The MoonUnit Archives

Broken wrist blues

2006-06-12T13:24:00.000-07:00

Ok so last Wednesday I decided to break my wirst. Well not so much decided as in more like it just happened. I dove for a baseball during practice, caught the ball, and then landed on my right wrist. So anyways to make a long story short I went to the hospital and 6.5 hrs later I had a nice white cast covering my wrist and forearm. This is a huge inconvience since now I am not able to drive my car which is a standard and instead will be driving my folks old Montana. This is my first day back to work since the accident and things are proving to be difficultm here. I'm a lot slower at typing now and I can only use the mouse with my right hand for short periods of time or else my wrist starts to hurt. I hate this thing but fortunately it's coming off in six weeks. It could be wrose I could be stuck with this for six months. I think I would undoubtably go insane if that were the case. There's not much I can do at the moment. Biking is out and forget about trying to play the guitar. But as I keep telling myself it could be worse. Anyways July 5th I head back into the hospital to see the doctor and see how my healing is progressing. Who knows maybe if I'm lucky I'll be able to get out of this cast a little earlier than expected. I may also be ambidextrous at the end of all this too. Stay positive.

3rd Place

2005-11-01T11:32:00.000-08:00

Sarah and i just finished playing at the ITB Idol and got third place. It was a lot of fun and it the event raised $430.00 for various charities! Once I get some pics I will post a few.

Awarded 2nd place

2005-10-29T12:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Sarah and I were awarded 2nd place in the CRA Star Search show. I was completely shocked. I never thought we would place juding from the other acts that were there but I guess people really liked us. The way the judging worked was everyone in the audience could purchase votes for 25 cents each and then vote on which act they thought was the best. Almost all the various departments in the CRA were represented at the contest. We got a $50.00 gift certificate to the Rideau Centre. We have been asked to play at the CRA ITB Idol contest this Tuesday. So we'll have to see what happens there. I was just interested in doing this for fun so this is a nice bonus.

My Bio

2005-10-26T12:21:00.000-07:00

Just checked my Bio on the CRA Star Search site and here is what they have. Only a few more days till show time.

Michael Powell, Information Technology Branch

Michael is a recent Acadia University grad and newcomer to Ottawa. He is fast approaching his first CRA milestone - by show time, he’ll have worked with us for almost 1 month! Michael started playing guitar at sixteen and has played in numerous bands over the years. He is passionate about music and list his musical influences as: U2, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin.

It just really hit me

2005-10-19T08:37:00.000-07:00

I was sitting at my desk today and it just hit me. I'm now working for the Federal Government. I've been saying for years that I wanted to land a job working for the Feds or at least working for the government on provincial level and now it's finally happened. I never truly thought it would but it has. There were a lot of very specific circumstances and events that had to happen in order for this to occur and in a way it sort of seems as if it was "fated" to happen, if you believe in that sort of thing, or "planned" if you will. Here's a quick run-down of all the events that led up to this position.

Back sometime in late September, early October of 2004 I went to the Halifax career fair to see what jobs were available in the IT industry and what companies were hiring. This led me to the booth setup by Cognos. I spoke with one of the managers there and he asked me to send him my resume, which I did. A few days later I got a call asking me for an interview in their customer support dept. I really didn't see customer support as a role I would be happy in for an extended period of time, but at the same time I didn't have any other job leads so I figured why not. I had one interview, which lead to a second interview which lead to a third and final interview. A few days later I was offered the position starting in January. I asked for a little time to think it over before I accepted. After a lot of thought I figured it would at least get my foot in the door so why not work in their customer support division and see where that leads. I accepted the job and in January, just a few weeks after my last exam, I was in a car with my dad headed for Ottawa. For the next 6 and a half months I lived with the family of a friend of mine from school while I got "settled" in my new environment. After working on the job for about 3 months I started thinking I had made a terrible mistake. I hated my job and dragging myself to work everyday seemed like a chore. I wasn't the only one. While I was there many people left and some were even fired. I started to look for positions back home in Nova Scotia and got an interview with a great little software company. When I flew home for my convocation ceremony I went in to interview for a position as a software developer. A few days later I got a call to come back in. Once I got there they offered me the job. It was a job that I knew I would be happier doing than my customer support postion so I accepted without hesitation. The next day I was on a plane back to Ottawa. Once I was back I gave my notice to my manager. He was disappointed of course but asked if I could stay for another month which I agreed to do. Now I forgot to mention that during those 6.5 months of living in Ottawa I had actually looked at a few places and one happened to belong to a girl who was working for the Feds. I exlained that I didn't want to get a place with a lease since I wasn't sure how long I was going to be in Ottawa. I explained my situation and said I would make a decision in the next few weeks whether or not I would move in. Well a week or two later I got an email from her stating that they were looking for people in her dept and that if I was interested she would forward my resume on to them. The position in question was doing development work so I was of course interested. I never heard back from them in regards to that job however, my resume did list ReportNet (the software I was supporting at Cognos) as one of my skills and as a result my resume was forwarded on to a department where the manager was looking for people with that specific skill. Now back to the story. A week before I left to return home to start at my new position I got a call for an interview for a position with the government. I thought it couldn't hurt to see what might come of this so I decided to accept. It was a job working with ReportNet and as a Developer/Analyst. Well in the end I was told that they would like to hire me, however, they needed to complete a background check first before anything was going to be put in writing. I decided to continue with my plan of working back in NS until I knew something concrete from the feds. That being said I went home and started my new job, which I loved. It was a nice change from the environment I was in before and I was doing what I loved to do... program. A few months later I got a call. It was the feds telling me that I had passed the background check and that they would like to offer me the job. After speaking with them and my folks I decided that this was simply too good an opportunity to let pass by and so I gave my notice and started planning my move back to O-town. The nomad was on the move yet again. Now I'm all settled and I haven't regreted my decision for a second. I know this is where I'm supposted to be. Incidentally enough, the girl I'm performing at the CRA talent show with is the same one who got my resume into the government's database. Go figure :-P

CRA Star Search

2005-10-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday a friend of mine and I auditioned for the CRA Star Search. It's basically a talent show consisting of comedy routines, musical acts, and various other amusing things. Anyways my partner and I were one of only two acts from the CRA ITB group selected to perform. We're going to be doing Pink Floyd's "Wish you were here". It should be a good time. The show is on the 28th.

All settled...more or less

2005-10-05T08:36:00.000-07:00

I now have an apartment and have all of my stuff moved in. I ended up getting a 2 bedroom place simply because there was a lot more space and it was only a little more a month. I finished one full week of work and am slowly getting settled into my new job. It's still incredibly hot up here in Ottawa despite it being October. As it turns out across the hall from me is an old friend of mine that I graduated from high school with. I knew he lived in the building since I was over at his place when I was in Ottawa before but didn't expect to find him on the same floor as me. I thought he was on the 3rd and I am living on the 4th. It's great to already know someone in the building. I'm still without cable and internet until the 10th so I've been watching lots of old movies on DVD. My folks are staying up here until Thanksgiving and then heading back to Nova Scotia on Tuesday.

Back to Ottawa

2005-09-13T11:11:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like I'm headed back to Ottawa. Before I left I was interviewed for a position with the Canadian Revenue Agency. They told me at the time that it may take many months before I would hear anything as they needed to complete a background check before an offer would be made. Well, yesterday I received the offer. I knew that this was going to happen eventually and so I have been giving it a lot of thought. On one hand I have a great job here in Nova Scotia close to family and friends. This was the first time I have been home for any extended period of time in 5 yrs and it has been really nice. On the other hand I have this fantastic opportunity that if I don't take may never come again. So after a lot of serious thought and speaking with many different people I've decided to accept the position. I'm really excited about moving up and starting work. It's a little different this time around since I already know a bunch of people up there. I already have a tentative roommate and hopefully, if we can find a third person, will be able to get a 3 bedroom townhouse. I've already checked and there are many available at decent rates. These are exciting times...who knows what the future holds but right now it's looking very bright.

March of the Penguins

2005-09-08T07:53:00.000-07:00

I saw this movie/documentary a couple weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised by how good it was. I must admit I had a few reservations about a movie about Penguins. I mean how good could a movie about a bird that can't even fly be. I must say though that I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I recommended it to my folks and they just went to see it last night and now are raving about how great it is. It's basically the story about the penguins in the Antarctic and the kinds of hardships that they have to endure. It's extremely informative and entertaining. The whole thing is narrated by Morgan Freeman who does an excellent job. This movie basically reminded me of the old Lorne Green's Wild Wilderness show that used to be on TV years ago. There are a few sad parts in the movie and lots of scenes where you just can't help but smile. It's great to see such a fresh take on what a "movie" is supposed to be and is a welcome change to most of the drivel that seems to come out of Hollywood. I highly recommend that you all go and see this wonderful movie. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

It's official, I'm 28

2005-09-01T05:06:00.000-07:00

Last night I turned 28 yrs old..sigh I'm getting old. Only two more years and I'll be the BIG 30..yikes. Scary thought. I certainly don't feel old. I remember when I was a kid thinking that people who were 30, or close to it, were ancient. Well now that I'm basically at that age I don't think that's true, or at least that's what I keep telling myself. Anyways a bunch of my friends from church were over for a BBQ last night. It was great time and fortuntely, since I'm one of the younger ones in the group, (most of them are around 30) being around them makes me feel younger :-) Good way to spend your birthday I think, around people who are older so that it softens the blow. Ok I'm exaggerating. Turning 28 is no big deal but it does mean that 30 is that much closer. Ah well when that day comes I'm sure I'll take it gracefully and...ummm....yeah. Anyways this weekend should be a good time. A bunch of us are heading to Dollar Lake to camp out for two nights. Great way to spend the long weekend!

You have to be kidding

2005-08-10T11:52:00.000-07:00

My mom volunteers at the church's food/clothing bank on Tuesdays and here is just a sample of some of the things that people denote.

1. A Yo-yo with no string (ummm how useful is this...what is the poor child who ends up with this treasure supposed to do???)

2. Shirts with ALL the buttons cut off. Well at least they could be used as a rag or something...I suppose. Still if you're going to cut all the buttons off of the shirts you denote just keep them because I'm sure the poor would like to be able to button up their shirts just like everyone else.

3. Sandwich Tupperware containers with old sandwiches still in them. Ah yeah I don't think a 3 week old sandwich is going to be too appetizing.

Anyways I could go on but I think you get the idea. The public never ceases to amaze me. Now don't get me wrong there are lots of people who donate really great stuff but I guess you always get strange and wonderful items from certain sectors of society.

On a side note I got my guitar back. It only cost $72.00 to have repaired and it plays great. Just looks a little more battered than it did before, but hey I guess that gives it more character, at least that's what I keep telling myself :-P

Broken guitar blues

2005-07-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

Ok it's official I must have a poltergeist in my house. On Saturday I was jamming with Adam and placed my Les Paul in my guitar stand after we finished playing. As we were packing up Adam's things the guitar suddenly fell over and landed on top of my pedal board. No one was near the guitar when it fell. It just decided to fall by itself. Anyways I quickly picked the guitar up and first inspection it looked fine. When I turned it over however I was horrified to see that the neck had broken right at the point where it meets the head. I've had this guitar since 1997 and it was in almost perfect condition despite all the playing. Today I brought the guitar into MusicStop. The guy there said it looked like it could be repaired. The guitar tech will be in tomorrow and I'll know for sure what I'm looking at. Hopefully it won't cost too much to get repaired. I just can't figure out how it feel over. I think it is possible that the wood had a defect or something that just finally caused the neck to break which would have caused the weight to shift and thus the guitar to fall over. Either that or I have a poltergeist. So that kinda made for a crappy weekend. I sent an email off to Gibson explaining the situation. I believe this guitar has a lifetime waranty on it but I doubt that they'll do anything. Still, it can't hurt to try. I'll know soon enough what the future has in store for my Les Paul.

PHPing up a storm

2005-07-22T07:40:00.000-07:00

I thought I would take a little break from the Coldfusion to PHP conversion I've been involved in for the past few weeks. The Coldfusion server at work is continually crashing so it's my job to convert the entire Reporting application from Coldfusion to use PHP. Before I started I had absolutely no exposure whatsoever to either language and since then a nice little chuck of it has been translated. Still lots left left tho' Thank goodness for sites like www.tek-tips.com It has to be one of the best resources on the net if you're having difficulty trying to accomplish something. I give it two thumbs up! Anyways other than work I've been keeping myself busy hanging out and playing lots of guitar. I've been away from my electrics for so long now it seems fresh and new to play them again. I have been discussing with a few people about doing some recording this summer. Hopefully if we can find the time something will come out of that. Probably start recording a few cover tunes and then see how that sounds and then perhaps try recording some originals. The weather has been really nice as of late and I went swimming at Chocolate Lake in Halfax last weekend. And no, it's not a giant lake of chocolate...I wish. Dispite it being Halifax it's really clean. I didn't beieve Marti when she told me but it turns out she was right. Heading downtown this weekend for Ana's farewell. Should be a goodtime. I can't remember the last time I went downtown in Halifax...it's been too long.

Canada Day fireworks...a few days late

2005-07-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

Since the weather was less than hospitable on Canada the fireworks were postponed until last night. They were reputed to be the best fireworks display in Canada this year, or at least that was what the Q104 morning crew were saying, and they don't lie. So last night a bunch of us went out to see what all the fuss was about and I must say they were really good. The best I've seen in a long time. They were launching the fireworks over Bedford and unfortunately from our vantage point some of them weren't visible but, all the same, the finale was incredible. Nice to see our tax dollars going to good use :-) Kinda makes you think though really wouldn't that money be better spent if it were used for something like education or health care or one of the many other important areas of government. On a side note, this past weekend I went camping...despite the rain. We all got really wet but it was a lot of fun. I haven't gone camping since I was a kid. Hopefully we'll all be able to get out again sometime this summer and hopefully this time the weather will co-operate.

Back In NS

2005-06-23T17:21:00.000-07:00

It took 14 hrs of straight driving but I'm back in Nova Scotia. I stopped in Amherst for an hour to visit Melissa and then it was back on the road for the final 2 hours of my journey. When I finally pulled into my folk's driveway it was around 2:30 am. So, needless to say, I was really tired. Anyways, I arrived safely and was able to avoid all the moose and deer that kept jumping out in front of the car. At least that made for an interesting trip and I had u2, Pink Floyd, Dave Matthews and a host of other great bands to keep me company along the way. So, the next few days are going to be spent relaxing with old friends before starting work again on the 29th.

Pink Floyd is back!

2005-06-14T07:17:00.000-07:00

Now this would be the concert of a lifetime!!

Psychedelic 1970s rock group Pink Floyd will reunite to perform at the upcoming Live 8 concert in London, organizers said Sunday. "Like most people I want to do everything I can to persuade the G-8 leaders to make huge commitments to the relief of poverty and increased aid to the third world," guitarist David Gilmour said in a statement on the group's official website. "It's crazy that America gives such a paltry percentage of its GNP to the starving nations," he said. The last time bass player Roger Waters joined Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Richard Wright on stage was in 1981. Founded in 1965, original members of the influential band include Waters, Wright, Mason and frontman Syd Barrett, who was replaced by Gilmour when he started to suffer mental health problems. The band found international fame with its 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon, considered one of the defining albums of the decade, but split in the early 1980s when Waters left the group. The bassist sued the other three members for continuing to perform and record as Pink Floyd until the 1990s. "Any squabbles Roger and the band have had in the past are so petty in this context. And if reforming for this concert will help focus attention, then it's got to be worthwhile," Gilmour said. Pink Floyd will join previously announced acts such as Paul McCartney, Elton John, U2, Madonna and organizers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure at the London event in Hyde Park on July 2. Live 8 concerts will also take place in Philadelphia, Berlin, Paris and Rome. The original Live Aid was also the scene of several rock reunions: the massive London-Philadelphia benefit concert in 1985 saw the reunions of Black Sabbath, the Who and Led Zeppelin (with Phil Collins sitting in for late drummer John Bonham).

Thousand Mile Wish

2005-06-10T12:22:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love this song and it's been going through my mind for the past little while so I figured I'd post the lyrics.

Forgive me if now I wear the face of worry
This time alone could never cause any doubt
But I’ve been cold too long
Such a strange time to find myself coming down as the rain

With all the holes my love, To fill up from the middle
This storm could stay all night
So can you stay until we close our eyes
Til your dreams hold mine
Just stay until we know we tried one more time

Cause laughing lovers can overcome their closest demons
And they’ll go on and they won’t let go
They saw something that they know
Has never come so close
Can it stay here for us, for now?

Can it stay until we know ourselves?
I’m torn as I tell
You’re the story that I know and fell from
I’m so far into your story I don’t know why
We think we’re in control
When we lie between the lines

We’ll find a line to follow
It’s got to show real soon
Or we’ll never reach this high
We climb a little further
Cause there’s nothing we can’t get around together
Further gets colder until nothing was all that I saw around

So we stay until the ground
That we can’t come down from splits us away
Maybe stars know why we fallI just wish they were thinking out loud
Oh, I could wish all night

My time in Ottawa is rapidly coming to a close

2005-06-06T13:38:00.000-07:00

Lately it has really become apparent to me how much I'm going to miss all the great friend's I've made here in Ottawa especially at the Rideau View College and Career group. While I'm anxious to go home and start my new job it is with mixed emotions that I leave. It's a fact of life I guess. You can't have everything just the way you would like it. The job I want is back home as are my family and old friends, but at the same time I've grown to love Ottawa and all it has to offer. I'm thankful for having had the opportunity to live here and, while it was relatively short stay, I've thoughoutly enjoyed my time and have learned a lot. The one thing I won't miss however is my job :-) No one knows what the future holds. All we can do is pray that the decisions we make are the right ones.

Only 6 days left of work!

"You're fired"

2005-06-02T06:08:00.000-07:00

It seems these days these words are being thrown around a lot at work. Since I've been here (6 months) 3 people have been let go. The latest was yesterday when a woman with 5 yrs experience in support was let go. I don't know the details of the termination but I'm beginning to realize more and more how much of a "cut throat" business this is. Fortunately, my situation is a little different. When I put in my notice two weeks ago I would have been perfectly happy to have left that very day. Instead they asked me to stay on another month. So, I guess I can take comfort in the fact that they weren't too anxious to let me go. I know the individual who was let go was not happy in her job so maybe this is a blessing in disguise. However, I also know that the job was very important to her as she was the sole breadwinner in her family. I hope and pray things work out for her and she's able to secure work elsewhere. It just goes to show you that you're life can be turned upside down in the matter of a few short hours.

Adventures on bicycles

2005-05-30T06:34:00.000-07:00

This weekend Eric and I went on a 37 km bike ride through Ottawa and Quebec. The Ottawa side of the trek was fairly easy as it's more or less flat in the nation's capital. However, once we got over onto the Quebec side the hills made themselves known. At the end of it all I ended up with a really sore butt and two legs that felt like they were on fire. So, needless to say it was great time! Ottawa is a fantastic city for people who enjoy biking or rollerblading. The infrastructure here is ideal for these activities. I mean they actully have lanes for bikers in the street. Hopefully we'll be able to do some more "touring" before I head back east. Speaking of which my last "official" day at Cognos is the 17th but I just got my vacation request approved to have the 15, 16, and 17th off. I'll probably stick around here for those days before starting my journey back home and to my new job. Anyways that's it for now.

Later

A little humour to brighten your day

2005-04-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

In case you need further proof that the human race is doomed because of stupidity, here are some actual label instructions on consumer goods.

On a Sears hairdryer: Do not use while sleeping. (and that's the only time I have to work on my hair).

On a bag of Fritos: ..You could be a winner! No purchase necessary. details inside. (the shoplifter special?)

On a bar of Dial soap: "Directions: Use like regular soap." (and that would be how???....)

On some Swanson frozen dinners: "Serving suggestion: Defrost." (but, it's "just" a suggestion).

On Tesco's Tiramisu dessert (printed on bottom): "Do not turn upside down."(well...duh, a bit late, huh)!

On Marks & Spencer Bread Pudding:"Product will be hot after heating" (...and you thought????...)

On packaging for a Rowenta iron: "Do not iron clothes on body." (but wouldn't this save me more time?)

On Boot's Children Cough Medicine:"Do not drive a car or operate machinery after taking this medication." (We could do a lot to reduce the rate of construction accidents if we could just get those 5-year-olds with head-colds off those forklifts.)

On Nytol Sleep Aid: "Warning: May cause drowsiness" (and...I'm taking this because???.....)

On most brands of Christmas lights: "For indoor or outdoor use only." (as opposed to...what?)

On a Japanese food processor: "Not to be used for the other use." (now, somebody out there, help me on this. I'm a bit curious.)

On Sunsbury's peanuts: "Warning: contains nuts." (talk about a news flash)

On an American Airlines packet of nuts: "Instructions: Open packet, eat nuts."( Step 3: maybe, uh...fly Delta?)

On a child's Superman costume: "Wearing of this garment does not enable you to fly." I don't blame the company. I blame the parents for this one

On a Swedish chainsaw: "Do not attempt to stop chain with your hands or genitals." (...was there a lot of this happening somewhere?)

The MoonUnit Archives are back

2005-04-04T13:48:00.000-07:00

Well the Webserver that my old Blog was hosted on went belly up so I decided to jump on the band wagon and get a Blogger account. So here here is the second incarnation of The MoonUnit Archives (the Ottawa edition). I wasn't very diligent with my postings in the past. We'll see how active I'll be this time around.