Why Drive?

We were invited to dinner by one of Jay's ex-coworkers. This meant we needed to travel to Richmond, BC.



Rather than driving, we took transit. It's no wonder why my vehicle has such little mileage! As I've mentioned before, when it's easier and cheaper to go by transit, people will. In this case it was probably about 15 minutes longer than the half hour it would've taken to drive. Yet, that time was much more relaxed than trying to battle traffic in the night.

We contemplated going completely by SkyTrain, but that would have meant going all the way downtown and then out on the Canada Line. Rather, we took the #100 from 22nd Station to Marine Drive, then got on the Canada Line. The folks were near enough to Brighouse Station to walk. That airport line is a vestige of having hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics.

We didn't get home until after 10:00 but it was effortless. Oh, and I ate too much. Two potato dosas and one regular was more than I should have eaten.

Where's the Feeling of Excitement?

Last year at this time, we were all stoked about the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics. That felt good. Now life seems much less dramatic. The outside torches are a permanent structure down at the waterfront near the Vancouver Convention Centre.



The picture above was taken last February when we hosted the Olympics. The one below was taken when Lynne and Joel Thomas were up for a visit in mid-November.

Sick of Playing Host

The title wasn't some sneaky reference to the Olympic games, although having them over tomorrow will mean I can get back into the classroom next week. Instead, I was writing in reference to this blog again. When I first heard that blogger.com was going to drop FTP publishing, I was furious. After all, I wanted to have all my materials hosted on my own domain. I wanted all the necessary files in one subfolder which, even if offline, would create a unified document.

The decision to allow blogspot to host my eJournal and images was difficult. Giving up control meant trusting others. I suppose all things end as dust but I did't want the sudden misfortunes of an Internet company to prematurely lead to my data's demise. I guess I'll have to put my faith in the belief that these players are too big to fail, to pull a quote from recent financial-sector turmoil.

I've gotten over my reservations only because working with Blogger on Blogspot is so quick and easy. Now that I've given up the burden of hosting everything on my domain, mashing up with data offside seems entirely reasonable. For a few weeks now I've been embedding all photos rather than hosting them on my domain.

In sheer celebration, I'll repost a photo first seen here on September 5 2003. That was my initial week of publishing. This time around I'll not need to cut it to 500 pixels in width and upload to www.dennissylvesterhurd.com. Rather, I'll simply embed. Thank you, Flickr. Please let it remain a viable company, Yahoo.

Painting on a Wider Canvas

As I was looking over the new design template of my eJournal and images, I wondered if it'd now afford me additional space for the inclusion of photos. I used to shy away from adding large images which could be too wide. I worried about how they would appear on some visitors' screens. I have discovered, thanks to the site stats, that now fewer than 3.5% of my visitors still run a screen resolution of 800x600. Therefore, I think I'll make a test.

If you're among the readers at my regular site, could you drop me a line to let me know if the following picture fits your screen. I'm not asking about the Facebook version. Do make sure you visit my actual site, by clicking this link. Just leave comments under the entry.

I just got back from a walk. I walked down Carnarvon Street in downtown New Westminster and then walked up the bridge which crosses Columbia Street and the train tracks. I took this picture from the east side of the overpass looking back up Columbia Street. The weather continues to be very nice. I'm happy we've had such a run of clear days while hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Very Little Elbow Room

Vancouver is a compact city and the envy of North American urban planners. The city, perhaps because of connections with Asia, has been comfortable growing skyward. Geography acts as a superb restriction to sprawl as well.

Last night we went down and saw the Olympic flame and did a lot walking. This morning, we wanted to return to downtown Vancouver as there are so many visitors in town. Lots of pavilions are scattered around. When we use the SkyTrain, it takes less than a half hour from our door to the middle of Granville Street.



I cannot believe the number of people on the streets. Last night it was noticeable, but today the sun was out, and there were thousands! Tens of thousands? Maybe more. There were more people than I've ever seen in the city here. The crowds seem larger than those on the streets in New York City. Most people seem well mannered and happy though.

The lines were much too long for us to get into either Live City location. We did go into the Vancouver Art Gallery. Admission was free and the BC Pavilion was on the fourth floor. It's nice seeing so much activity here. It will be nice to get back the city in March too.

Olympic Opening Ceremonies

Just like much of the world, I'll be watching most of the 2010 Winter Olympics on television. I don't have tickets to any of the events. Still I'd have to say hosting them is worth all the inconvenience, effort, and money. After all, not all places are in a position to be able to invite the world in for a little visit.



View my 3-minute video marking the occasion on YouTube.

I'm Affected by the Weather

It's an absolutely beautiful day in this part of British Columbia. It's so warm and sunny, one might swear one were in southern Nevada. Yet the trees and snow-capped mountains prove we're not.

I get the feeling that the place is filling up with pre-game visitors for the Winter Olympics. The Opening Ceremonies take place on Friday, the 12th. It's great that all these people, new to the area, can run around in short-sleeved shirts. Still they'll go up in the mountains later this month for all the events which take place on snow. People really do go golfing in the morning and skiing in the afternoon in Metro-Vancouver.


The photo here was actually not taken today. It is one of the first photos from my original digital camera. In March 2002, I took this picture from the mountain near Simon Fraser University looking out at the Burrard Inlet.

Across the River from YVR

We just had a nice afternoon visiting friends in Richmond, BC. That city will soon be on international TV due to the newly built Richmond Oval. It will host speed skating for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Our friends live close enough so that we went for a walk after great appetizers and a delicious lunch to see it.


The visit was overdue. Getting the group together is not as easy as it should be with conflicting work schedules and vacations. In fact, we passed off the special rubber ducky to Richmond last July. Now, that it's left their home it'll head to the West End. When we all get a chance for another lunch or dinner, we'll let it return with us. The duck is our way of remembering whose turn it is to play host. In August of 2005, I included the ducky group in an entry.

Where are the Winter Olympics?

I was unsure what I'd add for an entry today. It was eventful as Jay was off for the whole day because of a morning dental appointment. Later, we ate lunch at the Uncle Willy's buffet at Metrotown. Other highlights included an afternoon nap. I am so damned lucky!

When watching the CTV evening news, I saw an interview with the creators of this YouTube video. I thought it was interesting enough to add to my eJournal and images.


To see this on YouTube, click here.

We're Not a Land of Igloos

Today's weather was marvelous. It was about 50F and sunny. It's getting a little scary that the Olympics are coming but the local ski hills haven't got their usual amount of snow. By the way, what we call a hill here would be referred to as a mountain in most places. As this is an El Niño year, it is to be expected.

I still have friends who are unaware of the typical winter weather in Metro-Vancouver. This part of Canada isn't completely dotted with igloos in the winter. In fact, it's rare to have more than a few days a year with snow on the ground here. Our climate, of course, is like that of Seattle, WA and Portland, OR. That means storms form in the middle of the Pacific. Then, each so-called Hawaiian Express blows directly into this area. It makes for a season of dark clouds and fairly warm rain.

Elevation is the key reason for having measurable snowfall here. Many of the upcoming indoor events will take place around town. For example, near the airport in Richmond, a mega-rink has been built. The official Opening Ceremonies will take place downtown in BC Place's domed stadium. These locations aren't much above sea level. Many venues will be at Whistler/Blackcomb resort though. The highest lift elevation there is nearly 7,500 feet. Those venues are about two hours away, up a newly renovated but still tricky highway. Lastly, some of the events take place on Grouse and Mt. Seymour too. They're what I called the local hills and have elevations between 4000 and 5000 feet. They are close to downtown and are a little short on expected snowfall. Some snow can be made and a lot was stockpiled for use during the Olympics period, so everything will probably be all right.

One Month Until Our Olympics!

For some reason OMNIBC has never been available to us via the Bell ExpressVu satellite receiver. OMNIBC broadcasts from Vancouver. The OTA antenna picks up the station with a signal strenth approaching 90% here in downtown New Westminster. The station shows mostly classic TV but its strength is in the multicultural programming. For example, they run news in Korean and Persian for their respective communities. The station also produces a lot of local news in Mandarin. Another huge language group here speaks the local language from the Punjab in India. Yet, here's a recent Cantonese clip on the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics which are now less than a month away.

[Video removed from server.]

Counter Point

I'm at the table with empty drinking glasses, paper towel rolls, and other assorted things from the kitchen surrounding me. Oh, and the new laptop, I should add. I just completed my new course outline for class which begins tomorrow. This contract will take me through the end of April. I requested a less intense schedule than I've been recently doing. Rather than 16 contact hours per week, I'm dropping down to just nine. Moreover, the whole BC Institute of Technology will be closed for most of the 2010 Winter Olympics. There has been a major push to make way for the crowds of visitors expected to arrive next month. So, it took a lot of re-jigging to make my usual schedule fit these new timings.

The paperwork has given me something to do while a guy is here putting in some new counter top. We are just replacing the 25-year-old, white laminate. We are simply updating to some differently coloured choices. This special order laminate will be an improvement and was far less than the granite would have been. Have got champagne taste but a beer budget, I guess.

I simply want to get everything back into a semblance of order. We still have some furniture to find. After the carpet replacement last month, we started living half out of boxes. Still are.

I'm Dreaming of a White ... Olympics!

This photo was taken from my balcony in New Westminster, BC. The view is east over the north end of the Patullo Bridge.

The fireplace has been running on temperature 3 of 4 for the past ten days. It generally doesn't get too cold down here near sea level. I do have to admit I rather enjoy just sitting here close by with my bare feet on the new carpeting. Over the next few days, there's a promise of flurries and perhaps an inch or so of snow. The white stuff sticking around on the ground is a rarity here near sea level. Still, it's nice when it happens as long as one doesn't have to get out and about. The surrounding cities boast very little equipment to clean up the mess when it does stay. Atlhough it's a bit grey, the surrounding mountains are wearing winter garb. Let's hope it remains that way through February when the world comes for a visit at the 2010 Winter Olympics. If you can't make it out here, perhaps I will wave to you on TV. Funny thing is, I don't have tickets to any event ...

Getting On Track

Right off the bat this morning, I put a link on my Facebook wall about the fact Amtrak is finally putting another train on the Eugene, Oregon to Vancouver, British Columbia route. Amtrak's Cascades route could connect important cities and boost tourism and trade. It will be great to grab the train for a trip to Portland on a long weekend. The current schedule is so inconvenient that if I wanted to travel tomorrow, there are three times that a Amtrak bus runs down to Seattle to meet up with a train from there. That's pretty stupid, as I may as well take Greyhound all the way, or better yet simply drive.

At least starting August 19th, there will be a 6:40 train departure from up here. That makes it feasible to get into Seattle at about 11:00. Mind you, I could blast down I-5 and make it in under three hours depending on the border lineup. Still, there will be returning trains every morning and evening. At least the idea of taking the train may not have to be dismissed outright. The service is only guaranteed to run until the end of the 2010 Winter Olympics here. I hope it proves popular enough to continue.

It's a shame the US Congress didn't shovel some of those US $3 billion in the 'Cash for Clunkers' program into high-speed rail infrastructure.

Talk about cutting one's nose to spite one's face.


September 14, 2005 - "Today we raced across Belguim
to catch a connection in Cologne for an even faster
ICE train to Frankfurt."

Just Living the Easy Life

It's the first day in ages when I didn't have to teach and couldn't you just guess, the weather has turned all cold and cloudy. I'm also having trouble getting the BCIT reporting system to create several grade-book reports which I need to submit. I refuse to let little things 'get to me', however.

After all, I won't have to go to work again until November! Even the little things are okay. For example, my dental appointment this morning seemed easy and provided no unexpected surprises. I don't have to go back for my next cleaning until just about the time Vancouver is hosting the Winter Olympics. Also, I discovered it is quite easy to ride my e-bike over to the Queensborough Landing where the Walmart and BestBuy are. The bridge has special bike lanes.


This picture is nearly a year old and shows cut logs and the
Queensborough Bridge crossing the Fraser River.

An Inukshuk

The Vancouver Winter Olympics kick off in just 260 days. Of course we've been following the countdown since we were first awarded the chance to host the games. The choice of a logo was inspired if a bit confusing for most of the world. You might wonder about the multi-coloured graphic over the Olympic rings. It is supposed to represent an inukshuk.

An inukshuk is a man-made stone landmark. They were used by Inuit and other nations of the far north from Greenland to Alaska. As the area is arctic tundra, there are very few natural landmarks in their homeland. These forms helped to identify particular places for navigation or hunting purposes. Nowadays, they serve a more cultural role.

The exact form chosen for the Olympics logo is more accurately defined as an inunnguaq. That means while an inukshuk can have various forms, the later often represents the human form. It does pay tribute to the inukshuk found at English Bay in Vancouver. That was created by artisan Alvin Kanak of Rankin Inlet as a gift for Expo '86 held here. It welcomes visitors to the city. For those who have never been here, Vancouver boasts some fantastic waterfront property and a public beach smack dab on the edge of the downtown.

Gear Up Production, Acer!

I was rather exited about coming through the border and being able to declare goods purchased in the US. Shopping isn't really a hobby. I think that people who think of it as recreation should really stop to reconsider their lives. However, there are, undoubtedly, better deals on lots of goods in the States. I usually combine larger purchases with a vacation so as not to incur the collection of duties. I think the duty-free allowance is $750 if out of Canada for a week.

Anyhow, I was prepared to actually admit to the border office that I'd bought a mini-notebook. I talked about it here the day before yesterday. I was curious as to what paperwork is required. Unfortunately, Best Buy in Bellingham, WA did not have a single Acer Aspire One in stock. A pimply kid said they had sold out a few hours after arrival. The US website shows they do not have any to ship to online buyers but it surely appears as if they had 'em at the store. It was just poor website implementation, I guess. So, I didn't get to declare any purchases.

However, Jay took a paid sick day. As it is his birthday, he got a free lunch at the Country Buffet at the Mall.

What a mess the Peach Arch border crossing is. We had to wait 45 minutes to go south. It was 11:15 on a weekday morning but construction has forced the opening of only three lanes. I guess things will be finished for the 2010 Olympics. With such a wait, maybe we'll wait until then to drop down to Bellingham for our next brief, pop-across-the-border trip.

Tourch Songs

I'm too tried to make an entry now. We just spent the rainy afternoon watching the recorded closing ceremony of the Olympics. I'm not sure when the Olympic venues became a mixture of Broadway, Cirque de Soliel, and a US Fourth of July celebration on steroids? Even if I couldn't get all emotionally involved, they surely did look good in high definition.

Now all eyes turn to London for 2012. At least they speak more English there. Why am I forgetting all about our city's hosting that takes place in a mere 537 days? Let's be honest, the Winter Olympics aren't nearly as important and will not be half as grand!

Only at Higher Elevations

Because of Flickr, I've been in an email conversation with a guy named Sampath in Sri Lanka. He initially wrote to ask that I include one of my photos in a Flickr group he created. He wants to highlight Sinhala script. I thought perhaps I had other photos with with text from signs and buildings to include. It was easy to add some of them to that group.

In our email conversations, he mentioned that probably Canada was very cold. He's never actually seen snow. It is often necessary to explain that around the city of Vancouver we seldom see snow that stays on the ground. In the winter though, it's only a hop, skip, and a jump to the mountains. Yes, Vancouver is hosting the Winter Olympics in 2010 but many venues are actually going to take place at the Whistler/Blackcomb mountains.

Today, I wondered if I could find a picture of snow on the local ski hills. Although we arrived to live in 1996, I lack many photos until I went to digital photography in 2002. I did find this old one. There is no date but I strongly believe it was taken in February 2000. I think this was taken with friends on a day we had a winter picnic at Mt. Seymour.

Staying on Track

This week, I noted that Las Vegas has opened a monorail. It runs from the Sahara to the MGM Grande. That's seems like a good idea although I thought part of the Vegas experience meant getting sore feet walking up and down the Strip.

Apparently, Bombardier Transportation (the Canadian Ski-Doo people) built it. They are also responsible for producing our local SkyTrain which I frequently mention here. Finally, after a few false starts, they will also be building an Vancouver airport-to-downtown line that will be completed before the 2010 Winter Olympics.


The land, to the west of the New Westminster Station, was
recently okayed for development. Eventually, a few twenty-five
to thirty storey residential towers will sprout from the
grassy area.