GHOST TOWN
I had an interesting weekend at UBC. The whole campus was really quiet. There didn’t seem to be a single soul around. During the two days at SJC, I didn’t see a single resident, though I know there are people there. It was a nice departure having to deal with just my own solitude. It was peaceful and relaxed.
Hey, if you think that blogs can’t be shocking enough these days, I encourage you to read this post.
FROZEN THOUGHTS
I went to a dinner party tonight. Thanks Trev for inviting me. On my walk back from the bus loop, I nearly froze my ass off. The mercury must have been hovering near zero tonight.
When I finally got back to the safe confines of my room, I discovered my room was nearly as cold as the outside. I had turned off the heat before I left earlier in the evening.
Anyways, I learned two important things at the dinner party:
BACK AT UBC!
Well, at least for the weekend. There’s some stuff I need to do here and to be honest, it was getting a bit cramped back at my parent’s place.
It’s nice and quiet here, I can go about my business again without anyone bothering me.
If anyone was wondering why my comments had disappeared for a while, I finally found out why. Apparently, another user of the commenting system I employ changed his settings two days ago. Somehow, this changed the settings of all the users on the system. It screwed up everybody. However, all is well now.
If anyone wants to contact me, please do so at my UBC number. Thanks!
BOXING DAY SHOPPING
I went Boxing Day shopping today. Unlike the throngs of pain-seekers, however, I did not start shopping until 5pm. You have to be either an idiot or possess amazing amounts of tolerance to go any earlier.
In the span of two hours, I managed to visit Lougheed Town Centre, Future Shop, Linen ‘N Things, and Ikea. Parking was plentiful and the crowds were sparse.
Because of the considerable fiscal restraint I am exercising this year, I did not buy much. My purchases came out to exactly two candles from Ikea. That’s not to say I wanted to buy more. There was lots I wanted to get, but when you’re poor, reality sets in quite quickly.
What I don’t get is the mindset of people who want to battle the immense crowds during the morning and afternoon. It’s hot, stiffling, hectic, and I bet, when people get home, they’ll look at their purchases and wonder, “Was it really worth four hours of hell to get two shirts for $19.99?”
POST CHRISTMAS
I hope everyone had a good Christmas. Mine was alright. I was hoping to win the lottery, but I did not.
I managed to finish watching all my taped TV shows. It was quite interesting viewing several hours of 24 in a row, in near real-time. I wonder what it’d be like to watch a whole season in one, 24 hour block.
I’ll probably be heading off to UBC tomorrow for a few days before I return back to my parents’ place again. I’ll check in with everyone once I’m there.
Happy Boxing Day!
TV MARATHON
About a month into school, I began taping shows I had no time to watch anymore. These shows were: 24, Ed, The West Wing, and ER.
I have about 10 weeks of shows to watch. Tonight, I started to watch them. I just finished watching three episodes of Ed and one of The West Wing. My plan is to watch all the episodes of one series and then start on the next. This way, it’ll be easier to remember everything and I won’t have to do too much rewinding and fast-forwarding.
By my calculations, I have roughly 40 hours of TV to watch, probably less due to skipping commercials. I want to finish it in about three days or 72 hours. If I don’t go out or bathe, I think I can do it.
Wish me luck.
NO MAIL
UPDATE: All is well, mail is working at both addresses now.
There is currently a problem with the mail server that handles my erwin at erwintang dot com address. I’m not sure what the hell is going on. I can’t send or receive mail. Unfortunately, I am not the administrator of the server. The person who is the admin is leaving for Alberta for a few days.
In any case, if you did send me mail at the above address after 6pm PST on Dec. 20, please re-send your mail to this address: erwin@erwintang.com. Please use this address until I get things figured out. Sorry for the inconvenience.
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
I am home at my parents’ place for the next few days. Yesterday, I had a very good lunch with Chris and Joanna, who are regulars here at erwintang.com I also got to meet Chris’ wife, Debbie, for the first time.
After I arrived home this late afternoon, I decided to take a long anticipated trip to Lougheed Town Centre. What I hadn’t realized beforehand was that I hadn’t driven in about three months. During the first minute or so of driving, I was like, “Whoa… I’m driving a car… I’m driving a car…”.
I think you really do forget what it’s like to control a couple thousand pounds of steel and glass as it hurtles down the road. In any case, I made it to the mall without incident and without any problems finding parking.
I entered the mall from my usual entrance. As I made my way there, I saw where they had put the new IHOP. It’s located right where the old Pizza Hut used to be. I was surprised by the low-key nature of this IHOP. The signage for it is very minimal. There’s no actual external sign outside of the restaurant. A few medium-sized decal stickers on the windows identify it as an IHOP. You can’t really see what kind of restaurant it is from afar.
Some of the entrances are different now. They are now graced with automatic doors. As I walked through, the mall seemed different but familiar at the same time. The new London Drugs was a sure sign things were different, but other parts of the mall were decidedly unchanged, even with the new flooring.
I did a quick tour of the whole mall and I saw that there were still spaces left for new retailers. It didn’t take me long to get a feel for the new expansion.
A funny thing happened today. At SJC, I was talking to my neighbours Rastin and Susan and I found out that Rastin used to be the manager of the cheapo movie theatre at Lougheed Mall. What a small world. He said the place was run very cheaply. This was not a revelation to me.
In the next few days, I look forward to going to IHOP with my sister, and completing my tour of the new Lougheed Town Centre.
Since my sister isn’t here yet, I actually get to sleep in a bed tonight. After that, I’m relegated to a mattress underneath a desk.
I’ll check in with you guys tomorrow.
SLEEPY
I had a very full day today. I managed to get as far east as Brentwood Mall. I haven’t been that far from campus in over two months.
I’d write more, but I think I’m going to sleep now.
GOLD MINE
I’m going to let you in on a little secret. This is almost a sure-fire way of making yourself into a success. Unfortunately, it requires you to have a little bit of money first, or at least investors.
Someone should open up a Vietnamese pho noodle restaurant in Yaletown. I bet it’d be overrun with customers. Think about it. Yaletown is filled with trendy, cutting edge, and sometimes pretentious eateries. What would go against that, but still offer food that people want to eat? The universal appeal of pho is undeniable.
I’ve seen people of different cultural backgrounds and different socio-economical origins come together to eat a steaming bowl of pho noodle soup. It’s the one thing they can agree on and be addicted to.
The downtown core is sadly lacking in pho joints. They are far and few between, and poorly advertised. There are none in Yaletown.
If I had the gumption and the cash, I’d open a pho restaurant right in Yaletown. Somewhere along Hamilton or Mainland. I’d make it friendly and not too trendy. I’d call it just Pho and the sign would be back lit with blue neon. Inside, the furniture would be nice but not avant-garde. The kitchen staff would consist of real Vietnamese cooks. I’d have a web site. I might even take orders over the Internet for delivery around the Yaletown area.
Pho would be clean, classy, affordable, approachable, and worthy of every diner’s dollar. I tell ya, it’s a gold mine waiting to be discovered.
If I had $200K, I’d be on this mofo in a second. Anyone who does, you’d be foolish to not at least look into this.
I can’t believe I just gave away this great potential business opportunity! It’s money for the taking folks!