The Bloor line workaround doesn't work today!

I've long been an advocate of taking the subway down to Bloor rather than using a bus to cross between the Yonge and U-S lines. But don't try that today! Subway traffic is SO slow south of Eglinton because they have to keep turning the trains!

However, if you want to cross at Sheppard, take the York University Rocket (not the Sheppard bus).

The ethics of newspaper delivery

Apparently if you subscribe to the Toronto Star and you don't get a newspaper and you report this and ask them to credit your account, they'll deduct $5 from the carrier's pay. This blog mentioned it, and someone (who I don't know very well, but would be in a position to know) told me so IRL.

This seems wrong, especially considering that the paper costs like $1 each in store, and the Star seems so eager to sell me subscriptions at under $1 a week.

I'm not sure how I feel about this.

I am a high school graduate

You paid attention during 100% of high school!

85-100% You must be an autodidact, because American high schools don't get scores that high! Good show, old chap!

Do you deserve your high school diploma?
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I have no idea what that immaculate conception question was doing there though. It seems a bit esoteric and unnecessary, even if you take into accoutnt the possibility of a Catholic education.

Least memorable book ever

Just before I moved, I finished a book of short stories. I wanted to blog about it because I'm really trying to get back in the habit of blogging what I read, but I can't remember the title! Or the author! Or the contents of the stories! I think there was some adultery, and maybe a yoga class, and maybe an old man, but I'm not entirely certain.

So obviously they weren't terribly memorable stories. Unfortunately I can't even tell you the name or author so you can avoid them.

How to photograph your puppy

If you're photographing a puppy (or anything else that's cute because it's small), pose it with some everyday object so people can get an idea of scale. For example, I thought that this puppy was cute, but didn't realize how small she was because she's shaped basically like a grownup dog. But then I scrolled down and saw the picture with the big yellow dog, and then the picture further down with the blue chair, and went "OOOH!" in a strange squeaky voice because she's so much smaller than I originally thought.

So use props to show just how adorably little your adorably little photography subject is.

Really. It's a rule.

Emerald Movers & Storage

The moving company I ended up hiring was Emerald Movers & Storage, and I was quite happy with their work. The receptionist was very reassuring, knew who I was when I called, and was able to answer all my questions. The movers showed up on time, and were quick, efficient, strong, competent, and all business. They walked in and immediately started moving my boxes to the elevator. They wrapped up all my furniture in protective padding, and everything came out on the other side perfectly intact. Then they drove over to the new building and put everything back just as efficiently, taking all their padding and wrapping away with them. They required no supervision except for instructions on where to put stuff in the new apartment. They also behaved with complete propriety at all times. My mother was there most of the time, but at one point I was alone in an elevator with these two extremely tall and strong men, (I had to look up at them, and I don't normally have to look up at people), and I was not at all uncomfortable. The move came in under time and under estimate (although I think they overestimated the estimate for that very reason). It took a total of three hours to move my 500 square foot one-bedroom apartment a very short distance.

Now, if you're doing your research on Emerald, you might encounter a few things that could be interpreted as red flags. First, they point potential clients to HomeStars.ca where they have many positive reviews.* However, they have so many more positive reviews than any of the companies, so it really comes across as fake. I can't vouch for the accuracy or inaccuracy of these reviews, but they are consistent with my experience. (This is why I choose to review here, in an independent medium where you can see that I am, in fact, an individual.) Second, they are not a member of the Canadian Association of Movers. I asked the guy who gave me my estimate about this (he also ended up being one of the actual movers - I don't know if this is normal practice or not) and he didn't have an answer for me right away, but he did call me back the next business day with the explanation that CAM is geared more towards large moving companies and Emerald is small. Again, I cannot vouch for the accuracy or inaccuracy of this statement, but I have no reason to believe it's false, and the question was handled in a way that was consistant with perfect transparency. Thirdly, the truck they used didn't say "Emerald" on it, it was from Penske truck rental. I didn't get a chance to get a full explanation of this. I don't know whether or not it's normal practice, I did notice that they don't have any trucks on their website, but my move did go perfectly smoothly despite the fact that the truck didn't have the moving company's name on it.

Rereading this post, I just realized that, by saying that they were competent and did their job as expected, I may come across as damning them with faint praise. That is not my intention. It's just that I've heard so many horror stories about movers that I'm extremely happy that everything went smoothly. I can't say that Emerald went above and beyond for me, but it's not like they had the opportunity, because my move was extremely simple as moves go (if I had muscles and a car, I would have done it myself). As it was, nothing whatsoever went wrong, so I'm happy.

I would recommend Emerald without hesitation, and, as a youngish woman living alone, I would not be uncomfortable hiring these guys even if there couldn't be anyone else present on moving day.

*Edited to add: a couple weeks after my move, I received an email from Emerald thanking me for my business and suggesting that I review them on Homestars. So that's probably why they have so many more reviews than everyone else - because they actively point their clients there.

Cervical cancer vaccine acquired (at age 26)

Despite the fact that I'm too old, my doctor has consented to administer the HPV vaccine!

I was in her office for a scheduled appointment for another matter when I asked her whether there was any possibility of giving me the vaccine. She said we'd need to schedule another appointment to discuss my risk factors, so I did so. That appointment was today. She asked me about whether I've had abnormal pap smears and about my sexual history, and in light of the information acquired there said that she could allow me to have it. Then she brought up the fact that my future risk of acquiring HPV is low, so is the vaccine really necessary. I asked what specific risks there were to taking this vaccine, and she said that there were none that they know of (apart from the usual potential for your body reacting to the vaccine) but long-term effects are still unknown. She didn't have anything specific to warn me about and didn't seem to be trying to dissuade me, she just seemed to be making sure I had all the information. It felt like she was leaving the decision up to me.

So I decided to do it, she gave me the prescription, and I will be getting my first shot in early May.

I'm not going into detail about my personal risk factors, because I don't know how different risk factors would affect one's chances of getting the vaccine. That's really something to talk to your doctor about.

So how do you get in to talk to your doctor? (If you haven't been following my saga, that was the first problem - I'd been trying since last August but couldn't get past the receptionist because she'd never heard of it.) If you're having the same problems as me, don't ask the receptionist about the HPV vaccine or Gardasil or the cervical cancer vaccine, just get into the doctor's examining room by whatever means necessary, and then ask the doctor there. I know it's considered necessary to tell the receptionist why you need the appointment, but if that doesn't work the receptionist's attitude isn't necessarily the same as the doctor's. I was just completely unprepared for the receptionist not knowing what I was talking about and then limiting her actions based on her own knowledge.

Done

The move went successfully, despite my ridiculous exhaustion. (Lesson learned: take nyquill before bed the night before you move. The showerhead is still in question. Any recommendations for specific hand-held showerheads with good water pressure?

More later, including a full review of the moving company.

freaking out

i'm surrounded by boxes and i hate it.

the water pressure in my new shower needs viagra. i'm particularly pissed since the leasing agents assured (sp???) me that there's good water pressure on every single floor and there's no need to worry about the details of construction because construction is so very very l33t that there's good water pressure on ever floor, and now the water pressure int he shower sucks. in a paricularly painful bit of irony, the water pressure in the sink and the kitchen are both fine, it's just the shower that needs viagra. I was so very very confident that the new apartment is better and that's why it's worth all this trouble and then the water pressure sucks and long hot showers are part of my raison d'etre so i don't know what to do now. Plus I saw an air conditioning truck outside the building today which make me nervous that the a/c doesn't work because the whole building is a greenhouse without the a/c. If it's not as better as i thought, especially at the prices I'm paying, I think I'm going to cry.

Anyone know any brands of handheld showerheads that give you like major major intense water pressure?

Also, I diligently finished off a bottle of wine tonight (since, like, it's heavy and breakable and liquid and it's good to use up bottles instead of moving them) so if I sent you any emails tonight it might not make sense and that's why.

I just want it to be over. Hopefully by this time tomorrow I will be and I'll be sleeping the sleep of the physically exhausted in my own bed in my brand new apartment.

I don't know how people ever manage to move huge distances or plan weddings or anything like that. Moving this ridiculously short distance is stressful enough for me.

Ineffective ads

There was a blurb in the Toronto Star about new ads to raise awareness of violence against women. They're supposed to be attention- grabbing.

Problem: I skimmed right over it without paying attention.

Why? Because the graphics of the ad look similar to the graphics of ads for dance or theatre performance or art exhibits - the kinds of ads you see in the Weekend Review section of the Globe and Mail. The word "Abuse" is in similar position, font, and size to the name of the performance or art work, the statistics are laid out similarly to the review blurbs, and the green bar at the bottom is similar to the information about where the piece is playing and how to buy tickets.

I don't know if this was all intentional, but when I saw the picture without reading it, my brain processed it as an ad for performance or art. And I'm not interested in seeing a play or dance piece or art exhibit about a beaten-up pregnant woman, so I ignored it. It wasn't until the third or fourth time my eye passed over it that it occurred to me that it was an article in the newspaper, not an ad.

I don't think it's very attention-getting to make an ad look like a different kind of ad.

How much does marijuana cost?

Apparently the federal government is charging patients a 1500% markup for medicinal marijuana. The prices they cite are $150 for a 30g bag.

Anyone know how this compares with street prices for recreational use? I have no frame of reference, but I think that would be a useful comparison.

Feel free to comment anonymously if you prefer.

Predictions

Leaky lets you record you predictions for Book 7, so I have done so. Note: I suck at literary analysis, and my predictions reflect that.

Civil unions

So apparently in New Jersey they legalized "civil union" for same-sex couples but refused to call it marriage. And then same-sex couples with civil unions (we really need a more concise way to say that) have had trouble sharing spousal benefits with their partners.

Has anyone heard anything about people having similar problems here after they legalized same-sex marriage in 2003? I never heard anything either way, but I don't know that many same-sex married couples and those I do know aren't close enough for me to bring this up in conversation. It seems to me that at least some people and/or computers would have problems with it initially - I mean it would be way cool if everyone in Ontario just reacted with complete business-like sangfroid when Mike came into HR to put his husband on his insurance, but there are some people out there who really have trouble with the concept. But I didn't hear about anything. Is the word "marriage" really powerful enough to make everything run smoothly? Or did the problems just not make the news here?

Shoes

I'm giving six pairs of shoes to charity. "Six pairs!" you're thinking. "Shoe whore!" you're thinking. "Obviously your feet can't be as hard to fit as you say they are," you're thinking, "if you have six extra pairs of shoes to give away!"

But it's not that these are extraneous pairs of shoes that are the result of consumerist impulse purchases. Rather, it's that they've been superseded. The flat black Mary Janes were replaced with a significantly more comfortable pair of flat black Mary Janes. The black ankle boots were replaced with a pair of black ankle boots that was taller and unlined. The black sandals were replaced with a more comfortable pair of black sandals that is also less unfashionable. The brown hiking boots that are from 1994 and look it were replaced by a pair of brown sneakers that's from 2006 and looks it. I've been wearing the same shoe size for about 15 years, and while every pair of shoes I've purchased was the best possible option at the time I bought it, but a better option turned up in later years.

Things They Should Invent: realistic supervision in children's books

When I was a kid, I read a lot of children's and young adult books. But the kids in those books always seemed to have way more freedom than me. Despite the fact that they lived in the suburbs, they could get places by walking or biking. They could have adventures or romances after school, because they never seemed to have to take a schoolbus, or to have parents who would worry if they were home 20 minutes late. They could go over to a friend's house without asking permission (or, if they did ask permission, the answer would always be yes), they could have private conversations on the telephone without being overheard, they could poke around in the attic without the parents coming and asking why they're poking around in the attic, and they could sneak out of the house without getting caught. They could babysit at 13 or easily get any other job the plot required them to. When their parents went out to do boring grownup stuff, they always left the kids at home alone so the kids could forward the plot unsupervised. None of this rang true in my own life, and it was very frustrating to me that my life at age 8/11/13/16 was never as free as that of the protagonists in my books.

While I can understand why the author would do this for plot purposes, I think it would be very interesting to see children's/YA books where the kids are fully supervised. They have to take the schoolbus to and from school, they have to get a ride to go anywhere else, they always have parental supervision when at home or when going out in public, their parents forbid them from going over to a friend's house if the friend's parents won't be there, parents can tell approximately where everyone is and what they're doing in their own home (you can usually do this if you've lived in a house for several years, unless the it's a particularly large or especially well soundproofed house), the parents sometimes make plans for the kids that prevent the kids from doing what they want to do at that particular time, and if the kids bend or break the rules they get caught a reasonable amount of time, with corresponding loss of parental trust. Then take all these limitations, and create a decent plot within them.

You know you're a langling when...

Last week, I diligently packed up all my books, CDs, and DVDs in boxes, so I could feel all productive and self-satisfied. Ever since then, I've been missing my dictionaries! I keep thinking of things I want to look up, and I can't because they're all in the bottom of a box somewhere. These aren't important things or work-related things, I'm not in a situation where there's any immediate need to communicate something in another language. I just keep thinking of things that I'd like to look up.

For example, I once coined the phrase "el mambo abrir la puerta" for the little hip-swivelling thing you do to open the door hands-free when you're wearing a security pass on your belt. Just now, it occurred to me that it might be better to use a noun form of abrir, parallel to "de l'ouverture de la porte" (as opposed to "ouvrir la porte"). But I forget how to noun verbs in Spanish (I know, I know, but I only have two years of Spanish and that was five years ago.) Normally I'd reach for the dictionary, look it up, and get on with my life. But it's not quite worth unpacking a whole box for.

And I do this at least twice a day! I never realized how dependent on my dictionaries I am!

A story about a donkey

Read this!

It's a story about a donkey. And I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! Now THAT'S writing!

New Rule: interest rate assumptions

Often when people are talking about or writing articles about financial planning, they blithely assume that you can earn interest at rates that seem unrealistically high to me. This harms the credibility of everything they say - why would I take investment advice from someone who assumes I can just wander in and get 20% interest?

So here's an exercise to make sure your interest rate assumptions are reasonable.

You: "...so if you invested that at X% interest..."
Me: "Okay, suppose I gave you my life's savings to invest, and we signed an airtight, no-loopholes, no escape contract for you to give me (X-1)% of the principal every year. You can keep any extra interest you earn, but you have to give me (X-1)% every year even if you don't earn that much. Would you accept that agreement?"

If the answer is yes, then you can go ahead and use that interest rate example. If the answer is no, choose a lower rate. If the answer is yes only because you are so freaking rich that you could easily absorb the yearly loss of (X-1)% of my life's savings, add another zero or two to the amount of my life's savings and try again.

"I'm not a racist"

First Michael Richards, and then some US radio guy I've never heard of. They publicly make racist remarks, and then when they're called on it say (entre autres) "I'm not a racist."

But you know what? If you're not racist, those thoughts don't even occur to you. Really. They just aren't in your active vocabulary. When your brain reaches for something to say, even in anger, they aren't in the pool of things to choose from.