June 2008 Archives
The Porktrashers' drummer Mark turned 50 this weekend, and we had a party at Clinton's Bar with The Porktrashers playing (his request). It was a great time, and wonderful to see the outpouring of love from so many different people for a truly great guy.
On the other hand it's so odd the way these milestones events make you give your head a shake at how life changes. I was at his 30th birthday, shortly after I moved to Toronto. We both had different women in our lives, lived in apartments, I was an actor and he was a young lawyer. Now we're both married, have houses, multiple children, and full fledged "careers".
Thank God that the one thing that has remained consistent is The Porktrashers and our low-rent rock, or I'd really think we'd sold out. Or wait, does not recording on cassette tapes any more count?
On a similar theme, Carol met some friends at The College Street Bar during the A Taste of Little Italy Festival, and when one of her friends was in the bathroom stall she overheard a young girl on her cellphone saying "Omigod, don't come here, it's totally lame. Like, it's full of 40 year old MOMS!" What could be worse? Carol's response was, "Hey, I'm not 40 - I'm PUSHING 40."
On the other hand it's so odd the way these milestones events make you give your head a shake at how life changes. I was at his 30th birthday, shortly after I moved to Toronto. We both had different women in our lives, lived in apartments, I was an actor and he was a young lawyer. Now we're both married, have houses, multiple children, and full fledged "careers".
Thank God that the one thing that has remained consistent is The Porktrashers and our low-rent rock, or I'd really think we'd sold out. Or wait, does not recording on cassette tapes any more count?
On a similar theme, Carol met some friends at The College Street Bar during the A Taste of Little Italy Festival, and when one of her friends was in the bathroom stall she overheard a young girl on her cellphone saying "Omigod, don't come here, it's totally lame. Like, it's full of 40 year old MOMS!" What could be worse? Carol's response was, "Hey, I'm not 40 - I'm PUSHING 40."
Being of Scottish heritage and fundamentally cheap — uh, I mean, due to a deep commitment to sustainability and the environment — nothing irritates me more than hearing our water heater fire up downstairs at 11:30 at night. How stupid is it that we're heating 50 gallons of water all night while we sleep and won't need it for another 8 hours? Also, as the water heater ages, apparently, the sediment floats to the bottom and makes the heating coils less efficient. Which explains why we get one shower out of it before the water starts to cool noticeably.
I'd looked into tankless systems (ie the water gets heated as it passes through the pipes on the way to whatever faucet has been opened) in the past, but was put off by a) the pretty high prices of a system strong enough to run a shower and, say, a little boy running a faucet downstairs and b) the complications of installation.
All that seems to have changed in the course of the last 6 months. (Nothing like skyrocketing energy prices to get things moving along.) I called a company called Newten (at the time they seemed to be the only ones in downtown TO, although since then I see that EnWise is advertising too) and they had a pretty good deal it seems. Basically, they will install a new tankless heater, remove your old tank, plus do a ecoEnergy home energy assessment that allows you to apply for government grants. So we had the assessment done (fascinating in itself), and because we're installing the tankless heater, will get a $500 grant off the cost of it all. The service has been great so far, and installation is scheduled next week. I'll do an updated post about that experience.
In terms of cost, currently I see tankless heaters at Home Depot seem to run from $1200 to $1500 (uninstalled); the total cost of the installation for us, including removing the old tank (which is tucked into a corner and will be like removing the treasure in Raiders of the Lost Ark), is about $2900. Not super cheap I guess, but hopefully a good long term investment. In the environment I mean, of course.
I'd looked into tankless systems (ie the water gets heated as it passes through the pipes on the way to whatever faucet has been opened) in the past, but was put off by a) the pretty high prices of a system strong enough to run a shower and, say, a little boy running a faucet downstairs and b) the complications of installation.
All that seems to have changed in the course of the last 6 months. (Nothing like skyrocketing energy prices to get things moving along.) I called a company called Newten (at the time they seemed to be the only ones in downtown TO, although since then I see that EnWise is advertising too) and they had a pretty good deal it seems. Basically, they will install a new tankless heater, remove your old tank, plus do a ecoEnergy home energy assessment that allows you to apply for government grants. So we had the assessment done (fascinating in itself), and because we're installing the tankless heater, will get a $500 grant off the cost of it all. The service has been great so far, and installation is scheduled next week. I'll do an updated post about that experience.
In terms of cost, currently I see tankless heaters at Home Depot seem to run from $1200 to $1500 (uninstalled); the total cost of the installation for us, including removing the old tank (which is tucked into a corner and will be like removing the treasure in Raiders of the Lost Ark), is about $2900. Not super cheap I guess, but hopefully a good long term investment. In the environment I mean, of course.
For my birthday Carol got me tickets to REM and said, "You don't have to go with me if you don't want to" — which as any man with half a brain knows, falls into the same category as "Do I look fat in this?" There is only one answer, and if you don't know it, you're likely single. Or sleeping on the couch.
Anyway, I digress.
The point is, for many, many years, I was a big REM fan. For the last few years though, I'd found them kind of meandering, and their newer stuff just never stayed on the iPod for long -- if it made it there at all. Then Accelerate came out, and I thought, "Ooh, that's good stuff! REM with a sense of imperative!"
It would have ended there, just me listening to them and enjoying it. But the concert reignited all the reasons I love this band. Oh my, they were good. Aside from a surprisingly eclectic set list, they had the big drums (even without Bill Berry), great guitar, Stipe in fantastic, in fact astonishing, voice — and charming to boot. Check out this classic, made even more fun by the presence of guitarist Johnny Marr.
I've been digging out my old REM CDs to rip back into my iPod ever since.
Anyway, I digress.
The point is, for many, many years, I was a big REM fan. For the last few years though, I'd found them kind of meandering, and their newer stuff just never stayed on the iPod for long -- if it made it there at all. Then Accelerate came out, and I thought, "Ooh, that's good stuff! REM with a sense of imperative!"
It would have ended there, just me listening to them and enjoying it. But the concert reignited all the reasons I love this band. Oh my, they were good. Aside from a surprisingly eclectic set list, they had the big drums (even without Bill Berry), great guitar, Stipe in fantastic, in fact astonishing, voice — and charming to boot. Check out this classic, made even more fun by the presence of guitarist Johnny Marr.
I've been digging out my old REM CDs to rip back into my iPod ever since.
Well, I'm not really part of the so-called "Leaf Nation", so I don't feel too bad about doing a photo shoot with Ottawa Senator's captain Daniel Alfredsson. (At least Ottawa got into the playoffs, albeit for one round.) Anyway, it was good fun, and he turned out to be a really terrific guy. Very modest, intelligent, eager to get everything right. And woah, in incredible shape. Here's a shot of the me, him and a couple of other work colleagues. The only problem with wearing the same shirt as a professional athlete is that difference in the way you fill them out is rarely flattering. Ahem.
