Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Stuff You May Not Know About Me

Damn you, Amanda!! Tagging me with this crazy quiz!!

Every now and I then I wander over to the blog of my good friend, Amanda Regier. The other day she has this post about stuff I didn't know about her.

"Cool," I think to myself! "Let's read the things I don't know about Amanda!!"

Then I get to the end and she's tagged me. Damn. Here's how it works:

1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.
4: You may need to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog

1. There Really Are People I Genuinely Do Not Like
I know this is hard to believe, but it's true. "But," you say to yourself, "Sam, you get along with everyone! What are you saying?" Well, my dear, I'm saying that I'm a highly skilled actor who is also adept at politics. I can smile at you, but I may not even like you.

Wow, this has started off really, really mean! Let's keep going!!!!

2. I Almost Exclusively Read Mystery Fiction In My Spare Time
I can't help it. My mother got me into it at a young age and I can't stop. And it's not just any mystery fiction. I have about 3 or 4 authors I like and their books are the only ones I read. These authors have a way with dialogue and characters that is really insightful -- it makes for good reading. Of course, only having 3 or 4 authors to read means that I've read many of the same books many, many times over. And I still like reading them again!

3. I'm Now A Sort-of Anglican
I've recently been attending an Anglican church. And I love it. I even went to the Newcomer's Lunch a few weeks ago. I don't know if there's some sort of blood rite I have to do to not be "sort-of" anymore, but I'll probably do it soon.

4. My Secret Ambition Is To Be A Radio DJ
When I was a kid, my sister and I would pretend to be DJs on the radio by having a blank tape in the recording side of the dual tape deck. I would have all my music tapes queued up to the songs I wanted to play on my radio station (Radio K-I-R-K. Snappy, huh?), put them into the play-only side and then I would turn the external mic on and off to do my segues into and out of songs. As I grew up, I loved morning drive-time radio and I wondered what it would be like to host my own show. Maybe I'll start doing podcasts. The only thing now is that I don't know what I would do my show on if I was to become a DJ! Stupid growing up!

5. I'm a Complete Chicken When It Comes to Girls
I know I come across as confident and well-assured. But, I'm really not when it comes to asking girls out. So, if you're a girl and I asked you out on a date at some time in my life, then count yourself really lucky that I actually got the courage up to do that. Or not.

6. I Miss Being a Musician and an Actor
Not enough to actually drop everything and start getting my chops back, but enough that I get a bit jealous when I go to concerts or plays where friends I used to play/act with (and who, quite frankly, I was way better than at one time) are on stage. Part of me wants to be loved by all and I want you to love me while I'm on stage!! It's one of my tragic flaws. If this was Shakespeare, the play of my life would end with me getting killed by my bastard step-child/half-brother while giving my final, yet most amazing, performance in front of the whole world.

7. I Smoke... About Half a Pack a Day
A few of you know I smoke. Some of you may have no clue. I love smoking. I'm addicted. But, I'm getting older and my intellect is starting to win out the battle from my nervous system and I'm soon going to quit. I don' t have a day picked yet. That would be too organized.

Taking a cue from Amanda, my last one has something to do with public exposure.

8. My Friends Drove Away As I Was Peeing On the Side of Hwy 1 Near Swift Current, SK
This may not sound like a big deal, but you know that once the seal is broken you can't stop the waterworks and moving in mid-flow wasn't really an option. Needless to say, I had to continue standing where I was (very near the side of the road) with my Block & Tackle (or whatever you may call it) exposed while I finished my business with cars roaring by one early summer morning as I was driving home from Regina. I was 16. Funnily enough, I wasn't that embarrased. I laughed pretty hard, to tell you the truth.

Well, that does it for me. Now I need to pick 8 people to pass this on to. Hmmm...

I pick Seth, Jamie, Eric, Joy, Kara, Christina, Laura, & Jim.

Monday, May 28, 2007

Snappy Dressing, The Basics Pt. 2 - The Robe

In our continuing series on Snappy Dressing, we turn again to How To Dress For Every Occasion, by the Pope. In Part 2, the Pope discusses The Robe.
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Ok, let's not make jokes -- you know we're not talking about the bathrobes you already own!! Bathrobes make you look sloppy -- like you don't care enough to put on anything special, just an ordinary bathrobe. The shinier the fabric the more of an impression you will make each and every time you wear a robe. The adjective in your head when you look at the robe should be "regal." Regal or Royal is not just who you are if you're in a very important position -- it's the outfit you have on. And the robe is very key.

Note also the stitching. There should be fancy patterns and particularly beadwork. Let's face it -- handstitching is the best!! But of course many people can't afford it and they can't find it either. Quite frankly, the answer is: Save up. Because a cheap robe is just going to look like a cheap robe, and it wil change the "mental adjective" to: cheapie.

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I put my time in at the newspaper today and Friday. It's not the most stimulating job in the whole world. It's really just production design and we don't really get a lot of time to be terribly creative. You try your best and see what comes out in quick flashes of instinct. Sometimes you're right on, sometimes you fall flat on your face.

Sometimes you come across some fantastic text that you just can't forget. Case in point: I'm working on a real estate ad and I'm typing in the text. Often, I don't really think about what I'm typing. It's just text and there are a lot of listings to do so you just power through it and maybe read it later.

On Friday, I decided to actually read one of the listings and this gem popped up:

"...large backyard with room to build shop, kids and pets."

I'd say that the opportunity to become your very own god is cheap at the $400,000+ they were listing the property at.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Snappy Dressing, The Basics Pt. 1 - The Hat

For my birthday, my very good friend Judith gave me an excellent book called How To Dress for Every Occasion, by the Pope.

I have to say that my snappy dressing skills have increased in exponential amounts thanks to the simple, yet effective, tips from the Pope. Over the next while, I will endeavor to share some of these tips with you.

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THE BASICS

Ok, now you're saying, "I'm ready, the Pope! Tell me everything!!!" Well, hold on!! You just can't wake up one morning and be a better dresser for every occasion. A journey begins with a million steps, and the first step is the step I like to call "The Basics." In this chapter we'll learn all the Basics of dressing so we can know what we're talking about!!! (In the other chapters.)

Number One: The Hat

First off, get a big hat as shown. (ed - sorry, i haven't scanned the illustrations, but the pic is your classic pointy Pope.) If you're going to dress well from head to toe, WHY NOT START WITH THE HEAD??? A big hat on your head says to everybody, "Guess who's in charge?" I'll give you a hint: It's you if you're wearing an impressive hat. Hats come in all sorts of shapes, but this shape is best. Hats keep you hot in winter and shady during the summer due to the unique fabric. I get my hats personally from a catalog but don't be shy -- shop around!!!

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You see, this is some good stuff. I'll share more in the future.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Jen, it's time.

My sister and I have this "thing" we do. I can't remember exactly how it came about, but I'm sure Jen will remind me once she reads this post. Anyway, it's this stupid "thing" that I still, to this day, find really funny.

I would go up to Jen and give her this really, really stern look and then I would say: "Jen... it's time."

That's all. And my sister would scrunch up her shoulders and run away screaming.

It's really a Pavlovian thing because the first few times I did it, my simple statement was accompanied by my putting my hands close together and making a sudden movement toward my sister as if I was going to choke her. Then she ran away screaming with shoulders trying to prevent my hands from going around her neck. Later, all I had to say was, "Jen, it's time," to produce the same results.

I didn't actually choke her or even put my hands on her. It was just the motion of doing so. Then the two of us would break out laughing... and do we two know how to laugh!

Why am I telling you this? The answer is simple. I despair that only my sister understands this quirky "thing." I wish one of my clients understood. Then, when I suddenly went silent on the phone and then said, "it's time"... well, they would understand and run away screaming and leave me alone.

Today was such a day. That's all I'm going to say on that subject.
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My shoes are still drying out. Sunday it rained so hard I thought it was winter. That's not good when you're trying to show out-of-towners around the most beautiful city on the planet. But, I ended up at places I'd never been before like the Museum of Anthropology and the Nitobe Gardens. I felt a bit like a lame Vancouverite having never been to these places before.

Pssst! Between you and me, I didn't even know that the Nitobe Gardens existed until we drove up to them. Not good. I need to get out of Langley more.
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I'm moving soon. I have a really, really cool new place. But, I need a nice couch. I have to work on that.

Saturday, May 12, 2007

I Have A Good Mother

I thought I should talk about my mother as tomorrow is Mother's Day.

Judy Kirk has been my mother these 32 years. She didn't actually start out to become a mother when she and my dad were first married. In the early 70's, she was a nurse fresh out of school and had recently seen her mother and father succumb to cancer. She saw a lot wrong with an over-populated world and thought that it would be extremely unfair to bring another child into it to experience pain and suffering.

But, in 1973, she had a life-changing experience of meeting Jesus Christ and her whole worldview changed.

In 1975, she gave birth to yours truly and named me Samuel. My mom had had a very vivid experience of being drawn to read the book of 1 Samuel and the account of Hannah naming her child and giving the long-awaited baby to the service of her God. She named me Samuel in the promise of giving me to God.

My mother was tough, but fair. She made all sorts of mistakes with me, but she never once let me down. I think I turned out pretty well. Although, she certainly had her hands full with my sister... but she's turned out very well, too.

Judy has this really offbeat sense of humour which seems to have been passed on to me and Jen. She's quick with a joke and loves to laugh at herself. But, she's not cruel. Not one bit.

She cares about those around her. She sees all sorts of pain in her work in a doctor's office, but she also gets to see many of them become well. She sees the hurt and the broken become transformed into the whole. In her spiritual life, she also has striven to see the spiritual and emotionally broken become healthy again and she has a righteous anger about those who don't strive to see the same thing in those around them.

My mom has walked with me through some very hard personal times. Not mollycoddling me. She challenges me when I'm trying to take the easy road of avoidance. But, she's always there to give the advice that comes from being on this earth for a long time.

My mother has come a long way from the time when she felt that she had nothing to offer children but a life of pain and suffering. She has loved her children unconditionally and seen them grow into adults that are very much like her -- and that's a good thing.

She should be proud of what she has accomplished in her years of mothering. I could never imagine having anyone else that I would want to bestow the name and love that a child gives to the woman who bore him. I'm proud of the mother, and now friend, that God gave me all those years ago.

Mom, I love you. Thank you for all you are.

Thursday, May 10, 2007

I've been reflecting

One of the things I miss about my old Xanga blog and I wish that Blogger had was that nifty feature of being able to show what you were listening to/watching/reading.

Currently listening to:
Jamiroquai: High Times Singles 1992-2006

I'm such a moody kind of person. My friends would probably say this isn't true and that I'm always pretty fun and sunny and positive. But, I'm also an actor -- I went to school for that -- and I'm pretty good at keeping the conflicting and varying emotions under wraps. The reason I say this is because the music I've been listening to lately has been upbeat, funky music to keep myself buoyed above the flotsam and jetsam... that said, you should get this Jamiroquai album.

The sunny days have also helped immeasurably.

I've spent a lot of time lately pondering my motives for doing things, my ambition level (or lack thereof), my situation in life, my work life, my love life (or, again, lack thereof), my spiritual condition... Pretty much I've been thinking about everything.

Lately I've been a little disturbed with what I see in myself. I want change. I think that's what has driven me back to church. I have had 4 mornings getting back into God's Word and really good days.
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I have this group I'm a part of. It's a Virtual Office. It is such a funny part of my life right now and I can't imagine not having the 30+ emails I get every day from these genuinely hilarious people.

Although, the emailing goes a little far. Yesterday, my real (and virtual) officemate, Keela, sends me this email:

Sam, can you help me with something? I don't want to disturb.

Ok, this woman is no more than 10 feet away from me. She could have just asked, I wouldn't have minded (and I did tell her that). The funny part is that I don't think I was really that busy. I'm pretty sure I was on Facebook sending a poke at Andrea.

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The game Scruples (or is it The Game of Scruples??) is hilarious.

Monday, May 7, 2007

Ever feel a little overwhelmed?

I do. There are times when the amount of things going on just seems to overtake you and there's hardly anything you can do.

I'm kind of feeling that way right now. I think there is a light at the end of the tunnel and I DO have to run toward it because to stay in this place of confusion and unrest will undoubtedly prove to be too much.

But, like I said in my last post, I have good friends and I'm learning -- slowly -- that I can lean on them and I don't have to do this all on my own.

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I'm really, really loving St. John's Shaughnessy. I love the liturgy. I love the solemness. I love the teaching. I love the friends I attend with. And I quite enjoyed the food at the newcomer's lunch yesterday. The church is a lot more formal than I've ever been used to, but I'm finding it is the very thing I need right now.

Thursday, May 3, 2007

Canucks do NOT rule...

Damn sports and the hype and the emotion that I get when the home team gets into the post-season.

Honestly, I'm not too sad as it really seemed inevitable with all the injuries we had over the last 12 games. Ah well. Next year! Next year, we have the best goalie in hockey and some great defensemen... now we just need some scoring!

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Yesterday, I had to go to downtown Vancouver to work at a BlueCasting installation. I parked on this street, plugged the meter and then went into the location. Well, I was there a lot longer than I thought I would be and I was a tad concerned about not having put enough coins into the meter. If you've ever parked in the downtown core, you know that my concerns are not unfounded! Vancouver's meter maids are only just below the level of evilness that is attributed to the Langley City Parking Nazi.

So, I come around this building carrying a full computer (which made me look like I had stolen it from somewhere... but really, I own it) in my arms and I notice that the once-full curb is now virtually empty of parked cars... except for mine and two others. I suddenly realized that it was after 3pm on a rather busy arterial road... a parking ticket could be the least of my worries.

Sure enough, there's a tow truck just behind my car and I started to run down the street... with a computer in my arms...

The tow truck was for the car behind mine. Let me tell you, I have never moved out of a parking space so quickly in my life. That Buster's Towing are merciless and I didn't exactly feel like hiking all over hell's half-acre looking for the impound lot.

I dodged a bullet.

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Good friends are amazing. I have many and I have to remember how rich that makes me when the pressures of life feel like they're going to overwhelm me.

I don't have to take on this life all by myself. But, I forget that when I've lived pretty self-sufficiently for most of my life. I have some excellent friends.