A License to Heal

Happiness: It's all in your head.

2011-03-08T23:05:00.000-08:00

Happiness is all in your head. And apparently, it is all made up. The real kicker, is that if you are in a position where you really can't change the situation you are in, you are happier than if you could change it. Mindblasting.

But don't take my word for it: Dan Gilbert asks, Why are we happy? | Video on TED.com

PS - I love TED.com. So good.

Blessed

2011-02-04T12:12:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder of how fortunate we are to have been provided with all the opportunities that we have, living in a beautiful place like Canada. As well as, a reminder of things a lot of us here take for granted.

Johnny Cash

2011-02-03T23:38:00.000-08:00

Brilliant. Enough said.

Cry, Cry, Cry - Johnny Cash

Christmas Movies: Top 10

2010-12-08T22:40:00.000-08:00

So here is my Top 10 Christmas Movie selection. This is completely opinionated, and like the admissions to medical school, seats are limited. Some great movies had to be cut from the list. Don't be offended if you don't see your favorite up here :) Merry Christmas!

In a loosely arranged order:

1. Elf

2. The Muppet Christmas Carol

3. National Lampoon's: Christmas Vacation

4. A Christmas Story

5. Love Actually

6. Home Alone

7. Die Hard (1+2)

8. The Santa Clause

9. Charlie Brown Christmas

10. Polar Express

Christmas!

2010-11-21T21:43:00.000-08:00

So I have comprised my 2010 Christmas Playlist, and am so happy with it, I want to share the joy. And for anyone who is a November humbug, just keep this in mind; getting in the spirit half way through November only comprises 12.5% of the year dedicated to Christmas. Clearly, this is not a long time considering once this amazing holiday comes, it's gone for another year. To get your spirits bright, comprise and hit repeat:

Christmas Don't Be Late; Alvin and the Chipmunks

Santa Clause Is Coming To Town; Bing Crosby

Its the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Andy Williams

Sleigh Ride Together With You; Johnny Mathis

Santa Baby; Eartha Kitt

I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm; Dean Martin

Baby it's cold outside; Dean Martin & Doris Day

Let it Snow; Dean Martin

White Christmas; Bing Crosby

Its Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas; Perry Como

Walking In A Winter Wonderland; Nat King Cole & Dean Martin

Holly Jolly Christmas; Burl Ives

Happy Holidays; Andy Williams

Rocking Around The Christmas Tree; Brenda Lee

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; Frank Sinatra & Bing Crosby

I'll Be Home for Christmas ; Bing Crosby

The Christmas Song; Andy Williams

Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer; Alan Jackson

Oi to the World; No Doubt

Christmas Tree; Lady GaGa

Last Christmas; WHAM

Christmas is coming! 33 days until!

PS- I love Christmas.

*Addendum (Dec. 8, 2010): Late, yet important additions to the list.

Simply Having A Wonderful Christmas Time - Paul McCartney

Frosty the Snowman - The Ronettes

What Christmas Means to Me - Stevie Wonder (can't spell Christmas without Stevie)

Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley

Tunes

2010-08-27T22:49:00.000-07:00

What I've stubled across lately. I'm love'n it.
http://hypem.com/#/Scon

Rescue Me

2010-08-25T22:55:00.000-07:00

So with it being summer and me being caught up on Entourage (which is arguably the best season to date, by the way), I've decided to search out a new TV series I've yet to follow. The one to have fallen through the cracks because I've been too busy keeping tabs on other series throughout the year. And I have to say Rescue Me has been doing the trick. It stars Dennis Leary and is about a firehall and it's crew in New York after 9/11. You can check out the series from Season 1 on CastTV.com.

Thank You

2010-07-27T16:50:00.000-07:00

This is a blog I stumbled across. Made for a good laugh. It's a great reminder that life's lameness can still be funny when you thikn about it with the right attitude, witty sarcasm, and thankfullness. thx thx thx or http://thyxthxthx.com

Dr. Beaman's Office

2010-07-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

Will, Circa 2004.

I remember watching this on repeat in tears laughing. It's just so ridiculous. Yikes... that was rough....

And I'm Back

2010-07-09T00:19:00.000-07:00

Came across this great music site tonight. Thought I'd share. There is some very unique music that is hard to come across anywhere else. As Marley would say: When it hits you, you feel no pain.... So hit me with music!

Hype Machine
http://www.hypem.com/

I suggest signing up and "Loving" your favorite songs.

Motivation

2010-06-04T23:24:00.000-07:00

On my night off of grinding away at my Emergency Medical Responder course, I stubbled across this YouTube video and found it appropriate. Thought I'd share.

Appears to not be embedding properly. Try this link.

Here is another great one about people's perspective of time and the societal consequences of that (link).

This video should have gone with my "Catch 22" post. The Empathetic Civilization, very cool. Mind blasting.

Health and Climate Change

2010-04-20T19:09:00.000-07:00

You may ask yourself, why would anyone with an interest in health have such an apparent interest in climate change? What the hell does tree hugging have to do with keeping people healthy? Well, here is my take on the issue with a little help from the Lancet and University College London.

The Link Between Climate Change and Human Health:

A Developed Nation’s Moral Obligation to Act

Human caused global warming, perhaps better termed climate change, is a generally accepted concept today¹. Consequences of climate change are predictable, but are made without absolute certainty. A review of the evidence will show that global trends have already far exceeded the normal parameters of what is expected for natural cycles of global warming and cooling cycles². Increased greenhouse gas content, primarily carbon dioxide, has been identified as a cause of atmospheric heat trapping as early as 1859 ³. Multiple human-made contributions have lead to the disruption of the natural carbon cycle. The two largest contributors are deforestation and carbon dioxide emissions via fossil fuel burning¹. Observed consequences of climate change to date include increases in extreme weather conditions, human displacement, increases in global average temperature, and glacial loss⁴. These outcomes of climate change result in further effects like decreases in human health⁴.

It may not initially appear like the warming of the earth could affect human health, but global increases in premature death and disease is expected as a result of climate change⁵. Working on the assumption that the planet will experience a 2-4°C increase in temperature by 2090 as predicted in middle of the road scenarios¹, climate change will have both direct and indirect effects on human health.

A direct effect has already been witnessed in the form of weather related fatalities. Climate change brings increases in the severity of weather patterns¹. Extreme weather conditions put human life directly in danger. Hurricanes, tornadoes, and high winds blow debris at speeds great enough to kill. Heat waves such as the one experienced in Europe and the United States in 2003 killed tens of thousands of people due to heat related illnesses⁶. Heavy rains bring flash floods, which can drown people. Obviously weather can also directly cause injury and accident related deaths.

The change in global climate and weather patterns also brings clear, but indirect dangers to human health. Increases in transmissible diseases, decreases in food security, and changes in water distribution are three indirect effects that accompany climate change.

Vector born diseases require a host animal or insect in order to transmit disease to humans, such as ticks or mosquitoes. Disease carrying insects, mosquitoes for example, thrive in climates that are warm all year. With a global increase in temperature, the geographical area suitable for these insects to thrive will increase. Projections estimate that 260-320 million more people will be affected by malaria by 2080 ⁷. Dengue fever, West Nile Virus, and lyme disease are also being forecasted to increase in their geographical range they will cover¹.

The increase in temperature globally will also lead to food scarcity. Crop yields have been found to decrease by 17% for every 1°C increase in temperature⁴. With less food availability, food costs will increase and more people will become malnourished.Water redistribution is a third consequence and will have multiple outcomes on human life. One such effect is the compounding of food security and disease transmission. Communicable diseases can flourish in areas with flooding, or monsoons. Drinking water sources often become contaminated, in addition to the accompanying stagnant water that increases the likelihood of communicable disease transmittance¹. Furthermore, the locations that receives rainfall will change, and lead to drought resulting in crop loss⁴. Fresh water obtained from glaciers will also decrease the availability of safe drinking water since the glaciers are undergoing a net loss of ice. Melting glacial ice will also contribute to sea levels rising, and reduced salinity of the ocean (also contributing to changes in climate)⁸. Some have claimed that rising sea levels have already led to human displacement, such as in the Pacific⁹.

What are less certain are the socio-political ramifications on health as a result of climate change. There are too many possible responses that may occur in the event of loss of food security, spread of disease, and loss of clean drinking water sources. Perhaps these events will also lead to the migration of large populations, civil conflict, or possibly even open war between nations that have, and those that have not. Optimistically, world leaders may resolve any of the issues faced due to climate change. A solemn fact should be noted however, and that is many world nations cannot adapt to climate change. In developing nations that are resource poor, corrupt, and with non-existent infrastructure, there will be an inability to meet the needs of their citizens brought about by the drastic changes associated with global warming⁴.

A great moral injustice becomes apparent when considering where the predominant sources of greenhouse gas emissions occur, and who will suffer most. It is developed nations that account for nearly all of the planet’s carbon dioxide production, with the United States and China accounting for over 41.7% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions¹⁰. With such industrial productivity has come a doubling of longevity, increased security, reduced poverty, and increased education⁴. In other words, the industrial revolution powered by fossil fuels cannot be considered all evil. As mentioned previously however, it is the people in undeveloped nations who will suffer most from climate change. Disappointingly, the inaction of citizens and politicians in developed nations to curb their carbon emissions is directly condemning fellow world citizens to a life of disease and premature death. Hope does exist in acting upon issues such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set forth by the United Nations. These goals address important issues such as stabilizing population growth through proper family planning¹¹. Through meeting MDGs, resources will be freed for dealing with climate issues, rather than poverty related issues⁴.

On a recent trip to the Comprehensive Rural Health Project in India, I learned that many of the villagers involved in the program were once poverty stricken. These people were malnourished, suffered from preventable diseases, and were illiterate. Many of these problems have vanished through community-based primary health care, and surpassing MDGs. But one of the most amazing things to hear from some of the villagers was the importance of doing things like planting trees to help prevent climate change. If a population such as this can make preventing climate change a priority, then the developed world certainly can as well. By doing so, developed nations will have saved billions from unjust suffering from a problem they have created. Developed nations will have stopped their assault on human life.

References

^{¹International Panel on Climate Change. (2007). Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, Pachauri, R.K and Reisinger, A. (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland. Retrieved from http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/syr/en/contents.html on February 7, 2010.}

^{² International Panel on Climate Change. (2001). Climate Change 2001: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, Watson, R. and Albritton, DL. (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland. Retrieved from http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/ on February 7, 2010.}

^{³ Fleming, JR. (2005). Historical perspectives on climate. Oxford University Press: New York.}

⁴Costello, A, Abbas, M, Allen, A, Ball, S, Bell, S, Bellamy, R, Sharon, F, Groce, N, Johnson, A, Kett, M, Lee, M, Levy, C, Maslin, M, McCoy, D, McGuire, B, Montgomery, H, Napier, D, Pagel, C, Patel, J, Puppim de Oliveira, JA, Redclift, N, Rees, H, Rogger, D, Scott, J, Stephenson, J, Twigg, J, Wolff, J, and Patterson, C. (2009). Lancet and University College London Institute for Global Health Commission: Managing the health effects of climate change. Lancet, 373, 1693-1733.

⁵ Kovats, RS, Campbell-Lendrum D, and Matthies F. (2005). Climate change and human health: estimating avoidable deaths and disease. Risk Anal; 25: 1409–18.

⁶ Kosatsky, T. (2005). The 2003 European heat waves. Eurosurveillance, 10 (7), 552-553. Retrieved from http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=552 on February 7, 2010.

⁷ Lindsay, SW, Martens, WJM. (1998). Malaria in the African highlands: past, present and future. Bull World Health Organ; 76: 33–45.

⁸ Curry, R, Dickson, B, and Yashayaev, I. (2003). A change in the freshwater balance of the Atlantic Ocean over the past four decades. Nature, 426, 826-829. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v426/n6968/pdf/nature02206.pdf on February 7, 2010.

⁹ Mortreux, C, and Barnett, J. (2009). Climate change, migration and adaptation in Funafuti, Tuvalu. Global Environmental Change, 19 (1), 105-112. Retrieved from Science Direct Database on February 7, 2010.

¹⁰ United Nations Millennium Goal Indicators. (2009). Carbon dioxide emissions (CO₂), thousand metric tons of CO₂ (CDIAC). Retrieved from http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/SeriesDetail.aspx?srid=749&crid= on February 7, 2010.

¹¹ United Nations Millennium Goals. (2008). We can end poverty 2015: Millennium Development Goals. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/ on February 7, 2010.

Climate Change: Get the Facts

2010-04-15T13:15:00.000-07:00

If you are still a Debby Doubter about climate change, please take some time to gather the facts. This is a great link to a collection of all relevant data about climate change. Elizabeth May posted it on the Green's web page. There is enough graphs with upward trends on that link to make a CFO's head spin.

And I was once asked about solar radiation causing warming on all the planets in our solar system, and didn't have a good answer. It turns out that is actually just a fabrication. Truth is the solar constant is... well constant. And in fact, the sun has been "quiet" for the past few decades. In other words, less solar flares and activity than the average experienced by the sun. Meaning the warming experienced here on earth cannot be associated with increases of solar radiation.

It's science.

India Travel Blog Done!

2010-04-03T18:24:00.000-07:00

This is the Baby Taj, I'm assuming it is called that

because it's actually made of thousands of babies. Just kidding!

Well, I've been toiling away at it and it's finally at a point I'd consider done! My travel blog is as complete as it's going to get for now. I hope to add a little more information to it later, but it will be more fact related things I need to research rather than stories about the trip.

Is should act as a crazy-in-depth guide to anyone who plans on going on future trips to the Jamkhed Comprehensive Rural Health Project.

It's a great place to go check out some photos of my trip. I have way more up here than I will on Facebook. Plus, this gives a much better idea of how the trip went (stories, thoughts, and experiences included in written sections).

Or, cut and paste: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/sean.conner/1/tpod.html

A Team: New trailer

2010-04-02T13:07:00.000-07:00

I love it when a team comes together.

I tried directly posting the trailers, but they weren't HD. And seriously, action movies not HD... what is this 1984? Click here and you will get linked to them: iTune Movie Trailers.

*Keep watch, a lot of this was shot in Vancouver, so there are a lot of familiar buildings in the background.

It's a metaphor for life really. Deep.

I Googled Myself

2010-03-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

So I thought I'd try Googling myself to see what would turn up. I was not actually on any of the first 50 links or so. I then gave up. I refined my search to include my middle name, and again to no avail....

Aside from Sean Connery stuff, there were a few humorous other links that Google whipped up for "Sean Conner".

- There was a student from U of Washington in 2002 who played in a croquet tournament.

- A Sean Matthew Conner wrote a children's book available for free online.

- The Chair of the DC Young Republicans is named Sean Conner.

- There is also a Sean Conner from Illinois who teaches at a crazy high-tech middle school.

- And there is a Dr. Shawn Conner, M.D. who is a Family Practitioner in Michigan. No photo.

Well to all the other people named Sean Conner out there, and on the internet. This is my shout out to one cool name.

Canada According to The American: Stephen Colbert

2010-03-17T14:00:00.000-07:00

This was too good not to pass along to others: Canada according to Stephen Colbert and his truthiness. For those who watch the show, Canada is off the "On Notice" list. Its the list before you are dead to Colbert, which means there is no turning back for you. In Canada's place is "You know who you are."

I promise, this is the last Canadian related post for a long time. What can I say, I missed Canada when I was in India. Then the Olympics and a gold medal in mens hockey just really put the proud to be Canadian-ness right over the top. But I digress. There can't possibly be any more reasons to post Canada specific things until July. Cheers.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

2010-03-17T10:14:00.000-07:00

Those crazy Chicagonians... florescence kills things.

Happy Saint Patricks Day! Celebrating the day he chased the snakes (history's euphamism for Protestants) out of Ireland. Hey, that was a long time ago. Lets celebrate some Irish culture and drink!

Or maybe you could dye an entire river green like they do in Chicago! That's right. An entire river green. Here's the Wiki excerpt, it's just too good:

"As part of a more than forty year old Chicago tradition, the Chicago River is dyed green in observance of St. Patrick's Day.^[15] The actual event does not necessarily occur on St. Patrick's Day and is scheduled for the Saturday of the closest weekend. For example in 2009, the river was dyed on Saturday, March 14, 2009, whereas St. Patrick's day was on Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

Bill King, the administrator of Chicago's St. Patrick's Day committee, stated that "the idea of dyeing the Chicago River green originally came about by accident when a group of plumbers were using fluorescein dye to trace illegal substances that were polluting the river".^[16]

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) outlawed the use of fluorescein for this purpose, since it was proven to be harmful to the river.^[16] The secret ingredients used to dye the river green today are claimed to be safe and not harmful to the thousands of living organisms that find a habitat in the Chicago River.^[16] Forty gallons of vegetable dye are used to color the river for the celebration. ^[17]

In 2009, in keeping with the Chicago St. Patrick's Day tradition, at the request of First Lady Michelle Obama, who is a Chicago native, the White House fountains were dyed green to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.^[18]"

When they do things like this...

it makes my green beer feel inadequate.

How I Met Your Mother

2010-03-13T16:26:00.000-08:00

Classics come along only once and a while.

Hey... have you met Ted?

A show that I've been getting into lately is called How I Met Your Mother. A while back, my buddy Marcus tried to get me into it a while back and failed. But after venturing into some of the episodes on my own, I have to say I like it. I would even compare it to that of a new version of friends.

For those unacquainted with the show, it's about 5 friends and their adventures/misadventures in New York. And yes, if there is all there was to it, it would be exactly (almost) like friends. However, the show is set up so the main character, Ted Mosby (TedMosbyIsAJerk.com, Mysterious Dr X) is telling his kids about how he ended up meeting their mother. Side note, Ted Mosby is not actually a jerk. But I'll get to that later.

The whole cast is set up of actors of yor for kids from the 80's. For example, the narrator for Ted is voiced by Bob Saget (Full House, Half-Baked, Entourage, etc.).

And Barney Stinson (Barney’s Video Resume, Barney's Blog, Barney's Twitter) aka: Lorenzo von Matterhorn (Lorenzo's homepage, Ballooning Lorenzo, Super rich Lorenzo), Ted's friend, is played by none other than Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser, M.D., Harold and Kumar I+II, Oscars, Golden Globes, etc.).

Marshall and Lilly (Marshall and Lily's Wedding,LilyAndMarshallSellTheirStuff.com, GuyForcesHisWifeToDressInAGarbagebagForTheNextThreeYears.com) are played by Jason Segel (Knocked-up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, etc.) and Alyson Hannigan (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, American Pie, etc.) respectively.

But aside from the star studded cast, there is something more genuine to the show than just well seasoned actors. It's the reason I didn't initially fall in love with the show. The way the show is set up is the subtle moments throughout the series. As you watch more and more episodes (perhaps numerous ones in a row), the moments add up until you realize that you are invested in the characters and the show as well. It creeps up on you over time like those unexpected friendships that only happen after spending endless amounts of time with people, and sharing those little moments that just happen from time to time. And that's where I think the genuine nature of the show comes from.

That, and the comic genius that is Neil Patrick Harris.

Oh, right, I almost forgot. The links after the character names are to websites referenced within the show. They make them all functional. Some have been taken down over time. Others, still fully operational. I posted them as inside jokes for those who have seen/remember where they are from. For example, canadiansexacts.org was referenced in the show, and you can go to it (if you're 18 or older). Which is another great part of the show. Robyn is Canadian, and loves the Vancouver Canucks and Mason Raymond. Legen- ... wait for it...

Way more awesome than hanging out at a coffee shop all the time.

-dary!

Olympic Fever

2010-03-05T15:18:00.001-08:00

The sliding center in Whistler at the 2010 Winter Games.

It's true, I've been suffering from... Olympic Fever. Ahh... it spread faster than swine flu, and hit harder than a case of Marcusyphilis (a unique disease found in only one person and those he has slept with), but Olympic Fever is now but a dream of days gone by. Some of you may be familiar with the symptoms of Olympic Fever, but for those who are not, here is a list.

Signs and Symptoms of Olympic Fever:
-Drinking alcohol at above normal frequently and volume
-Loud yelling and other noise making
-Spontaneous national anthem singing
-Cow-belling
-Fear of not being in large crowds
-Missing work due to "illness"
-Hangover
-Loss of motivation to be productive
-Unexplained interest in sporting events you never knew existed
-Canadaitis (inflammation of national pride)
-Desire to break world records
-Loss of self-control accompanied with cheering when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal

The greatest Olympic moment of the

Vancouver 2010 Games for Canadians.

If you had suffered from one or all of the previous symptoms, you too may have been suffering from Olympic fever. It's true that the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver exhibited a higher than normal number, and severity of Olympic Fever cases. But I suppose that's just one of many records broken at these games by Canadians. Like highest gold medal count ever and by a host nation. 14 by the way. NBD. The 14th medal's win sounded like this:

Personally, the games held a number of memorable events for me. The first was the opening ceremonies when we dashed out into the streets of downtown Vancouver to chase the flame and The Great One. Yes, Wayne Gretzky. We were so close that Jess made it on TV, got a weird/concerned look from Wayne, and I got to get into the back of the truck where Wayne was... once he was out.

Not to sounds creepy, but I touched where Wayne touched.

Other than finding friends to wonder around Vancouver and enjoy the shows and drinks, which was also great, I was lucky enough to see some events live. Luge and biathalon relay. Both were up in Whistler and meant I got to do some winter cabining in Pemberton as well as taking in the events. Awesome. Plus seeing Alexandre Bilodeau win the medal live in the middle of Whistler village before the Bedouin Soundclash concert was unreal. Seeing Stephan Colbert was also great. He rode a Moose and signed my cowbell, effectively making it a Colbell.

Colbert riding a stuffed moose, waving the

Canadian flag with fake snow falling in Vancouver.

PS- He said he would take us of his list. We're waiting.

But all good things must come to an end, and the party that was perhaps one of the best Olympics ever (yeah, I said it) has come to an end. I hope everyone who came to Vancouver enjoyed the relatively fair weather (coming to the realization that no, Canada is not an arctic snowy wasteland in the winter) and kind Canadians.

Another beautiful 15 degree day in February in Vancouver....

Crash Course in Canadian Culture

2010-02-04T12:16:00.000-08:00

Here is a collection of what I deem some of the quint essential Songs that represent Canadian heritage, Canada tradition, or otherwise considered Canadian folk songs. This was inspired by my lack of preparation on my trip to India to be an ambassador of cultural exchange with my Aussie friends. Amusez-vous bien!

The Hockey Song - Stompin' Tom Connors

PS- If you are wondering what a Canadian accent (prairies) sounds like, Stompin' Tom is a pretty good example.

Champs Elysees - NOFX

The staple to any French class across Canada... presumably.

The Tragically Hip (Song picks- Wheat Kings, Ahead by a Century, Poets)

Couldn't post a good version, so I'll link it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8H9L0jR6WCg

Note: This was from the show in good ol' Abbotsford.

The Log Driver's Waltz

A Part of Our Heritage - Canadian Moments in History

Any true Canadian is certainly familiar with these gems. My personal suggestions are the clips on: Superman, Standard time, Congo civil war, Canada (what it means/where its from), Dr. Wilder Penfield, Women in Medicine, Maple Syrup, Baffin Island, John Cabot, Soddie, Bluenose. Unfortunately missing from this great collection of Canadian moments is the time Canada burned down the White House and took Fort Detroit in 1812, as well as the win over the Soviets in the 1972 Summit Series.

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=6BC3BA22D302DF5D&search_query=canadian+heritage+moments&sort_field=viewcount

I Am Canadian - Molson Canadian Beer Advertisements

A throw back, but still pretty good. Also search YouTube for the Molson Canadian "Unwritten Code" series #1-4... classic.

Canadian Accent - Russell Peters

Keep your head in a swivel. Somebody is going to get hurt... Somebody....

Havin' a Time - Donny Dumphey

Newfoundland's finest. Ha!

Oh yeah, and Tim Hortons coffee is kind of a thing over here too.

Back on Home Turf

2010-02-02T10:12:00.000-08:00

Its good to be home. And to commemorate the occasion, I'm compiling a travel blog about my time in India. It's a post hoc, but its a better way to have spent my time away from home (doing travel things, rather than blogging). No idea how long that will take, but I'll be sure to link it from here.

Cheers.

One last thing...

2010-01-07T12:09:00.000-08:00

iheartguts.com

Slacker

2010-01-07T11:19:00.000-08:00

Apparently where I've been attending the

past month in regards to this blog....

No one likes a slacker. But, the holidays were amazing and full of their usual hustle and bustle. And if TV series get to have a month off over the holidays, I should too. Today, I'm well on my way to rural India for a month. So don't expect much more until then. Cheers friends, all the best in the new year of '010. Promise to have at least one story of India when I return. :)

Play

2009-12-04T22:35:00.000-08:00

There is a lot of great research regarding play that has been produced over the last half decade or so. Dr. Stuart Brown and colleagues out of the Canadian National Institute of Play have been supporting a lot of suspected benefits of play with evidence. For example, play helps with neurological and intelligence development. Comparing mammals to reptiles illustrates this point well since reptiles do not engage in sophisticated play, or any play really. Also play has been shown, in rats to impede social and sexual capacities. I laughed because the article explained this point, and apparently low sexual capacity means a male rat will mount the head just as often as the rump of female mice. I thought, what's wrong with that? Ha! Anyways... I came across these videos that show just how universal play can be in the mammalian class.