A bit soon but .Several Grandchildren and must get gifts all there intime. Postage has become abit much and so if I mail several packages each month. It is easier on the wallet.
What Did You Do Today? What are you doing today?
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....I have several gifts for Tracy already......started in June......what it amounts to is, that if I see something I want for her online now-I better snap it up, cuz it may not be there later....
I also Xmas shop early. That way, last minute big bills don't exist.
I tend of make most of my Christmas gifts/ birthday gifts. Have found over the years it helps to start early in the year. Come July the first gift is mailed. Then one each month. Helps with the budget. As stated Postal costs are outrageous.
I'm bag-arse tired today. Went to the GNR show last night and didn't get home until midnight. Bed at 1:00, then up at 5:30. So what am I doing today? Dragging my feet.
In Edmonton ab canada
You and Neesy should get together, she might be able to get u a job in the health care sector, you work in the mental health department, crises for Salvation Army.
I'll most probably have a few beers later on today, I don't want to drink too much because I feel slightly sick on the stomach today because I had about twelve beers last night. If I could give anybody advice I would tell them what King did and give up alcohol because it is a waste of time, money, and it leads to depression. There's nothing romantic about taking drugs. I had two sausage and egg mcmuffins for breakfast and a medium coke. Some bird asked me to dance laste night I she asked me if I was single I said I could be her father. I think she liked older guys. I watched the rest of The Looking Glass War movie. I love the started of the movie, with the Columbia pictures Statue of Liberty lady and there's this really good music just at the start. It is a very good movie.
Neesy
#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
I'm two provinces over (Manitoba) and the lady you were talking about is in Alberta
Canada is a pretty big country
I know. I would like to visit Canada one day. I like the Canadian national flag. My favourite Canadian sportsperson is the 1980 World Snooker Champion, Cliff Thorburn. You made me want to watch that Charles Bronson movie Death Hunt( it's supposed to be based on a true story). They messed with the wrong guy he was in the Canadian Special forces.I'm two provinces over (Manitoba) and the lady you were talking about is in Alberta
Canada is a pretty big country
Neesy
#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
I don't work in the mental health department, I just hang clothing for goodwill. I do however have a mild stress disorder. Lol.
Yup. What I'm doing today is buying tickets to see Roger Waters in late October. Now that Pink Floyd is officially done, RW is my only live connection to the band. Was fortunate to have seen Floyd in '94, but never Waters. Until now.
Working on a project inspired by a long-haired blond guy I met on transit and another person I chatted with online.
Neesy
#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
Ah come on now - didn't you take Geography when you were in school?Now she tells me
In land mass we're a bit larger than the US but in terms of population they definitely have us beat
Ah come on now - didn't you take Geography when you were in school?
In land mass we're a bit larger than the US but in terms of population they definitely have us beat
But that is. It a bad thing really
Back in Hong Kong for an unplanned stop. Taiwan generally runs on 110 electricity, like America, but Hong Kong does not. Now I'm glad I went ahead and brought my extra cords and adaptors along. It's like the Boy Scouts (yes, I was a Boy Scout) motto, "Be Prepared."
Cathay Pacific, based in Hong Kong, sure is a nice airline. It was the first time I'd flown it. For a short flight from Taipei (an hour and change), we were treated to a nice little snack and a beverage. The flight attendants were all young (but at my age, everyone's young), attractive, and attentive. Very nice experience, several notches up from the normal US airline grind.
Hong Kong International Airport is pretty smooth as well. I'd only been there once before, but whether it's so easy or I have an inexplicably good memory of this one, it all seemed to flow. Easy signs to Immigration, masked and unmasked guides to herd you in the right direction, a long line that went quite quickly, because every time longer lines started to form at the booths of the intake officers, more would rush in to accommodate the numbers.
(I have to explain that "masked and unmasked" comment. Lots of people in Asia wear surgical-type masks out in public. Whether they're trying to keep out germs, keep their germs from others, or both, or something else, there's a lot of that around.)
Two guys were behind me, and one said to the other, accented, "Hong Kong airport is very efficient." I have to agree.
If you're going to Hong Kong, take the Airport Express from the terminal. It's worth it. It's so easy. Coming off the plane, there are two ticket outlets. Wait till you get to the one in the big main terminal. It's close to the entrance to the station, and the lines are shorter. You can use your credit card. I got a round-trip ticket for $205 HK (about 25 bucks), and it was fast and efficient, getting from the airport to Hong Kong Central. There were storage racks for luggage. I charged my phone as I rode in the thoughtfully placed port.
Hong Kong itself is different than I remembered. It hasn't changed. It's a matter of my location. My previous hotel was around more of a business district. My current hotel is in the midst of decidedly urban area. In walking and exploring, not much direct sunlight pushes past the surrounding buildings. The streets are narrower, more crowded, older, with bricks and pavers showing their upheaval through the years, and the pavement itself showing much more casual trash than I'm used to from, say, South Korea or Taiwan.
The schematics of the streets are much the same as elsewhere, with shops, cafes, repair shops, family restaurants, and so on occupying street frontage. But apparently when the Brits owned the place and planned the streets, they brought in a team of whiskey-sodden Irish or Aussie guys to draw them out. Grid pattern, this is not. I kept mindful of my landmarks and somehow avoided getting lost. Lots more bar-and-grills here than I saw in Taiwan, which will be good if I find myself melting into a three-hour walking puddle as happened just a couple short weeks ago somewhere else.
But with all the grittiness and grunginess, it brings an interesting dynamic. On this Friday evening, the consumer population was vibrant, engaged. A lot more cultural and ethnic diversity on the streets here than in other Asia places I've been to, and given the history, that's quite understandable.
And here's something I'll share from every Asian place that I've strolled around: However crowded, impersonal, notable by race/culture, sidewalk-impaired, shopfront-questionable environment I've been in, I've never felt unsafe.
As is my custom, I skipped past the restaurants that looked refined and crowded and stopped in a family-type joint that didn't have many customers. I figured they could use my money. I got a bowl of soup and noodles with animal parts that I don't usually eat. Their teenage kid had pretty good English. The guy (Dad, maybe?) whose job seemed to be to walk around the place and act important told me I should dump spicy stuff into the soup. So I did, and he laughed, and said, "More, more," so I did, and other people started laughing and saying what I think was probably, "Don't try to kill the white guy who's spending money here!"
In truth, I like spicy hot food, and this wasn't even close to the threshold and actually was fairly tasty, so I gulped it down along with the... well, the unusual animal parts. When I thanked them and left, Dad asked me to keep coming back. It cost about four bucks including some refreshing lemon tea, so I just might, if I can find it again.
Back in the hotel. My limited experience in Hong Kong shows their hotel rooms to be quite, well, efficient. Gone are the plusher hotels in Taiwan and Korea with the spaciousness, the fishbowl bathrooms, the comfortable lounging. In their place is a tightly wound room with a bathroom whose shower door doubles as the main bathroom door, an interesting concept. And gone is the cute-and-tasty drip-envelope coffee in the rooms of Taiwan, and back to the ubiquitous American export of Nescafe.
And one last word about the hotels. In both Taiwan and Hong Kong, they've got customer service figured out, boy howdy. They have public transportation figured out. They have an offering of food servings from tasty mundane to freakin' sublime figured out.
But they don't have "drawer space" figured out. I mean, I can get by fine with fishing undies and socks out of the suitcase. It's just that after all the other offered amenities, it seems odd.
Back to exploring a little today before a fairly short job assignment and returning mid-week. It's been a busy several weeks, and home is sounding good.
Cathay Pacific, based in Hong Kong, sure is a nice airline. It was the first time I'd flown it. For a short flight from Taipei (an hour and change), we were treated to a nice little snack and a beverage. The flight attendants were all young (but at my age, everyone's young), attractive, and attentive. Very nice experience, several notches up from the normal US airline grind.
Hong Kong International Airport is pretty smooth as well. I'd only been there once before, but whether it's so easy or I have an inexplicably good memory of this one, it all seemed to flow. Easy signs to Immigration, masked and unmasked guides to herd you in the right direction, a long line that went quite quickly, because every time longer lines started to form at the booths of the intake officers, more would rush in to accommodate the numbers.
(I have to explain that "masked and unmasked" comment. Lots of people in Asia wear surgical-type masks out in public. Whether they're trying to keep out germs, keep their germs from others, or both, or something else, there's a lot of that around.)
Two guys were behind me, and one said to the other, accented, "Hong Kong airport is very efficient." I have to agree.
If you're going to Hong Kong, take the Airport Express from the terminal. It's worth it. It's so easy. Coming off the plane, there are two ticket outlets. Wait till you get to the one in the big main terminal. It's close to the entrance to the station, and the lines are shorter. You can use your credit card. I got a round-trip ticket for $205 HK (about 25 bucks), and it was fast and efficient, getting from the airport to Hong Kong Central. There were storage racks for luggage. I charged my phone as I rode in the thoughtfully placed port.
Hong Kong itself is different than I remembered. It hasn't changed. It's a matter of my location. My previous hotel was around more of a business district. My current hotel is in the midst of decidedly urban area. In walking and exploring, not much direct sunlight pushes past the surrounding buildings. The streets are narrower, more crowded, older, with bricks and pavers showing their upheaval through the years, and the pavement itself showing much more casual trash than I'm used to from, say, South Korea or Taiwan.
The schematics of the streets are much the same as elsewhere, with shops, cafes, repair shops, family restaurants, and so on occupying street frontage. But apparently when the Brits owned the place and planned the streets, they brought in a team of whiskey-sodden Irish or Aussie guys to draw them out. Grid pattern, this is not. I kept mindful of my landmarks and somehow avoided getting lost. Lots more bar-and-grills here than I saw in Taiwan, which will be good if I find myself melting into a three-hour walking puddle as happened just a couple short weeks ago somewhere else.
But with all the grittiness and grunginess, it brings an interesting dynamic. On this Friday evening, the consumer population was vibrant, engaged. A lot more cultural and ethnic diversity on the streets here than in other Asia places I've been to, and given the history, that's quite understandable.
And here's something I'll share from every Asian place that I've strolled around: However crowded, impersonal, notable by race/culture, sidewalk-impaired, shopfront-questionable environment I've been in, I've never felt unsafe.
As is my custom, I skipped past the restaurants that looked refined and crowded and stopped in a family-type joint that didn't have many customers. I figured they could use my money. I got a bowl of soup and noodles with animal parts that I don't usually eat. Their teenage kid had pretty good English. The guy (Dad, maybe?) whose job seemed to be to walk around the place and act important told me I should dump spicy stuff into the soup. So I did, and he laughed, and said, "More, more," so I did, and other people started laughing and saying what I think was probably, "Don't try to kill the white guy who's spending money here!"
In truth, I like spicy hot food, and this wasn't even close to the threshold and actually was fairly tasty, so I gulped it down along with the... well, the unusual animal parts. When I thanked them and left, Dad asked me to keep coming back. It cost about four bucks including some refreshing lemon tea, so I just might, if I can find it again.
Back in the hotel. My limited experience in Hong Kong shows their hotel rooms to be quite, well, efficient. Gone are the plusher hotels in Taiwan and Korea with the spaciousness, the fishbowl bathrooms, the comfortable lounging. In their place is a tightly wound room with a bathroom whose shower door doubles as the main bathroom door, an interesting concept. And gone is the cute-and-tasty drip-envelope coffee in the rooms of Taiwan, and back to the ubiquitous American export of Nescafe.
And one last word about the hotels. In both Taiwan and Hong Kong, they've got customer service figured out, boy howdy. They have public transportation figured out. They have an offering of food servings from tasty mundane to freakin' sublime figured out.
But they don't have "drawer space" figured out. I mean, I can get by fine with fishing undies and socks out of the suitcase. It's just that after all the other offered amenities, it seems odd.
Back to exploring a little today before a fairly short job assignment and returning mid-week. It's been a busy several weeks, and home is sounding good.
Grandpa - I love Hong Kong. I've never been so impressed by a city as far as how clean, well-planned, and seemingly safe it was. And the pastries are great. 
We stayed in the Kowloon/Mongkok area (not sure of spelling). I would love to visit again someday.
We stayed in the Kowloon/Mongkok area (not sure of spelling). I would love to visit again someday.
Tank you, again, Grandpa. Do so enjoy your little travel adventures. For those of us who do not travel much, they are little treasures. Be safe.
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