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May
24

Summer is here in Spokane…Almost

By Jeff | Featured

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Enjoy the Sun

It would be a wonderful time reading in the sun.

I haven’t had nearly as much time as I would like to be spending just writing down my thoughts, however I thought that I should write a short update.

It is now coming on to June, and all of the great Tweeple that I am following back home are getting ready for the 2-4 Weekend.  I don’t get a long weekend until Memorial day.

So what have I been up to?

Well I have been following my belove Habs on there path to the Stanley Cup, this is harder than it seems since I don’t own a TV. The games start at 4pm (local time) and NHL.com doesn’t stream them if they are playing in your market (Versus or NBC have them all), so I have had to sneak out early a couple of days, or just catch the 3rd period.

As for actually watching the games, I have settled for the local pizza joint.  [rant]The reason being that one evening when I went to the only sports bar in walking distance they had ALL of the tables RESERVED for the UFC fights that night, which wouldn’t even start for another 2 1/2 hours.  Needless to say I was rather perturbed, and haven’t graced that establishment with my presence since.[/rant]

Anyway, The Avenue (the pizza joint) is great.  The guy that owns the place used to play Major Jr with the local team, and comes from a family of hockey players, so needless to say the game is always on.  We have become regulars over the last couple of months, basically spending at least an hour there every second day (maybe we will teach them about Donairs or at least Donair Sauce).

Shows

For some reason we can’t get the ambition to go to many shows.  We have gone to one female song writer circle that was decent and fun ( I think that I will write a short post on it too, even if it is a couple of months after the fact).  It was held at Sunset Junction which is very close to our place and seem to have shows semi-regularly.

Finding the shows have seemed to be an issue though.  There are a couple of places to look, but some of the better shows seem to advertise only on Facebook, and if you are not looking for it you will not see it.  There are little to no posters around downtown, and The Inlander is hit and miss.  As I get to know more people though I am getting better hints on where to check out and where to avoid.

On the plus side, we are heading west in a couple of  weeks to see Wintersleep, that’s right we are heading to Seattle to see a local band.  Kind of reminds me of the time that I went to NYC and saw Joel Plaskett open for The Hip.  It should be a blast, I have listened to some of their new stuff and it seems that they get tighter with every show.

I want to ride my bicycle; I want to ride it where I like

Last weekend we hit up Craigslist and finially got a bike.  Both of us got Nishiki’s which are awesome.  They are similar to the rides that we had back in halifax, but need some work.  They have both been cleaned, but they need new tires, tubes, and such and I haven’t had the chance to find the 27″-ers that we need.  That is a chore for the next couple of days and I hope to be on it soon.

It will be great to be able to tour around town and some of the neat spots without having to jump in the car, find a parking spot, walk around, get back int he car, go home, etc.  Cars are such a pain in the ass in the middle of the city, which is one reason why I never bothered to get one when I lived in Halifax.

That is all I have for today.  I will be writing up more frequent, shorter (read better editing) posts in the next couple of months.

Cheers,

JeffM

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Feb
16

My first update in the Caper-in-Spokane series

By Jeff | Featured, Rambling

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Well, I made it and have survived so far.  I joined the everyone else in North America and bought a car. Now that HURTS the pocketbook.  It was a necesscity, and if you talk to anyone that knows me you will find out how much I didn’t want to buy  car.  But I did go for a beauty, a 2006 VW Passat.

There are a lot of things about here that are different than home. I am living downtown and have a grocery store close, but the only shopping down town is for clothes.  For everything else you have to jump in the car and drive for 15-20 minutes to the big box stores.  There are no, or at least none that I can find, independant retail stores.  No Greenlyph computers, no Duggers, no Mac Store, no Biscuit, no Carsand.  I think that last one is the one that is bothering me the most.  I am trying to develop my photography skills and the only store that sells cameras here is Huppins which reminds me more like Wacky Wheatley’s than a Carsand Mosher. When I spoke with someone there, they seemed to only know what the description tells them, and not use the equipment themselves.

I commute East 20 mins every day and the snow covered mountains in Eastern Washington is what I look to out the car window. This is one thing that makes the commute to work a decent drive in the morning.  I can’t wait for Spring and summer so that we can do some serious exploring and hiking.

And the weather, well I must boast and say that I haven’t seen snow, other than on the mountains in the distance, since I came here.  My folks have sent me many pictures of the white stuff, and it is nice coming down, but walking around in a sweater with no hat or gloves is really nice too.

The Beer Lovers Paradise

And the BEER, it is amazing, and there is a micro brew for every taste.  I really don’t understand why people out here still drink from the large breweries, there is really no comparison to the quality and taste.  I have talked to a couple of local “experts” and I have learned a lot about the different varieties.  @mysteriouswayz is another great resource as she has a much better memory than me, and had a 5 month head start on sampling the wares.  I still haven’t been able to find something similar to the Granite Breweries Peculiar, but I am sure to find something soon.

Right now my favorite is Arrogant Bastard, not only is the beer great the marketing is pretty good too.  Washington beer has some of the best graphic design that I have seen in Spokane.  With the large number of micro brews out here and the relatively small market (the majority still drink the coloured swill), they have to do everything that they can to be competitive.

I have been able to check out a few eateries and pubs that are in the area and I will be putting together some reviews in the next couple of weeks.  I am also hoping to get out to some live music, I work with someone who plays around the area and I am hoping that she will be able to help me out with finding some good tunes.

Bench by the River The Swamp Westminster Apartments Enjoy the Sun Westminster Apartments IMG_5873 IMG_5864 Games Room
Jan
04

The Winter of Capebretoner

By Jeff | Featured, Hoser Life, Hoser Music

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“So, has the summer of George begun? Or are you still decomposing?”
“Decompressing.”
- Jerry and George, in “The Summer of George”

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This is going to be the Winter of Capebretoner, this last few months have been the “Fall of Capebretoner”, and not in a good way.  Broke my hand, broke my glasses, gained weight, etc. So this is going to be the Winter and the year of Capebretoner.

First I am starting a new job, in a new country, on the other side of the continent.  I am heading to Spokane, Washington and loving it, in a nervous excitement kind of way.  I have been there a couple of times since August to visit and the area seemed like an interesting place to be.

On the suggestion from @VelvetCyclone I am going to document a “Capebretoner in Spokane” and why not do it on this very blog, its not like I was doing much else with it.  Along with that I have added a couple of new categories Hoser Music and Hoser Fitness where I am going to document all of the local Spokanish music that I find and my progress on getting rid of those pounds that I added to my frame this fall.

The music category is pretty self-explanatory, Halifax has an amazing music scene with Cousins, Room Doom, Mardeen, Superfantastics, Joel, Wintersleep, and I could go on and on (Check out The Coast’s Best of Music). So my goal is to find some great local acts in Spokane and get to some amazing live shows.  I know they have to be there somewhere.

Regarding the fitness category I am going to write a detailed post with my plans but it will mostly revolve around NOT EATING CRAP, and getting back to the gym.  I might even borrow @mysteriouswayz’s Nike+ and do some running.  The company that I am going to has a deal with a local fitness centre with a pool and gymnasium so maybe I can get a couple of basketball games in there too.  I will be checking out @untitleddesign‘s newish blog Your Inner Skinny (also on twitter @yourinnerskinny)

So if you are from Spokane and you are reading this blog, post a comment and let me know where I can find your music scene, or better yet is there any Pick-up Hockey that a guy can get into.  I had to fight to get my skates in my bag so I better find a game.

Cheers,

Jeff M

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Jan
24

Coffee In Halifax – The Daily Grind

By Jeff | Featured, Reviews

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To supplement my Eating in Halifax series, I am going to chronicle some of my thoughts about different little coffee shops and “cafes” in and around downtown Halifax.  I will be writing a little something from every one that I visit in the next little while.

I get around to a lot of coffee shops as these are the places that I get the majority of my work done.  I try working from home, but there are too many distractions that I can’t seem to get anything done.  The key thing that allows me to get work done is that most of the coffee shops around have free Wi-fi which I love.  And when I am there I buy a lot of coffee and treats to so that I have the energy to keep going.IMG_2926

The first place that I am going to be reviewing is The Daily Grind.  Why?  Well that is where I am sitting while I am writing this, so it only makes sense.

The Daily Grind is situated in behind the magazine part of the shop on Spring Garden Road in Halifax Nova Scotia.  They have a variety of baked goods to go with their coffee, along with sandwiches, and an all day breakfast.

Where you can find The Daily Grind

The tables in the seating area are huge and you can very comfortably sit 4 people and there is still lots of room.  It is usually quiet, with just some friendly chatter going on around you.  I first found the place when I was still in University at DalTech and I was trying to find a quiet place to study.  The alternatives at the time were the Second Cup and SteveRenos (both which I will review next time I am in) and they were both far too noisy.  I credit this place for me passes Signal Analysis all those years ago. 

The Pros:

The coffee here is decent and when you get a cup to stay you get one free refill, which is a step up on a lot of places that simply give you a discount on the refills.  They also have a large variety of teas, if you are into that sort of thing.

The tables allow for some great sitting and if you are just looking for some place to unwind you can come in, buy a magazine and sit down with a coffee and samosa and read.  And like I mentioned before, the tables are large enough that you can sit down with a couple of people and spread your work out to get some real stuff done.

The Cons:

NO FREE WIFI.

This is usually a huge deal, but for me I like to think that it is a plus, when I plan for it.  I come here when I have a lot of writing, reading, or other work that does not require me to be online.  This keeps me away from twitter, my google reader and other distractions that the internet has abundantly available.

Up until recently the WIFI problem was not a big one.  Your Fathers Moustache was just next door and they had their own free wi-fi open, but they have since gone to the dreaded Aliant Hot-Spot and since I don’t have them at home I am stuck to pay if I want access, which I refuse to do.

Another con that for some is huge and others not so much is that as far as I can tell the coffee is not fair trade.  Typically around the city the coffee vendors have taken to loudly announcing if it is as a selling feature forthe socially aware public.

Conclusion

IMG_2925The Daily Grind is a great place to come to get some serious work done with a coffee in hand and some great fresh baked goods, or an all day breakfast.  I like to sit by the back windows so that I can keep track on what is going on outside, and if it is nasty I will grab another coffee and hope that the weather is going to clear up before I head home

Jan
07

Eating in Halifax – Rockbottom Brewery

By Jeff | Featured, Reviews

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There is a new place to eat on Spring Garden, down below the Moustache where the old Dooly’s was.

I was there twice in the last little while and was tipped that it existed by an ad in the Coast.  When I was there I had brunch, it was Sunday morning after all.  They have a decent brunch menu at decent prices.  I had the omelette that comes with whole grain toast and home fries.  And not the home fries that you expect to get from Smitty’s or such, but real pan fried potatoes with onions.  They were delicious.Rockbottom Behind the Bar

What’s the Hook

The Rockbottom Brewery seems to be a brew pub, but from what I have heard they cook the wort at another location and then only the final stage of the brewing process is taken place on site.  This is different compared to the other brew pubs in Halifax including, The Granite Brewery and Rogues Roost(someone needs to get these guys a modern websites)

“To run great restaurants…for the benefit of our Guests, our Community, and Ourselves.” – From the website.

Why would you go?

Where you can find the place

Both times that I was there to eat the service was first rate.  The lady that was serving us the first time was awesome.  She was very keen on letting us know all of the offerings of the place, and showing us the evening menu.  The second time they didn’t really go out of their way in terms of service, but they were friendly enough.  I think that there was a hot guy sitting at the bar.

As for the seating atmosphere, it is a big change from the Dooly’s, in a very good way.  It still feels “hard” like a lot of the new places popping up, but the lighting helps to offset this to make the place feel more welcoming.  I also enjoyed the seating, there are high booths with foot rests and comfy lounging chairs which makes the place comfortable enough for me to hang out for extended periods.

What will Stop You

There was one evening that I got to stop in to try out the beer on tap.  It was a cold night near the end of December and the hockey game was on.  I didn’t want to dare to try the other sports pubs on Spring Garden as I knew they would be packed, and I only needed to catch the third period.  This meant it was the best chance to check out the beer at the Rockbottom.

Hated it.

I am not sure if it was just that it was one of their first batches and that they haven’t quite got the hang of it, but I had the ale and my GF had the IPA.  The ale seemed very fruity and the IPA had none of the kick that we have come to expect from the Garrisons, Propellers and Granite Brewerys of the world.  HUGE disappointment.  Oh yeah….and the game was on MUTE.  WTF we are in Canada and they our Junior Team was playing an important game.

I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt and give it another try in the near future, but I am not going to make a special visit on my way home.  But if I am thirsty and am close I will give it another try.

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So what do I Really Think

Value – 3/5

Really middle of the road. not expensive but you can get cheaper brunches elsewhere

Menu Selection – 3/5

Again they have select items that I assume they are going to make really good.  It seems like a chef inspired or developed menu which is not necessarily a bad thing.  Everyone will find something on it.

Food – 3/5

Great food.  Everything that I had and everyone else that was with me had was cooked perfectly and tasted amazing. The fired potatoes were amazing and omelettes full of great stuff, and the omelette eggs were REAL.   Not for a carton.

They would have gotten a four (4) if it wasn’t for my disappointment with the beer.

Service – 3.5/5

Like I said above, we had one that was amazing (5) but another that was at best a 3.  Not that she was bad, but she really didn’t go out of her way.

Atmosphere – 4/5

I really enjoyed sitting in the place.  It was damn near empty every time I was there, and the fact that there are a lot of hard surfaces it might get loud when it is busy.

Overall – 3.5/5

Decent but not amazing.  It is high enough that I will recommend it to people to give it a try out.  If they can get their beer tasting better, unless that was the way it was supposed to, then I will be revisting this review.

What do you think?

So have you been?  What did you think about the place?  Let us know.

Cheers,

JM

Dec
21

My NO-TV Experiment

By Jeff | Featured, Rambling

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13890-orgLike everyone else, this time of year can get a little crazy.  There are all of the Year End activities, the Christmas planning, and all of the regular day-to-day stuff.  And if you work in an industry that thrives on the Christmas season then I am sure your work life is getting a little out of control.

With that said I still have stuff that I want to get done, and even though I don’t watch a lot of TV in the first place, I am going cold turkey.  I am turning off the TV and not turning back on except for HNIC on Saturday.  I am going to keep the TV off, except for HNIC, till at least the New Year.

So what am I going to do with all of this extra time?  Well going to the gym comes to mind, and there are other projects that I have on the go that need to be cleaned up in the next couple of weeks.  My plan for the gym is to be in there every day, I am going to do some light cardio on my “off” days and some heavy lifting, or soon to be heavy since I am a sloth at the moment, on my “on” days.

The program that I am following is the 5×5 that I found when searching around.  It is a 3 day a week lifting program and you start off very light and add weight every day you go  back to the exercise.  The idea is to teach your body slowly how to lift the weight correctly, and then when you get to the heavy portions you will not get injured.

I will be chronicling everything on Twitter, when I go to the gym, and how it went when I left so be sure to follow along.  I will make a weekly update on hoserlife.com
Cheers,
JM

Dec
17

Moving towards Minimalist

By Jeff | Featured, Rambling

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111233-orgI am starting to move towards owning less stuff.  I have started to put together a plan on how to do this, and there are things that I have to buy to make it happen correctly, yeah I know that sounds oxymoronic.

One of the moves that I have made recently is that I am not buying any books.  I am using the library.  Of course there are always going to be reference books that I am going to need to buy for work, but for the last few years I have been buying books, reading them once and putting them on a shelf where they sit till I put them in a box, move them to a new apartment and unpack them.  This is tiring, and takes up a lot of valuable space in my home.

The other move is working on going paperless.  I get all of my bank statements online, I pay all my bills online and I do the majority of my work online.  That said I don’t enjoy reading on the computer, so I still print off large reports that I am proof reading to read and mark up on.  The other thing I print off are large format drawings for review, this again I find hard to work with on the computer.  Most of the problem is the ease of marking and eye strain.

I think that I have found a solution for both the eye strain and the marking.  It is the iRexTechnologies Digital Reader.  This reader is approximately the size of a letter sheet and has a Wacom pen-tablet built it.  It is the first e-ink device that I think is large enough for me to review reports full size.  With it I will be able to review reports, mark up and then send back to be modified.  I will also be able to use this device to take meeting notes and make design notes, both things that I currently do on paper and then scan into the project file.

With this tool I believe that I can go completely paperless in my day-to-day life, there will always be print shops when required.  That means that I can also dispose of my printers, which I have 3.  One ink jet, one laser and one “large” format 11×17 max.  These take up a lot of space that I hope to clear out.

What Stays, What Goes

The next step is to look at what comes into the house and give it a 1-10 rating on importance.  For example, magazines I am going to give most of them a 2, maybe some of my industry specific magazines I will give a higher ranking but for the most part every magazine that comes into my home is read once and then put in a pile.  The advantage that I believe that magazines have is not in the actual information that they convey, but in the filtering of the noise out there.  This is the same reason I still read technical books.  I can find the information free in other places but there is much more work involved to parse through all of the crap.

Getting Rid of it

Some of this is the magazines that I mentioned before, the printers, but it is also books and “stuff” that I don’t need any more, well they can go now.  Some of this I think there is still some monetary value in and I can probably sell online with ebay or Kijiji.  I will use the money generated by these sales to off set any costs that are associated in the new tools (or Toys) that I am going to use, including the Digital Reader.  I will have more on my strategy, and talk about the volumes of stuff I have purged in the future.

Jun
23

Eating in Halifax – Annies Place

By Jeff | Featured, Reviews

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Sandwich Board

Annie’s Place is on Birmingham Street just off Spring Garden Road. It is a fantastic little place to go for a bit of lunch. I got the Roasted Chicken Pita with a side salad. The chicken was perfect and the salad is simple and delicious.

So now that I know you want to go there they are open at7am-4pm Monday to Friday and 8am-3pm on Saturday. Annie’s Place is closed on Sunday.

All in all I give it 4 beers out of 5. It is a great place to stop in for lunch or brunch, but not the be all end all. However it is excellent in what it is trying to do.

However I go there not for the food but the atmosphere. It is one the of the most relaxed and friendly places to eat in Halifax. There are only a few tables and you can sit by the window and watch people scurry around on Spring Garden Road. And then there is Annie, she is great, always wanting to chat and she will remember you the second time you go there and ask how you are doing. It is like going home and having lunch at your grandmother’s.

Annie's Front Door

If you have been here, let us know what you think, how many beers out of 5 do you give it?

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This is the first “review” for Eating in Halifax. I have started a

Google Map so that you can find your way around as I review places that I stop into in and around Halifax and HRM.

I also like to drink the beer and coffee so I may be adding a couple more maps and review types in the coming weeks.