Category: Uncategorized

It’s snowing now. It’s been snowing pretty much non-stop since Saturday evening. The weather people are calling for somewhere between 20 and 30 centimetres* of snow in the current 24-hour period.
Any bets on how long before Canadian Tire sells out of snowshoes?
*That’s 8 to 12 inches for the Imperialists.

OK, the link has been changed to one that actually works. My apologies.
And in case you were wondering, we (the new guy and I) are very happy together. Think meadow scenes, daisies waving in the breeze, blue skies, etc.

Congratulations, Lisa and Paul, and welcome to the world, Jack.
As for Jasper, just remember to keep your chewy toys separate from Jack’s.

Regular readers (strictly in the “you come here often sense”) will no doubt be familiar with my trials and tribulations when it comes to my laptop.
Phase I – all is right with the world, birds are singing, everything is shiny and new, etc., etc.
Phase II – ok, things are not so shiny and new, and are frequently not visible at all
Phase III – hope springs eternal
Phase IV – hope, not so much. Maggie vs FutureShop and emachines and the whole evil empire, just about
Then there was a part number, then there wasn’t, then the part was ordered, then it wasn’t…
Last week, a colleague’s student confessed to working at FS – and said that emachines has been taken over by Gateway, and as far as he could tell, it would be relatively easy to get a part, and that he’d bring it to my office and install it!
Which is why, I assume, the hard drive crashed without warning yesterday morning.
Well, the heck with that 😛

Literal meaning
“The big tree next to the other equally sized tree.”
History
Taken from the underworld slang for “Stop kicking me to death, I left the money with friends” on the eve of a Tuesday, the name Margaret was originally used ineffectually to refer to unsettlingly enthusiastic night soil collectors, before undergoing surgery by Government linguists.
Famous Margarets
1. Margaret Nightdodge, exposed in the press as having swapped a child for the world’s sturdiest box; first holder of the office of Queen’s Own Loan Shark;
2. Margaret du Happenstance, who discovered the lost consonant of Atlatis;
3. Margaret F Lilly Li, BA, MD, champion of a nice cup of tea;
4. Margaret M de Millington, first victim of the self-propelled gardener;
5. Margaret du Jesus-Thews, aroused by demanding money with menaces;
6. Chief Scientist Margaret Tube, who could never shake an early association with the definitive manual on drowning; first holder of the office of Gross Miscarriager of Justice;
7. Margaret Tidecatcher, of the generation which fondly remembers Britain’s standards; first holder of the office of Chancellor of the Eggs Checker;
8. Margaret du Tinkermouse, who lost a fortune on several of the more violent gypsy curses;
9. Margaret Sprokes, opponent of the concept of acceptable losses;
10. Margaret de la Grating, named in court as holding compromising material concerning Paul McCartney’s Wings; ghost-writer of Lady Macbeth’s poorly bound autobiography, FEAR MY MOP; first holder of the office of Lord Mayor’s Official Stenciller.
Typical Margaret motto
“A draughty child is always better shut up.”
The Name Meaning Generator, via Dina

…please allow me to totally creep you out.
Give the page a few seconds to load.
Via Blork, who actually went to the site for research purposes.

Phil says six more weeks of winter.
Willie, however, disagrees.
It’s sad when rodents are at odds, isn’t it?

All we’re saying, Paul, is one wardrobe malfunction, and they’ll rescind the knighthood. So let’s be careful out there.

The temperatures around here have been low of late. We’re talking -20s, -30s with the windchill. We’re also talking long-term – it’s been ridiculously cold for about two and a half weeks now.
On the wall outside my office door I have installed a chalkboard for messages, doodles, and so on. Currently, the message at the top of the board asks “What’s your favourite weather cliche?” These are the responses to date:
~ it’s colder than a witch’s tit
~ don’t eat yellow snow
~ it’s so cold I saw a lawyer with his hands in his own pockets
~ it’s cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey*
~ I’m freezin’ me bunions off
~ cold enough for ya?
~ I’m chilly willy
and the only one related to warm weather:
~ it’s hotter than a whore in church.
*I’ve also been told twice about the actual meaning** of this phrase. I know. Also, when you’re trying to explain something to someone and they stop you to say “I know,” please stop trying to explain it.
**brass monkey = platform for cannon balls. Cold, metal contracts, brass differently from lead, balls fall off. Way funnier (not to mention more indicative of really cold weather) to picture brass simian figure with testicles falling off, first one, then the other, with a small, metallic “ting.”

For some reason, this morning my brain is mostly devoted to remembering (fondly) Sergeant Renfrew and his faithful dog, Cuddles.