I found this photo out of my photo archives. Taken exactly one year ago, July 5, 2004 after rollerblading down by the Sea Wall.

Just because I'm living in a different country, it doesn't mean I'm not going to celebrate Canada Day. So on Friday, July 1, my brother, AC, and MC went to The Brass Monkey to celebrate Canada Day, where they held an event in honour of our country's birthday.

Ben sported his "Canada Kicks Ass" t-shirt, me my Roots Canadian Olympics sleeveless, AC had a Canadian flag (well, it was mine, really) and for having a maple leaf on us, we each got a free Canadian beer (Blanche de Chambly from Quebec). As usual, when I'm at the Monkey, I got a few games of foosball, and was surprised to see some competitive players! I teamed up with a Newfie and took two games before losing to one guy who played alone. He was good, but we should have had him. Unfortunately, my partner couldn't help himself and kept throwing the ball straight into the opponent's player and getting stuffed.

And then there were the boatraces. I wasn't sure how many teams there started with, but BC was represented, as was Ontario. And then there was a team of New Zealanders as well. A boatrace, for those unfamiliar, is where you sit in a line with your team and from the front to the back, each person must finish a cup of beer. The team to finish first wins. The finals were between Ontario and New Zealand, and I think Ontario won.

It was nice to sing the Canadian national anthem -- especially away from home. Also nice to see some Canucks shirts (as seen in the photos). The night was capped by us briefly meeting the husky fellow in the second photo. This burly man saw Ben's shirt and very very slowly read the "Canada Kicks Ass" as he ran his finger across Ben's chest -- clearly heavily intoxicated. Then he unbuttoned two buttons of his shirt to unveil his Canadian pride. He and I then chatted as he told me his wife is Taiwanese and they have a daughter. And he continued about how his niece who was studying in the States came to Taiwan during her break and they were out at some place, him, his wife, and his niece. While they were playing some dice game, he went to use the washroom; and on his way to the washroom, some guy grabs him from behind and asked him "How much did you pay for those girls?" Of course, that question infuriated this man who was standing in front of me slurring his words. He grabbed the guy and threw him across the room. Now... as he was telling me this, he was reliving the moment in his obvious stupor. And as he raised his voice and said "That fvckin' guy was talking about my baby!!", his face grew into the kind that is usually followed by a fit of violence. I actually thought he might try to throw ME across the room. Well, perhaps it was one of those you-had-to-have-been-there kind of moments. Soon after, he calmed down, his wife appeared, and he introduced me to his wife and said I was a very nice man.

Happy Canada Day!! (on Friday)

Keeping in theme with the last couple posts, a little more on cockroaches.

In Taiwan, they're also called 小強 (xiao3 qiang2 -- or little mighty) because they're hard to kill.

What I found interesting after I took that photo is that its head is covered by a protective shield. I don't think I've gotten close enough to a cockroach to notice.

Also, if you look at what you can see of the cockroach's underside, it bares a similar ressemblance to the underside (and legs) of shrimp. This is why in some places in the world, including Turkey as my Turkish ex-coworker told me, they do not eat some seafoods such as shrimp, crayfish, etc. They consider such vermin as "insects of the sea". Which, if you think about it, makes sense. Just look at those things. Bugs.

As I described in my previous blog, I had a new pet. So following posting that blog, I headed out to buy some food and a nice home for my new companion. From the supermarket, I got 5 homes and 5 pills in one pack for 59nt. I took two out and set them up along two separate walls near my bed, hoping to find my pet in his new home the next morning.

Next morning... nothing.

After work... nothing.

And before I went for a haircut, I moved one home closer to my bed and headed out the door. After 40 minutes, I got home and found Mr. Cockroach sheltered from the harsh conditions of my ceiling fan. Whew. Lucky guy. As you can see, I've posted some pictures.

Oh, and that tentacle you see in the photos is the "thread-like thing" I saw sticking out of my flower cup.

DAMN.

I've been out of my house for about 4 - 5 days. I just stepped in, and I noticed a cup with flowers I placed on my night table. I peered in and noticed a little thin thread-like thing sticking out, so I looked a little closer. As I gave the cup a nudge, a cockroach popped out and ran down the side of my night table, disappearing behind it.

CRAP. I have a cockroach. ARGH. I hate cockroaches, and until now, my place seemed free of them. Online, solutions seems to be to mix borax with powdered sugar or cocoa powder. Hmm... but since I'm not much into making my own poison (plus the fact that I don't know where to get borax), I'm going to head down to a store to buy some poison.

CRUD.

I was watching The Contender, Sylvester Stallone's boxing reality show. After the contenders were reduced to the Final 8, they flew to Las Vegas' Caesars Palace. The Final 8, along with the Italian Stallion and Sugar Ray Leonard stood in the middle of an outdoor ring where many boxing greats had shared a piece of history. For those unfamiliar with the show, the final two will fight for $1M.

Then they bring out a treasure chest, guarded by two "guards" dressed as Roman soldiers. They open the chest to show $1M in cash in a pile of bundled bills (like in the movies). Sly says "Com'on guys, get close. Take a look, but don't touch. That's one million dollars. That's the real thing."

... but when I looked closely, there was a bill at the top of one of these bundles that was lifted slightly (either by the wind, or simply because it wasn't flat), revealing a blank sheet below it. HMMMMMm.... Sly, what are you trying to pull?

Michael Jackson has been acquitted of ten counts of child molestation charges. I'm not saying that he's guilty or innocent; and from what IS known, he's still a messed up man (freak), sharing a bed with boys. But in some ways, I'm glad the jury found him not guilty.

Like so many of you, I grew up listening to Michael Jackson back when he was bigger than life. If he had been found guilty, I think I would personally feel it was a shame that such a major icon in our pasts suffered that kind of fate.

Constantly peeing. That's sometimes what the road to recovery is about. Drink lots of water, wash out what you can out of your system. But this blog isn't about that. It's about something more dark and sinister. More disturbing.

As I was standing at the urinal, I noticed two long curlies and about four or five short ones, about 1cm long, in the pee bowl. Ok, you don't get this many hairs in one urinal by accident. Occasionally, one may fall. Maybe two. But this number was a sign of intention. It meant someone was standing there pulling the loose ones out, OR EVEN WORSE, someone was standing there trimming.

PLEASE DON'T TRIM YOUR PUBES IN PUBLIC PLACES.

Masks. They're a sign of greatness. Zorro. Dr. Doom. Rich Hamilton. Hannibal Lector. Jim Carrey. And now... ME. Sure, mine isn't as mysterious as Zorro's, as form-fitting as Hamilton's, as devilish as Hannibal's, ... but it still draws attention when I wear it at work. Alright, the truth is that I'm wearing a filtering face mask at work so that I don't spread my virus to anyone else - and also so I don't breathe in air that's too cold or dry (from the A/C) that may cause me to break out in uncontrollable hacking and coughing. So far so good.

I feel like a doctor about to perform EDA (Electronic Design Automation) surgery at my computer. There is an undeniable feeling of power -- which, of course, only I feel. Others who see me wearing a mask will have pity on me, and that's necessary to validate the two days I took off work. :D

Bronchitis, not just an extinct lizard.

Went to the doctor today because after getting past my cold, which I was suffering from at the end of last week, I've been coughing plenty, and I have lots of phlegm -- the nice thick kind that sticks to the sink and doesn't let go unless you use a power washer on it.

Anyway, the doctor says I have a little bit of bronchitis -- not too serious now. I have 4 days' medicine to take, and we'll see how it is on Saturday morning... if it's okay, I don't have to eat anymore meds. If not, then I will go back to see him.

In the meantime, it's a day and a bit off work so I can rest up. Sigh...