Canada’s Common Cents
(HA, get it?)
So it turns out Canada’s smarter than us and is going to start phasing out their penny. According to Time, the Canadian government released its 2012 budget without any money allotted for penny creation. Which is a smart thing to do, seeing as how a single Canadian penny costs 1.6 cents to produce (a US penny costs even more—2.4 cents).
Canada is slated to stop producing pennies this month, and while products will still be charged to the cent when debit or credit cards are used, the government is suggesting that retailers round their prices to the nearest nickel (which could have interesting consequences…imagine the guides that’ll pop up telling people what things are cheaper to buy using debit/credit and which are cheaper using cash).
Anyway, I thought this was pretty interesting news. It makes me think about Canada’s switch from paper $1 and $2 to coin versions. Are the coins cheaper to produce than the bills? Also, were the bills called loonies and toonies, or is that just the coins? I don’t remember if the bills had loons on them. SO MANY QUESTIONS, CANADA, JEEZ.
Oh, Canadians…
When I was a kid and still going over to my dad’s place on the weekends, we’d often watch his old VHS tapes of the Rocky & Bullwinkle show. One component of the show that (for whatever reason) was brought to the forefront of my memory today was the old Dudley Do-Right segments.
The humor of these must have just gone completely over my head as a kid, but as I’m typing this now I’ve got this one playing in the background and I’m laughing like crazy.
Here are two others:
“We’ve destroyed more bridges than a near-sighted dentist!” Hahahaha.
US-CANADIAN RELATIONS: Y U NO MORE INTUITIVE AND SIMPLE FOR SUCH FRIENDLY COUNTRIES?!
Things that are surprisingly easy to do:
– Withdraw from a Canadian university for medical reasons.
– Hire a company to pack all your apartment’s crap and haul it across the country for you.
– Love Coldplay’s new song Paradise. OH MY GOODNESS SO MUCH LOVE FIVE STARS FIVE STARS FIVE STARS.
Things that are surprisingly difficult to do:
– Cancel your Canadian credit card.
– Transfer Canadian funds to a US account.
– Terminate a Canadian cell phone contract.
– Send medical info from the US to Canada.
– Figure out how much money you’re getting for being a TA for part of a month.
– Doing all of the above in the exact appropriate order so that it all works out in the end.
Hooray stress! Perhaps today’s meme entry will alleviate anxiety.
30-Day Meme – Day 22: Your deepest fear.
Haha, nope, no stress relief. I’m afraid of failure. Failure defined on my own terms. I’d go into more detail but I’m getting really
distracted by the slot machines behind me (I’m stuck in the Las Vegas International Airport for four more hours) and I’m super tired of traveling, so I’m just going to leave things off here.
Sorry.
We’re in ON!
WOOHOO, we finally made it!
My mom and I got to London this afternoon (no trouble at the border, though my student visa is going to be a pain), drove around, found my dorm, unloaded all my crap in seemingly record time, experienced the wonder that is the Real Canadian Superstore yet again, got a desk at WalMart, and are now hanging out in my dorm room. Which, by the way, seems nothing like a dorm room and more like my old apartment.
I like it here so far.
Pictures to come whenever I get everything organized and find my camera cable.
Last day in Moscow
Total re-addiction to OK Cupid = accomplished.
Oh, and here’s the route for the next six days:
Wednesday: Moscow, ID to Bozeman, MT (~450 miles)
Thursday: Bozeman, MT to Rapid City, SD (~460 miles)
Friday: MOUNT RUSHMORE, OMFG (PRESIDENTS!)
Saturday: Rapid City, SD to Rochester, MN (~575 miles)
Sunday: Rochester, MN to Kalamazoo, MI (~494 miles)
Monday: Kalamazoo, MI to London, ON (~266 miles)
Dudes…
So I’ve finally come to the realization that I’m going to be moving halfway across the continent and am probably not returning in a long while. I’ll be in freaking Eastern Time, yo. I’ll be living surrounded by Great Lakes (and, well, Canadians, but that’s nothing new now). Scary stuff. At least for me.
Sorry, I’m in full freak-out mode and thus don’t have much to say. See you tomorrow!
Canadian Mall – Installment 10: Kingsgate Mall
Confession: I actually didn’t go to Kingsgate this afternoon. Spent the morning running and then went to Costco and The Real Canadian Superstore…but I passed by Kingsgate twice!
I go to this mall to buy groceries, really. Therefore it’s not really worth a special weekend visit (plus it’s not that far of a walk anyway). But I’m kinda running out of malls and figure I better get as many of the smaller ones in these installments as possible.
Pros:
– Giant Buy Low Foods. A cheap grocery store that’s right on #8’s route which practically goes right by my house.
– Liquor store. I can’t drink, but this particular liquor store has a giant Guinness poster in its main window, which makes me nostalgic for that one time two summers ago when I actually had alcohol.
– Not crowded ever.
Cons:
– Pretty small. You go there for shoes, alcohol, or groceries. Not much else.
– Closes (surprise!) at 6 on most nights, and due to the layout if you still want to utilize the Buy Low that is open much later, you have to climb up this weird hill to get to it. Not a big deal usually, but a huge pain when it’s raining/ it’s windy/ it’s dark/the hill decided to go into mudslide mode.
Yeah. Dinky mall is dinky.
Claudia Swag
Grocery/miscellaneous shopping was very lucrative tonight. Proof:
2 kg of veggies, ladies and gents. Freaking awesome.
Pink Energy is the best tasting energy on the planet.
The color is named “pineapple” but I think “mac and cheese” fits much better. When the current black polish wears off, this stuff is happening.
I found some!! Now to do some research on side effects/appropriate dosage so that I can actually take it without death.
Over the weekend I plan on redesigning my header for this blog, ‘cause I’m sick of the current one. BE PREPARED FOR CHANGE, WOO!
Canadian Mall – Installment 9: Lansdowne Centre
Google Earth really doesn’t like it when I try to get walking directions to Richmond. No, all-mighty Google, I cannot walk across water, nor can I climb up and utilize the SkyTrain rail as a bridge.
Anyway.
This morning I went running, which is both surprising and hilarious, considering I don’t see myself as a runner AT ALL, but found it easier and more relaxing than walking. Weird.
After running I was all jazzed up and decided to go find a mall. 12 miles later (damn you, Google Earth!) I ended up in Richmond at the Lansdowne Centre.
Pros:
– Sits in a cluster of malls (and a Real Canadian Superstore, which I WILL review at some point ‘cause it qualifies as a mall in and of itself), so if you get bored of it you can just walk to another one.
– There was a Best Buy! I’d never been to a Best Buy before. Had to resist buying a giant home stereo system.
– Very clean layout. I was impressed.
– Semi-clean Zeller’s. I was phenomenally impressed.
– Like the Richmond Centre, it’s right by the SkyTrain. Handy.
Cons:
– Malls need to stay open later than 6 PM around here.
– Pretty “meh” selection of stores overall, apart from the Best Buy and this Bed, Bath, & Beyond-esque store thingy that I never got around to walking through (see above con for reason).
So yeah. Not so disappointing, a refreshing change from the last few malls. I’d recommend it.
Woosh!
Canadian Mall – Installment 7: Park Royal Centre
So I went out walking this morning and I saw the strangest thing. I was about two block from my house when I noticed that things started to get really bright around me, bright enough so I could even see my shadow. I looked around and realized that the source of this brightness was coming from above me, somewhere up in the sky, somewhere between the dispersing clouds.
Then I realized what I was seeing.
THE FREAKING SUN.
It was quite a phenomenal sight.
Anyway.
Park Royal Centre! Probably the biggest mall I’ve been to up here (or, you know, anywhere).
Pros:
– DUDE a Whole Foods. I bought Himalayan pink salt. And…uh…cookies.
– The mall is split into three separate buildings/areas: North, South, and the Village. This makes navigation easy.
– Quite organized for how freaking huge it is (280+ stores).
– A Staples!
Cons:
– Quite far away. 8.5 mile walk, plus a 30 or so minute bus ride through Stanley Park.
– The three buildings are spaced across a busy highway-type road. Not a big deal, but on a rainy day (which is pretty much the standard up here), it would kind of suck.
– The Home Depot is scary as hell. There was a haunted shovel.
Canadian Mall – Installment 7: Capilano Mall
This is North Vancouver’s version of the Pacific Centre. Translation: boring.
Pros:
– A Walmart. It’s got a McDonald’s in it. That blows my mind.
– A Claire’s.
– Open until…wait for it…9 PM ON SOME NIGHTS! This blasphemy is unheard of. North Van has a wild side.
Cons:
– Way up in North Vancouver.
– The bathroom is disgusting. Like, Zellers disgusting.
– There really aren’t any cool stores in this entire mall.
Yeah. Really, the only thing it’s got going for it is the Walmart. It’s also deceptively large. Looking at the store directory online and then looking at the mall, you would never guess all those shops fit in the little bitty space. I guess if you’re hard pressed for a Walmart and for whatever reason can’t get to the one on Grandview Highway, take a trip to North Van and visit the bland land of Capilano Mall.
It also was snowing the whole time I was walking there and back, so it was an exceptionally cold day for me. But I have blanket and heater and techno at my disposal here, so it’s all better now.
Claudia’s Trans-Canadian Adventures: Day 3
So there won’t be any Canadian Mall installment this week, mainly because I’m nowhere near a mall and am instead in an airport.
So ladies and gentlemen, I give you Canadian Airport – London International Airport!
Yeah.
It’s like Moscow/Pullman, but a little bigger. And the weather changes in a nanosecond.
So I’m flying to Toronto (45 minute flight), sitting around in the Toronto Airport for about five hours, flying nonstop to Vancouver (5 hour flight? Something like that), then leaving tomorrow morning to fly to Phoenix to visit my mom and her boyfriend Kurt.
It’s a good thing I like flying.
And chilling in airports.
Talk to you all when I get reliable internet at some point…not sure when that will be.
Claudia’s Trans-Canadian Adventures: Day 2
Dear University of Western Ontario,
You are a creepy hybrid and I think I’m in love with you.
Seriously, both the campus and town are some sort of freakish, almost impossible combination of Moscow/UI and Vancouver/UBC.
I like it here. The bus system seems reasonable, it’s not raining, people actually have their own senses of style instead of all wearing the same coat, the same boots, and the same scarves, and…oh yeah: THE PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT FREAKING RULES.
It’s the second largest in Canada and has a tier 2 ranking for philosophy of science (which is pretty awesome, considering there is only one school in tier 1). There’s also a special institute called the Rotman Institute of Philosophy to which you can apply and get a special office in a separate part of the building with a bunch of other phil of sci dorks. How awesome is that?!
Other bonuses:
- It’s not raining.
- The rec center. Holy crap, it’s amazing.
- You can RENT AN OFFICE IN THE LIBRARY. Your own library home. Holy Jesus crackers.
- Prices! They’re reasonable!
- There’s a Pita Pit here. There’s one in Vancouver, too, but it’s downtown and too far to go for sexy pitas.
- It’s not raining.
- The local stations seem to really like Futurama.
- You’re encouraged to take classes outside of the phil department if they apply to you.
- They have a marching band!
- The layout of the grad student housing rooms is almost identical to the layout of my apartment here.
- Did I mention it’s not raining?
It was a good day.
It looks like it can be a good future.
Claudia’s Trans-Canadian Adventures: Day 1
So here’s an important question that’s been bothering me since I got off the plane.
There’s skiing and downhill stuff in the winter Olympics, right? Duh.
So where in the hell for the 1988 Calgary Olympics did they actually have that stuff? ‘Cause all I’m seeing is this:
Either they built fake mountains or they made it all up, one of the two.
We also flew through some badass lenticular clouds, but I couldn’t get my camera out in time to catch them.
Anyway.
You may be saying “wait, hold on, back up, what the hell were you doing on a plane and why were you in Calgary?”
An excellent question.
I wasn’t exactly in Calgary, it was just a stop on the way to London, Ontario to check out the University of Western Ontario, who happens to have a tier 2 philosophy of science program and who happens to have accepted me into the MA/PhD program.
Cool stuff, huh?
So now I’m sitting in a creepy little motel room with a pita, Futurama, and no internet, waiting for the campus tour tomorrow.
It’s also 1 degree Fahrenheit outside.
But it’s not raining.
Rock ON.
Canadian Mall – Installment 5: Pacific Centre
I have only one word to describe my experience with the Pacific Centre: meh.
Pros:
– Not a pain to get to. There are like twenty buses that pass it, plus the SkyTrain. Right downtown.
– Small enough to navigate without freaking out.
– They’re open ‘til 7 PM!
Cons:
– Obscenely boring.
– Right downtown, so quite crowded.
– There just isn’t a lot of variety. Sure, there are quite a few stores packed in such a small area, but they’re pretty bland overall.
Like I said, meh. Nothing too outstanding or extraordinary. Next week’s Canadian Mall installment may or may not happen…we’ll have to see.
Canadian Mall – Installment 3: Coquitlam Centre
Things I’m good at:
– Missing the bus
– Tripping over my own feet
– Doing both simultaneously
– Cursing profusely
Anyway.
Getting to this mall involved taking the bus downtown, walking east to Burnaby, walking halfway across Burnaby, missing the bus by about 30 seconds, freezing my butt off on a bench waiting for half an hour for the next bus, then taking said bus on an hour long ride to the center.
Long day.
Pros:
– H&M!
– The best layout of any mall I’ve seen
– There are more restaurants/stands in the food court than there are restaurants in Moscow. I’m not kidding.
– I finally found a store that had a copy of Mass Effect
Cons:
– SO freaking far away
– If you’re going to close at 6 PM, don’t be so freaking far away (yes, this is a legitimate con—everything closes so early up here on the weekend)
– The parking lot is a deathtrap for pedestrians
Wee!
Canadian Mall – Installment 2: Metropolis at Metrotown
Holy crap, what a big mall.
It doesn’t have a University attached to it, but it’s pretty impressive nonetheless. Three floors, lots of escalators, and a Chapters.
Not the easiest place to get to, though, especially if you’re walking. I kept seeing these signs for “Metrotown” but I couldn’t see the mall at all until I was right on top of it. Low profile little bugger. The only thing that really guided me there was the Skytrain tracks.
Anyway.
Pros:
– The Real Canadian Superstore. I guess if you’re really Canadian, you take superstores very seriously. It’s Walmart on crack up here.
– There was an HMV, which prompted the purchase of the fifth season of Futurama. I’m watching it now; it’s excellent so far.
– Horrible layout, but copious amounts of “YOU ARE HERE” maps, which people like me appreciate greatly.
Cons:
– Mike Rowe needs to come up here for a Dirty Jobs episode to just clean the Zellers bathrooms.
– Actually, the whole Zellers was gross. It was like nobody had cleaned or restocked anything in months.
– So. Many. People.
So yeah. Pretty good overall, and right next to the Skytrain. And Burnaby > Surrey.
If my love is your drug, GET TO REHAB
This is actually pretty fantastic.
I like how Canada needs to be explained.
Canadian Mall – Installment 1: Central City
In this the first installment of “Claudia Walks Vancouver via Malls,” I went down to the ghetto Surrey to visit Central City which, to my great surprise, had Simon Fraser University Surrey attached to it.
I’ve neither seen nor heard of a university attached to a mall.
Anyway.
Aside from higher education you can also purchase alcohol, stuff from the Canadian version of Walmart, pitas that are supposedly extreme, and waffle irons (there’s a Bed Bath & Beyond) at this cool little mall.
Pros:
– Did I mention waffle irons?
– Not a maze from hell
– The Asian grocery store, in which I could identify about 30% of the items, but which carried Aspartame-free gum!
– DOLLAR STORE
Cons:
– It’s in Surrey
– No good bookstore
– I got lost on SE Marine Drive on the way there and got pretty cold. That was pretty sucky.
Woo! Not sure where I’ll go next week, but probably not south.
Surrey. Erugh.
“Citizen SNIIIIIIIPS!”
YAY, I’m in Moscow again!
So the first thing my mom and I did was go to WinCo to get groceries for the time we’re here.
A standard packet of shredded cheese cost $2.49
$2.49.
You can’t buy a head of lettuce for that price in Vancouver. WHAT.
So I bought two bags of groceries and it all cost less than $40. One bag up north usually costs $50 or $60.
Well, anyway, I’m back. We all need to hang out.
Today’s song: Warp 1.9 (feat. Steve Aoki) by The Bloody Beetroots
TWSB: Canada – A Weighty Issue (Or “massy,” rather; shut up, it’s a pun)
Canada: being the nonconformist country since 1867.
For over 40 years scientists have been trying to figure out why parts of Canada—specifically the Hudson Bay area—experience lower gravitational pull than other parts of the world.
Yeah, seriously.
Freaking Canada.
There are two theories that have been put forth to explain this phenomenon. The first has to do with the convection currents of the earth’s magma. Scientists who support this theory think that convection beneath the Hudson Bay area is causing the continental plate there to be dragged down, thus decreasing mass and, subsequently, decreasing gravity.
The second theory has to do with the old Laurentide Ice Sheet. This ice sheet covered much of Canada and the northern US way back when glaciers ruled the world. The ice was about 2 miles thick in most sections (perspective: the Antarctic ice sheet covering the continent can be as thick as 3 miles) and thus was super heavy and weighed down that part of the earth, displacing the mass underneath it.
This ice sheet melted over the course of 10,000 years, but the earth that had been beneath it is still “rebounding”—that is, it is still quite a large depression that is slowly rising back up to what would be a normal level if the ice sheet had never been there. Because this depression still exists, that is the cause of the lower amount of gravity in that region of the planet.
Apparently, it turns out that both theories are correct. There’s mega convection going on beneath the earth’s surface under the Hudson Bay, but there’s also been a measured effect of the earth rebounding from the glacier. Though this rebound will take about 5,000 more years, the change that is occurring is prominent enough to be observed—the sea level, which is rising in other parts of the world, is noticeably dropping along Hudson Bay.
So yeah. Convection + Ice Age influence = Canada’s weird.
Cool, huh?
Today’s song: I Turn My Camera On by Spoon
Oh! Canada!
Holy crap, the Canadian dollar was worth more than the US dollar early this morning. Creepy.
And this, because I have nothing else to say for today:
Starts out slow, gets pretty interesting (and colorful) a minute or so in.
Today’s song: Technicolor by Tim Myers
Netflix, eh?
HOLY CRAP Netflix.ca has happened!
Awesome.
Also, here’s a quiz that told me what type of cheese I am. I’ve posted this before, but it was long ago and my cheesy ways have changed (I used to be brie).
Today’s song: Falling Inside the Black by Skillet
Eigenblogger 