does the Florida sun cause brain damage?

Now this is not a post complaining about Florida as much as it is about hockey.

The point i want to convey, is that i think being in Tampa, has caused serious brain damage to one of the leagues good players. Vincent Lecavalier. Don't get me wrong he is still a very good player, i just don't think he still has all the brain cells he left montreal with. Otherwise, he would have realized that the smart thing to do is not to try and pick a fight with a giant.

The incident i am referring to occured during game 3 of the Ottawa Tampa playoff series. Near the end of the game, 2:17 left in the 3rd period to be exact, all hell broke loose. Chris Neil, was being Chris Neil, and set into motion an unavoidable effect, a full out brawl. Some of the matchups were evenly matched, Pratt vs. Heatley, Verada and whoever was hitting him from behind, but the matchup that gets me is when Lecavalier thought it smart to take on Big Chara.

For those of you who saw this, it was an impressive thing. Chara threw 2 lefts at Lecavalier's head, then threw him to the ground, and held his fist ready to kill him. But Chara held back, he knew he won, and didn't see it necessary to injure Lecavalier. Lecavalier is by no means a small or weak player, he is in my opinion one of the toughest players out there, I remember him going toe to toe with Inginla a few years ago in one of the best hockey fights i have seen. But he was simply outsized against Chara.

You knew it right away, when Lecavalier hit the ground and rushed to cover his head for protection.

This is my reasoning, why the Tampa sun is causing brain damage to our great Canadian hockey players.

Nervous moments

Yesterday, my wife had her second doctor's appointment for the pregnancy. Normally just a routine check-up. Nothing to worry about right.

Well when the doctor went to check for the baby's heartbeat, we were waiting to hear it , nothing came. So she started moving the microphone around, and still nothing. After almost a minute of this, my wife and I looked at each other, just ready to flip out, but all of a sudden the doctor found it.

Here she is trying to explain to us that it depens where the baby is hidding, I didn't hear a word she said. I was just so relieved to hear the heart beat. This kid isn't even born yet, and its already trying to give me a heart attack.

Movie Review: Brokeback Mountain

Ok. This week-end my wife and I decided to see what all the hype was about. We rented Brokeback Mountain. We had both heard great things about this movie, and nothing bad.

After having watched the movie, I wonder what was so spectacular about this movie. The movie wasn't bad or anything like that, just seemed to me like it lacked something. Both actors played the roles well. I actually believed they were both gay. The cowboy part was a little harder to believe, but still.

It's not that I disliked the movie or anything, I guess I just couldn't get into it. I have to rank it no higher than 6/10. Like I said, it wasn't a bad movie, just slow to develop, and leaves you expecting more than is actually coming.

The new cycling season

Well spring is here once again. I once again begin my summertime hobby, cycling.

The first couple of rides of the year are always the worst, sore muscle, pain from the bicycle seat. But after the first couple of rides, is peace and quite for some serious exercise. Last night I went for my second ride of the season, about 15km. The first ride, last wednesday was about 22km. Its not a bad start, but i am hoping by the end of may to be going 2 maybe 3 times a week for 25 km or ( about an hour ). Its good exercise, keeps you healthy.

Although i seriously need to get my bike checked. I think the shifter is loose, because the chain makes a weird noise when i cruize.

Car Review: Toyota Yaris RS 2006

As some of you may know, I purchased a new Toyota Yaris back at the end of February. My old car, and Oldsmobile Alero was starting to cause more headaches than I was willing to put up with. I know this is a much smaller car that my old one, but that is what we wanted, something small for day to day travelling.

Now that we have had the car for a little while, and had a first real road test, we drove to Toronto and back this week-end. I am pleasantly impressed with the car. First, the fuel economy is very nice, about 7.46 l/100km(highway) (42.22 mpg for all the imperial people out there). Which I might add feels nice on the wallet compared to the Alero.

Second thing that I was happy with, the seats offer just enough support for those long trips. I was initially afraid that they would be uncomfortable, as I used to drive a Mazda 323, and it was painful to drive on long trips (+ 3 hours). The seats offer enough support all around, although I truly belive that anyone with a broader frame than mine would find it uncomfortable and have the shoulders hunched in. The seats are of a sporty type, and therefor quite rigid offering a stiff support, but at the same time not offering much room for expansion.

The two issues that I do have with the car, and one you have to expect in small cars, it gets pushed around alot on open highway. Wind gusts, drafts caused by trucks have a tendancy to push the car around. The second issue I have is about the noise. It seems very noisy inside when drive, its not from the tires, but from the wind. You have a constant whistling noise around the car the minute the speedometer reaches 120km/h.

But overall I am very satisfied with the car, it has enough "guts" to easily get you around slow moving vehicles, or for quick passing. It also has a nice feel about it while cruising at reasonable speeds.

I would definitely recommend this car, for anyone in the market for a compact car for everyday use. I may change my opinion once the baby comes along (as space may become an issue).

Dog training with a choke chain

As some of you know ( those that know me, or that have previously read my blog ) I have a very large dog. He now weighs, at just under 9 months, 80lbs. At last week's obedience lesson, the trainer brought in another dog, to serve as distraction.

Well it worked, my dog could think of nothing else then trying to go and see the other dog. He spent the first couple of minutes tring to pull me to go see this dog. Thankfully that I was the one holding the leash and not my wife, as he was trying my patience and my strength. The trainer immediately suggested using a choke chain for future training. Several people had previously suggested this approach, and we were reluctant until that incident. This week-end we went out and bought our first choker.

This thing is massive ( as it goes by the size of the neck on your dog ). Last night we had our first opportunity to try walking the dog with the chain. WHAT A DIFFERENCE. He still trys to pull, but the minute he realizes that the chain gets tighter around his neck he stops. My wife, with a little practice, was able to restrain him, without getting yanked around.

I do believe that I sold. For large breeds that tend to pull, I think the choke chain is the way to go.

I don't know if there is any set rule, but I guess you need to measure the strength versus delicateness of their windpipe in deciding whether a choke chain is appropriate.

Tonight is our next lesson with the trainer, i can't wait to see if it makes a difference when another dog is in close proximity.

Movie Review: A History of Violence

I watched this movie last night on DVD. I had wanted to see it in the theatres, but got busy and missed my opportunity. Before seeing the movie, I didn't have much of an impression, as I had only seen one preview, that of a mild mannered man working in a small diner type restaurant, who is faced with unavoidable violence, and comes out on top.

Now that I saw the movie, all 96 minutes of it, I am left with the impression, that they could have rolled an extra 5 minutes to actually give this movie an ending.

( warning the following section reveals parts of the movie )
The movie starts out pretty good, and then builds up some suspense, while leaving nothing to the imagination ( from the sex scenes, the drugs, or the bloody violence ). But at the end when all the bad guys are blown to pieces, he just walks back into his house, stands there for a while. His daughter, after a few awkward moments, sets him a place at the table. He takes a seat, and then yet again another awkward silence, his son offers him, what looks to be meatloaf, without anything being said. The whole time you are expecting either someone to say, leave, or to welcome him home, but nothing. The clincher, after what seems like an eternity, he and his wife lock eyes, and the movie ends.
(end revealing section)

It wasn't a bad movie, but I must say I was left wanting.

The miracle of life

This past friday ( March 31st ) my wife and I had our first appointment with the Obstetrician. My wife is currently 10 weeks pregnant. We had a chance to hear the heart beat, as well as get a first look of the baby with the ultrasound. It was a very REAL moment. It kinda shakes the reality into, and what a reality it is.

Its not an easy feeling to explain, but man, what a moment in time. Your just sitting there watching the doctor take out what looks like a portable kareoke machine, and then all of a sudden, you can hear a "extremely rapid" heartbeat. Now at first you could think that a fast heart beat is a problem, then you remember that smaller beings have a faster heart rate.

Now I like to think i have good eyesight, but when she showed us the picture on the ultrasound, i couldn't make out what was what. I guess they must train these doctors to recognized certain formations, because at the size the baby is now, I can't tell up from down. ( for those of you who are interested, I will try to post the picture of the ultrasound online this week ).

stay tuned for play by play of future appointments