Not much to report here. It was an easy ride to work with Sue. The return trip (mostly uphill) was a little different though. We had to be out at the ferry with time to spare, so I sped home very quickly so we could finish packing bags, load the truck and go. I made it home in just a hair over 10 minutes, when normally it takes closer to 15.
Here is a rant that has been brewing for a while. I was pushed over the edge last Thursday night, so here it is.
Telemarketers. Annoying, interrupting, persistent, rude and pushy.
Last night I faced the worst of them. The Canadian Liver Foundation. They called, I answered, the lady started her spiel, and right away I said I had no money to donate right now.
The lady replied that they weren’t looking for a donation right now, and continued talking. As she was babbling away I heard her mention she was looking for $200. Once again, I told her I had no money to donate right now. Again she said she wasn’t looking for money right now, and asked if two weeks from now was better. 😕 No it wasn’t.
I cut her off to tell her that I don’t give money to people over the phone. I despise telemarketers, and refuse to encourage their behaviour by giving them money. She launched into a diatribe on how it was the most effective way of communicating with people (getting into their wallets really). I said again, that I had no money to give.
She relented and asked that if she sent a pledge form for $60 would that be better? Again, “No, I don’t have any money to give you at this time.”
She tried another tactic. This was their 35 year anniversary. Could I spare $35? All together now: “No, I don’t have any money to give you at this time.”
Now she was just getting pushy, so while she was talking I just said, “You interrupted my dinner, and I must get back to it. I am hanging up now.”, and I did.
The stupid part is that as a child I was taught to not be rude. Hanging up on someone while they are talking is rude, and I don’t like to do it, but the telemarketers prey on that. They just keep talking no matter what I say. The only recourse left to me is to hang up. I know that the people I talk to on the phone are just trying to do their job. They may not want that job, and may be doing it because they really need money.
However, I still maintain that I do not give to charities that cold call me trying to hit me up for cash. There is only one charity that I give to, and they did not call me, I pledged money to them. The only other charities I support are Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and the Canadian Diabetes Society, both of whom pick up clothes. They simply say they have a truck in the area, and want to know if I have something for them to pick up.
Anyway, back to my rant. If I ever were to consider donating to the liver foundation, this eperience has certainly turned me off of them. I vow to never give them money EVER! Too pushy, too annoying, and they have no respect for me.
I came out lame today. I went to bed a little later than normal last night, the cat kept me awake for what felt like half the night, then I woke up at 6 and couldn’t get back to sleep. When I did get up, my throat was all scratchy, and in general I felt like poo. It was also pretty windy today.
I decided not to ride. I felt a little bad for not riding, but I had to go home at lunch, and I didn’t want to push myself while I am feeling sick. Lame excuses I know. Anyway … tomorrow I will ride.
Last night the photo club met to pay a visit to the Crystal Gardens. Unfortunately the organizer of the group (me) forgot to check the hours of operation. We quickly discovered that they were closed! 😕
What to do? We headed down to the inner harbour instead and took a few pictures there.
Bike to work week – Day 3
Woah, tough ride on to work today. I used my big bike for commuting, and it doesn’t roll as well and the road bike. It was fun though. Very bouncy fun. I didn’t find any outstanding morons and that makes me happy.
Nothing special to report, not like yesterday.
I did go home for lunch today though, and since I was on my roadie, my stats for the day are:
Total Distance Ridden: 21.31 km
Time to cover that distance: 0.59.45
Average speed: 21.4 km/h
Max speed: 40.5 km/h
Pretty good I would say. I will be doing the same thing on Thursday (going home for lunch).
cross posted to the Moron Control Board
As I was going home, the morons decided to come out of the woodwork. It was crazy downtown, and with the construction going on, drivers were getting frazzled.
I got through the tough part just fine, but when I was close to home, I came across him: Driverus Moronus.
I was riding along a 4 lane road, and this person passes me in the left lane. They signal, then move over to the right lane. They leave the signal on, and start slowing down. I start to slow because I can tell doofus in front of me wants to turn.
Suddenly I realize that he isn’t slowing, he is stopping! I slam on my brakes, and come to a stop right behind him. And he stays there waiting. I stare at the guy through the rear window, and he is watching me waiting for me to pass him on the right?!?!!
That is correct folks. This Driverus Moronus passes me, pulls in front of me wanting to turn right then wants me to pass him on the right. I don’t think so. In not so kind hand gestures I tell him to go ahead.
Why would someone do that to a cyclist? They wouldn’t think of doing that to a tractor trailer. They wouldn’t think of doing that to a pickup. They wouldn’t think of doing that to a tractor car, and they wouldn’t think of doing that to a motorcycle. Or would they …
A Night of Improv
It was hilarious. Sue and I went a year ago, and it was pretty funny. Those seats were up quite high on the balcony.
This show was completely different. We were very close to the stage, and we could see every facial expression. Their skits were funny. They played some of the same games that they do on Who’s Line, but being in the large crowd, the laughter was contagious, and everything was way more funny than the last show we saw.
With it being the late show I was wondering how the show would turn out. Either the first show would be a good warmup, or it would tire them out. I would go with the warmup route.
One bad side was that some of the skits went on too long. On tv they can edit out parts of skits, and generally shorten things up if needed. Can’t really do that with a live show. You could tell that a couple skits they just wanted to end, but couldn’t get the ending in there. The worst was the Improv Jeopardy. It started off really funny, but went on too long. Then there was an improved song that they just coundn’t end. Don’t get me wrong, it was still hilarious, but it just felt like it dragged on.
Another negative was the length. In total the show was 1.5 hours long ( a good length), but it seemed like 20 minutes. It just went by so quickly! 😀
Sue, kaptaink, and myself were kept in stitches for most of the show, and Greg Proops’ opening monologue was quite funny. There is something about a show like that, that is best seen live. Definitely worth the price of admission.
Bike to work week – Day 1
Ugh.
I felt horrible when I woke up this morning. I feel like I am coming down with a cold, I was supremely tired (the result of a reall bad sleep), and today is Monday (I hate Monday’s).
I dragged my sorry butt out of bed, showered, got ready, then as I was about to leave, I noticed it was raining. :grr:
I got changed, jumped on the bike and headed to work. Nothing too eventful on the ride, except I almost schmucked a pedestrian, and it would have been my fault. I was on the sidewalk when the road dipped under a train overpass. The road is a little sketchy when cars are zipping by, hence why I was on the sidewalk. I jumped off in time though.
Time to work: 14:30
Wooppee! As a gift to Sue for her birthday, I got her a ticket to go see A Night of Improv at the Royal Theatre.
When I originally went to get the tickets, the lady asked me if it was important I get seats for the show. I asked why, and she mentioned that if I waited a couple more days, more seats were going to go on sale because they had put on a second show! 😀
I waited the extra couple days, and scored 5th row seats, centre stage. 8)
Tonight kaptaink, Sue, and myself will have a great time watching a large portion of the cast from Who’s Line Is It Anyway perform. I am really looking forward to it!