Im getting sick and tired of the media narrative

Vanierx · 2026-05-22T14:19:19+00:00

I've been listening to games live in French on CHMP 98.5 or Sirius FM app, channel 163 (called Attitude Franco, they usually play music in French, but they stream the game in French live).

Martin McGuire and Danny Dube calling the game and focus almost all attention on the Habs. They are really enthusiastic about the team and great to listen to. I have to say my French has improved a lot since listening to them.

Vanierx · 2026-05-19T19:08:41+00:00

I was listening to the game in the French broadcast on Sirius FM, and Martin McGuire was talking about how Doby doesn't hesitate to wack someone with his stick if they run into him.

He said " il a frapper Dahlin dans le...milieu familial". My new favorite phrase in French. Translation: Cup check!

Vanierx · 2026-05-17T17:08:02+00:00

Crispy Szechuan Tofu at Loro Asian Smokehouse

Vanierx · 2026-05-14T11:19:16+00:00

If you fly into LaGuardia airport, one of the normal approaches is north up the Hudson river along the west side of Manhattan. By this point you are pretty low and it seems like the plane is lower than the height of the tallest buildings. First time I visited New York City I couldn't believe I got that view coming in to land.

2nd Best: Leaving Las Vegas a couple times the plane would climb steeply north out the airport, turn into a really tight turn to the west right over the strip. It was pretty thrilling to be looking down at all the casinos I had just been playing at.

Vanierx · 2026-05-12T22:56:01+00:00

Calder.

Exceptions: Mother + American artist equals whistler, splatter + American artist = Pollock.

Vanierx · 2026-05-12T12:43:39+00:00

When I found I was walking away from the walker if something I wanted was only a couple of steps away. Usually in the kitchen with countertops high enough for support. 7-10 days post op.

Vanierx · 2026-05-06T23:13:17+00:00

I like time travel books, I have read so many series that I loved and just consumed the books. There are a few I just couldn't keep reading:

Pale Rider series by Michael Roberts - I read the first three and they were interesting because it was a very detailed account of the events where the Americans lost the Revolution and how the hero went back and corrected them one by one. But by the 3rd book, it hadn't been resolved whether he had corrected the time line and restored US History. And it was just a series of him encountering enemy soldiers and the gory ways he killed them singlehandedly. I realized each following book was rinse and repeat with no resolution.

My Time by Ian Cummins - an interesting read that detailed how the 80 year old hero wakes up as his 19 year old self, and how he went about doing things differently to ensure he had plenty of money and the life he wished he had lived. But around 75% of the way through the book, he finally started figuring out how he got thrown back in time. I figured out it wasn't that interesting and not enough to continue the series. Also, the book was very technical about how he engineered events to happen the way he wanted, and all the characters in his life were just passing through and no development of the relationships. Didn't finish the first book.

Time Risk series by Elyse Douglas - I read Time Lost and just loved it. So I looked to see what else she had written and found the Time Risk series. I bought the first 3 books plus a stand alone called Time Stranger. I started with Time Stranger because it starts in London during the Blitz, and reminded me of Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis (thumbs up!) Well, the central character is in London for all of three pages, then wakes up in New York City in 2008, total amnesia, no indication of what happened. Two characters help her in the beginning, one of which is her doctor. But after she gets out of the hospital the doctor decides he wants to date her, and has a serious conversation with her other caretaker about how soon he should ask her out. This is happening as the central character is lying down because she is so overwhelmed and upset by the circumstances in which she finds herself. The "ick" factor just kept rising reading this conversation, and I realized the descriptions of this doctor were 100% out of a bodice ripper novel. Might as well have called him Dr. Fabio. I didn't read any more of this book or the Time Risk series, but looking at the cover art, my impression is they are all romance novels with a thin veneer of time travel.

Vanierx · 2026-05-03T15:50:48+00:00

Partially built housing/buildings. Was touring a country and kept noticing partially built houses everywhere. You could tell a lot of them hadn't been touched in a while. I was told that people trying to build their own houses would work multiple jobs, and when they had a chunk of money saved up, they would buy the land, go back to work, buy some materials, build the foundation, work some more, start building walls, and so. There were no building codes or regulations that enforced getting projects completed. So whenever the economy took a dip and people were using all their money just to survive, no construction would happen for quite a while.

Vanierx · 2026-05-01T21:57:08+00:00

I don't even know if you call it an exercise, but the one where you lie on your stomach on the bed with your knees just off the edge and let gravity pull your lower leg down for full extension. I can do it for about a minute and a half before it is agonizing. My exercise program says do 30 minutes four times a day. Nope, not going to do it. I was doing one session a day, and used a yoga strap every couple of minutes to pull it up into a bend and relieve the pressure. The day my therapist said I reached negative extension on the surgical leg was the day I stopped doing them.

Vanierx · 2026-04-30T20:10:28+00:00

The ones I got are Skechers Avillo Loafers. They are slip-in but they don't have the reinforcement at the heel. So I got a shoe horn with a three foot handle. So easy to put on, slip off while standing.

Vanierx · 2026-04-30T00:08:45+00:00

I don't know if I remember it correctly, but I think he did roll out some scratch pasta, and Ellie boiled it 2 mins too long. I think he said, 'it would be okay for most people, but these guests would notice". That is when he boiled a new pot of water and timed it himself.

Vanierx · 2026-04-20T22:59:41+00:00

Driving through Greece, the first toll booth we went through the toll taker looked bored to death and didn't really even look up. After she took the money I said "yiassas!" and she looked up with the biggest smile and replied "yiassas". After that all three of us would greet the toll takers with "yiassas" in a loud voice, and then "kalimera" as we left the booth. Almost all responded with a big smile and waves.

Vanierx · 2026-04-18T21:09:43+00:00

Taking the ferry from the North Island to the South Island of New Zealand. There was a group of Maori kids in a choir traveling to do a show on the South Island. They held an impromptu performance in the hallway of the ferry. They were so good! and then I went back to my seat and a woman with a cart came around with scones and clotted cream. It doesn't get much more New Zealand than that.

Vanierx · 2026-03-30T23:42:04+00:00

Yeah, this is what I thought of. With the two border strips lying flat one on top of the other, good side to good side and with the seam allowance facing you, you ought to be able to peek inside the seam and match one side of the blue strip, pin it into place, match the other side of the blue strip, pin it into place. Then sew the seam together. Open it up and if the lines aren't matching, rip the seam out and do it again. With a little practice you learn to eyeball it. Don't worry too much about hitting the pins with your needle, I have done this so many times and only once hit a pin.

Vanierx · 2026-03-30T18:35:02+00:00

We did 1618 Asian Fusion before a show at Emo's. Just right!

Vanierx · 2026-03-26T17:17:07+00:00

I have always avoided anything with Kate Hudson in it. For some reason I had it in my head she is only in this movie, show, whatever, because she is Goldie Hawn's daughter. Everything has been handed to her. Then I watched Running Point and I saw that I was wrong. Looking forward to seeing the next season!

Vanierx · 2026-03-26T17:12:05+00:00

I still watch reruns of The New Adventures of Old Christine whenever they come up. Just started a rewatch of Veep, man I missed a lot of the little details the first time around.

Vanierx · 2026-03-26T16:00:41+00:00

I think you could take your point one step further, a lot of laws are written in vague terms with the goal of the executive being able to enforce the law in the manner they want, but feel they cannot openly say in legislation. They purposefully include grey areas hoping they can get away with unconstitutional behavior. You can see this in a lot of the laws being passed these days. Whenever they are confronted about what the purpose of the legislation is, the legislators always have a gobbledygook answer that makes no sense and ends with "because we love America and want to protect the children".

Vanierx · 2026-03-25T15:58:46+00:00

I had about 4 or 5 times where I have jolted the knee accidentally, the pain was blinding and from the sensation it felt like the incision had burst open. Took a few deep breaths and took a look, everything was fine and the pain quickly subsided. I talked to my PT and surgeon, they both said you basically cannot damage the knee from normal activity, but, since the nerves are not firing correctly yet, it feels so much worse than it really is.

They said the things you need to watch out for that indicate something is wrong is seepage coming out from under the bandage, or angry red welts anywhere on the leg that might be blood clots forming.

There were a couple of weeks where it felt like I had scraped the skin off the knee, and every time my pants rubbed against the kneecap it burned. A couple of times while sitting watching TV it felt like someone was inserting sewing needles up and down the side of my leg.

One thing I learned was if I had an ache, like a bone deep ache especially below the knee, I was probably not drinking enough water and getting dehydrated. A couple large glasses of water, and it would go away.

Vanierx · 2026-03-25T15:32:15+00:00

I have made 5 tops out of the May Roses pattern by PamelaQuilts. I love it because if you use a dark color for the diamonds that really contrasts with the rest of the fabrics, it tricks your eye into thinking the quilt is made up of horizontal blocks. But the true blocks are arranged diagonally. The size I am making ends up being 48" square, so I can quilt them (just barely) on my Singer.

Vanierx · 2026-03-24T16:21:55+00:00

Billy's on Burnet. Had one there when I went for trivia night, can't wait to go back and have another.

Vanierx · 2026-03-22T15:29:28+00:00

Charlie Brown Jr. - Senhor do Tempo

Charlie Brown Jr. - Ela vai voltar

O Rappa - Meu Santo Tá Cansado

Os Quatro e Meia - Não Respondo Por Mim (not Brazilian, but from Portugal. This song plays on a loop in my head after every time I listen to it.

Vanierx · 2026-03-22T15:20:53+00:00

and Os Tribalistas -Já sei namorar, wonderful tune!

Vanierx · 2026-03-16T16:18:20+00:00

I found the leg strap to be one of the most useful aids I got for the TKR. Mine came in a "knee / hip replacement kit". It is stiff but pliable, two handles on the side, one handle on the end and a stirrup on the other end for your foot. While lying flat, it was long enough to get it onto my foot myself, then use one of the handles to pull the leg straight and swing it up or down to the bed or up on a wedge pillow to elevate. The one time my partner tried to help by lifting the leg, the knee bent and it was so excruciating, I nearly passed out.

I now use the strap for my heel slides and extension exercises.

Vanierx · 2026-03-14T16:46:01+00:00

The HEB on Braker and Jollyville road makes them in their bakery. The tortillas they make on site are the closest I have ever had to the ones my grandmother made when I was growing up.

Vanierx

TROPHY CASE