don't mess with my cousin...

Good Clean Fun

a good old school hardcore band from washington, dc i think. i saw these guys with nic in late 1999. found this bit of lyric today. check it out. its actually really good.


Don't settle for second best, don't follow all the rest
You say you want the same things well let's put it to the test
Because talk is so cheap when you are screaming at a wall
And it is really hard to hear when you're the loudest of them all
If you want to change the world, quit all your yapping
If we don't start it here, well then it's never going to happen
There is evil in this world but it begins right at home
So let's clean house, then let's cast the first stone

from a newspaper printed in toronto...

kurtis got home today. he brought the new edition of 'The Hockey News' with him. the cover story says "40 Years, 0 Cups". can you guess who they are talking about? yep. you are right. the leafs. a toronto paper wrote an article about the toronto maple leafs and their (lack of) success. here is some of what they said...

"9 GMs, 18 coaches, 497 players, 27 million ticket sales, A kazillion dollars in revenue, ZERO STANLEY CUPS"

"No team in the history of sports has done so little to earn so much unconditional love from its legion of fans"

so..my question for the day is...how can people love the maple leafs? it is nonsensical. ridiculous. and any of them, that would call themselves fans are delusional. just ask francis or tori a question about the leafs lack of success. you will see what im talking about.


it is almost as fun to watch the leafs lose as it is to watch the montreal canadiens win. (did i mention this article also said that the canadiens have won ten (yes, 10), stanley cups in this same 40 years??

india 2002

when tim asked those of us who have been to india to reflect on our time there, i was pretty excited. reflecting means that i get to relive some of the crazy experiences i had, the amazing people i met and the amazing people i travelled with.
as a team we spent almost a whole year preparing ourselves to go. as we left, i felt pretty comfortable seeing pictures, watching videos and hearing stories of those who had been there before, but i still remember arriving in Mumbai and stepping out of the airport to a wall of air that was thicker than stink. that was the first thing that was going to take
some getting used too. the sights and smells would also require some adjusting and reorganizing of my comfort zones, but was well worth it.
a lot of things have stuck with me from that trip, and i would love to go back to visit again...but here a few things that i still think of often...
it was amazing to see Ray in his element. out for a visit with somefriends or people who needed a visit and back before 7 a.m. to make sure the rest of us were up. and out again for tea and visits after the rest of our head had hit the pillow. truly at home in that place, and i learned more about service and humility from him those 6 weeks than i likely ever will again.
the generosity of the people in that country was amazing. to feed 8 canadians is a big task for most families in canada, nevermind a struggling family from rural india. but the houses we went to, and the people we shared food with were amazing. giving us more food than likely even 16 of us could eat, while only eating rice and maybe dahl themselves. how can i be greedy with all that i have, while they are extraordinarily generous with so little? wow!
the friendships i made with some of the people there were life changing as well. many of us who have been have had the chance to meet and hang out with Joshua Salam. i could go back to india and be satisfied if all i got to see was this guy. he made me feel more at home in his country and his home than anyone else i met. took me on tours of the city, tried
to teach us the rules to cricket, laughed with us, laughed at us and became a friend that i will remember forever and miss until i get to see him again.
ok. this is long enough. i could write more. thats just how awesome that country is. seriously. if you get the chance, you need to go. you will be blown away. and if you do go, make sure to tell me when you get back, i want to see pictures and hear stories. thanks tim, for the
chance to reflect...

jon-rae fletcher

honestly, i havent heard of this guy either. he is a musician born in saskatoon, raised in alberta and has lived mostly in vancouver, i believe. but i found a neat article about him, his upbringing and his take on faith, in the globeandmail. you can check it out here or just read this quick quote:
"If I did experience anything spiritual in the church -- and I believe that I did -- it was not in the discourse of the church, but in the community of it. . . . That's been a part of my experience in the church that has stayed with me and that I've tried to bring to the spirit of my music."

something that i can identify with. maybe excluding the part about 'my music'.

kris rockin the blog

kris is now blogging. check it out for blunt updates on things happening in the south end of the queen city...

winter is coming...

ice on frame lake
Originally uploaded by xjermsx.

and the lakes are freezing. not super thick yet. so im still up for one more swim if anyone else will come. serious. but its neat how the landscapes change as the sun begins to shine less and less on this part of the world, north of 60.

my name is slim shady..

ok. its not. i lied.
but seriously now, there is this show. it is hilarious. even better than that "arrested development", that so many of you find humorous. this is leaps and bounds ahead. check it out. My Name Is Earl. thursdays on NBC or global. i think.

more on forgivenes

wow. check out this article on forgiveness. pretty crazy stuff.

old school nintendo

i was checking out cbc radio 3 and found a link to a sweet website with 300 or so old school nintendo games. so if you are bored at work, or need to procrastinate for a bit...
THIS. is the place to do it.

thank this

yep. i have a lot to be thankful for too. kamara said it all really well on her blog. go read it. nic also said it well on his blog, however, i would have enjoyed his post more if he had not censored it. just say what you want, you chump.
anyway, lately ive been thinking about how im thankful for the last 8 months of life. the ashbys have made yellowknife a home away from home, and tim and tara have made their place feel like a home away from my home away from home. so i am quite thankful for both of those families, and will be sad to leave them in 4 weeks.
im thankful for my family, mom and dad, kris, melissa and nic have made me laugh (and curse) so much over the years, and i wouldnt trade it for anything. and then my grandparents. dang. i owe them bigtime. for so much. so im thankful that i could know them for my whole life so far. not everyone gets that chance.
and im thankful for the chance to go see roger federer play tennis in 6 weeks (i have to put that into all my blogs from now on, just to make nic jealous)
and im thankful for my friends. so many. too many people to list. and that isnt because i think im so cool and have so many friends, but because so many people have thought that it would be a good idea to be nice to me, in spite of me.
i could write more. but ill stop here. you are probably bored, and other people who write much more eloquently than i, have better things to say. happy thanksgiving.
mom, im sorry ill miss your butter chicken. next time.

Roger Federer

in about a month and 9 days, jon, nicole and myself will be watching this guy play tennis. thats right, THE Roger Federer. live. for now, you can check out his blog for this week on that ATP website here. hes currently playing at a tournament in japan. in about a month and 9 days, you can check out my blog to hear what i have to say about watching one of the greatest tennis players ever.

gridblog number 3. living forgiven.

i have no idea what to write about to be honest. i forgot that there was a gridblog topic for today until i got home and checked everyone elses blogs. so i have read everyone else's thoughts before i sat down to write my own. i hope they all forgive me for plagiarism.
but seriously.
not only have i experienced forgiveness from the creator of the universe, i have experienced it from so many people too. and dont get me wrong...God's forgiveness is huge. so huge. but i think it is sometimes harder for people to forgive each other. so i am in awe of the way God shows himself to me through the forgiveness that my parents have shown me for my highschool years, as well as my stubornness since. without their loving, caring, forgiving attitude i wouldnt even be close to where i am at in the journey right now. (which honestly isnt even that good of a place). so many people have not only put up with my pride, arrogance, and selfishness (among a whole lot more) but have forgot about them. forgiven me. wow. i am so thankful that God has put these people in my life to model His forgiveness to me. if you are reading this, you are likely one of those people. so thank you. no seriously. i mean it. thanks!

here we go.

Beautiful Guilin
Originally uploaded by shengangxi.

on november 10th jon slywka and i are heading to china, and will meet up with nicole laliberte there. a week in shanghai to watch the TENNIS MASTERS CUP! which will showcase the top 8 mens tennis players in the world! wow. and if that isnt enough, we are heading to Guilin, in Guangxi province to take in some sights like the one posted here, thanks to recommendations from jay, shannon and harmony. speaking of harmony, we will also be stopping in hong kong, for about 10 days to visit her and check out her new place. thats it, thats all.

this is for dave mostly

one of the funniest guys i know has a photoblog that i just found out about. he lives in oklahoma city, his name is adam avery cole, and you can check out his pictures adam

one more reason to not live in vancouver...

if, for some reason, you thought vancouver might be a cool place to live, read this article. not only do they break in and steal your stuff, they leave a great surprise in your porch. its funny, so go read it here

farming

on sunday nite we played the farming game at tim and tara's house. always a great time because it is such a great game. if you are ever at tim's house, make sure you ask him to play with you. especially since he isn't any good at it. cody won this time. but next time, its all me. i think you can buy it here

inspiration

breakfast inspires me...seriously. not so much the food, however, the food can be pretty stinkin good depending on where you go. but usually at breakfast a good group of people, or just a few get to hang out, talk, listen, share, and learn with each other. ive had a lot of good breakfasts over the years and they have been the times when i have felt closest and most at peace with things in life. ive shared countless tables and coffees with kris, blair, dave, tim, dad, ed, jonny, john close, pete, grandparents, harm, colby, joel, nic, vince...and a whole other list of people that i am forgetting. there is just something special about that time and a sweet cheap breakfast.

"shot to the nuts"

nic, my smarter, funnier, better looking, younger brother is blogging. check it out. nic

back in the knife

a trip to regina/dauphin in back in less than a week. that means 60+ hrs of driving. on the way down i didnt think it was going to be worth it. but here are some highlights....
-visits with jay and matt
-visit with grandpa in regina, so good to see him smile, hear his laugh, and hear some of his stories. definitely the number one highlight
-seeing the family
-quick visits with kris, and other regina people.
-hanging out with people in dauphin for the wedding.
-jumping off bridges at the lake of the prairies and wascana lake

lots more. check out the pictures for a better idea of what went on.
its funny how pretty much all the highlights involve people. in fact, they all do. kind of what jay and i talked a little bit about.
how important it is to be in relationship, sharing, encouraging, building with each other. so even though i spent a lot of time in a vehicle, the time i got to spend with people was well worth the trip.