Okay, I admit
I'm a total Apple fangirl.
(except mine has a touch pad, so it's better)
But I wasn't always this way.
Once upon a time I was afraid of new things. I clung to my Microsoft Windows OS because it's what ran on our first family computer: a Gateway all-in-one desktop PC that I do not recall with 
fond memories -the machine would have run a lot better if my two younger brothers hadn't constantly flooded it with viruses received from the numerous pr0n sites and stupid downloadable games they got.
(as a side note I'm sad to say they have never really moved beyond this phase and have effectively destroyed both of the computers in my parents' home, where they both still live. Shame on them)
Moving on, needless to say despite how annoying it was to have a computer that chugged like a tugboat, sounded like a table saw and crashed every other day, Microsoft was what I was used to and it stayed that way for a long time, I'm ashamed to say.
Even buying a cute iPod Nano when I was seventeen or so (I think) didn't alter my PC-using ways. It just ensured that I would never use a non-Apple product to store and play my music on-the-go I blew through three different models of that baby until I finally wised up and got myself an iPhone 4.
Aah yes, my iPhone 4.
Some of you might recall the glorious day when I waited in line for about four hours to ditch my lame old flip phone (and consequently drunkenly smashed it on the road that night -such a release!) and got my Baby.
Honestly the best part about buying my iPhone 4 -besides it being an iPhone 4- was waiting in line outside of Winnipeg's very own Apple store. Ours only opened this year (whomp whomp) but it felt so good to go into that shiny, pristine store and mingle with all the other people who were just as pumped to be there as I was. It's crazy to think that the Apple store has been around for ten years already.
Check this:
Steve Jobs ILU
Moving on, this purchase was swiftly followed by Gretchel, my iPad (named after an unfortunate incident with a snarky clown and me on stage at the Fringe Festival) the night before I bought it, and to be honest between my day-to-day iPhone 4 useage and my iPad on campus at the university Microsoft felt, well... dated.
So a few months back I went out and bought myself a shiny, gorgeous iMac 21.5" 3.06 GHz Intel Core i3 and finally initiated myself into the Cult of Mac. Having it made the three solid weeks I spent researching and writing all my final papers in every spare minute of the day that much more bearable, and I could never, ever go back to using a PC.
Call me an elitist, a snob, whatever. I don't care.
And now I have obtained the Golden Power of Apple
(also: Zelda. Whassup?!)
What's in a name?
Zach Bussey did a post a few days ago about discovering a dude in the Twitterverse who has the exact same name as him (weird!) and with that in mind it feels like a good time to share one of my darkest, most embarrassing secrets with you guys.
Because isn't that what The Internet is for, really?
(besides pr0n and 4chan, of course)
Let me preface:
one day while tuned in to our local 'rock' (read: mostly Metallica) station Power '97 when the DJ said something that made me spend the next minute or so trying to figure out who the heck had said my name.
Turns out the DJ hadn't said my name, but instead was talking about these guys:
Yeeeeeeeeeah.To demonstrate.
Say the following things out loud, one after the other:
ALYSON SHANE
ALICE IN CHAINS
Okay, stop laughing. I know they sound exactly the same.
So while Mr. Bussey over there might have a doppelganger out there in the big, wide Twitterverse, every time someone says my full name this is what I think of:
And while I was pretty indifferent towards The Band That Shall Not Be Named before this, now I have to hate them on principle. Because not only do we have the exact same-sounding name, but a Wikipedia search has informed me that they were formed the same year that I was born.
Really guys? C'mon!
But maybe I'm approaching this the wrong way?
Maybe I should embrace my grunge-metal fate and start wearing leather jackets and shades everywhere.
Maybe I should grow my hair out all frizzy-gross and learn to play the electric guitar?
Maybe I should join the band that sort of shares my name?!
I mean, come on, how badass would this be?
Still on the mend...
but getting better every day, and thank goodness because we've been so busy the past few days I don't even know where the time has gone!
This past weekend between a housewarming party and delicious Chinese food from Vi-Ann (it's in The Village, go if you have the chance!) Ty and I headed to Lo Pub to check out the very last Data Dance, hosted by our friend mrghosty. It was fantastic! Retro video game consoles lining the sides of the pub with lots of games to choose from
(I got my ass handed to me at Street Fighter, but came in 2nd on GameCube Mario Kart!)
and sweet chiptune music.
Dr. Whomp 8bit Rickrolled the bar! I don't know if everyone caught on to the meme, but Ty and I died laughing. So awesome!
Additionally we've been working on our costumes for the Robot March which is this Saturday! (May 28th)
I talked Ty into indulging in some seasonal Phil's Pils beer from our favourite local brewery Half Pints Brewing Co. (since we can't get our hands on the Queer Beer they've been making for Gay Pride -everywhere's sold out!)
No worries though, I consoled myself with some vanilla ice cream drizzled with this great dessert wine we got at the Wine Festival a few weeks ago -Sweet Sunset - Red Chocolate. It's got a really strong flavour and definitely needs to be served chilled, or over ice cream like we had it. Have you tried it?
Oh, and I almost forgot!
We are now the proud owners of some vintage 1970's his & hers roadster bikes! Okay, they aren't fixies like I would have preferred (I buy into that stereotype for the lulz) but they've got sweet 5-speed shifters, which I've never actually seen before! Obviously they need a little fixing up, but we scored both of them for 60$ (thanks kijiji!) and after putting air in the tires and some grease on the chains we were able to ride them home (which is good because the guy we bought them from lived basically on the outskirts of the South end of the city -whew!)
Essentially I'm having fantasies about cute dresses, wicker baskets and biking to the park (or anywhere!) on a sunny day. This video is basically like bike pr0n to me right now:
I hope this is you today!(the smiling part, not the pancake part)
Foreign Film Love
Last night after doing a bit of work on our costumes for March of the Robots (it's only a few weeks away! Are you excited?) Ty and I settled in with some Netflix and wound up watching this movie called Den du Frygter or Fear Me Not.I have to say, the Danish know how to make a movie. If you haven't had the chance to see it, log yourself on to Netflix (and if you don't have Netflix -get it, you silly goose! It's so cheap!) and give it a watch the next time you're in the mood for something darker. Because while the film isn't 'horror', it's definitely a psychological film.
The plot centres around Mikael, a normal if not bored husband who has been in a funk lately and has taken some time off work to try and sort himself out. When the film starts he's not doing a very good job of it, and asks his brother-in-law who is a doctor to allow him to partake in a study testing out a new type of anti-depressant (or it could be anti-anxiety, they don't say).
Needless to say things don't go as well as one could hope, and a series of events occur that had us giving each other uneasy glances as the scene progressed. If there's one thing this film knows how to do, it's to make you feel uncomfortable.
I'll tell you straight-up that I saw the plot twist coming a mile away, and it's a typical European film in the sense that the ending is very anti-climactic, but I don't feel like either of these things take away from the overall feel of the film itself, which is one of general unease and discomfort. There were definitely a few moments when I felt my body tense up as I was watching the scene unfold.
If you're in the mood for something darker, foreign (listening to them speak Danish was so interesting!) and with superb acting -Ulrich Thomsen does a great job!- I'd highly recommend this film. Take a look at the trailer and let me know your impression:
Fear Me Not - Trailer
Another film I adore is the Swedish film Låt den rätte komma in or Let The Right One In. It's about vampires (well, one), and really impressed me with how subtly creepy it was. There's also apparently an American remake of the film... but we'll just pretend it doesn't exist.
Have you seen it?
Additionally, the weather here lately has been near-unbearable for May, it's windy and cold and has been raining since the weekend. I'm trying not to let it get the best of me and am have been using this Scale of the Universe to cheer myself up. It's a super cool site, check it out! (seriously!)
When there is nothing left to burn you have to set yourself on fire
I can't go to every concert I'd like all the time, and one I'm sad I missed is the Stars show at The Pyramid last night (couldn't find someone to go with me, whomp whomp)Do you know Stars?
Have you heard how good they are?
Here, have a listen:
is it not love?
Some other solid tracks include:
as well as:
Thumbs up if this one made you re-evaluate your last relationship!
Speaking of which, this song was my exposure to Stars. It reminds me of living in Ontario with my ex and driving up for 401 at night.
at least something good came from that experience, right?
Stars ILU!
N3rdery
If it wasn't already apparent that I'm a massive n3rd then it should be by what I spent the vast majority of my evening doing:
Yup, getting my SNES emulator on and playing some good old-fashioned Super Mario RPG
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This game was a staple of my childhood, guys. I remember being in elementary school when this came out (I want to say gr4 but I could be wrong) and let me tell you there were many fistfights and instances of verbal trickery involved in getting my brothers to hand over their 'turn' on the highly-coveted SNES.
Though if we're going to get onto the subject of the embarrassing awesome things I did as a kid to get my videogame time on it's worth mentioning that I, as a kid, would wake up on Saturday/Sunday mornings at 5-6am in order to get some solo in-the-dark VG tamz in.
Yes I realize how drastic that sounds, but I have two younger brothers who coveted bonding time with those cartridges as much as I did and honestly, there's nothing like experiencing this particular game alone, uninterrupted:
Ooh just hearing that opening tune makes my heart go pitter-pat.
Luckily now for me I'm an adult and on top of all the neat stuff I can do like party, drink and stay up all night, I can now add 'play videogames by myself and not share' to that list. I can come home from work or class, crack open a b33r and indulge in some one-on-one time with my video games.
Listen to me, how do I even have a boyfriend?
Oh, because he's just as excited about this coming out as I am:
Wine Fest Cop-Out Post
Totally not in the mood to blog right now.
Maybe later.
Here are some snaps from the Wpg Wine Fest drunkenly taken with my iPhone
I just realized Teri is in all of them
and I'm totally okay with that
