phones. Now, I have been a bit behind the times in having the latest and greatest phone, but since I got my Nexus 4, I’ve come a long way, to the point of suffering from “discharge anxiety” if I’m too long away from a charging plug. So, here are 10 things I have learned about cell phones:
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Having used it for almost a month now, I’m somewhat surprised at how much I’ve used this tablet around the house. I’m a first time pad user, but I’ve got a lot of work experience with smaller portable devices for data entry. What follows are the thoughts of an old-school computer user learning the new-school portable device paradigm.
