Twenty Five days left till it's Merry XXX-Mass time again...Twenty-Five Days...Twenty-Five Sexy Days...Sexy...
Oh Well...time to dig out that ol VINYL again...
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Cheap Trick- Takin Me Back
One of the greatest Cheap Trick songs NEVER to be in rotation on the radio..and was NEVER even played live until 1998 if you can believe that one true believers...CT hasn't been to Halifax since 1988...i think that situation needs to be rectified pronto...also me getting CT's Heaven Tonight on CD needed to be rectified as well...bought the vinyl at the Woodlawn Mall Flea Market back in the mid 80s...good times...
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
It's so easy to tell
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
A long, long, long time ago
A long, long, long, time ago
You, you let me down-you didn't think of me
I-i won't forget what you did to me-no
You were nice not to say it
Now my heart it's breakin'
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
A long, long, long time ago
A long, long, long, time ago
You, you thought that you- could make a fool of me
Don't don't be so sure that the fool was me- no
I held up i could take it
Now my heart it's breakin'
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
A long, long, long time ago
A long, long, long, time ago
A long time ago-a long time ago
A long time ago- you were breakin'
My heart- i never found all the parts
A long time ago-a long time ago
A long time ago-oh-oh-oh
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
It's so easy to tell
You're takin' me back
It's written on my face
You're takin' me back
It's so easy to tell- 'cause you're
Takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
It's written on my face
You're takin' me back
I remember it well
You're takin' me back
A long,long,long time ago
A long,long,long time ago
A long,long,long time ago
A long,long,long time ago- o
You're takin' me back..
Sunday, November 28, 2010
New Beginnings...
Happy Sunday bloggeronies and assorted wormslime...what is a happening today? Well where does Old Man Robb start? Ever think of something like what is old is new again? Well it is true...tomorrow i take over on an interm basis the store formerly known as Andrew's....yes my manager is on maternity leave and i have been handed the reigns...for now...what a time of year to be given the reigns eh? Black Friday indeed.. well at least we don't trample one another like those from the States do in order to save $20..but it is black in a different sense in that i have not been in charge of Andrew's since Sept of 1998....12 yrs ago...i left to go to Acadia U on a full time basis...now it had come full circle..cue that song from Slap Shot...We gotta Get Right Back to Where We Started From... now the next few weeks will be HELL...but im ready and i can FINALLY get ahead on me Christmas shopping as well...
Where does this turn of events leave other events? Well as far as Education 4683: Introduction to Linguistics is conccerned i am over the hump as in i am into Chapter Six which deals with Syntax...i get done this and then there is only four more chapters to finish meaning that i can wrap Linguistics up by Jan..maybe early Feb...but i am thinking January, maybe take a week or two off from it and then start on Educ: Acquisition of Language.. maybe...let's finish Linguistics first ok? I went to a TESOL seminar the other Friday at Acadiau and it was very interesting, finally had a chance to meet my prof and share some of my experiences in Japan and S Korea with the rest of the few that did show up...well not too many showed up...but i wish i would have had me head on straight at the end of 2002-03, my graduating year from Acadia and i had gone to one of these seminars then and done the TESOL program then instead of now...but that was then..this is now and like Dad used to say, "Son it will all come out in the wash.."
However when i do complete (And i will complete it...) the Acquisition of Language i then in the Fall will have to complete a 20-hour practicum that includes supervised teaching practice and classroom observation, i will get to teach my own classes, but what makes me nervous as hell is that i will be teaching my own classes under the supervision of experienced instructors and OMG...imagine if you had told me this some 20 years ago when the old Robb (Then the Young Robb...or younger Robb) would have said go play in traffic that this would happen....that the possibility is there...no it is an improbability...that Robert Reid Hawley will be teaching his practicum on site at ACADIA UNIVERSITY....Robb teaching an Acadia classroom...a dream come true after all these years of being two steps from the move?!?!?! Yes...nervous? OMG....you don't even wanna know....
In news that makes me happy...the Axemen are on a two game winning streak and are now second in the AUS next to UNB...i could not afford to go to the two home games at Acadia Arena this weekend...instead it was old school..listen on the radio.. the Axemen have one more road game this week against SMU at the fabulous Halifax Forum and then they are off for Exams and Christmas break... of course with having more cashflow in the new year thanks to Andrew's, Old Man Robb will be able to partake in some more Axemen games, including their exhibition game coming up at the end of December against U of T and in the new year their home game that will be played at the new Appledome in Berwick...
And while i am at it about university sports i guess i must say congrats to Laval on winning the Vanier Cup 29-2 over Calgary yesterday...they only started their football program in like 1995-95...yet Laval keeps winning and winning Vanier Cups like no tomorrow...why? Well while most other CIS teams have a budget of 400,000 for their teams...Laval has a budget of $2 Million frickin dollars, five full time coaches and their spring training is in Florida...money can make a program..plus the players play junior college football in Quebec for a couple of years before playing for Laval...so the average age of their players is like 23 yrs of age...this is a dynasty folks...i heard someone make a comment that perhaps Laval is too strong and should make an application to play in the NCAA...just a thought...
Now that im done with the sports talk...onto a serious subject folks and it is one that Old Man Robb must simply address...the scary situation with S Korea and N Korea scares the beejesus out of me...i must admit it...Kim Jong Il is a scary mofo...he is perhaps on his last legs and i get scared that he wants to go out with a bang...yes i know he succeeded to his son..but like Castro he is still the man who pulls the strings on the puppets...now the US and S Korea are having joing exercises with the USS George Washington...im wondering if they should hold off...how long has this silly war been going on for? Some 60 yrs? What we don't need is an international incident...what is needed is for the States, S Korea, Japan, Russia and China to sit down and work something out...China is the key player here...they are N Korea's only and i mean ONLY friend..they feed N Korea...if they cut N Korea off they will starve and N Korea is already starving....China is the real player..they control what N Korea does...settle it diplomatically...not with bombs and all that because an ugly situation can only get uglier...
Keith's beer...love it...but OMG people went bonzo gonzo about alot of Keith's production moving to other breweries...Montreal and i believe London, Ontario...im sure it will taste the same folks...this right here is people's Nova Scotia pride showing..and i have it as well..when i first got home from Japan in the summer of 2007, the first thing i did at the Toronto airport was go and have a Keith's at the airport bar at oh 12 noon...in S Korea i missed having a Keith's as well...people in NS should realize that Keith's that is brewed on the East Coast will still be brewed in Atlantic Canada...its pride and identity folks and we don't wanna lose any of what we percieve as our identity...fears of Keiths losing its taste...not to mention the layoffs at Keiths brewery in Hfx...jobs are being lost all over NS...Larsens in Berwick the other week is a prime example...people with wives and children to feed and getting news like this before Christmas...if people do not have jobs...they cannot buy beer...i think Mr Keith would be rolling in his grave at the thought of his prized ale being brewed somewhere else...at the expense of people being laid off and losing that taste ...decisions ...profit and change screwing over tradition...
In other news...i really wanna try the new SCOTCHOS at Joe's Food Emporium in Wolfville...nachos and Joe's famous Scotchskins together...mmmmmmmmm whatta combo...perhaps while Christmas shopping this weekend eh? Its gets tough though going to Joe's...Axemen Subs... Donair Poutine...so much to choose from...plus every Monday night is now Spaghetti Night and its only like what? $2.88 a plate? Good stuff...
Perhaps something that tastetastic will make me start listening to cassettes again... cassettes someday will make a retro comeback like the 8-track and vinyl has..why? Cause what is old is cool again and its like i said in another post that an old friend told me...who wants to look at your collection of CD-R's?!?!?! Nothing as cool as looking through your friend's collection whether it be on vinyl or whatever...way more character than looking at a blank CD-R with the artists name scribbled on it with a sharpie that is for sure...
Well before i go because im working at Andrew's at 6 tonight i have some milestone's of sorts to get out of the way...this is post 475!!!!! Amazing eh? Another 25 or so posts and we will be at 500....and i have tied another Robbblog record as this is my 119th post for 2010 tying my record set back in i believe 2006 of having 119 posts...it comes...it goes folks...well i have some stuff to do...have a good one!
And yes folks...Old Man Robb's face was that shocked when got that phonecall Friday morning...should be an interesting first few weeks folks...
Where does this turn of events leave other events? Well as far as Education 4683: Introduction to Linguistics is conccerned i am over the hump as in i am into Chapter Six which deals with Syntax...i get done this and then there is only four more chapters to finish meaning that i can wrap Linguistics up by Jan..maybe early Feb...but i am thinking January, maybe take a week or two off from it and then start on Educ: Acquisition of Language.. maybe...let's finish Linguistics first ok? I went to a TESOL seminar the other Friday at Acadiau and it was very interesting, finally had a chance to meet my prof and share some of my experiences in Japan and S Korea with the rest of the few that did show up...well not too many showed up...but i wish i would have had me head on straight at the end of 2002-03, my graduating year from Acadia and i had gone to one of these seminars then and done the TESOL program then instead of now...but that was then..this is now and like Dad used to say, "Son it will all come out in the wash.."
However when i do complete (And i will complete it...) the Acquisition of Language i then in the Fall will have to complete a 20-hour practicum that includes supervised teaching practice and classroom observation, i will get to teach my own classes, but what makes me nervous as hell is that i will be teaching my own classes under the supervision of experienced instructors and OMG...imagine if you had told me this some 20 years ago when the old Robb (Then the Young Robb...or younger Robb) would have said go play in traffic that this would happen....that the possibility is there...no it is an improbability...that Robert Reid Hawley will be teaching his practicum on site at ACADIA UNIVERSITY....Robb teaching an Acadia classroom...a dream come true after all these years of being two steps from the move?!?!?! Yes...nervous? OMG....you don't even wanna know....
In news that makes me happy...the Axemen are on a two game winning streak and are now second in the AUS next to UNB...i could not afford to go to the two home games at Acadia Arena this weekend...instead it was old school..listen on the radio.. the Axemen have one more road game this week against SMU at the fabulous Halifax Forum and then they are off for Exams and Christmas break... of course with having more cashflow in the new year thanks to Andrew's, Old Man Robb will be able to partake in some more Axemen games, including their exhibition game coming up at the end of December against U of T and in the new year their home game that will be played at the new Appledome in Berwick...
And while i am at it about university sports i guess i must say congrats to Laval on winning the Vanier Cup 29-2 over Calgary yesterday...they only started their football program in like 1995-95...yet Laval keeps winning and winning Vanier Cups like no tomorrow...why? Well while most other CIS teams have a budget of 400,000 for their teams...Laval has a budget of $2 Million frickin dollars, five full time coaches and their spring training is in Florida...money can make a program..plus the players play junior college football in Quebec for a couple of years before playing for Laval...so the average age of their players is like 23 yrs of age...this is a dynasty folks...i heard someone make a comment that perhaps Laval is too strong and should make an application to play in the NCAA...just a thought...
Now that im done with the sports talk...onto a serious subject folks and it is one that Old Man Robb must simply address...the scary situation with S Korea and N Korea scares the beejesus out of me...i must admit it...Kim Jong Il is a scary mofo...he is perhaps on his last legs and i get scared that he wants to go out with a bang...yes i know he succeeded to his son..but like Castro he is still the man who pulls the strings on the puppets...now the US and S Korea are having joing exercises with the USS George Washington...im wondering if they should hold off...how long has this silly war been going on for? Some 60 yrs? What we don't need is an international incident...what is needed is for the States, S Korea, Japan, Russia and China to sit down and work something out...China is the key player here...they are N Korea's only and i mean ONLY friend..they feed N Korea...if they cut N Korea off they will starve and N Korea is already starving....China is the real player..they control what N Korea does...settle it diplomatically...not with bombs and all that because an ugly situation can only get uglier...
Keith's beer...love it...but OMG people went bonzo gonzo about alot of Keith's production moving to other breweries...Montreal and i believe London, Ontario...im sure it will taste the same folks...this right here is people's Nova Scotia pride showing..and i have it as well..when i first got home from Japan in the summer of 2007, the first thing i did at the Toronto airport was go and have a Keith's at the airport bar at oh 12 noon...in S Korea i missed having a Keith's as well...people in NS should realize that Keith's that is brewed on the East Coast will still be brewed in Atlantic Canada...its pride and identity folks and we don't wanna lose any of what we percieve as our identity...fears of Keiths losing its taste...not to mention the layoffs at Keiths brewery in Hfx...jobs are being lost all over NS...Larsens in Berwick the other week is a prime example...people with wives and children to feed and getting news like this before Christmas...if people do not have jobs...they cannot buy beer...i think Mr Keith would be rolling in his grave at the thought of his prized ale being brewed somewhere else...at the expense of people being laid off and losing that taste ...decisions ...profit and change screwing over tradition...
In other news...i really wanna try the new SCOTCHOS at Joe's Food Emporium in Wolfville...nachos and Joe's famous Scotchskins together...mmmmmmmmm whatta combo...perhaps while Christmas shopping this weekend eh? Its gets tough though going to Joe's...Axemen Subs... Donair Poutine...so much to choose from...plus every Monday night is now Spaghetti Night and its only like what? $2.88 a plate? Good stuff...
Perhaps something that tastetastic will make me start listening to cassettes again... cassettes someday will make a retro comeback like the 8-track and vinyl has..why? Cause what is old is cool again and its like i said in another post that an old friend told me...who wants to look at your collection of CD-R's?!?!?! Nothing as cool as looking through your friend's collection whether it be on vinyl or whatever...way more character than looking at a blank CD-R with the artists name scribbled on it with a sharpie that is for sure...
Well before i go because im working at Andrew's at 6 tonight i have some milestone's of sorts to get out of the way...this is post 475!!!!! Amazing eh? Another 25 or so posts and we will be at 500....and i have tied another Robbblog record as this is my 119th post for 2010 tying my record set back in i believe 2006 of having 119 posts...it comes...it goes folks...well i have some stuff to do...have a good one!
Happy 70th Birthday Bruce Lee...
It was a summer night..i believe the year would have been 1980...im pretty sure..me at the age of 9 and the family headed to the dearly departed Sackville Drive-in because Dad wanted to see the latest Clint Eastwood flick which was "Any Which Way You Can"...it was ok for a sequel to "Every Which Way But Loose" (Sounds like a dirty porn title now...) yes we as kids cracked up at the monkey and Clint bantering back and forth and it was kinda weird to see Clint venture into Burt Reynold's good ol' boy territory but that was cool and all...
Now remember this is in the day before VHS and well..cable as we only had some 13 channels to choose from at home..so a second feature at the ol drive-in could be well anything...so we got a movie that was some 7 yrs old as the second feature...Enter The Dragon...i was wowed out of my seat at seeing this Chinese guy who was well...its undescribable really...ok...HE WAS FAST AS FRICKIN HELL!!!!!! He was kicking the snot out of everything that moved and was a man of few words but lots of feet and frickin foot... i was impressed (I thought Jim Kelly was cool too...was pissed off when they killed him off ...) and well sorry Clint...i forgot all about you and the monkey like well...quickly...i had to know more about this Bruce Lee dude...
Then my Dad made my jaw drop...
"Bud...Mr Bruce has been dead for some 6-7 yrs."
"But Dad we just watched him up on the screen...i saw him...this movie must be new!"
"No little man....this flick is 6-7 yrs old as well..."
Still...i had to know more...thank god for the invention of the Betamax and well...the VHS..we had been posted to Edmonton in 81...a year later Dad brought home a Beta and the first movie i ever rented was "Cannonball Run" which also introduced my world to Jackie Chan..and then the frustriation that almost NONE of his flicks were available at that time in North America on either Beta or VHS...none that i could find anyways...
But now i could see more Bruce Lee...that next weekend...Fists of Fury/ Chinese Connection/ Return of the Dragon (W/ a young Chuck Norris..) and Game of Death all came home with me to our basement in Edmonton...i was hooked...i noticed he looked a little funny in Game of Death...little did i know at that time that the movie was completed in stand-in's that looked nothing like Bruce (Was Bruce Li that frickin busy??) including a shot of Bruce's face attached to a mirror with a stand in behind it...Robb shakes head...
I rented them all over and over (Well till i bought them...on VHS and replaced on DVD) i watched every documentary and every Bruceploitation flick i could find...yes i realized it was not him...but i wanted it to be him..if that makes any sense i don't know...man some of those flicks were insane...Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave...The Clones of Bruce Lee and well my fav was Bruce Lee: The Man The Myth....of course that left the image in my young head that Bruce did nothing but make flicks and get in scraps everyday of his adult life...of course the end of that flick also said that Bruce faked his death... was now a recluse and was preparing to reappear in 1983...i waited too...see i believed anything i heard cause i thought the dude was that awesome...big disappointed when it was like Jan 1st 1984 and Bruce had not reappeared like the filmakers said he would...sigh...
Anyways to make a long story short...Happy Bday Mr Lee...whereever you are...
“Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”- Bruce Lee
Now remember this is in the day before VHS and well..cable as we only had some 13 channels to choose from at home..so a second feature at the ol drive-in could be well anything...so we got a movie that was some 7 yrs old as the second feature...Enter The Dragon...i was wowed out of my seat at seeing this Chinese guy who was well...its undescribable really...ok...HE WAS FAST AS FRICKIN HELL!!!!!! He was kicking the snot out of everything that moved and was a man of few words but lots of feet and frickin foot... i was impressed (I thought Jim Kelly was cool too...was pissed off when they killed him off ...) and well sorry Clint...i forgot all about you and the monkey like well...quickly...i had to know more about this Bruce Lee dude...
Then my Dad made my jaw drop...
"Bud...Mr Bruce has been dead for some 6-7 yrs."
"But Dad we just watched him up on the screen...i saw him...this movie must be new!"
"No little man....this flick is 6-7 yrs old as well..."
Still...i had to know more...thank god for the invention of the Betamax and well...the VHS..we had been posted to Edmonton in 81...a year later Dad brought home a Beta and the first movie i ever rented was "Cannonball Run" which also introduced my world to Jackie Chan..and then the frustriation that almost NONE of his flicks were available at that time in North America on either Beta or VHS...none that i could find anyways...
But now i could see more Bruce Lee...that next weekend...Fists of Fury/ Chinese Connection/ Return of the Dragon (W/ a young Chuck Norris..) and Game of Death all came home with me to our basement in Edmonton...i was hooked...i noticed he looked a little funny in Game of Death...little did i know at that time that the movie was completed in stand-in's that looked nothing like Bruce (Was Bruce Li that frickin busy??) including a shot of Bruce's face attached to a mirror with a stand in behind it...Robb shakes head...
I rented them all over and over (Well till i bought them...on VHS and replaced on DVD) i watched every documentary and every Bruceploitation flick i could find...yes i realized it was not him...but i wanted it to be him..if that makes any sense i don't know...man some of those flicks were insane...Bruce Lee Fights Back From The Grave...The Clones of Bruce Lee and well my fav was Bruce Lee: The Man The Myth....of course that left the image in my young head that Bruce did nothing but make flicks and get in scraps everyday of his adult life...of course the end of that flick also said that Bruce faked his death... was now a recluse and was preparing to reappear in 1983...i waited too...see i believed anything i heard cause i thought the dude was that awesome...big disappointed when it was like Jan 1st 1984 and Bruce had not reappeared like the filmakers said he would...sigh...
Anyways to make a long story short...Happy Bday Mr Lee...whereever you are...
“Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”- Bruce Lee
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
19 yrs ago today...Eric Carr RIP
I remember it like it was yesterday...or somewhat yesterday..was having a horrible sophmore year at WK...why? I just didn't wanna be there..last year of my teens..friends all graduated and gone off to Acadia and Dal..was coming off a HORRIBLE summer and had put up with ALOT of BS... never in my wildest dreams could i have looked into a future which would involved graduating from Acadia U, doing years and years of higher education, trips to Japan and S Korea to teach...no no i was headed to be a janitor or unemployed or thanks to my attitude god only knows where i was headed until i pulled my head out of my ass and made some life altering decisions...here i was in 1991...stuck in high school and going nowhere fast...
Yes it was the year of grunge and hair metal was quickly on the way out... bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were dominating walkmans and discman's (MP3 was a few yrs away...) and there were survivors like GnR and a few other bands....in Novemeber two deaths occured which shook the core of rock and roll...more than the other was Queen's Freddy Mercury...i like Queen and owned their Greatest Hits on cassette...really all i needed as i was not a maniac about the band..however fame brings renewed popularity...ask Hendrix, Morrison...a recent example being the Ramones...Wayne's World helped with putting Queen back on the charts as well...
I think Eric Carr stepped into some rather large shoes with the departure of Peter Criss from KISS in 1980 and filled them rather well..it got me thinking...after his unfortunate passing in 1991..if it had not happened...what if? Would the great KISS reunion with the four original members have happened? Would KISS had put their make-up back on? Would Eric Carr still be with KISS today if he was still alive? If KISS eventually gets into the Rock and Roll Hall of Shame...i mean Fame...does Eric Carr go in as well???Just little things that the mind wonders about...we can say what if over and over again...but really...if Mr Carr had lived...would all of this had happened?
RIP Eric Carr...
Yes it was the year of grunge and hair metal was quickly on the way out... bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were dominating walkmans and discman's (MP3 was a few yrs away...) and there were survivors like GnR and a few other bands....in Novemeber two deaths occured which shook the core of rock and roll...more than the other was Queen's Freddy Mercury...i like Queen and owned their Greatest Hits on cassette...really all i needed as i was not a maniac about the band..however fame brings renewed popularity...ask Hendrix, Morrison...a recent example being the Ramones...Wayne's World helped with putting Queen back on the charts as well...
However the big big shocker for me was Eric Carr dying of cancer...no internet then so news came from the dreaded Much Music and or the radio or Hit Parader...had really no idea he was sick... and due to Freddy Mercury dying the same day, poor Eric Carr took a backseat.. Eric Carr should not have had to take a backseat to anyone...but of course Freddy was a frontman so he got more attention from the mainstream media on this day and for weeks afterwards...KISS never performed a memorial concert for Mr Carr like Freddy got with his tribute concert with Queen, Elton and Axl and others...
I think Eric Carr stepped into some rather large shoes with the departure of Peter Criss from KISS in 1980 and filled them rather well..it got me thinking...after his unfortunate passing in 1991..if it had not happened...what if? Would the great KISS reunion with the four original members have happened? Would KISS had put their make-up back on? Would Eric Carr still be with KISS today if he was still alive? If KISS eventually gets into the Rock and Roll Hall of Shame...i mean Fame...does Eric Carr go in as well???Just little things that the mind wonders about...we can say what if over and over again...but really...if Mr Carr had lived...would all of this had happened?Saturday, November 20, 2010
Pat Burns...RIP
Last night a true hockey legend left us... his name was Pat Burns.
I remember the year being 1988 and living in the Passage and news came on that my Habs had hired an ex-cop as their coach..i remember being very impressed with this guy..how emotionally involved he would get within the games themselves, the stories that he threw an ashtray at Claude Lemieux and or would not send the trainers out on the ice when Claude was faking another injury...how that first season the Habs came to within two games of the Stanley Cup only to lose to the Flames, which in retrospect did give a feel good moment to the fans when Lanny won the Cup...
A few years later Mr Burns left the Habs and went to the dreaded Maple Leafs...Laughs as i called them over the years...this was the year of the great turn-around for the Leafs as they went all the way to the semi-finals only to lose to Gretzky and the Kings...with all due respect to the G-Man..his hattrick that game ruined what was to be the dream match for Canadians...with the Habs waiting to play the winners...could you have imagined back in 1992 what a story it would have been...Habs and Leafs in the finals for the first time since 1967?!?!!? Burns facing his old team? Two hot french goalies in Pat Roy and Felix Potvin? It would have been a ratings blockbuster for CBC and i bet that those would have been ratings so high that i don't know what would have broken them...
Eventually Mr Burns would coach the Bruins and then i believe the Devils where he finally got this Cup... cancer is a terrible thing folks...i watched my own Dad deteriorate over the course of two years before he finally passed away in 2006...My Dad went from being 230 pounds to just barely over 100... it was hard to watch and i felt so helpless...i can only imagine what the Burns family went through during this ordeal...Pat Burns was a man who taught the meaning of the word endurance to many while he continued his fight against this godawful disease.
He should be in the Hall of Fame..im not going to take anything away from this years group...but cmon..Stanley Cup...three Jack Adams trophies..protocol for getting in the Hall be damned, i just wish the NHL had half the class that Mr Burns had, did the right thing and put him in the Hall of Fame while he was still around to enjoy it...i can only imagine what Don Cherry is going to say on Coaches Corner tonight..i expect nothing less that a full tribute..the world is a lesser place today because not only is a great coach gone...but an incredible human being that never knew the meaning of the word quit...
RIP Mr Burns..
I remember the year being 1988 and living in the Passage and news came on that my Habs had hired an ex-cop as their coach..i remember being very impressed with this guy..how emotionally involved he would get within the games themselves, the stories that he threw an ashtray at Claude Lemieux and or would not send the trainers out on the ice when Claude was faking another injury...how that first season the Habs came to within two games of the Stanley Cup only to lose to the Flames, which in retrospect did give a feel good moment to the fans when Lanny won the Cup...
A few years later Mr Burns left the Habs and went to the dreaded Maple Leafs...Laughs as i called them over the years...this was the year of the great turn-around for the Leafs as they went all the way to the semi-finals only to lose to Gretzky and the Kings...with all due respect to the G-Man..his hattrick that game ruined what was to be the dream match for Canadians...with the Habs waiting to play the winners...could you have imagined back in 1992 what a story it would have been...Habs and Leafs in the finals for the first time since 1967?!?!!? Burns facing his old team? Two hot french goalies in Pat Roy and Felix Potvin? It would have been a ratings blockbuster for CBC and i bet that those would have been ratings so high that i don't know what would have broken them...
Eventually Mr Burns would coach the Bruins and then i believe the Devils where he finally got this Cup... cancer is a terrible thing folks...i watched my own Dad deteriorate over the course of two years before he finally passed away in 2006...My Dad went from being 230 pounds to just barely over 100... it was hard to watch and i felt so helpless...i can only imagine what the Burns family went through during this ordeal...Pat Burns was a man who taught the meaning of the word endurance to many while he continued his fight against this godawful disease.
He should be in the Hall of Fame..im not going to take anything away from this years group...but cmon..Stanley Cup...three Jack Adams trophies..protocol for getting in the Hall be damned, i just wish the NHL had half the class that Mr Burns had, did the right thing and put him in the Hall of Fame while he was still around to enjoy it...i can only imagine what Don Cherry is going to say on Coaches Corner tonight..i expect nothing less that a full tribute..the world is a lesser place today because not only is a great coach gone...but an incredible human being that never knew the meaning of the word quit...
RIP Mr Burns..
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Ozzy Osbourne - War Pigs (Live/Vinyl Cut)
One of my favorite albums which i bought a few years late in 1986 from Tracks and Paperbacks in Dartmouth... this was also known as Talk of The Devil in England for some odd reason. I guess ol Ozzy had disowned this album because he only did it due to pressure from his label who wanted it to go head to head with Black Sabbath's Live Evil (Another awesome album...RIP Dio) Sadly, Ozzy had this album deleted from his North American catalogue and it is no longer being made...i am lucky to have the CD...go find it...or better yet..hunt down the vinyl...
Ruminations...
Hello and long time peeps and assorted wormslime! Well Old Man Robb was stricken recently with the stomach flu..but due in part to the Bickel, Premium Plus Crackers and Canada Dry Ginger Ale i am now back from the dead so to speak, lost a shift at the store formerly known as Andrew's and worst of all got me behind in me linguistics homework!!! However this week has all made up for this as i am now back to work and as far as the education stuff goes it is business as usual.
What is happening with Education 4683? Well i just finished Chapter five which was on Morphology and morphemes and i am just tackling Chapter six which deals with Syntax. An interesting aspect of the chapter was on college slang, which is in itself a source of new words and employs alot of different word formation processes. Now it has been some oh...eight years since i lived in the Crowell Tower but i can remember some of the slang like...Hella- This is an adjective, the definition would be that you are hella cool or the game was hella good. Think of the word hello with the o replaced with an a, instead of meaning hello as in saying hi, the definition and the meaning totally changes or Playa- This is a noun and it is slang for a person whom dates many different people at the same time, usually without the other person knowing it. The er is dropped in place of an a..a new one i heard in recent years has been Crackbook..It defines a person whom is addicted to Facebook and is consistantly checking their Facebook account. The word blends crack+ book and drops the "Face" part.
Yes yes i still wish Ozzy was coming to Halifax...sorry Heart fans im not too excited and i don't wanna pay top dollar to see a Pink Floyd cover band play the Metro Centre no matter how close to the real thing they are...Ozzy and Halford...why why why?!?!?! Well i hear several things..Hfx is out of the way...it is an inconvenience...just sick of the excuses...Ozzy had to play TWO nights...TWO nights due to high demands for tickets last time he was here in Halifax in 2008... and to hear about the set lists he has had so far on tour...Fairies Wear Boots, Iron Man, Shot in the Dark, Rat Salad, Killer of Giants...its like he is finally playing some Sabbath songs besides Paranoid and rediscovered the Ultimate Sin album...ugh...wish i could see and i don't mean some bootleg on Youtube....
I have also heard of Crack Texting which is when you sit for hours texting back and forth with one or more people about nothing just for the sake of texting. It is as if you can't stop, you need it, just like crack...now texting in itself is one of my pet peeves...why have conversation? I had dates ruined by texting..all they wanted to do was answer texts..their cellphones went off so much..i mean whothefuck has a Celine Dion ring?!?!?!? Cellphones and texting infuriate me on a daily basis...they make people into shitty drivers, or those who cannot go ten fucking minutes without that damn thing going off or having to frickin text someone..and don't get me going about those Bluetooth things...looking like morons walking around talking to yourself...would love to see these people turn these frigggin things off for a day...just to see how lost they would be...
The Expendables arrives this week...going to grab an advance copy from the store formerly known as Andrews...yeah there are some benifits eh? Well this is a man's man movie...if a dude doesn't like this flick they should just surrender their man licence...
Yes yes i infuriate easily these days... i had someone ask me the score of the Axemen-Huskies football game the other day and i was almost like don't you read the paper? Front page! Of course i have had people tell me that the news is boring and that watching the news is boring and so is reading it...idiots...of course it might be boring but you know what i think is sad? Not being informed about the world around you...that is sad..
Anywho yeah...the Axemen lost...SMU won again after losing like their first 3 games of the season as well..it was like you know it was written in the script, spoiling things for the Cinderella teams from Mount A and Acadia who had to actually play in quite the mudbowl up at Mount A while SMU sat back...i get scared folks...i get scared cause i think of the decision makers at Acadia U and the money that is put aside for programs like Football and i wonder if they ever think well gosh...SMU is just going to win anyways...and i get scared they are going to pull the plug... not saying they will...but i wonder if it goes through their mind...esp with universities strapped for cash and hiking tuitions the way that they do...
Perhaps she can console me...
Speaking of which...the 20th Annual MacLean's University rankings are now out...and yet again Acadia U plays second fiddle to Mount A...now i went to both...and im sorry..i have lots of friends at Mount A, i enjoyed my year there in some aspects...but in other aspects..im sorry i do not see how Mount A beats Acadia..at some things they do but they are so small and trivial and well it does not make that big a difference but it does...i was so used to going and doing things on the fly at Acadia U and at Mount A i found it was wait on me..wait on this, wait for this to be open..i mean the library closes at 10 every night and does not open till like 2 on Sundays...the meallhall didn't remain open all day..closed from 1-4 and then strictly after 10 and on the weekends not open till 11 or so...what about us early birders that wanted to get to the library and get cracking on the books...nope nope nope and i found my classes were not all that awesome, profs not warm..cold and distant and well when i see these rankings it makes me scratch my head....
And back to TESOL again...on Friday at 2:00 there is a meeting at the BAC in room 132 for all of those interested in the TESOL program that is offered though Open Acadia. Now Brother Robb is not going to go all preachy on ya all..but i would encourage students to attend this general meeting..why? Well there are alot of people who do not know what to do with their lives after university...i didn't but i was a victim of circumstances, personal circumstances with my family and my Father.. i wanted to be there for my Dad and for quite a few yrs after i felt like i was playing catch-up with my life...my mistake was not getting my TESOL Certification...it opens alot more doors for teachers...students have to be warned about companies in Japan that are going to dick them around and about Hagwons in S Korea that are owned by profiteers, not educators who will chew you up and spit you out in the blink of an eye...
Oh yeah...if i ever get to Phoenix...im going to Alice Cooper's bar/ restaurant called Cooperstown and getting one of these damn hotdogs called "The Big Unit" Who's with me?
On a lighter note i quite enjoyed the WWE's Retro RAW on Monday night...always good to see a few faces from the past...it is also sad also because i remember when alot of these guys were part of my Saturday morning routine in the 80s... get back from hockey practice, make some hot dogs, see if any friends wanna come over and watch Vince and Jessie call the action and watch a bunch of nobodies get their heads handed to them by King Kong Bundy, the Iron Sheik and others... a more innocent time for sure..wasn't going to spend the afternoon playing computer games...it was up for some road hockey in the tennis courts next to EPJH and or something else me and my pals had cooked up...this actually meant getting out of the house kids...scary thought eh?
The hockey Axemen are currently sitting 3rd in the AUS standings...went to see them play St Thomas last Sat with Brother Blair...had to park at the old arena...thought it was going to be a sell out but other things going on such as soccer and people well using their pass and parking there all darn day caused us to park elsewhere...good to see Axemen in the middle of the pack and making overtures towards first place which is currently held by UNB....
Nope...Old Man Robb didn't get to try KFC's Double Down and now its gone and the McRib is not being sold in Canada...sigh...however what is interesting is KFC in Japan...its a big deal... i arrived in Japan in Jan of 2007 and i was told i had just missed the Christmas Season...big deal? Well people in Japan flock to KFC for their annual Christmas Eve dinner..Many Japanese even make reservations for their "Christmas Chicken" ahead of time. People line up at their outlets to pick up their orders.. I just hope KFC hasn't told the Japanese that the Colonel is Santa or something like that...
Oh add this to things Old Man Robb would like to get for Christmas...yes i do read fine and thank you..and about the greatest hockey movie of all time...disregard those sequels..they suck...
Yes folks all for now...later!
What is happening with Education 4683? Well i just finished Chapter five which was on Morphology and morphemes and i am just tackling Chapter six which deals with Syntax. An interesting aspect of the chapter was on college slang, which is in itself a source of new words and employs alot of different word formation processes. Now it has been some oh...eight years since i lived in the Crowell Tower but i can remember some of the slang like...Hella- This is an adjective, the definition would be that you are hella cool or the game was hella good. Think of the word hello with the o replaced with an a, instead of meaning hello as in saying hi, the definition and the meaning totally changes or Playa- This is a noun and it is slang for a person whom dates many different people at the same time, usually without the other person knowing it. The er is dropped in place of an a..a new one i heard in recent years has been Crackbook..It defines a person whom is addicted to Facebook and is consistantly checking their Facebook account. The word blends crack+ book and drops the "Face" part.
I have also heard of Crack Texting which is when you sit for hours texting back and forth with one or more people about nothing just for the sake of texting. It is as if you can't stop, you need it, just like crack...now texting in itself is one of my pet peeves...why have conversation? I had dates ruined by texting..all they wanted to do was answer texts..their cellphones went off so much..i mean whothefuck has a Celine Dion ring?!?!?!? Cellphones and texting infuriate me on a daily basis...they make people into shitty drivers, or those who cannot go ten fucking minutes without that damn thing going off or having to frickin text someone..and don't get me going about those Bluetooth things...looking like morons walking around talking to yourself...would love to see these people turn these frigggin things off for a day...just to see how lost they would be...
Anywho yeah...the Axemen lost...SMU won again after losing like their first 3 games of the season as well..it was like you know it was written in the script, spoiling things for the Cinderella teams from Mount A and Acadia who had to actually play in quite the mudbowl up at Mount A while SMU sat back...i get scared folks...i get scared cause i think of the decision makers at Acadia U and the money that is put aside for programs like Football and i wonder if they ever think well gosh...SMU is just going to win anyways...and i get scared they are going to pull the plug... not saying they will...but i wonder if it goes through their mind...esp with universities strapped for cash and hiking tuitions the way that they do...
Perhaps she can console me...
Speaking of which...the 20th Annual MacLean's University rankings are now out...and yet again Acadia U plays second fiddle to Mount A...now i went to both...and im sorry..i have lots of friends at Mount A, i enjoyed my year there in some aspects...but in other aspects..im sorry i do not see how Mount A beats Acadia..at some things they do but they are so small and trivial and well it does not make that big a difference but it does...i was so used to going and doing things on the fly at Acadia U and at Mount A i found it was wait on me..wait on this, wait for this to be open..i mean the library closes at 10 every night and does not open till like 2 on Sundays...the meallhall didn't remain open all day..closed from 1-4 and then strictly after 10 and on the weekends not open till 11 or so...what about us early birders that wanted to get to the library and get cracking on the books...nope nope nope and i found my classes were not all that awesome, profs not warm..cold and distant and well when i see these rankings it makes me scratch my head....
And back to TESOL again...on Friday at 2:00 there is a meeting at the BAC in room 132 for all of those interested in the TESOL program that is offered though Open Acadia. Now Brother Robb is not going to go all preachy on ya all..but i would encourage students to attend this general meeting..why? Well there are alot of people who do not know what to do with their lives after university...i didn't but i was a victim of circumstances, personal circumstances with my family and my Father.. i wanted to be there for my Dad and for quite a few yrs after i felt like i was playing catch-up with my life...my mistake was not getting my TESOL Certification...it opens alot more doors for teachers...students have to be warned about companies in Japan that are going to dick them around and about Hagwons in S Korea that are owned by profiteers, not educators who will chew you up and spit you out in the blink of an eye...
Oh yeah...if i ever get to Phoenix...im going to Alice Cooper's bar/ restaurant called Cooperstown and getting one of these damn hotdogs called "The Big Unit" Who's with me?
On a lighter note i quite enjoyed the WWE's Retro RAW on Monday night...always good to see a few faces from the past...it is also sad also because i remember when alot of these guys were part of my Saturday morning routine in the 80s... get back from hockey practice, make some hot dogs, see if any friends wanna come over and watch Vince and Jessie call the action and watch a bunch of nobodies get their heads handed to them by King Kong Bundy, the Iron Sheik and others... a more innocent time for sure..wasn't going to spend the afternoon playing computer games...it was up for some road hockey in the tennis courts next to EPJH and or something else me and my pals had cooked up...this actually meant getting out of the house kids...scary thought eh?
The hockey Axemen are currently sitting 3rd in the AUS standings...went to see them play St Thomas last Sat with Brother Blair...had to park at the old arena...thought it was going to be a sell out but other things going on such as soccer and people well using their pass and parking there all darn day caused us to park elsewhere...good to see Axemen in the middle of the pack and making overtures towards first place which is currently held by UNB....
Nope...Old Man Robb didn't get to try KFC's Double Down and now its gone and the McRib is not being sold in Canada...sigh...however what is interesting is KFC in Japan...its a big deal... i arrived in Japan in Jan of 2007 and i was told i had just missed the Christmas Season...big deal? Well people in Japan flock to KFC for their annual Christmas Eve dinner..Many Japanese even make reservations for their "Christmas Chicken" ahead of time. People line up at their outlets to pick up their orders.. I just hope KFC hasn't told the Japanese that the Colonel is Santa or something like that...
Oh add this to things Old Man Robb would like to get for Christmas...yes i do read fine and thank you..and about the greatest hockey movie of all time...disregard those sequels..they suck...
Yes folks all for now...later!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
In Flanders Fields
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Friday, November 05, 2010
Guns N' Roses- Nice Boys- Axl & Duff Reunion
Here is some footage from Axl and Duff's reunion in London..cool to see them dig out this gem from GnR Lies which was originally done by the band Rose Tattoo...could that GN'R reunion ever ever happen? Who knows..but this is a cool start...
Who'll Stop The Rain....
Hello bloggeronies and assorted wormslime..what is a happening? Well i recieved my first mark back for my course, Education 4683- Linguistics for Teachers...a drumroll please...boom boom boom Sir Robert Hawley made 86% on his first assignment!!!!!! Ok ok i know its an A- but cmon this is good..plus it was also a good 20% of my term so all is well...right now i am still doing chapter four which is on mophology which is the study of word formation. In other words, morphology is to words what syntax is to sentences. Morphology is concerned with the structures of words just like syntax is concerned with the structures of sentences.
Something i did find interesting about mophology and morphemes is that it can also be quite difficult for a speaker to distinguish between the history of a word and its structure in the minds of everyday speakers. For example the word hamburger is derived from Hamburg which is a city in Germany. New speakers see Hamburger as something like ham+ burger= hot patty served on a round bun. Burger can be combined with any substance that can be eaten for example a cheeseburger, a veggieburger etc. Ham + burger is psychologically real for most present day speakers of American English.
Robb's note...what else is pyschologically real is the Forklift Burger from the Turkey Burger in Cookesville...does anyone else know if they are going to be closed for the season like the Turkey Burger used to be? Just a thought..
I see that the NHL Oldtimers are coming back to Halifax to the Metro Centre on Feb 1st, that is a Tuesday so since i will have full time hrs around that time i will see what i can do about getting up for the game. I mentioned to Rick Middleton when he was in town for the opening of the Appledome that they would be better off coming to a place like the new Appledome because i think the smaller crowds would be much more appreciative of seeing some hockey heroes than the almost empty Halifax Forum was when the Bruins oldtimers were in town earlier this year. Of course i won't be making a trip to the Appledome till Feb when WK plays CK...nothing against CK but i have no attachment to CK..didn't go there so i have no reason to attend any of their games...
Of course because of last weeks defeat at the hands of SMU, the Axemen have to travel to Mount A tomorrow to play the Mounties in the first playoff game held in Sackville (Or Bagtown as it was referred to on CHMA..) in some twelve years or so...the Axemen better have their gameface on after finishing 4-4 on the season..the Mounties are going to come out flying.. i will not be travelling to the game, i shall be in the Dungeon and watching the proceedings on Eastlink.. then later on Saturday evening i shall be travelling to WolfVegas to watch the hockey Axemen take on St Thomas at 7...the hockey Axemen are 2-4 so far this season and i hope they can get back on track...plus i still think its cool that my buddy Kev is playing old school tunes like Iron Maiden's Number of the Beast and Black Sabbath's NIB...
Heart is coming to Halifax around Feb as well... i didn't know they were still together but i think my Heart's Greatest Hits Live is still in that giant box of tapes that i gave Tash a few yrs ago... damn there was some good stuff in that box...plus that was the only Heart cassette that i ever owned...i think i bought it at the ol Tracks and Paperbacks...cannot remember now...
Damn Burger King's Pizza Burger is only available in New York City...damn i be getting me one of these things..looks HUGE..Double Down eat yer heart out!!!
Borrowed this one off a friend on Facebook..
Good ol WWE...
Money lost on restaurant in Manhattan- $35,557,000.00
Money lost on creating XFL football league- $68,994,000.00
Money lost on Linda McMahon thinking she could be elected to the US senate-$50,000,000.00..
There are no doubt a multitude of reasons why Linda McMahon was defeated by her Democrat opponent Richard Blumenthal, but one could wonder if her affiliation with WWE is what ultimately caused her to lose the race....then again...She didn't win because she didn't get enough votes. That's the bottom line.
Oh ya...having to start paying wrestlers as employees rather than as independent contractors because running in an... election finally got the government to investigate your scam: Priceless...
Whatta ya think Vince ya old bastard?
Did have quite the bad dream lately...had a dream that after getting my TESOL certification that i took a job in Japan teaching English...sounds good enough eh? Well i took it and lo and behold the recruiter played an evil trick on me and i landed in S Korea and worse of all the Hagwon was located in Itaewon at the top of Hooker Hill of all places...i woke up folks and i had to pinch myself to make sure this damn dream wasn't real...than again why is it that i could see some sleazy Hagwon owner locating their business there? Some things in this life just fail to suprise me over and over again...then again i do miss some of the awesome signs i saw in S Korea and to a lesser extent in Japan...
Anyways this is Old Man Robb...over and out! Have a good one!
Something i did find interesting about mophology and morphemes is that it can also be quite difficult for a speaker to distinguish between the history of a word and its structure in the minds of everyday speakers. For example the word hamburger is derived from Hamburg which is a city in Germany. New speakers see Hamburger as something like ham+ burger= hot patty served on a round bun. Burger can be combined with any substance that can be eaten for example a cheeseburger, a veggieburger etc. Ham + burger is psychologically real for most present day speakers of American English.
Robb's note...what else is pyschologically real is the Forklift Burger from the Turkey Burger in Cookesville...does anyone else know if they are going to be closed for the season like the Turkey Burger used to be? Just a thought..
I see that the NHL Oldtimers are coming back to Halifax to the Metro Centre on Feb 1st, that is a Tuesday so since i will have full time hrs around that time i will see what i can do about getting up for the game. I mentioned to Rick Middleton when he was in town for the opening of the Appledome that they would be better off coming to a place like the new Appledome because i think the smaller crowds would be much more appreciative of seeing some hockey heroes than the almost empty Halifax Forum was when the Bruins oldtimers were in town earlier this year. Of course i won't be making a trip to the Appledome till Feb when WK plays CK...nothing against CK but i have no attachment to CK..didn't go there so i have no reason to attend any of their games...
Of course because of last weeks defeat at the hands of SMU, the Axemen have to travel to Mount A tomorrow to play the Mounties in the first playoff game held in Sackville (Or Bagtown as it was referred to on CHMA..) in some twelve years or so...the Axemen better have their gameface on after finishing 4-4 on the season..the Mounties are going to come out flying.. i will not be travelling to the game, i shall be in the Dungeon and watching the proceedings on Eastlink.. then later on Saturday evening i shall be travelling to WolfVegas to watch the hockey Axemen take on St Thomas at 7...the hockey Axemen are 2-4 so far this season and i hope they can get back on track...plus i still think its cool that my buddy Kev is playing old school tunes like Iron Maiden's Number of the Beast and Black Sabbath's NIB...
Heart is coming to Halifax around Feb as well... i didn't know they were still together but i think my Heart's Greatest Hits Live is still in that giant box of tapes that i gave Tash a few yrs ago... damn there was some good stuff in that box...plus that was the only Heart cassette that i ever owned...i think i bought it at the ol Tracks and Paperbacks...cannot remember now...
Damn Burger King's Pizza Burger is only available in New York City...damn i be getting me one of these things..looks HUGE..Double Down eat yer heart out!!!
Borrowed this one off a friend on Facebook..
Good ol WWE...
Money lost on restaurant in Manhattan- $35,557,000.00
Money lost on creating XFL football league- $68,994,000.00
Money lost on Linda McMahon thinking she could be elected to the US senate-$50,000,000.00..
There are no doubt a multitude of reasons why Linda McMahon was defeated by her Democrat opponent Richard Blumenthal, but one could wonder if her affiliation with WWE is what ultimately caused her to lose the race....then again...She didn't win because she didn't get enough votes. That's the bottom line.
Oh ya...having to start paying wrestlers as employees rather than as independent contractors because running in an... election finally got the government to investigate your scam: Priceless...
Whatta ya think Vince ya old bastard?
Did have quite the bad dream lately...had a dream that after getting my TESOL certification that i took a job in Japan teaching English...sounds good enough eh? Well i took it and lo and behold the recruiter played an evil trick on me and i landed in S Korea and worse of all the Hagwon was located in Itaewon at the top of Hooker Hill of all places...i woke up folks and i had to pinch myself to make sure this damn dream wasn't real...than again why is it that i could see some sleazy Hagwon owner locating their business there? Some things in this life just fail to suprise me over and over again...then again i do miss some of the awesome signs i saw in S Korea and to a lesser extent in Japan...
Anyways this is Old Man Robb...over and out! Have a good one!
