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—Adventure Soccer—Watching USA...
Monday, Mar 15, 10 at 03:44 AM
I don't get why I'm having trouble pitching this freelance article, but if I'm gonna be in Paris on June 23rd I need to book the airfare and hostel pretty soon. ...
Monday, Mar 15, 10 at 03:44 AM
I don't get why I'm having trouble pitching this freelance article, but if I'm gonna be in Paris on June 23rd I need to book the airfare and hostel pretty soon. ...
How I Found Used Wheels with RSS Feeds and ...
Tuesday, Mar 09, 10 at 12:42 PM
So I headed down to my local used car lot? No way. I don't even wanna talk about what happened the last time I bought a car from a dealer. Lets put it this way—...
Tuesday, Mar 09, 10 at 12:42 PM
So I headed down to my local used car lot? No way. I don't even wanna talk about what happened the last time I bought a car from a dealer. Lets put it this way—...
How I Found Used Wheels with ...
Wednesday, Mar 03, 10 at 05:36 AM
I'm looking for feedback/suggestions/proofreading for this article before submission to an online article directory. Thnx!
Wednesday, Mar 03, 10 at 05:36 AM
I'm looking for feedback/suggestions/proofreading for this article before submission to an online article directory. Thnx!
Aftershocks from the Salvador...
Monday, Feb 22, 10 at 03:39 AM
Almost inevitably, aftershocks from the Salvador Cabañas shooting in Mexico City several weeks ago have damaged the Mexican national team, with the World Cup less...
Monday, Feb 22, 10 at 03:39 AM
Almost inevitably, aftershocks from the Salvador Cabañas shooting in Mexico City several weeks ago have damaged the Mexican national team, with the World Cup less...
Picasa Albums - 2010 Winter Games Motorhome...
Monday, Feb 22, 10 at 12:32 AM
Not that great photos from #Van2010. Proof that I was there at least.
Monday, Feb 22, 10 at 12:32 AM
Not that great photos from #Van2010. Proof that I was there at least.
A Golden Age of American Alpi...
Saturday, Feb 20, 10 at 10:20 AM
For the Europeans, thus far these Winter Games have been nothing less than an utter, humiliating debacle. It's as if half of the teams remaining in the UEFA Champions...
Saturday, Feb 20, 10 at 10:20 AM
For the Europeans, thus far these Winter Games have been nothing less than an utter, humiliating debacle. It's as if half of the teams remaining in the UEFA Champions...
2010 Vancouver Winter Games Motorhome, by the Numbers
Thursday, Feb 18, 10 at 01:10 AM
500—About what we each paid in USD to live in a motor home at a pretty good RV park with a pool, hot tub, and wifi (sometimes) near a subway stop in Burnaby, BC for a week during the Winter Games. Considering that downtown studios were renting for $4000 a week, at least according to my taxi driver this morning, it was a steal.
0—Odds that Canadian legend Kevin Martin, aka "The Old Bear," aka "K-Mart," was not going to bowl a bulls eye at the buzzer against an upstart Norwegian team in the first-round of the men's curling tournament. C'mon. They don't call you "The Old Bear" if you can't curl.
9—Number of goals by which the Canadian women's ice hockey team beat the Swiss women's team the day after we saw the Swiss women's team lose to Sweden 3-0.
I think what happened there was, those girls were probably just good athletes who were recruited by the Swiss Olympic Association to train for the women's ice hockey tournament. I don't actually believe the Swiss players grew up on skates, hockey sticks in hand, playing pick up on ponds in their little Swiss mountain hamlets, and I seriously doubt there's much of a girls' youth hockey culture in Switzerland, whereas the Canadian players obviously grew up with the game. Isn't ice hockey basically a Canadian sport? Nobody even cares about hockey in the US—so why would the Swiss?
I mean, I'm happy those girls found a way to participate in the Olympics and experience the Games (even if it meant taking a humiliating drubbing at the hands of the Canadians), which, lets be honest, probably would have been much worse had the Canadian women not been so heavily criticized for their merciless, unsporting 19-0 blow out of the Slovakian team one day previously. On the other hand, we paid more than one hundred dollars to watch what, to me, looked like a college intramural game in terms of the skill level and athleticism on display.
Maybe the Swiss could have invited a few of their friends and relatives to watch their games, but to charge the public $100 for a ticket to see two teams which were basically in Vancouver for no other reason than to play Washington Generals to the Canadian women's team's Harlem Globetrotters, is a rip off. Honestly, I wouldn't pay a hundred bucks to see Carmelo Anthony, who's not only a world class athlete but was basically born with the rock in his hands, play basketball. I might pay around $40 for a Nuggets game, maybe.
Lets put it this way—when IOC President Jacques Rogge claimed in the Opening Ceremony that the Winter Olympians were the "best athletes in the world," for accuracy's sake he should have added, "Well, except for Swiss women's ice hockey."
5—Number of crown and cokes I drank on Monday in downtown Vancouver. (Around five. It might have been more, I can't remember.)
5 or 6—Number of people I saw inside the fence taking pictures of themselves with the Olympic cauldron in the plaza next to the Convention Centre that was supposedly closed for security reasons, when I went back to check if the cops had manned up and opened the thing on Sunday. Who were those guys? Like politicians or the relatives of some television anchor or high level policeman? I'd like to know just how is it that the Canadians were sure those people weren't just as much of a threat to vandalize the Olympic flame as I was?
Oh, now they open it! I guess they were waiting until I left.
6—Number of times I was questioned, patted down, had my bags searched, and had to walk through a metal detector (counting at the border). If it's a totalitarian police state you're after, why go all the way to North Korea? Just go to the Olympics! I'm guessing London will be even more fun, cuz England actually has real, dangerous enemies (and probably deserves them), unlike the wholly imaginary threats to Canada behind the smothering security overkill in Vancouver.
Too much—The amount of credit Canadians give themselves for being such nice and polite people. They made a big deal out of this in the Opening Ceremony, when the fat open mic night quality poet was claiming the words "please and thank you" could define Canadians. Not in my experience.
For myself, I heard a lot of sullen anti-Americanism expressed in Vancouver. On the subway and in restaurants and stuff where they knew Americans would be around to hear it, I heard lots of people openly dissing the US—claiming that we'd rigged the bidding for some construction project or that we'd rented them a bunch of broken down buses or whatever. Wah wah wah. What a bunch of crybabies.
It's funny how Canadians feel so intensely about us. I hardly ever think about Canada at all. Canada is about as big a preoccupation of mine as like, North Dakota or Siberia.
It's just not very high on the list of things I worry about.
Updated—
2/3—Number of medals out of the total possible won by the United States in the Women's downhill, one of the prestige, glamor events of the Winter Olympics, yesterday. Who Pwns the Podium now, huh?
Thursday, Feb 18, 10 at 01:10 AM
500—About what we each paid in USD to live in a motor home at a pretty good RV park with a pool, hot tub, and wifi (sometimes) near a subway stop in Burnaby, BC for a week during the Winter Games. Considering that downtown studios were renting for $4000 a week, at least according to my taxi driver this morning, it was a steal.
0—Odds that Canadian legend Kevin Martin, aka "The Old Bear," aka "K-Mart," was not going to bowl a bulls eye at the buzzer against an upstart Norwegian team in the first-round of the men's curling tournament. C'mon. They don't call you "The Old Bear" if you can't curl.
9—Number of goals by which the Canadian women's ice hockey team beat the Swiss women's team the day after we saw the Swiss women's team lose to Sweden 3-0.
I think what happened there was, those girls were probably just good athletes who were recruited by the Swiss Olympic Association to train for the women's ice hockey tournament. I don't actually believe the Swiss players grew up on skates, hockey sticks in hand, playing pick up on ponds in their little Swiss mountain hamlets, and I seriously doubt there's much of a girls' youth hockey culture in Switzerland, whereas the Canadian players obviously grew up with the game. Isn't ice hockey basically a Canadian sport? Nobody even cares about hockey in the US—so why would the Swiss?
I mean, I'm happy those girls found a way to participate in the Olympics and experience the Games (even if it meant taking a humiliating drubbing at the hands of the Canadians), which, lets be honest, probably would have been much worse had the Canadian women not been so heavily criticized for their merciless, unsporting 19-0 blow out of the Slovakian team one day previously. On the other hand, we paid more than one hundred dollars to watch what, to me, looked like a college intramural game in terms of the skill level and athleticism on display.
Maybe the Swiss could have invited a few of their friends and relatives to watch their games, but to charge the public $100 for a ticket to see two teams which were basically in Vancouver for no other reason than to play Washington Generals to the Canadian women's team's Harlem Globetrotters, is a rip off. Honestly, I wouldn't pay a hundred bucks to see Carmelo Anthony, who's not only a world class athlete but was basically born with the rock in his hands, play basketball. I might pay around $40 for a Nuggets game, maybe.
Lets put it this way—when IOC President Jacques Rogge claimed in the Opening Ceremony that the Winter Olympians were the "best athletes in the world," for accuracy's sake he should have added, "Well, except for Swiss women's ice hockey."
5—Number of crown and cokes I drank on Monday in downtown Vancouver. (Around five. It might have been more, I can't remember.)
5 or 6—Number of people I saw inside the fence taking pictures of themselves with the Olympic cauldron in the plaza next to the Convention Centre that was supposedly closed for security reasons, when I went back to check if the cops had manned up and opened the thing on Sunday. Who were those guys? Like politicians or the relatives of some television anchor or high level policeman? I'd like to know just how is it that the Canadians were sure those people weren't just as much of a threat to vandalize the Olympic flame as I was?
Oh, now they open it! I guess they were waiting until I left.
6—Number of times I was questioned, patted down, had my bags searched, and had to walk through a metal detector (counting at the border). If it's a totalitarian police state you're after, why go all the way to North Korea? Just go to the Olympics! I'm guessing London will be even more fun, cuz England actually has real, dangerous enemies (and probably deserves them), unlike the wholly imaginary threats to Canada behind the smothering security overkill in Vancouver.
Too much—The amount of credit Canadians give themselves for being such nice and polite people. They made a big deal out of this in the Opening Ceremony, when the fat open mic night quality poet was claiming the words "please and thank you" could define Canadians. Not in my experience.
For myself, I heard a lot of sullen anti-Americanism expressed in Vancouver. On the subway and in restaurants and stuff where they knew Americans would be around to hear it, I heard lots of people openly dissing the US—claiming that we'd rigged the bidding for some construction project or that we'd rented them a bunch of broken down buses or whatever. Wah wah wah. What a bunch of crybabies.
It's funny how Canadians feel so intensely about us. I hardly ever think about Canada at all. Canada is about as big a preoccupation of mine as like, North Dakota or Siberia.
It's just not very high on the list of things I worry about.
Updated—
2/3—Number of medals out of the total possible won by the United States in the Women's downhill, one of the prestige, glamor events of the Winter Olympics, yesterday. Who Pwns the Podium now, huh?
Men's Curling: Germany 7, USA 5; Canada 7, Norway 6
Tuesday, Feb 16, 10 at 09:36 PM
We just got back from curling. It was cooler than I was expecting it to be!
The way it works is, you watch four games simultaneously. We saw the US play Germany and Canada versus Norway. I kinda tuned out the other two matches because I couldn't keep track of more than two games, and actually I only really figured out the rules a half hour before it ended--so I was really clueless.
The US took an early lead and things were looking good, but in the end the German curling machine was just too efficient, and they dominated.
After the USA conceded to the German juggernaut, I figured if we couldn't witness a US win we could at least see the Canadians lose, but the defending champs (Canada won this event in Turin) beat the Norwegians in a tiebreaker for the dramatic finish. Canada has Kevin Martin, aka "K-Mart," who's like the Peyton Manning of international curling, and he scored a bulls eye with the puck on the last play (I have no idea what the correct terminology is), and it was pandemonium at the Vancouver Olympic Center. It was like watching Kobe hit a game winning 3 at the buzzer.
The Norwegians talking it over with their manager...
I never expected curling to be such a blast.
Tuesday, Feb 16, 10 at 09:36 PM
We just got back from curling. It was cooler than I was expecting it to be!
The way it works is, you watch four games simultaneously. We saw the US play Germany and Canada versus Norway. I kinda tuned out the other two matches because I couldn't keep track of more than two games, and actually I only really figured out the rules a half hour before it ended--so I was really clueless.
The US took an early lead and things were looking good, but in the end the German curling machine was just too efficient, and they dominated.
After the USA conceded to the German juggernaut, I figured if we couldn't witness a US win we could at least see the Canadians lose, but the defending champs (Canada won this event in Turin) beat the Norwegians in a tiebreaker for the dramatic finish. Canada has Kevin Martin, aka "K-Mart," who's like the Peyton Manning of international curling, and he scored a bulls eye with the puck on the last play (I have no idea what the correct terminology is), and it was pandemonium at the Vancouver Olympic Center. It was like watching Kobe hit a game winning 3 at the buzzer.
The Norwegians talking it over with their manager...
I never expected curling to be such a blast.
Do the Olympics Suck?
Monday, Feb 15, 10 at 02:02 AM
The Olympics might kinda suck.
So far the Olympics haven't really been the best thing I've ever experienced live. In fact being here is a bit overrated. If you had a ticket for a quality event (i.e. not involving the Swiss women's hockey team) every day it might be OK. But we don't have tix for something every day.
When you don't have an event there's really not much to do. Wandering the overcrowded squares and subway stations of downtown Vancouver with the mobs and waiting in lines all day really ain't my style.
A bunch of corporations and governments have venues downtown where there's free events and you can watch the Games on big screen TVs (and learn about the wonders of, for example, the Canadian national telecommunications conglomerate).
But I don't really enjoy being just some zero, getting herded around, penned in, and being given permission—after being thoroughly screened, searched, and patted down by security of course—to enter the not that great corporate pavilion.
There's even an hour long line just to get into the Olympic Superstore at Hudson's Bay Company. Do I really want an Olympic souvenir sweatshirt that badly?
The only way the Olympics would be cool is if you had an in—like if you were friends with an athlete who could get you into stuff, or if you had a media credential or if you'd arranged an event gig in advance somehow. Otherwise you're just a peon and a suspected terrorist until proven otherwise.
Plus it's probably easier to actually follow the Games from home, on the net and on TV. I don't even have 3G in Canada so I have no idea what the hell is going on, even though I'm right here.
And security is so tight and paranoid they even fenced off the plaza near the Convention Centre where the Olympic flame is. When we asked why, a volunteer manning the barricade blamed lefties, claiming the protesters who'd broken a few windows earlier in the day had threatened the cauldron too. All the volunteers were saying the same thing—they were definitely on message—and that whipped the somewhat buzzed late night crowd into an anti-hippie frenzy.
I bet it was BS though. I bet the VIPs, politicians and cops just want to keep all the best stuff for themselves, and not have any grubby commoners obstructing the view of the cauldron from the luxury suites in the Media Center.
The volunteers had obviously been instructed to blame all protesters and weren't overly careful about distinguishing reasonable anti-Olympic opposition from the allegedly violent anarchists and radicals who had supposedly forced the closure of the plaza. It seemed very convenient for the government. (Doesn't it usually come out afterward that the window smashers in these situations were actually undercover cops and agents provocateurs?)
Anyhow, we've still got curling on Tuesday, and I'm taking an Olympic break tomorrow and going snowboarding, so hopefully things will get better. Not gonna do any more random sightseeing in downtown Vancouver though.
Monday, Feb 15, 10 at 02:02 AM
The Olympics might kinda suck.
So far the Olympics haven't really been the best thing I've ever experienced live. In fact being here is a bit overrated. If you had a ticket for a quality event (i.e. not involving the Swiss women's hockey team) every day it might be OK. But we don't have tix for something every day.
When you don't have an event there's really not much to do. Wandering the overcrowded squares and subway stations of downtown Vancouver with the mobs and waiting in lines all day really ain't my style.
A bunch of corporations and governments have venues downtown where there's free events and you can watch the Games on big screen TVs (and learn about the wonders of, for example, the Canadian national telecommunications conglomerate).
But I don't really enjoy being just some zero, getting herded around, penned in, and being given permission—after being thoroughly screened, searched, and patted down by security of course—to enter the not that great corporate pavilion.
There's even an hour long line just to get into the Olympic Superstore at Hudson's Bay Company. Do I really want an Olympic souvenir sweatshirt that badly?
The only way the Olympics would be cool is if you had an in—like if you were friends with an athlete who could get you into stuff, or if you had a media credential or if you'd arranged an event gig in advance somehow. Otherwise you're just a peon and a suspected terrorist until proven otherwise.
Plus it's probably easier to actually follow the Games from home, on the net and on TV. I don't even have 3G in Canada so I have no idea what the hell is going on, even though I'm right here.
And security is so tight and paranoid they even fenced off the plaza near the Convention Centre where the Olympic flame is. When we asked why, a volunteer manning the barricade blamed lefties, claiming the protesters who'd broken a few windows earlier in the day had threatened the cauldron too. All the volunteers were saying the same thing—they were definitely on message—and that whipped the somewhat buzzed late night crowd into an anti-hippie frenzy.
I bet it was BS though. I bet the VIPs, politicians and cops just want to keep all the best stuff for themselves, and not have any grubby commoners obstructing the view of the cauldron from the luxury suites in the Media Center.
The volunteers had obviously been instructed to blame all protesters and weren't overly careful about distinguishing reasonable anti-Olympic opposition from the allegedly violent anarchists and radicals who had supposedly forced the closure of the plaza. It seemed very convenient for the government. (Doesn't it usually come out afterward that the window smashers in these situations were actually undercover cops and agents provocateurs?)
Anyhow, we've still got curling on Tuesday, and I'm taking an Olympic break tomorrow and going snowboarding, so hopefully things will get better. Not gonna do any more random sightseeing in downtown Vancouver though.
Sweden 3, Switzerland 0
Sunday, Feb 14, 10 at 04:58 PM
Yesterday morning we rolled out of the RV park around 9 AM, took the Skytrain downtown, and then took the 99-B to UBC for Sweden vs. Switzerland women's hockey.
Riding the 99-B Olympic express bus...
All of the buses and trains are jammed. Vancouver is so mobbed it's pretty hard getting around, and it can get a bit frustrating.
When I was coming back from UBC the line at the Olympic Village Canada Line station was so long I said forget it and walked across the bridge to downtown instead.
I wasn't that stoked about having to go through like Olympic TSA to get into the venue, though. I don't wear the boots I was wearing to airports anymore because they set off the metal detector every time, so I had to have a pat down as well before they'd let me in the hockey rink. They're taking the security situation pretty seriously, these Canadians.
Lots of empty seats, but a solid turn out for two European teams in Canada. If they don't want so many empty seats they could cut ticket prices a bit, maybe. $100 bucks for Olympic women's hockey? Don't get me wrong, they played hard and they were pretty good, but did the college intramural skill level mean the game wasn't quite spectator worthy?
Obviously I'm no hockey expert. It looked like hockey, I guess. Sweden had some big physical forwards and looked a bit more dangerous on offense, though the Swiss were threatening to even it up for a while. In the end Scandinavian muscle would not be denied, however, and Sweden won easily 3-0.
I didn't really like seeing Switzerland getting shut out though. How does mercilessly crushing your opponent set a good example for the youth of the world? Or am I thinking of a different game, like the Canadian women's team beating Slovakia 18-0? Running it up like that is poor sportsmanship. They could have backed it off a bit after like 10-0, I thought. Maybe the Canucks are taking their "Own the Podium" trash talking campaign a little too seriously?
Speaking of the Opening Ceremonies—Wow, was that boring. Why did they have to drive Wayne Gretzky up to Whistler or wherever to light that other torch?
Anyways, that's all for now.
Sunday, Feb 14, 10 at 04:58 PM
Yesterday morning we rolled out of the RV park around 9 AM, took the Skytrain downtown, and then took the 99-B to UBC for Sweden vs. Switzerland women's hockey.
Riding the 99-B Olympic express bus...
All of the buses and trains are jammed. Vancouver is so mobbed it's pretty hard getting around, and it can get a bit frustrating.
When I was coming back from UBC the line at the Olympic Village Canada Line station was so long I said forget it and walked across the bridge to downtown instead.
I wasn't that stoked about having to go through like Olympic TSA to get into the venue, though. I don't wear the boots I was wearing to airports anymore because they set off the metal detector every time, so I had to have a pat down as well before they'd let me in the hockey rink. They're taking the security situation pretty seriously, these Canadians.
Lots of empty seats, but a solid turn out for two European teams in Canada. If they don't want so many empty seats they could cut ticket prices a bit, maybe. $100 bucks for Olympic women's hockey? Don't get me wrong, they played hard and they were pretty good, but did the college intramural skill level mean the game wasn't quite spectator worthy?
Obviously I'm no hockey expert. It looked like hockey, I guess. Sweden had some big physical forwards and looked a bit more dangerous on offense, though the Swiss were threatening to even it up for a while. In the end Scandinavian muscle would not be denied, however, and Sweden won easily 3-0.
I didn't really like seeing Switzerland getting shut out though. How does mercilessly crushing your opponent set a good example for the youth of the world? Or am I thinking of a different game, like the Canadian women's team beating Slovakia 18-0? Running it up like that is poor sportsmanship. They could have backed it off a bit after like 10-0, I thought. Maybe the Canucks are taking their "Own the Podium" trash talking campaign a little too seriously?
Speaking of the Opening Ceremonies—Wow, was that boring. Why did they have to drive Wayne Gretzky up to Whistler or wherever to light that other torch?
Anyways, that's all for now.
A few pix from the (unofficial) 2010 Vancouver Winter Games Motorhome
Friday, Feb 12, 10 at 08:44 PM
Here's a few snaps from night number one in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games Motorhome.
Thing is pretty plush.
We're right near a Skytrain station so we can get downtown in like 15 minutes.
Welcome to Vancouver, 2010 Winter Games RVers!
Stay tuned for more newz & pix. We've got tickets to Sweden v. Switzerland woman's hockey, so there will probably be some good photo opportunities of slightly more photogenic subjects at that event.
Friday, Feb 12, 10 at 08:44 PM
Here's a few snaps from night number one in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games Motorhome.
Thing is pretty plush.
We're right near a Skytrain station so we can get downtown in like 15 minutes.
Welcome to Vancouver, 2010 Winter Games RVers!
Stay tuned for more newz & pix. We've got tickets to Sweden v. Switzerland woman's hockey, so there will probably be some good photo opportunities of slightly more photogenic subjects at that event.
Holy shit, we're in Vancouver!
Friday, Feb 12, 10 at 03:39 PM
Holy shit, we're in Vancouver and it's time for the obligatory, what happened when I passed through the airport/what's the word on the street piece, because we're journalists and real journalism ain't afraid to talk about the bums and drugs that the politicians don't want you knowing about.
First of all, the word on the street is that not everyone in Vancouver is as stoked about the Olympics as they would have you believe. I sat next to two Canadians on the Olympic Line streetcar who said their taxes would have to be raised because of all this BS. On the other hand, when someone mentioned a bunch of hippies who were protesting by blocking some bridge, they said that they hoped nobody was hurt and that, as long as the Olympics are here, can't people set their differences aside and enjoy themselves? Awwww. Canadians are so nice, reasonable, and tolerant.
(Can someone please explain the 2010 Olympic Line Streetcar to me? It doesn't really seem to go anywhere very important, and the train car is so narrow you can barely get anyone on there. I mean, it seems nice and everything--idealistic and well intentioned maybe, but basically useless?)
Illegal drugs and homeless people! They're everywhere. BC is practically the Sinaloa of Canada in terms of narcotics. As soon as I stepped off the plane I bought some coke, heroine, speed, meth, and weed. No! But I could have. And walking around the city yesterday I saw plenty of bums sleeping under bridges and pushing shopping carts--even in the hip 4th Ave restaurant district, which is supposed to be yuppie and tourist only. So the Olympics doesn't fix homelessness. Now you know.
OMG I saw Ksenia Makarova! The international arrivals lounge at YVR yesterday was this big scene where the hardcore supporter groups cheered on the athletes, while they passed through customs! That's hardcore. The Russians were out in force. I guess they're super into these winter sports deals, because Russia is cold and has tons of snow (unlike Vancouver). Plus they're actually hosting the next one in Sochi, in 2014. America's still gonna destroy them in the medal count, however.
When Makarova showed up she was mobbed by autograph seeking Russians. I didn't actually know who she was, but she was signing pictures of herself skating, and she's Russian, so that was enough to Googlestalk her on my smart phone.
Also, Canadians need to chill out a bit with the cops and security measures. This place is a total police state! That is all.
Friday, Feb 12, 10 at 03:39 PM
Holy shit, we're in Vancouver and it's time for the obligatory, what happened when I passed through the airport/what's the word on the street piece, because we're journalists and real journalism ain't afraid to talk about the bums and drugs that the politicians don't want you knowing about.
First of all, the word on the street is that not everyone in Vancouver is as stoked about the Olympics as they would have you believe. I sat next to two Canadians on the Olympic Line streetcar who said their taxes would have to be raised because of all this BS. On the other hand, when someone mentioned a bunch of hippies who were protesting by blocking some bridge, they said that they hoped nobody was hurt and that, as long as the Olympics are here, can't people set their differences aside and enjoy themselves? Awwww. Canadians are so nice, reasonable, and tolerant.
(Can someone please explain the 2010 Olympic Line Streetcar to me? It doesn't really seem to go anywhere very important, and the train car is so narrow you can barely get anyone on there. I mean, it seems nice and everything--idealistic and well intentioned maybe, but basically useless?)
Illegal drugs and homeless people! They're everywhere. BC is practically the Sinaloa of Canada in terms of narcotics. As soon as I stepped off the plane I bought some coke, heroine, speed, meth, and weed. No! But I could have. And walking around the city yesterday I saw plenty of bums sleeping under bridges and pushing shopping carts--even in the hip 4th Ave restaurant district, which is supposed to be yuppie and tourist only. So the Olympics doesn't fix homelessness. Now you know.
OMG I saw Ksenia Makarova! The international arrivals lounge at YVR yesterday was this big scene where the hardcore supporter groups cheered on the athletes, while they passed through customs! That's hardcore. The Russians were out in force. I guess they're super into these winter sports deals, because Russia is cold and has tons of snow (unlike Vancouver). Plus they're actually hosting the next one in Sochi, in 2014. America's still gonna destroy them in the medal count, however.
When Makarova showed up she was mobbed by autograph seeking Russians. I didn't actually know who she was, but she was signing pictures of herself skating, and she's Russian, so that was enough to Googlestalk her on my smart phone.
Also, Canadians need to chill out a bit with the cops and security measures. This place is a total police state! That is all.
Destination Vancouver
Tuesday, Feb 09, 10 at 12:08 AM
I've been slowly making my way across the country to Vancouver, where I'll arrive on Thursday, Feb 11 to meet up with the boyz and pick up the RV. So far I've only made it to Denver. On Saturday night my flight was canceled and I spent the night in the terminal at Charlotte. Around midnight US Airways tried to give me a hotel voucher, but since I was re booked on the 7 AM I didn't even feel like riding a shuttle to an airport hotel and sleeping for like four hours or whatever, so I just unrolled my pad in the baggage claim and crashed for a few hours.
Even though the flight was canceled I still rode Copper on Superbowl Sunday. That's why I stopped in Denver, to get my board and ride a bit. After the plane touched down at DIA @ 9:30 AM I hustled up the hill and made Copper by noon or whatever (maybe a bit later). The snow wasn't that great, but the resort was pretty empty for a Sunday, cuz everybody was watching football on HD flat screen TVs and pigging out. It felt like a weekday, there weren't any lines, I had the pipe and the jumps to myself, and the I-70 traffic back to Denver was mellow too, so it was good. At a big resort like Copper the lifts are fast, so even if you only get 3 hours you can still get a lot of runs and lots of vertical.
The U.S. Snowboarding Team won't need to feel threatened by my presence in Vancouver though. That was my first day of the season and it definitely took a few runs to get my form back and get warmed up. Every season I forget how to ride switch and I have to start from scratch! Maybe I'll go again tomorrow, and then I'm flying to Seattle on Wednesday morning, from where I'll bus over the border to Canada. I'll make Vancouver eventually, I know it! :)
Tuesday, Feb 09, 10 at 12:08 AM
I've been slowly making my way across the country to Vancouver, where I'll arrive on Thursday, Feb 11 to meet up with the boyz and pick up the RV. So far I've only made it to Denver. On Saturday night my flight was canceled and I spent the night in the terminal at Charlotte. Around midnight US Airways tried to give me a hotel voucher, but since I was re booked on the 7 AM I didn't even feel like riding a shuttle to an airport hotel and sleeping for like four hours or whatever, so I just unrolled my pad in the baggage claim and crashed for a few hours.Even though the flight was canceled I still rode Copper on Superbowl Sunday. That's why I stopped in Denver, to get my board and ride a bit. After the plane touched down at DIA @ 9:30 AM I hustled up the hill and made Copper by noon or whatever (maybe a bit later). The snow wasn't that great, but the resort was pretty empty for a Sunday, cuz everybody was watching football on HD flat screen TVs and pigging out. It felt like a weekday, there weren't any lines, I had the pipe and the jumps to myself, and the I-70 traffic back to Denver was mellow too, so it was good. At a big resort like Copper the lifts are fast, so even if you only get 3 hours you can still get a lot of runs and lots of vertical.
The U.S. Snowboarding Team won't need to feel threatened by my presence in Vancouver though. That was my first day of the season and it definitely took a few runs to get my form back and get warmed up. Every season I forget how to ride switch and I have to start from scratch! Maybe I'll go again tomorrow, and then I'm flying to Seattle on Wednesday morning, from where I'll bus over the border to Canada. I'll make Vancouver eventually, I know it! :)
Re: winter olympixx
Saturday, Feb 06, 10 at 01:53 AM
winter olympixx
5 messages
Sk8r Boi Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 8:10 PM
To: Russell Stein
roadtrip!!!
i need to get away and i'm kicking around the following idea with my buddy:
fly to vancouver on thurs 2/11
fly home wed 2/17
6 nights in and around vancouver for the olympics
renting an RV to stay in, so we can drive to the various venues and after we get out, we don't have to drive 1 hour back to vancouver (for example)
the RV sleep 4-5, and there's only 2 of us
it's pretty cheap too. r/t flight for LAX is $300. i think the RV is around $1000 total for 6 nights, including mileage.... kilometerage?
are you interested?
it would be cool if you could make it!
Russell Stein Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 6:59 AM
To: Sk8r Boi
Im in! sounds fun i'll see if I can arrange flights today.
[Quoted text hidden]
Sk8r Boi Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 9:14 AM
To: Russell Stein
Awesome! I got my flight already. I get into vancouver at noon on Thurs
--- On Mon, 2/1/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: Re: winter olympixx
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Monday, February 1, 2010, 6:59 AM
[Quoted text hidden]
Russell Stein Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 11:24 AM
To: Sk8r Boi
Think we can get Boardercross tix on stubhub?
[Quoted text hidden]
Sk8r Boi Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 11:59 AM
To: Russell Stein
i dunno, checkit out! im so stoked you're joining us. this RV is going to be so sweet. make sure u bring a sleeping bag :)
--- On Mon, 2/1/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: Re: winter olympixx
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Monday, February 1, 2010, 11:24 AM
[Quoted text hidden]
itinerary
2 messages
Russell Stein Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 2:48 PM
To: Sk8r Boi
Hey,
I decided to fly into Seattle on the 10th cuz Southwest will check my snowboard for free and I'm undecided about going to norcal after BC or going east to Revelstoke--as long as we're in BC right?--and I didn't want to fly one way into Canada, which is technically a different country. Don't forget your passport!
I'll arrive via Greyhound in the early in the morning of the 11th sometime. Hopefully there'll be a long border delay and I can sleep the whole night on the bus.
SEATTLE, WA 10Feb10 10:00pm GLI 6524
VANCOUVER, BC 11Feb10 01:55am
You think we'll find parking for the RV? I read parking at Whistler will be "extremely limited."
Sincerely,
Flying Potato
Sk8r Boi Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 5:14 PM
To: Russell Stein
When ur roll a 25 ft recreactional vehicle, you make your own parking spots
--- On Tue, 2/2/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: itinerary
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Tuesday, February 2, 2010, 2:48 PM
[Quoted text hidden]
Saturday, Feb 06, 10 at 01:53 AM
winter olympixx
5 messages
Sk8r Boi Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 8:10 PM
To: Russell Stein
roadtrip!!!
i need to get away and i'm kicking around the following idea with my buddy:
fly to vancouver on thurs 2/11
fly home wed 2/17
6 nights in and around vancouver for the olympics
renting an RV to stay in, so we can drive to the various venues and after we get out, we don't have to drive 1 hour back to vancouver (for example)
the RV sleep 4-5, and there's only 2 of us
it's pretty cheap too. r/t flight for LAX is $300. i think the RV is around $1000 total for 6 nights, including mileage.... kilometerage?
are you interested?
it would be cool if you could make it!
Russell Stein Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 6:59 AM
To: Sk8r Boi
Im in! sounds fun i'll see if I can arrange flights today.
[Quoted text hidden]
Sk8r Boi Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 9:14 AM
To: Russell Stein
Awesome! I got my flight already. I get into vancouver at noon on Thurs
--- On Mon, 2/1/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: Re: winter olympixx
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Monday, February 1, 2010, 6:59 AM
[Quoted text hidden]
Russell Stein Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 11:24 AM
To: Sk8r Boi
Think we can get Boardercross tix on stubhub?
[Quoted text hidden]
Sk8r Boi Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 11:59 AM
To: Russell Stein
i dunno, checkit out! im so stoked you're joining us. this RV is going to be so sweet. make sure u bring a sleeping bag :)
--- On Mon, 2/1/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: Re: winter olympixx
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Monday, February 1, 2010, 11:24 AM
[Quoted text hidden]
itinerary
2 messages
Russell Stein Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 2:48 PM
To: Sk8r Boi
Hey,
I decided to fly into Seattle on the 10th cuz Southwest will check my snowboard for free and I'm undecided about going to norcal after BC or going east to Revelstoke--as long as we're in BC right?--and I didn't want to fly one way into Canada, which is technically a different country. Don't forget your passport!
I'll arrive via Greyhound in the early in the morning of the 11th sometime. Hopefully there'll be a long border delay and I can sleep the whole night on the bus.
SEATTLE, WA 10Feb10 10:00pm GLI 6524
VANCOUVER, BC 11Feb10 01:55am
You think we'll find parking for the RV? I read parking at Whistler will be "extremely limited."
Sincerely,
Flying Potato
Sk8r Boi Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 5:14 PM
To: Russell Stein
When ur roll a 25 ft recreactional vehicle, you make your own parking spots
--- On Tue, 2/2/10, Russell Stein wrote:
> From: Russell Stein
> Subject: itinerary
> To: "Sk8r Boi"
> Date: Tuesday, February 2, 2010, 2:48 PM
[Quoted text hidden]
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Thursday, Mar 04, 10 at 08:52 PM
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