Metrosexuals, bus passes, Chunky Soup, and the weather / Some Things I Can Do Without

Wow... lots of fireworks and firecrackers going off nearby.

I just got a PM from reebee (Marie) over at Our Place saying that she'd send me a neat gadget she just happened to come across. She wouldn't have thought much of it, but then she remembered my problem with pop-top cans. (detailed below) I didn't expect that... wow! People ARE good in this world! :D


Here's another random fact: in Mandarin / Cantonese, the word for "chicken" can also mean "prostitute." Poor Jessica!


The below was written on October 20, 2003. Bringing the archives to light sometimes is a GOOD thing! ;)

Metrosexuals

I was reading the archives of Spoz's Rant the other day. He had a list of 25 things he could really do without:

1. the common cold
2. waking up before noon
3. tampon ads
4. Law and Order
5. decaf / diet Coke / light beer / sugar-free / no added salt
6. being billed 100's of $'s for ringing mobiles from a landline
7. militant vegetarians getting in my face
8. sitcom "clip shows"
9. the price of beer increasing far beyond inflation
10. channel 9 celebrities
11. so-called "democratic governments" led by monkeys we hate but can't vote out
12. the 10+ spam mails I receive a day
13. centrelink interviews
14. cartoons at 5 AM when nobody's around to watch 'em
15. "copy controlled" CD's
16. banner ads in the middle of TV shows
17. excess snot
18. celebrity couple gossip
19. NME spawning yet another "saviour" of rock
20. the RIAA
21. yet another paedophile
22. metrosexuals
23. endlessly rehashing the 80's
24. reality TV overload
25. unnecessary sequels


After reading the list, I had only one question: what the heck is a metrosexual? I'd vaguely heard the term before, but was unsure as to what this actually was. So I asked him via ICQ, hoping like heck that his reply wouldn't go missing. (my ICQ is weird like that)

This morning when I got up, I turned on ICQ temporarily.. there was my answer!

"hmmmm.. the term "metrosexual" is a new invented catagory of males, invented by the fashion industry.. to try and sell cosmetics to men.. they're meant to be males who consider facials, manicures n shit like that.. to be really important.. they're the freaks who habitually wax their chest.. etc..

the main blame for this.. is some dude known as David Beckham.. (soccer player..)"

That definitely refreshed my memory. I had to tell him that I knew very well who David Beckham was, since my sister used to be infatuated with him. (partly because he was involved with Posh Spice Victoria Adams, and she LOVED the Spice Girls at that time)

I should do my own list of "25 things I could really do without".. maybe later today or something. Might be more than 25 things, too.. the last time I stole one of his blog ideas, I expanded upon it as is my wont. ;)



Bus Passes

I just checked my snail mail, which is no longer the experience it once was. (thank goodness!) Got my yearly bus pass application for next year. I will NOT fluff it up like I did next year.. in fact, I will check all my incoming mail very carefully for the rest of the year. My determination will be even more intense than it was in July, when I was escaping from someone's bad temper. (never mind that I don't talk to that person anymore) Indeed, it shall be set like fire and ice.. a bloody good combination, that.

For those of you unfamiliar with last year's travails: last year, I filled out the bus pass application and sent it in to Victoria with my fees for the pass. I expected my bus pass to arrive sometime within the next few weeks or so. When a certain tan-colored envelope came in the mail from the government, I disregarded it because I thought that was a "notice of cheque deposit" slip that I could throw away unopened.

It wasn't until a couple weeks later (Dec. 19) that I realized what I had done. (on a 98 B-Line bus ride home from Crankpots in City Square mall, between Aberdeen and Capstan Way) That was truly a dreadful realization.. I had to write a note saying I needed a replacement pass, and pay $10 as a replacement fee. Thank goodness I got the replacement pass a few weeks after that.. I only had to pay my way to Awana once. (and I never was much for going out during the week at certain times, anyhow)

One more thing: my mom thinks the bus pass is free. It is most definitely NOT free, which concept I've tried drilling in her head for years now. All right, so it costs $45 for the year.. that's CHEAP, but still not free. You'd think she would get it by now.. cheh.

My family also seems to think that taking the bus is more convenient because I have this yearly bus pass. I admit it is, but that still doesn't mean that I want to take the bus anytime / anywhere. It can still be inconvenient to take the bus somewhere because of a variety of factors.. this isn't magically erased because I have the pass. Sheesh.



Chunky Soup

I don't think I should buy Chunky Soup anymore. Sure, it's good stuff and everything.. but I just cannot open the new style of cans they have out now. (the ones with a tab at the top.. they kind of look like Hormel cans, to be honest!) Ah well, not much I can do about that. I think it's supposed to help you avoid using your can opener on these cans.. but the new style is hard for me. (yes, I tried it the other day.. I wasn't able to get a can open, and I suspect the soup in the can would fly all over if I *did* manage to get one open)



The Weather

I'm glad I'm staying in today.. there's heavy rainfall, wind, and flooding outside. (50 more millimetres of rain this afternoon?) In light of this, I'm seriously rethinking going to Boston Pizza tomorrow. Maybe I'll do it when the weather clears up.. though I haven't gone there since everything went down. Gotta take advantage of the "Pasta Tuesday" special at least once a month, after all. ;)


Some Things That I Can Do Without..

1. people telling me how I should feel or what I should do, regardless of my own feelings
2. simple misunderstandings that blow up
3. repeating myself endlessly.. people should LISTEN to what you have to say!
4. people bugging me over my disability
5. hate and injustice in general
6. stupid repeating commercials on TV
7. endless spam mail in my inbox.. no explanation needed
8. people who insist on eternal gratefulness when it's not called for (like my parents: "remember how they gave that up for you ten years ago?")
9. lectures from my parents.. sometimes, they DON'T know better than I do!
10. news of crimes against children (esp. sexual ones)
11. dodgy TV show / movie premises (yeah, like we're REALLY supposed to believe that the hero will make it through the war unscathed when there are zillions of enemy forces just waiting to blitz him)
12. things that don't live up to their hype (books, TV shows, movies, music, etc.)
13. viruses that hit you at the WORST time (both medical and computer ones)
14. sudden inconvenient changes of plans
15. dodgy baby names like Unique, Veal, Truth, Wisdom, Cappuccino, etc. (what is UP with that trend of naming your kid after food products and words in the dictionary?)
16. people who don't like me for no reason at all
17. violence against women and children
18. not being told things till the last minute (or not being told at all, because "you don't have to know about it".. well, I like being informed.. isn't that good enough?)
19. ads for certain dysfunctions while I'm watching TV
20. infant fatalities that could've been prevented
21. dodgy "easy-listening" artists, like Celine Dion
22. being continually reminded of past mistakes forevermore
23. not being able to talk freely with my friends
24. maddeningly SLOW people when I'm in a hurry
25. people who dash my expectations


So what are the things that bug YOU? (sometimes out of all proportion) Post them here, if you want.. or comment on my list.. doesn't matter to me!