Bad Driving

I have lived my whole life in Manitoba. People often complain about Winnipeg drivers and rightly so. Many drivers in Winnipeg are not very good and don't drive in a very predictable manner. After arriving for my House Hunting Trip in Ottawa I think people who drive here do not do a good job either.

Often it seems that the traffic lights don't really matter. People just pull out into traffic. No one seems to be paying attention. It seems to be a bit chaotic.

This may all be due to the streets being very old and narrow. They wind about the city with no apparent plan. It may be that I am just not familiar with the city layout but it sure seems to be difficult to move about some areas.

I will adapt. I will figure it out. That's who I am.

I also believe that I will like living in this city. What I'm told is the bad part of town is not bad to compared to many parts of Winnipeg. They say Ottawa is a very educated city which befuddles me why the driving seems to be so bad.

It may be that all cities have bad drivers, in which case we should all stop complaining and drive better.

Warp Speed

My relocation to Canada's National Capital is picking up steam. All that is really left is I need to find a place to live. I will be in Ottawa next week to accomplish this very task. Everything else is in place. I have the moving truck booked. I have spoke to my current landlord and they know I will be vacating at some point in the near future. The dishes are done. I am pretty much ready to go.

The entire activity has sure pick up speed in a hurry.

The entire thing feels very real now. I am starting to notice all the things in Winnipeg that I will miss. I know there are new adventures waiting for me in my new city, but its hard not to look back.

Looking forward I think the pace of life is going to pick up. I have never lived in Ontario before but from what I can tell, it moves at a different speed than Manitoba. I don't know if this will be good or not but I will find out. I like to be going all the time or at least have the option to be going all the time. I grew up in a small town. I know what its like. If I wanted to live in a small town, I would.

If everything goes as planned, about 3 weeks from now I will be resident of Ottawa. If it doesn't go well, I will get there when I get there.

Waiting.....

So I'm in the process of getting everything in place so I can move to Ottawa. It's been going reasonably quickly. Through this activity I have found I still do not wait well. A day or two here, a few days there. It drives me bonkers.

I know that I need to be patient and when I am responsible to do things, get them done quickly. Knowing that does not make waiting go any easier.

I know some very patient people. I hope they are patient, otherwise they are just untimely. They seem to relish having others wait for them. I am not that person.

I hope in the near future I will be doing more than waiting. I think nearly everything is in place to get thing rolling. I will be happy when everything is taken care of. I will gladly do my part when I have a part to do, I just am not sure how much more waiting I can handle.

Food Coma

Yesterday I went with some friends to Mongo's Grill for dinner. If you don't know, they serve all you can eat Mongolian stir-fry. Here's the thing, if you get a bunch of type A people at an all you can eat restaurant inevitably an eating contest will break out. Alas, it did again.

I ate 3 bowls of stir-fry. There was a guy who ate 5. He didn't even start to slow down until he was well into his 4th bowl.

I wonder how he's feeling today. I was rather sluggish all day.

It was a rather smart group of people that I went with. How do we degrade to gorging ourselves to excess only because we can. There is no logical reason we would eat so much but being naturally competitive, it is bound to happen.

People with competitive streaks in them find it very hard to back down. I know, I'm like that. It can be a very good trait but it can lead you astray.

I was asleep fairly early after my food binge but I didn't sleep so well all night. I knew this was going to happen but I pressed on anyway.

I ate 3 bowls of stir-fry and didn't claim the crown, maybe I'm a bit too competitive, but that's better than not enough.

Moving On

In my real job (as opposed to Internet blogger) I have been offered a promotion and a move to Ottawa Ontario. So off I go. If everything works out I should be moving in mid-November.

I have to admit I am very excited and a bit scared.

I have lived in Manitoba all my life. I have worked a summer in Alberta and a summer in Nova Scotia but Manitoba has always the place I go back to. Moving to Ottawa should have a lot of changes. I have always identified myself as a Westerner. I wasn't sure if I would or could live in Eastern Canada but I see so much opportunity I can't say no.

I have the opportunity to explore a different part of the country. I have been to Ottawa a few times but I have always been busy. I won't be far from Montreal. New York City and Boston are a days drive away. That's just the places I thought of. My own back yard will be a lot of fun.

With the access to communication we have today it should be easier to keep my ties to my friends and family. Of course I will meet new people and form new friendships but I don't want to give up the old ones either.

Unfortunately I will not be able to go to Bomber games. I will miss that. I will also miss the rent control in Manitoba. My housing is rather cheap in Winnipeg, but the upsides outweigh the downsides.

I'm moving to Ottawa and I'm excited.

Scanned In

Today as I passed through the passenger terminal in Ottawa, I was scanned by one the recently installed scanners being used in airports throughout the world.

I am not really one to hide. There are a few occurrences in my past I try to prevent coming up in the conversation, but who isn't in that situation.

Having said that, I prefer the scan to having the pat down. I don't hate the putdown, but I do find it takes forever. It may be a bit much when they stuff their fingers into your shoes. With the scan, you stand motionless for 2 seconds, they take a few seconds to analyze it and you carry on.

Now the rumour is you get a very detailed look under the subject's clothes. Does this really matter. Yes you will see their shape but let's be honest. You pretty much have that figured out without the scanner. I doubt you can see if they have any tattoos, moles or their haircut. These may be a bit more personal.

I realize a lot of people are sensitive to the opinion of others, especially when it comes to appearances. Often looking at a person is the only interaction two people ever have. If you think about it, how many people do you really remember? There are the few that look really good and the few that look really bad. The 95% in the middle are quickly forgotten, especially if no conversation is ever started.

There is no reason to be afraid of the scanner. It's safe, quick, painless, and hopefully effective. I didn't believe I would have any issue with the scanner and it turns out I don't.

How Do I Change The World

Today I went and saw the new movie "The Social Network." this is the movie that tries to explain how Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook.

I'm not writing a movie review here, it's just how I got on this train of thought. The movie tries to show how mr Zuckerberg saw all the gaps that needed to be filled in a student's existence. It tried to show how he saw and filled these gaps. It didn't always paint him in the best light but it did show how he sees the world around him. I think.

Facebook has changed the world around us. It has produced a platform for us to share the information we want to share. It has made it easier to remain in contact if we want to. It is everywhere if we want it to be. A lot of people want Facebook to be a part of their existence.

So this has me thinking.

What's next?

What will change us forever? What will show up and be so good that we will have to use it? And most importantly, how do I figure this out and create it?

I feel like I can create something big. I have no idea what that is. I have no idea what I can change that will shake us to the foundation. If I knew it I would do it.

The opportunities to be great are out there. The chance to change the world exists. I just need to see it.