phik

This has become a modern-day classic; a staple in our expanding lexicon.

Jacob really put his foot in it. Like that time that I was flying with Joe to Ottawa, and I was reading the paper on the plane on the way, some really engrossing, in-depth story about the problems in Quebec. So when I got to immigration I spaced and told them that we were on our way to Quebec, which didn’t precisely jive with what Joe said at the same time. It was OK, we explained; we weren’t trying to lie, just doing our best as under-age drunks. Considering that I think I was still under 18, I’m amazed they even let me cross the border without some notarized communique from my parents. Good times.

Anyways, I don’t think it helped that I recognized one of the customs officers who came out to meet us on the tarmac. I don’t know that he recognized me, of course, I just assume that these guys have photographic memories, and he didn’t like how often I was invading his country. Also, he didn’t like the shape my passport is in, given that it has de-laminated to the point that you can basically remove and re-insert the photograph.

After about an hour and a half on the tarmac — I am not making this up — including separate interviews and background checks, they decided to let us into their country, explained that they had convinced themselves satisfactorily that we were in fact US citizens, and advised us to get new passports without removable photographs. I have had more close calls with Canadian immigration than most people would believe. To their credit, if I’d been in any of these situations in a US airport, I’d have been sent back to my country of origin with much less patience than is demonstrated by the Canadian authorities.

Deb, Rob, and Blizzard decided to stay at home like boring married people, so they missed what is probably the best rendition of Warm & Fuzzy Feeling that has ever reached mortal ears. As you’ll discover when you listen to the recordings, they decided to “re-work” (butcher) some of their songs. The new Daisy is starting to grow on me, actually, but the new Bumps in the Road is to be eschewed.

(Is that an acceptable use of eschewed?)

Another Best of Penny Arcade in which we employ physical humour.

Last night’s show was probably the best we’ve ever seen live. It may have been matched in some ways by the original Canmore show, but I was too busy having my mind blown to really retain the details in sharp focus.

Tonight’s entry was no slouch, and included refined versions of the newly-released offerings.

I am not currently at liberty to discuss our post-event festivities, but I am permitted to reveal that they included a pair of sunglasses, Talking Heads, a sign advertising $1.99 video rentals, and a psychedelically decorated breakfast restaurant.

The direction in this episode is excellent.

Yikes. As in the very recent past, we did not do a very good job of geting any sleep. After stumbling in from breakfast around 8 or 8h30, I was just barely self-aware enough to look up the hotel checkout time. Ugh.

So we got up at 10h30, learned that the hotel was going to hold our feet to the fire about the 11h checkout time, and stumbled around the city until Chris was sure enough about the weather to depart.

The flight back was uneventful, and included some strangely beautiful cloud formations, particularly over what passes for “mountains” in this part of the country. Upon our wet and frozen arrival, there was a customary customs and immigration examination, but he seemed like he was just going through the motions. Maybe the Canadians radioed down and told him to cut us a break after our excitement two days ago.

peace for real though

There’s a bee, hornet, yellowjacket, wasp, whatever, outside my house, but it’s the size of an average human man. It’s very distracting, because it keeps crashing into the window, shaking the whole house, threatening to rip it off the foundation. Before I opened the blinds and caught a look at the enormous man-wasp-beast, I was terrified that I’d find someone driving a Volkswagen bus into the side of my house, over and over again. I’m not going outside until the September snow starts falling, but god help me if it manages to break through the window and devour my head in just a single bite. At least it will be quick.

I found a bug in my washing machine today. If you interrupt the cycle by pressing in the knob at just the right time, just after the final spin but before it’s finished spinning down, then the door never unlocks. I had to set it back to a minute before the end of the cycle and let it complete “for real” before it would unlock.

Those wacky state machines!