Hey!
The rumors are true...
I am accepted to go to Japan to teach for NOVA in September!
YES!
Finally i can say to all my naysayers..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!! To all the people who ever said that i will never make anything of myself, that i went to Acadia/ Mount A and then Acadia again that it was a good seven years of waste between 1997-98 and 2004-05..it is the biggest ever FU! You can all sit and spin and do whatever losers do while i go experience a new culture and further myself. Like some of the naysayers i give a good rats ass about anyways. It is like my dear old man always says, stick you hand in a nice pail of cold ice water, what do you have when it comes out? NOTHING! Anyways slingers, the contract is coming in the mail. What is sad is that i probably will have to sell my precious Tracker...sigh... oh well once needs money for a plane ticket (7 hrs to BC and then 13 to Japan!! Yikes!) and spending money for my first month there. I was told it was all taken care of the other day. What about back here in good ol Middleton? Who is gonna do the lawn? Put out the trash? So much to think about! Actually the two last pieces of the puzzle went really smooth.. i had a pal of mine, my old buddy Shelly who i have worked with for the past nine years do me up a real kick ass letter of recommendation that went over really well and NOVA wanted a complete educational history of one Robert Reid HawleyI figured that out that in some form or another that i have spent some 20 years in an educational classroom...what a geek!
Actually there was a back-up plan incase the Japan thingy did not work out... I was thinking about attending the Centre For Arts and Technology which has three locations in Halifax, Fredericton and Kelowna. I believe the website address is digitalartsschool.com
The part i was interested in was promotions management and sports management. I am the type who would put his all into running a team and seeing how well i could promote it to a commuity. I would love to have a job like that for the Axemen or something, i wouldn't stop until i had line-ups going down the street to see my product! Oh well maybe if Japan is not my bag after a year or two we shall see then! How's about those Oilers? Well they blew a chance to wrap up the old series last night against the Ducks, who i hear are getting new uniforms next year. C'mon boys, wrap this thing up on Saturday. I read the ol Chronicle the other day and there was yet another commentary on the costs of rising student loans for students, esp us stuck in the ol blue collar rut. " They've (The ever loving government) have made Nova Scotia the least affordable jurisdiction in North America in which to pursue a post-seconadary education. This dubious (embarassing is more like it dude) distinction is something that no Nova Scotian should take pride in. Keep laying it on boys, but like i said, they won't be happy and do anything about it until they see empty classrooms and dorms.
Picked up an awesome book the other day called "Test Your Cultural Literacy" Maybe to some it is a crayon class book, but to others that love conversation as in in-depth conversation, this book should be a helper. Actually, cultrual literacy is defined as, "The network of information that all competent readers possess." It is a world view and there are those like schools, politicians and mass media who use a particular language and have particular expectations about those that they address. It is the notion of having a common background knowledge.
Some of the tests are really good..example:
1) American military involvement in Vietnam followed:
a. The defeat of the French and partition of the country in 1954.
b. The tet Offensive in 1968.
c. The death of Ho Chi Minh in 1969.
d. The invasion of Cambodia by Vietnamese forces in 1978.
Answer? a: After French colonial forces in Indochina were defeated by Nationalists and Communists. France withdrew and the country was divided into South Vietnam and Communist-led North Vietnam. President Eisenhower sent American advisers to train the South Vietnamese army, thus initiating twenty years of American involvement in the region.
2) The Bay of Pigs episode took place when:
a. Cuban exiles from Florida landed in Cuba in an attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro.
b. American troop invaded Mexico in pursuit of Pancho Villa.
c. UN forces undertook an amphibious landing behind enemy lines in Korea.
d. US marines were sent by President Lyndon Johnson to the Dominican Republic.
Answer? a: In 1961, American President John F Kennedy approved a plan prepared under the Eisenhower administration to land American-trained Cuban exiles in Cuba in an attempt to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro. The landing at the Bay of Pigs, was a failure and many of the the invaders were either killed or were captured. Many Cuban exiles blame their loss on a lack of American military air support.
Good book eh?
Oh yeah i almost forgot! Here are the updated tour dates for Grand Prix Wrestling this summer!
May 26 Souris, PEI
May 27 O'Leary, PEI
May 28 Minto, NB
May 29 Cocagne, NB
May 30 Baie Ste Anne, NB
May 31 Sackville, NS
June 1 Sherbrooke, NS
June 2 Bridgewater, NS
June 3 Berwick, NS
June 4 Truro, NS
June 5 Georgetown, PEI
June 6 Borden, PEI
June 7 Sunny Corner, NB
June 8 Neguac, NB
June 10 Petit Rocher, NB
June 11 New Carlyle, PQ
June 12 Cocagne, NB
June 15 Florenceville, NB
June 16 St. George, NB
June 17 Lameck, NB
Shows are also planned for Sussex and Saint John, NB, and Antigonish and North Sydney, NS.
Anyhow folks i have to go, i gots to pick up my paycheck, pay my bill for the tracker and do other stuff...have a good one!
Friday, May 26, 2006
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
The End of an Era: Crowell Tower 1970-2005
Acadia University announced last week in a news release the closing of the Crowell Tower. Crowell Tower will not be open in September of 2006 because few students have shown an interest in living in the 35 year old building. The closure will also save the university about $200,ooo. Well i guess it really is the end of an era, the university built new residences, totally rebuilt old ones in record time and left the poor ol Tower to rot up on the hill. I imagine in a year or so the ol Tower will be imploded and torn down to make way for new residences. If the student population is there to house them! The cost of good ol Acadia U is rising again folks and students are leaving the province in droves to seek their education elsewhere, believe me when i tell you that an exodus of students to other provinces is coming soon, that or parents are just not going to send their kids to university anymore, instead looking to community college or just going straight to work somewhere like Michelin or to Alberta on the oil rigs. Breaking one's back doing labor will look more attractive than having to pay back thousands to the government and the banks. Our universities are not run by educators anymore, they are run by profiteers. It is funny you know, back in 2000-01 and 2001-02 the ol Tower had to give up their tv lounges to students because they had no where else to put them. The residences had a waiting list some 300 kids long of students who wanted to live in Tower or elsewhere. When Tower does go down i hope that the Crowell name will be saved aka Crowell House or something like that, there is enough real estate there for a good three or so residences and a decent paved parking lot. Me? I will have my memories of Tower from September of 1998 to April of 2003 and of visiting during my last year at Acadia in 2004-05. Was it the same? No, my friends are gone on with their lives, but how many people i met and knew and still talk to on a regular basis. My friends it was the best five years of my life! Moolah not withstanding (Hey we all do dumb things right?) Anyways Tower, in the words of AC/DC..For Those About to Rock...We Salute You! May other students live in the new residences when you are gone my love and have many keggers and drink Colt 45's! Anyways that is all Old Man Robert Reid Hawley esquire has to say on the subject. Long Live The Tower!
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Guns N Roses Tour 2006!
For all the people who have asked me, these are the EUROPEAN tour dates for GNR for this summer!
Guns N Roses have not been to Hfx since 1988, i think it is time for AXL N Roses to make a return..if Axl would remember to come to the concert!
25-MAY-2006: Auditorio Parque Juan Carlos: Madrid, Spain
27-MAY-2006: Bela Vista ParkRock in Rio Lisbon: Lisbon, Portugal
31-MAY-2006: Papp László Budapest Sportaréna: Budapest, Hungary
04-JUN-2006: Gods Of Metal festival: Milan, Italy
07-JUN-2006: Hammersmith Apollo: London, England
09-JUN-2006: RDS arena: Dublin, Ireland
11-JUN-2006: Download FestivalDonnington park: Donnington, England
13-JUN-2006: Sazka Arena: Prague, Czech Republic
15-JUN-2006: Legia Stadium: Warsaw, Poland
17-JUN-2006: Novarock: Nickelsdorf, Austria
20-JUN-2006: Palais omnisports de Paris-Bercy (arena): Paris, France
21-JUN-2006: Hallenstadion: Zurich, Switzerland
24-JUN-2006: Graspop Metal Meeting: Dessel, Belgium
26-JUN-2006: Globen: Stockholm, Sweden
28-JUN-2006: Spektrum: Oslo, Norway
29-JUN-2006: Roskilde Festival: Roskilde, Denmark
02-JUL-2006: Goffertpark: Nijmegen, Holland
05-JUL-2006: Hartwall Arena: Helsinki, Finland
06-JUL-2006: Hartwall Arena: Helsinki, Finland
08-JUL-2006: Spektrum: Oslo, Norway
10-JUL-2006: Frankenstadion (opening for The Rolling Stones): Nürnberg, Germany
12-JUL-2006: Zentralstadion (opening for The Rolling Stones): Nürnberg, Germany
14-JUL-2006: Bilbao Live Festiva - Kobetamendil: Bilbao, Spain
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Fall Behind
Hello slingers! What is a happening? Well i have communicating back and forth with the people from NOVA about my trip to Japan to possibly teach next year. Things are ummm ok, i have to re-write part of my resume as it pertains to education, seems they want every school i have ever attended included and a letter of recommendation. So my manager in Greenwood is doing up a letter of recommendation for me and i am in the midst of writing up a schools attended part of my new new new resume. I am tempted to call my old friend Craig up to ask him the names of some of the schools we attended in the Passage, father time sees to make the memory go weary.
Oh here are some facts about Japan i found off the ol net, dunno if they are true or not, so here goes!
1) A can of Coca-Cola costs more than one dollar US from a vending machine.
2) Japanese people, in general, can't drive very well.
3) Restaurants in Japan (including many fast-food places) give you moist towels or wipes before or with your meal.
4) At many businesses in Japan, they offer alcohol to the employees after six pm.
5) It is usually mandatory to give a landlord a gift of money of $1,000-$2000 when moving into his apartment building.
6) On Respect for the Aged Day, tobacco companies will hand out free cigarettes to the elderly outside of train stations and department stores.
7) The Japanese love corn, sesame seeds, and mayonnaise on their pizza.
8) There are no 24 hour ATMs in Japan (closed on holidays and many only open during normal bank hours).
9) Many Japanese teachers think that Japanese parents are lazy.
10) The green traffic light is called "blue".
11) Slurp your soup.
12) Newspaper editors make their headlines so as to not attract attention.
13) KFC is the place to be on Christmas Day.
14) Japan has about 1,500 earthquakes each year.
15) In the Japanese language, it is considered rude to say the word "no" directly.
16) It is nearly impossible to become a naturalized citizen of Japan.
17) You can smoke just about anywhere.
18) Japanese people take a hot bath every night, some do not have showers installed in their bathrooms.
19) There is no insulation in Japanese homes' walls.
20) Japan has roughly 200 volcanoes.
21) It is considered rude to show signs of affection toward a loved one in public.
22) When you go to a funeral or a wedding you must take a gift of money.
23) Three words: "heated toilet seats".
24) In Japan, flower arranging is an art.
25) The new generation of Japanese people are not as short as Westerners think.
26) You can buy batteries, beer, wine, condoms, cigarettes, comic books, hot dogs, light bulbs, and used women's underwear from vending machines.
27) Many Japanese people eat rice with or for their breakfast, lunch and dinner.
28) Never stick your chopsticks upright in your rice. This is an old Japanese custom and is what is done when food is offered to the dead. When it is not an offering it is considered to be a very ill omen.
29) In Japan you will find cars by the names of "It's", "Let's", "Sunny", "Perky", "Gloria", "Move", "Toppo", "Lepo" and "Dump".
30) McDonalds employees will run outside to give you your drive-thru order.
31) The Japanese visit shrines and give each other money for New Year's.
32) It is impolite to tear the wrapping paper off of a gift.
33) Japanese junior high school students do not need to pass any of their classes to graduate.
34) Education only through junior high school is compulsory.
35) Young women will hand you toilet paper outside of train stations.
36) There is almost no vandalism in Japan.
37) Gas station attendants will bow as the car pulls out of the station.
38) It is socially acceptable to pick your nose in public and urinate at the side of the road, but you cannot blow your nose in public.
39) Approximately 85% of Japanese people have never tasted turkey.
40) Japan is about the size of California and has half the population of the entire United States.
41) Snowmen in Japan are made of two large snowballs instead of three.
42) It will always take one to two hours for a pizza to be delivered.
43) There is at least one vending machine on every corner.
44) All you ever wanted to know about the world's largest phallus festival can be found here.
45) It is not uncommon to pay $2 for a single apple.
46) The sun is red in Japan and the country itself is referred to by Japanese people as "the land of the rising sun"
47) Japanese people drink a great deal of tea. Tea making has its own very elaborate ceremony.
48) It is said that Japan's famous "pachinko"; (pinball) game machines were invented after the War by someone looking for a use for all the ball-bearings no longer needed in war machinery.
49) Shoes are removed before entering homes and religious shrines.
50) Ninja was the name given to secret agents from the Shogun times.
ummm...ok
So what else is new? How's about the NHL playoffs? What the hell happened to the Ottawa Senators? This team is seemingly never going to be able to shake the choke artist label, not until they add some power forwards and some grit. I had a friend comparing them to the Edmonton Oilers of the early 1980s and i laughed right in his face! I told him that the old school Oilers led by Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier would have kicked Ottawa's ass in four games and tried to not get any on their shoes! So what is up with Guns and Roses? Why doesn't Axl just go solo? Well cause the name Guns and Roses is famous, sells tickets too..they sold out four shows in New York in something like a few hours or something like that. Oh well but it really isn't G&R with just AXl, kinda like the Beach Boys are not really the Beach Boys with just Mike Love and well Bruce Johnson i guess. Oh well..not much else really happening in the wonderful ol world of Old Man Robb, i am getting my muffler on the Tracker fixed tomorrow and then figuring out what i am doing on the weekend. Sounds boring eh? Maybe i should learn Japanese or something...i dunno..
Anyways gang that is all from here! Have a good one!
Pssssssssst- L7 & Joan Jett- Cherry Bomb!
Oh here are some facts about Japan i found off the ol net, dunno if they are true or not, so here goes!
1) A can of Coca-Cola costs more than one dollar US from a vending machine.
2) Japanese people, in general, can't drive very well.
3) Restaurants in Japan (including many fast-food places) give you moist towels or wipes before or with your meal.
4) At many businesses in Japan, they offer alcohol to the employees after six pm.
5) It is usually mandatory to give a landlord a gift of money of $1,000-$2000 when moving into his apartment building.
6) On Respect for the Aged Day, tobacco companies will hand out free cigarettes to the elderly outside of train stations and department stores.
7) The Japanese love corn, sesame seeds, and mayonnaise on their pizza.
8) There are no 24 hour ATMs in Japan (closed on holidays and many only open during normal bank hours).
9) Many Japanese teachers think that Japanese parents are lazy.
10) The green traffic light is called "blue".
11) Slurp your soup.
12) Newspaper editors make their headlines so as to not attract attention.
13) KFC is the place to be on Christmas Day.
14) Japan has about 1,500 earthquakes each year.
15) In the Japanese language, it is considered rude to say the word "no" directly.
16) It is nearly impossible to become a naturalized citizen of Japan.
17) You can smoke just about anywhere.
18) Japanese people take a hot bath every night, some do not have showers installed in their bathrooms.
19) There is no insulation in Japanese homes' walls.
20) Japan has roughly 200 volcanoes.
21) It is considered rude to show signs of affection toward a loved one in public.
22) When you go to a funeral or a wedding you must take a gift of money.
23) Three words: "heated toilet seats".
24) In Japan, flower arranging is an art.
25) The new generation of Japanese people are not as short as Westerners think.
26) You can buy batteries, beer, wine, condoms, cigarettes, comic books, hot dogs, light bulbs, and used women's underwear from vending machines.
27) Many Japanese people eat rice with or for their breakfast, lunch and dinner.
28) Never stick your chopsticks upright in your rice. This is an old Japanese custom and is what is done when food is offered to the dead. When it is not an offering it is considered to be a very ill omen.
29) In Japan you will find cars by the names of "It's", "Let's", "Sunny", "Perky", "Gloria", "Move", "Toppo", "Lepo" and "Dump".
30) McDonalds employees will run outside to give you your drive-thru order.
31) The Japanese visit shrines and give each other money for New Year's.
32) It is impolite to tear the wrapping paper off of a gift.
33) Japanese junior high school students do not need to pass any of their classes to graduate.
34) Education only through junior high school is compulsory.
35) Young women will hand you toilet paper outside of train stations.
36) There is almost no vandalism in Japan.
37) Gas station attendants will bow as the car pulls out of the station.
38) It is socially acceptable to pick your nose in public and urinate at the side of the road, but you cannot blow your nose in public.
39) Approximately 85% of Japanese people have never tasted turkey.
40) Japan is about the size of California and has half the population of the entire United States.
41) Snowmen in Japan are made of two large snowballs instead of three.
42) It will always take one to two hours for a pizza to be delivered.
43) There is at least one vending machine on every corner.
44) All you ever wanted to know about the world's largest phallus festival can be found here.
45) It is not uncommon to pay $2 for a single apple.
46) The sun is red in Japan and the country itself is referred to by Japanese people as "the land of the rising sun"
47) Japanese people drink a great deal of tea. Tea making has its own very elaborate ceremony.
48) It is said that Japan's famous "pachinko"; (pinball) game machines were invented after the War by someone looking for a use for all the ball-bearings no longer needed in war machinery.
49) Shoes are removed before entering homes and religious shrines.
50) Ninja was the name given to secret agents from the Shogun times.
ummm...ok
So what else is new? How's about the NHL playoffs? What the hell happened to the Ottawa Senators? This team is seemingly never going to be able to shake the choke artist label, not until they add some power forwards and some grit. I had a friend comparing them to the Edmonton Oilers of the early 1980s and i laughed right in his face! I told him that the old school Oilers led by Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier would have kicked Ottawa's ass in four games and tried to not get any on their shoes! So what is up with Guns and Roses? Why doesn't Axl just go solo? Well cause the name Guns and Roses is famous, sells tickets too..they sold out four shows in New York in something like a few hours or something like that. Oh well but it really isn't G&R with just AXl, kinda like the Beach Boys are not really the Beach Boys with just Mike Love and well Bruce Johnson i guess. Oh well..not much else really happening in the wonderful ol world of Old Man Robb, i am getting my muffler on the Tracker fixed tomorrow and then figuring out what i am doing on the weekend. Sounds boring eh? Maybe i should learn Japanese or something...i dunno..
Anyways gang that is all from here! Have a good one!
Pssssssssst- L7 & Joan Jett- Cherry Bomb!
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Never Mind The Napalm......
Hey there bloggeroonies!!! Long time eh? Well i went to the Alice Cooper w/special guests Helix show last Wednesday and it was blast! I am wearing me Helix shirt right now! I sat front row and actually Brian Vollmer of Helix put his mic in my face during Rock You!! Cooper was awesome, a little older and it was good to hear a bunch of the old stuff. About 7,000 were there so all in all a damn good show! So onto yesterday, i went to the Westin in Halifax for the Teach in Japan seminar. It was ok, we had a presentation that went on for about 3 hrs, it is not your regular school, you have students that range from 8 yrs of age to 80! We played some games too, one in particular where you saw a slide of something distinct about Japan like Sushi, Sumo Wrestling and or in my case, a Bridge (I think i saw the same bridge in the legendary Z-movie The Bad News Bears Go To Japan!) and i had a one on one interview that i think went ok. A couple of drawbacks, you have to pay for your plane ticket over and you need a few dollars for your first month there...so i am looking into some other options right now. Have i given up? Not at all, i am just weighing the options. So my Habs are gone out of the playoffs and who would have thought that the ol Senators whould be down 3-0 to The Sabres?!?!?! I stayed up late last night watching the Oilers beat the Sharks in triple overtime. Man was Halifax ever something to try and get out of yesterday, i swear everyone drove like the Dukes of Hazzard or something. I took the old way home through Mount Uniake to Windsor. I just had to get off that damned 101, some ass cut me off, so i was no longer in the mood for the 101. Well i have to work all weekend at the store formerly known as Andrew's, tonight, Friday night (Tomorrow is payday..yay!!!) Saturday and Sunday (Mother's Day) during the day. I am thinking of going to go see X-Men 3, i think it is coming out this weekend. Saw MI3 the other night in New Minas at the Empire, i think some people are getting sick of Tom Cruse's antics, that may be the reason for the sad box office of his latest flick, but he does get to go home to Katie Homes at night ..mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... oh well i am off to the shower and dressing for work, have a good one!
PS- A Summertime classic! The Go-Go's: Vacation!
PS- A Summertime classic! The Go-Go's: Vacation!
Monday, May 01, 2006
Rip Em!
Hello there bloggeronies! How are things! It is May now and i am prepping for the Alice Cooper concert on Wednesday night, gonna be over at the Prince George Hotel for a bit and at the concert that night! Well my Habs lost last night, so Tuesday is do or die for the Habs, they are not making it a cakewalk for Carolina with the last two games being decided by only one goal. Ol Alex J was at it again in the ol paper this morning, blasting the Extreme Cage Combat card at the fabulous Forum, they drew over 6,000 fans to the Forum, the biggest crowd there since Hulk Hogan and WWF made their first appearance here back in the summer of 1987 (I was there!!!) There are plans to have more Extreme Cage cards in Halifax and maybe in Moncton as well. I found it hysterical this weekend that there was a flea market across the road from where i work and while it was jammed packed, at 1 in the afternoon they packed up the tables and then took the leftover stuff and put it on the side of the road!!! I always notice that May clean-up is so sad and funny at the same time, becuase someone is gonna cause a major car accident around here with thier slamming on the breaks to get a look at the latest bargains that people have chucked away...jeeesh!!! I noticed that on May 10th there are going to be interviews in Halifax for teaching jobs in Japan, i am interested and i think i am going to apply via their website at http://www.teachinjapan.com/
All you have to possess is any major degree. I guess a couple of the universities in Alberta and other places do not want any part of the annual McLeans university issue this year, and you know what slingers? Old Man Robb cannot blame theme! I mean what hurts people applying to your university or college more than some bunch of people at a magazine basically telling you that your university that you want to attend basically sucks? Or that some university is really good, when in reality it is not all that they hype says that it is. I remember a girl wanted to interview me about my experience at two different universities and her dumb as S*** editor basically canned the interview...what was he afraid of? He said he did not want to put down other universities, but it was a comparison piece, what he did not want to do was give any face time to the silent majority, student councils do that as well, they just want the publicity/ glory for themselves and their buddies, that happens in lots of places, sometimes with success and more times than not, with dismisal failure...like Acadia's radio station aka Radio Acadia...isn't it sad that Acadia can lead this and that in many of McLean's so called polls and yet cannot have a radio station like its collegues at other places..weird, but they will never have a station until they realize that it is not a glory story for some, it is a service that should benefit all of the campus and surrounding area.
Rant time eh? Old Man Robb is on a roll!
Anywho folks i am off, gotta walk the doggies and do some stuff..have a good one!
PSssssssssst- Chixdiggit: My Dad Vs PM
All you have to possess is any major degree. I guess a couple of the universities in Alberta and other places do not want any part of the annual McLeans university issue this year, and you know what slingers? Old Man Robb cannot blame theme! I mean what hurts people applying to your university or college more than some bunch of people at a magazine basically telling you that your university that you want to attend basically sucks? Or that some university is really good, when in reality it is not all that they hype says that it is. I remember a girl wanted to interview me about my experience at two different universities and her dumb as S*** editor basically canned the interview...what was he afraid of? He said he did not want to put down other universities, but it was a comparison piece, what he did not want to do was give any face time to the silent majority, student councils do that as well, they just want the publicity/ glory for themselves and their buddies, that happens in lots of places, sometimes with success and more times than not, with dismisal failure...like Acadia's radio station aka Radio Acadia...isn't it sad that Acadia can lead this and that in many of McLean's so called polls and yet cannot have a radio station like its collegues at other places..weird, but they will never have a station until they realize that it is not a glory story for some, it is a service that should benefit all of the campus and surrounding area.
Rant time eh? Old Man Robb is on a roll!
Anywho folks i am off, gotta walk the doggies and do some stuff..have a good one!
PSssssssssst- Chixdiggit: My Dad Vs PM