I was reading through other people's blogs today, and came across JEPEL's latest , which is about the launching of his new blog, in his french language. It got me to thinking about the possibilities of me doing the same thing, in mine. Well, I think the possibilities for me to do it, is virtually none. I have taken Ojibway in school, but like many other languages, if you do not converse consistently, you lose it. I was adopted into a non-Native family as an infant, and raised in a predomin...

While doing a price search for car parts, I happened to spend a lot of time testing out the search engine at Google. I started off doing what I set out to do, and of course wound up following some strange tangent... I guess what prompted me to type in NickyG in Google's search engine, was an article written by JeremyG about referrals . I was curious where Google would lead me if I typed in my own name. Here's a brief list of what I found: -teenager in Chicago who likes to snowboard and...

Well, since All-Star Survivor has started airing, I've managed to snag invites to people's places to catch the show. I've invited myself to my parents' place, and even got them to babysit tonight, so that I could go out for a pint (all right, more than a pint) with friends, later. I am looking forward to the discussion that is sure to arise... and the placing of bets about who will place top 4, and who will win. Me? I'm hoping that Colby wins... there's not much hope for Ethan, and I am sur...

The month of February always gets me in an evil mood. Perhaps it is because it was during the Valentine's holidays many years ago, that I felt I was deeply in love. We met at the beginning of the year, but it was during those first weeks in February that things changed for me. I realized that I could protest as much as I wanted, but declaring that I didn't want to be in love with anyone didn't mean anything. You can fight against the feeling as much as you want, but sometimes you just give in or...

Why is it, that every single time I want to find the remote control to either the TV, VCR, DVD, or CD Player, it's never there to be found? I spend more time looking for the damned things than doing what I want to do; relaxing while being amused. I am not amused. Yes, I know there are remotes that will do the whole job for you in one easy controller. I actually feel fairly confident at setting up electronic equipment, but do you think that I can figure out how to program one of these th...

There is nothing more fun, in my child's eyes, than to go to a dinner and social, and then dance to the Big Drum. We went to an Elder's Gathering this weekend and it was great. We had a good time dancing, and there were 4 drums there, so there was a lot of time to move and meet people that I haven't seen in a long time. Winter's a slow time for pow-wows; it's the summertime when it all starts kicking in. This weekend's social was great though, and well attended. The best thing about it was wa...

I grew up listening to the 'greats' of the 70's. Yeah, for some reason my parents thought that the great music of the decade then was Chuck Mangione, Barry Manilow, Linda Rondstat, and the Bee Gees. When their record collection got passed down, there was little to cheer about. My daughter, I think, is starting to feel the same way about me and my music. She hasn't said anything negative about the kind of music that I do listen to, but she is really starting to pick out music that she wa...

For some people its shoes at Payless, for others it's powertools at Home Depot. Big boxstore shopping, while prompting some angst about not supporting small store owners has its few charms. Yeah, price is one, but in my case, its the total numbers of my interest that boggle the mind. Homer Simpson may sigh, "Donuts..." but I exhale in satisfaction when I see the rows upon endless rows of stationary, pens, printing cartridges and post-it notes at the local Business Depot. I don't know what hap...

Previous to my current address, I lived a fairly transient existence. The life of a student is just like that. You live for eight months in a bland but cheap apartment, move home, work or travel for a couple of months, and then its back to the old grind again. I can't count the number of apartments that I've rented, nor the houses that I shared with friends. It was generally a good time, but with a child, I found the need for stability. We've lived in this particular apartment for almost 2 ye...

I find it interesting that there are some people who can go and say 'I respect the fact that you have your own beliefs but..." and then go on to say that their belief system is beyond and above any one else's. I think that it is this very way of thinking that continues on the sad state of spiritual freedom today.I, too, believe that every person has their right to have faith in something that is different than my own way. Where I differ from some, is that I will not go on and start ticking off r...

Somewhere, out there, there could be another person masquerading as me. I seem to have lost my wallet. Now, hopefully, it's just in one of my daughter's many purses and she felt the need to acquire real cards for the real world. But, if it's really gone, there's something kind of 'freeing' about it. Yeah, it will be a pain to replace my driver's license, health cards, etc., but luckily, all my financial stuff I carry separately and is accounted for. The majority of the cards is just those...

We're not identical. We are as different as night and day, but we're close. I see her everyday, and probably spend at least 2 hours a day with her (and her little girl). We share a car (but live in separate areas in the same town) and I spend a lot of time driving her child back and forth to daycare every day. We share a lot of the same friends, and spend a lot of time at my parents' place with both our kids. So, of course, we drive each other crazy at times. I've always wondered if there ...

In my experience, feeding my daughter has been the one of the most frustrating experiences as a parent. (Although, I am extremely thankful that the whole diapering stage is over!) There are just so many things that she won't eat, and, for the most part, is because of the idea of it. I blame my current problems on commercials and other kids at her school. She doesn't get much of a chance to watch television, but when she does, she is glued to the screen. Commercials seem to hold a lot of he...

You either loved Moulin Rouge, or hated it. There doesn't seem to be a middle ground where this movie is concerned. First of all, it's a musical and everyone knows that musicals suck, especially anything made after the golden age of MGM. That's not entirely true. Not where Moulin Rouge is concerned. I think that you have to be in the mood for certain movies, and for me, this was certainly the case here. I tried watching Moulin Rouge a number of times before it finally clicked. I'm gla...

First off, I'm not about to start that endless debate about smokers vs. non-smokers and the right to do it. Yes, it's an awful habit, there are harmful effects to smoker and non-smoker alike, and I know it is a waste of time, money, and energy. It's not cool. It's downright stupid. Having covered those bases, I'd like to have my say by making a few points (and it ain't nice, considering that this is pointed at my fellow smokers): I hate people who bum cigarettes. I don't mind giving them ...