A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

Although, plans for Portland were in the back of our minds, we procrastinated too long to venture far today. Besides, the weather was completely sunny and beautiful here but the forecast for northern Oregon shows rain every day through Tuesday.

We didn't need to travel a long ways to do something different. We had never been in the Aberdeen Shopping Centre over in Richmond (15 min. video [link has expired]). We wanted to visit the big, Japanese two-dollar store called Daiso [link has expired]. Richmond is the city where the Vancouver airport is and it's just down river at the mouth of the Fraser.

After, we went to the River Rock Casino Resort. Although we didn't put even a nickel in the slots, we did eat a $14.95 buffet lunch .. with, oh .. too many wonderful desserts. (He says this while typing with one hand and patting his stomach with the other.)

Labels: food

Click the player to hear a 4:48-minute song by Bob and Doug McKenzie. It's a Canuk-inspired version of the 12-Days of Christmas. Oh, by the way, a tuque is the Canadian term for a knit, winter pull-over, stocking cap.



(This Windows Media Player file requires the minimum of a solid 56K modem connection.)

Labels: Christmas, Mediaplayer

Yum .. thanks for dinner yesterday! I like the chance to eat white, basmati rice as I'm generally relegated to eating a 'so-called' healthy, brown variety now.

It was nice to get down to your neighbourhood, even though it was raining and hasn't stopped since.

Thanks, Rob for the Kinder eggs; it kept the kids busy for at least a half hour.

The cake was a perfect way to celebrate your birthday, Ed. I think your new age sounds much better than your previous one. You'll still be young until the numbers are switched around.

The scanner was plugged in yesterday. I figured that I might as well find a print for a blog entry.

We're considering taking a weekend road trip. I'm off and Jay doesn't work on Monday or Tuesday either. Perhaps, we'll head down to Portland, OR and swing back through the Cascade Mountains. We've only stopped in that city as a rest stop on trips down I-5 and have never stayed long enough to look around. Portland is just over the border on the other side of Washington State and is about 508 kilometers (315 miles) due south. The distance is perfect as when we return it'll be exactly the time to change my truck's timing belt.

I would have far less mileage on the Ranger had it not been for our cross-Canada trip. We took seven weeks in 2001 and camped in a tent. Our goal was to reach the other side of Canadian Route 1. It was also possible to cruise through most every major Canadian city along the way.

So when searching for a picture, I looked for us at Cape Spear, Newfoundland. That is most easterly point in North America. In fact, in the photo we were actually over 1200 kilometers closer to England than New Westminster!

Labels: Canada, driving, places, Ranger, road trip

I like writing but I like being brief too. These links lead to some of my larger blog pictures of 2004. Perhaps, you missed them the first time:

A Rolls
The Balcony
The Building
A Park
Hayack Square
Antique Cars
WA State 1
WA State 2
Smart Guys
Quay in Summer
Beautiful BC
Stanley Picnic
On a Ferry
Our Government
Sri Lanka: Sep/Oct
All Class-ics

Labels: lists

Yesterday, I received a surprise message from an ex-colleague. In 1991, we worked together on the island of Bahrain in the Persian Gulf. Jeffrey is now in Texas.

It was a Google search for Hamala Beach that pointed him this way. In a previous entry, I had mentioned the place because Jay and I lived there. Originally, it was a camp for the construction company which built the Saudi-Bahrain Causeway. As mentioned earlier in this blog, this was one of three places rented during my 2.5 years of work for General Dynamics and the Bahrain Defense Force.

The prior entry, written yesterday, was waxing philosophically about the power of blogging. On that very day, an acquaintance who'd not been in contact for thirteen years was able to send me an email message. What more can I possibly add?

Labels: Bahrain, Google

I can press a few keys and click a button. Then, almost instantly, my writing becomes available worldwide. I'm not sure if we've yet worked out the social and educational implications of this amazing development. It costs practically nothing and no trees are ever injured.

Very few people really have anything important or worthwhile to say. However, the fact they can practice push-button publishing is remarkable technology. Here are three blogs which DO say something, so I want to include them as examples. I like each of them for very different reasons.

Jalape�o Burns

Seth's Blog

The Mermaid Tavern

These sites are unique and show the personality of the authors. A personal touch is what is missing most in information from traditional media outlets. I found these while logged onto www.blogexplosion.com.

Labels: blogging

At 4:00 pm yesterday, our annual Santa Claus Parade occurred on Columbia Street. Although it was just the 18th parade; it turns out to be the longest running Christmas parade in the Lower Mainland. This is the ninth December we've been in New Westminster and I believe it has rained for a majority of them. That fact simply makes the rain part of the holiday traditions here.

Labels: Christmas