It seems that our society is just waiting for one wonder drug after another that will solve all our problems.

When people get depressed, there's Prozac; when old people can't get it up, there's Viagra; when you're obese, there are diet pills; when bacteria attacks, there are hordes of stronger and more powerful anti-biotics. Now there are even talks of pills that prolong life itself.

I wonder when the government will start prescribing Soma.

Another summer is quickly coming to a close. As the inevitable approaches, I don't know what to feel.

I've been here for three months, with only one more to go, but it's been an incredibly good three months that I don't really want to leave. On the other hand, it will be good to go back home and see the parents and friends.

The sunny days in Seattle are almost ending.

After reading this about silly Americans referring to Canada as Canadia, I realize that it's not only the interns at amazon.com who make that mistake.

America = American.
Canadian != Canadia.

No one comments anymore (not that they ever did), sigh.

Pop up windows are the devil. Whenever I load a webpage or click on a link, and the page doesn't show up within a respectable amount of time, it's because of pop-up windows. For some strange reason (probably the slow speed and memory limitations), my Win2k machine at work especially does not like pop up windows. It takes about half a minute before the page will load properly, and I despise waiting.

Windows pop up for three reasons that I can muster up:

1.) Pop up ads. Pop up ads are ridiculous. I can't stand them, expecially the ones for the X-10 camera. They're everywhere (yes, I know that even amazon.com has a pop up advertising their shipping), and frankly, they don't really do anything except annoy me. I don't think I've ever clicked through an ad, and actually bought something. They're not amusing (like some commercials), they're not effective, and they take up precious bandwidth.

2.) Clicking on a link that automatically opens in a new window. Personally, I don't really agree with this. Does anyone/corporation really think they're important enough that their page should be separate from anything they link to? If I click on a link, that means I have finished what I wanted to do on their website, and I'm ready to move on, otherwise, I could use the Back button that is omnipresent on all browsers, or use the magical right button that non-mac's have.

3.) "Right" clicking on a link and using the "Open in a New Window" feature. Someone should have a patent on this, possibly the greatest idea since Back and Forward. It allows me to keep a page active if I wanted to compare stuff, or follow a link on a page that's dynamically generated (and may not render properly if I used the back button). This is the ONLY reason (other than commenting on weblogs) that windows should pop up out of nowhere.

It's funny how memories from the past just come to the surface.

I used to hate needles when I was little. I still vividly remember my father literally dragging me up the stairs of the hospital at his university to get my shots when I was 2 or 3 years old. I would hang off of his hands as he lifted me a step at a time. Anything to prolong the time and distance from the needle in the behind.

I still don't like needles, but it's not so bad anymore.

Today I saw a woman on the bus with inch-long fake nails. I couldn't help but stare at them.

How do you do ANYTHING with nails that long? I guess I wouldn't really know, never having had nails that long myself. But I flinch as I try to imagine her opening a can of Coke, or type a letter, or heaven-forbid break one of her nails. Sometimes I just don't understand the things people do to "improve" their vanity.

For example, what is it with women (not all women thank god) and make-up? I understand if you have to go on stage, and need some make-up so the audience can see your face and mouth under harsh lighting conditions. But seeing young girls, adult professionals, and old women slap on the foundation and lipstick just freaks me out. Why can't people appreciate their face, instead of piling on pounds of chemicals everyday? Is it really that important to have perfectly trimmed eyebrows and zero visible blemishes?

And now there's plastic surgery (plastic surgery for a burn victim is beneficial, plastic surgery for a 40 year old is an excuse to blame every failure on looks alone) and botox. There used to be a time when wrinkles equaled knowledge, wisdom, and respect. But now everyone wants to look younger, more energetic, more alive. Well it doesn't help to only "look" alive if you don't feel alive, and if you felt alive, then you wouldn't need all the artificial means to make you "look" more alive.

I think people have to learn to enjoy themselves a little more. I can't wait until I have wrinkles and grey hair.

I can see another Oscar nomination coming up for Tom Hanks this year.

The Road to Perdition is a story about the mafia, family, and revenge. There is a fair amount of ruthless and coldblooded killings, and practically everyone dies. The points I liked about the movie were the cinematography (especially the ending, with the window, the camera, the ocean, so clean), and the effective use of sound and silence. There were some scenes that were made for Hollywood, and I'm amazed that no one got shot, but overall the movie was very good, and mostly coherent.

Make sure to bring some tissue for the ladies (or the gentle-men).

I have recently acquired two tickets to see the Tragically Hip in concert, August 24, Pier 62/63 in Seattle. Anyone want to come?

In light of recent accounting scandals, here's reassurance from the Lusty Lady: We Disclothes our Assets.

Roughly three months ago, I requested an email from one of my soon-to-be-married friends to send me some info about tux rentals/style numbers etc. He said that he'd send it the next day. I didn't receive it, assumed that he typed the email address incorrectly, and promptly forgot about it.

Today, after a weekend's absence from the internet, I checked my hotmail account, and there was an email sitting there, with the subject "Tux". I thought, hmmm, this is weird, is there something wrong with the tux rentals? After reading it several times over, I realized that this is the email he meant to send me, with the tux numbers and everything. Reading the email header showed that the message was sent on April 25th, and received July 19th.

For almost three months, this sequence of 0's and 1's was floating somewhere on the web, bouncing between routers and switches, and last Friday it finally found it's home, my inbox. I think I'll go and delete it now.

Made me laugh.

After doing a quick ego search, I have discovered that I am the third Ming Li on the list, right behind Ming Li and Ming Li.

Another piece of quick factoid, apparently Alexa is now owned by Amazon.com. And they have recently released their Top 500 List (I still think it's a little skewed).

I had the weirdest feeling today. For about 30 minutes or so, everything on my screen and my keyboard seemed so sharp and edgy (and not in the fashion sense, but in the literal sense). It was very pronounced, and it just stood out. I don't know how I came to that realization out of nowhere, but now everything is normal again.

Maybe I'm just imagining things.

Sometimes I wonder how efficient I am, and days like today just make me depressed.

It took me an entire day (10 hrs), to find one little problem that was messing up my builds. And I still don't have a long term solution yet (even though the code would be working if it did what it should). I have to do some further investigation, but for now, I'm leaving it until tomorrow. In the meantime, my hack will have to suffice.

I wonder if anyone else but me think that the apple switch ads are incoherent, dumb, and flagrant miscarriages of information.

Sarah Whistler: "I never understood how I was supposed to move things around, or open anything (while waving hands wildly). Even though I used it for years..."

If you used it for years and still don't understand the concept of click and drag, then I don't see how a mac would help you.

Ellen Feiss: "I was writing paper, on the pc, and then, it was, like, blipblipblipblip, and then, like, half my paper was gone, and I was like, mmmm?"

If it weren't for the obvious fact that she can't talk and seems completely stoned, I might give her some respect. But it's not like macs have never frozen up and lost someone's file before. In fact, I'm pretty sure every OS out there has done something like that.

Dave Haxton: "...we were lured by the iMac, then we looked at the operating system and said, wow ... we plugged it in, she answered 4 questions and she was surfing the internet."

Now this guy actually seems intelligent, forms his sentences correctly, and he's a programmer. He tries to portray the ease of use of the iMac, and does a good job. Except that the last time I bought a windows machine, I also answered about 4 questions and was surfing the internet, considering how the operating system for most pc's comes pre-installed.

Liza Richardson: "...I couldn't keep track of where everything was, or how things were filed..."

Last time I checked, Apple had directories and files just like everyone else.

I don't want to start a whole Apple vs. MS vs. Linux debate. But these ads have been irking me for the past couple of months, and that's made me resent Apple. I'm not saying that they don't make good stuff, or their products suck, but I believe in fair advertising, and these ads are implying an advantage where none exists.

More Weekend Pictures.

The weekend began with a three hour drive down I-5 and SR-504. The Johnson Observatory is situated at 4200' ASL, and directly in front of Mount St. Helens, the volcano that erupted in May of 1980.

As we drove nearer the eruption site, we can begin to see the devastation that was caused, with whole sides of mountains left barren from the molten lava and dust. Trees were blown over from the force, and the entire valley enclosing the mountain is still naked. New growths are spurting up, from moss to lupin to small trees further away.

Organizing a trip for 20 people and 5 cars is not as easy as I thought. From all the planning, to people saying that they'd come, and then saying that they can't come, to the ones that just didn't show up. But the majority of people were well behaved, and things went mostly to plan.

We went on a hike on the only trail that was available from the observatory. It gave some beautiful sceneries of barrenness and of Mount St. Helens. The mountain is missing its peak and half of one side due to the eruption, and the top is now perpetually snow-covered. We were exposed to the sun the entire time we hiked, since there were no trees, or shading. This led to much redness and burning later, but that's a whole different suffering.

After the hiking and picnic, some headed home, while 8 of us hardcores stayed on and did some camping. We have long prepared for this event, as some had even gone to K-mart and bought some cheap, multi-coloured sleeping bags. The tents were rented from REI (the US equivalent of MEC), and we had a trunk load of beer and other various alcohol. The evening quickly withered away as we became intoxicated by beer, life, and other unmentionables.

More driving = Mount Rainier, another picturesque mountain south of Seattle. We arrived in Paradise (literally), and started a little hike. All the trails were still mostly snow-covered, and there were people doing tricks on snowboards higher up the mountain. We couldn't go far because we had to rush back and return the equipment in order to avoid an extra day's charges. The store closes at 7 pm, and we got to it (after some swirving and cutting off of people on I-5) at about 6:57 pm. The rest of the car just jumped out and ran for the doors. I had to park, and when I finally walked up to the entrance, it was locked. Close call.

Good weekend.

Spotted today: President of Peru, Alejandro Toledo. Apparently he was meeting with Bill Gates this weekend. Well, okay, so I didn't actually see the guy, but I saw the unusually large procession of police motorcycles in front of the Weston, and an army officer decked out in golden lanyards. That, and someone told me the President of Peru was there.

Also spotted today, some guy laughing hysterically and clapping his hands. He had an unnaturally high pitched laugh, and I really couldn't tell what he was laughing about. He just burst out laughing on the escalator, and didn't stop the entire time I was watching him.

Spam of the Day:

From: uber@free-4you.com [mailto:uber@free-4you.com] On Behalf Of Rick Stanir
Sent: Friday, July 12, 2002 7:30 AM
To: mfli@hotmail.com
Subject: Where are you now?

I like candy!!

Disturbing Story.

What I saw in the subtitles of a show yesterday: "as long as you're friends don't come along".

When people who get paid to write and type can't even distinguish between "your" and "you're", it makes me wonder what this (English speaking) world is coming to.

Spam of the day:

From: your long lost friend [mailto:freelove4u@peopleweb.com]
Sent: Monday, July 08, 2002 9:34 AM
To: mfli@hotmail.com
Subject: Wonderful !really!

Hi we are luke's secret following we love luke fictitious!

We are also your long lost friend! Hi

This email has nothing to do with lukefictitious.com

We wil be putting up our very own fan site soon
and wanted to let you know in advance!

Have a beautifull day!

Random coffeeshop snippets:

drinking bubble gum soda
listening to rumbles
of motorcycles outside
myheart stumbles

I notice her sitting
as I look on
sketching him
singing his song

More Pictures.

Like someone else said, so ends the string of good movies I've been seeing. Men in Black II is mildly entertaining, but definitely not as innovative as the first. The jokes and scenes were put together like a standup comedian's act, random and sometimes incoherent. But I guess we don't go into a movie like that and expect a plot, only for the explosions and special effects.

At 88 minutes short, don't bother paying full price for this. Catch it at a matinee or rent it on DVD in a couple of months.

The alarm woke me up at 5:45 am. I had set it to 5:30, but must have unconsciously pressed snooze several times. After the standard triple S, and eating a couple of NutriGrain (tm) bars for a balanced and healthy breakfast, I was off to the Clipper. The Clipper is a ferry company that runs hydrofoils between Seattle and Victoria, for a hefty price tag. But considering they have the monopoly on ferries between the two cities, and my other choices were figuring out a way to get to Port Angeles, or bussing it to Vancouver, and then taking another ferry, I choose the easiest, and of course, the most expensive route.

Three hours later I was looking at Victoria. I met Jenn and her roommate Kim as soon as I cleared customs. Jenn is in the Navy, and she is also the reason I must go home (as in Thunder Bay) this summer.

Victoria is a quaint little city. The downtown core is filled with little specialty shops and way too many Christmas stores. The first attraction we visited was Butchard Gardens. The entrance fee was a ridiculous $20. There were a lot of flowers though. The rose garden was organized by variety, and they all had artistic names like the Barbara Bush and Michaelangelo. The Japanese garden had little waterfalls throughout, and some semi-bonsai trees, while the Italian gardens reminded me of Versaille.

I had a craving for hot dogs as we were leaving the gardens. But my rational mind took over, and prevented me from buying the $4 hotdogs on sale at the food court. Instead, we rode the bus back into town, and bought some $3 hotdogs from a street vendor. How's that for being thrift?

At the Imax we saw Space Station, narrated by Tom "He's so Sexy" Cruise. It was shot by astro/cosmonauts in space, and was mildly entertaining. Except my sleep-deprived companions kept on nodding off throughout the movie. But they were soon cured by the Ridiculous Bellinis (frozen alcohol mixes in fishbowls) at Milestones, where the sun was glaring and burning.

Evening came, and I had no choice but to tag along and listen to a singing guy whom they all thought was hot at a coffeeshop. He was good, I must admit, but some beers would have helped the cause. Late night was spent on the base ranting and drinking beer.

Morning came and went, and I introduced some Dim-Sum virgins the joys of Chinese cuisine. But the rest of the day was lulling around downtown, and crawling in and out of little shops.

On the ferry back, the girl who sat beside me had the most amazingly beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen. It turns out that she was actually interning at Microsoft, and knew one of the interns here at amazon. Small world.

Sitting in the office again after a one day hiatus for Independence Day celebrations.

We first stepped onto our roof at around 12:30, and found all the tables already had other people's stuff on them. So we took initiative, and commandeered a table for ourselves. It took guts, but we were working on ours. Us amazon people don't take no for an answer.

The attendance to our party was lagging at the beginning. I suppose no one wanted to start drinking at noon, and the raining certainly didn't encourage anyone either. But that didn't stop us hardcores. It was like St. Patrick's Day all over again, minus all the green.

As the day passed by, and the sun settled over the mountains, the hundred or so people gathered on the roof eagerly awaited the fireworks to begin. As we all waited, we saw small fireworks popping up from all over across the water. Some drunkards on our roof were also sporadically shooting off screamers and firecrackers.

Then it began, and we "woooo'ed" and "wow'ed" for 15 minutes, and headed downstairs. I was so tired, I almost passed out on the couch. I had just enough left in me to stumble to my bed.

Ten hours of beer and periodic sun exposure equals one long sleep. And now I'm at work again.

I promise, pictures to come soon.

Sometimes I think I'm too pretentious. Then other people show me what pretentious really means.

As he looks out the beveled window in his office, all he sees are parallel lines of green and beige and black. The door-desk is splattered with useless pieces of paper, notepads, junkfood, and a perforce cheat shirt. The lights are dim, typical of the tech company atmosphere, and he's too lazy to turn on the desk lamp. But he does notice the reflection of the Canadian flag on the wall he put up days ago through the shiny reflective black surface.

Another day of work gone. Did he do anything useful? Maybe, perhaps, possibly. It's almost July 4th. What is he going to do? What about the weekend? Howcome noone emails me? He floods his mind with unanswerable questions, and drones back to work.

make, build, make clean, perl ...

The white cap of the water is rushing towards me, my paddle hitting nothing but air, feeling the raft buckling underneath me, then a splash of near-freezing water, and it's calm waters again. But the freezing water still clings to the wetsuit, the puddle in my booties are making my feet numb, and the adrenaline is pumping to ready me for the next rapid.

We arrived the afternoon prior. Some were complaining about the possible lack of television, and missing the most important game of the world cup. But the small 14" tv at the site proved useful, and all were overjoyed. Games of makeshift volleyball, frisbee, cards, and Jenga were played and forgotten. Some amount of alcohol was consumed to battle the freezing country night.

Some girls fondling a five-foot inflated penis at the neighbouring cabin caught the attention of some. They were also flashing the beer indulgers from time to time. A little expedition proved fruitful, and the mysterious nymphs turned out to be a bunch of girls gathered for a bachelorette party. Some of us did get in trouble, and upset some people inadvertently, but that's better left for another discussion and apology.

As the evening progressed and darkness surrounded the campsite, I retired to the rows of reclusive three-men tents, only to be awoken at 6 am by the cheers of soccer-fans at the first Brazilian goal. I stumbled out of my warm sleeping bag, and saw the second goal, as well as the end of game celebrations. But the stiff coldness proved to be too much even for this weather-beaten Canadian, and I promptly went back to bed.

After breakfast and getting dressed in wetsuits (of which mine had a hole in the most inopportune position), we marched out to the rafts and got some last-minute training. The seven rafts left shore and began the journey downstream. The 15 mile trip seemed to fly by, except for the frequent stop-and-waits to regroup and rescue overturned rafts. My raft, to our surprise, did not flip, and not a soul fell out. Others were not so lucky, and the 42 degree (sorry, 5 degrees celcius) water could not have been that accommodating.

The hottub removed the numbness in my feet, and made my fingers look like prunes. But all was good in the end, and tiredness took over as soon as I hit the couch at home.