So, Katie calls me today. Said the guy I am subletting from was called by the landlord and I’m told that I have to clear the sidewalks as a result of By-Law 82-12.

This was a surprise to me, because when I signed the sublet agreement and the guy showed me the rental agreement he adhered to, this was a duty that is covered by the landlord. However, it turns out that the landlord manages this property from Toronto (which seems like bullshit…how can you manage a property from a different city…if anything, you make money exploiting people from a property that you do jack shit on to maintain).

Anyway, as the only occupant of the house possessing a penis, it appears that the duty of sidewalk clearing falls to me. The thing is, I’ve received these instructions and there isn’t any real ice on the sidewalk. There is some dirt that is on the sidewalk, which makes it look like the snowfall is higher than it is.

Also, I have a ridiculously small shovel and another small shovel (very thin, rectangular shovel component). That is all they’ve provided me with. It doesn’t look like there is any salt for the ice, etc.

What pisses me off the most is that I have to be out shovelling usually before some plows go by, which means that I’ll go out and shovel my sidewalk and driveway, go inside and get dressed, go to the car, and be stuck in my driveway because the plow has blocked it up again.

How is that fair? I mean…the city wants me to take care of their property (the sidewalk) and yet they kick me in the face when it comes to maintenance of my own property. Thanks Waterloo.

I mean, if the sidewalk was my property, then I could understand clearing it. Of course, I would also restrict access to other pedestrians so that I didn’t have to put up with this shit. But it is the property of the City of Waterloo, and I have to clear it. It really sucks, and assumes that my time is less valuable (apparently) then the people that they pay and hire to plow streets. Furthermore, my roommates assume that my time is less valuable then theirs, so I’m getting kicked around plenty.

And I get that this is mostly to assist the mobility of pedestrians, specifically those who are disabled. But what happens if the occupant of a house is disabled? How do they know that I don’t have crutches or something? The whole by-law just seems wonky, and the fact that the duty falls to me alone really sucks balls.

And this is going to go on from January through to April.

Since I got two Wii points cards for Christmas, I figured I should finally get this game.

It is awesome. Old school platforming and shooting at its best. I love it.

It is so difficult though, and yet, I find myself not hating it. When I die, I just say “Alright, that tactic doesn’t work. But what about this crazy ass scheme.”

Other games would have me pulling out my hair…but Mega Man 9 is just good, old fashioned, video game fun.

Wii Ware has brought me more entertainment than any other gaming outlet.

http://www.gametab.com/news/2834089/

If you have a Wii or PC, and you haven’t got this game, get it.

It is akin to Portal in so many ways.

The humour. The physics. The visuals. The sound effects. Everything is perfect.

And for a game that only costs about 12 bucks, it has a surprising amount of depth to it. And most importantly, it is challenging. Also, you can play up to four players on the Wii, which makes playing the game somewhat easier, but may destroy your relationships with people.

Essentially, World of Goo has you building structures to solve puzzles. You build these structures out of tiny blobs of Goo. The Physics is very realistic. Build an unstable structure, it will collapse. Or fall over. Or roll away (if you made a sphere). The physics gets even more exciting when you start getting access to balls of Goo with realistic vector physics…and then there is planetary orbits in the mix…

This game made me drool. It is so much fun…I cannot express it.

And it is hilarious. Hilarious. Not since Portal have I been this entertained by the dark humour of a game.

Get it. Now. I’ll wait here.

I’m so close to getting my Christmas shopping done.

This year has been…staggering. I’ve bought gifts for more people than usual. I’m buying for eight people now. The five core Grant family members, my Grandfather (who lives with my parents now), my baby cousin Denise, and my girlfriend, Katie.

I’ve acquired most of the gifts, which was difficult because work keeps me busy from around 8:30 am until 9:00 pm with very little room for shopping at any point afterward. Some of the gifts were ordered from online (eBay or Thinkgeek) and other stuff I managed to find at Square One (which is on my route back to Waterloo).

I think that I have purchased items across all of the six categories of gifting. What are these six categories you ask? (Oh, you didn’t?) Well, I’ll tell you.

Granite’s Gift Giving Guide (and Alliterative Title Emporium)

Consumable

The tastiest gift of all! Consumables are anything that you can…consume. Chocolates, candy canes, baskets of Christmas meats and cheeses, or homemade preserves. Consumables are delicious Christmas gifts, although they enjoyment you can get from them is short-lived. Unless it is a jar of honey that you received from your aunt, which has somehow lasted for a year now, despite regular use.

Novelty

Hilarious and incredibly impractical. Novelty gifts are often cute little trinkets that - while entertaining - have no practical application and the longevity of these gifts is minimal. Bobble heads, hilarious fridge magnets, tiny Christmas ornaments that sing hilarious parodies of Christmas carols are all novelties. You’ll love them for a month at most, and forget about them for a while before they reappear when you’re rummaging through old boxes. Usually received as Secret Santa gifts due to those cursed price limits.

Usable

The broadest category of them all. Includes stuff from lotions and scented soaps for women to a rather large and completely awesome toaster oven for a young university student. Video game systems also fall into this category. All the gifts that I receive from immediate family tend to fall into this category, because I usually get games or some sort of appliance (my LCD TV and toaster oven were both Christmas gifts).

Clothing

In my opinion, the most risky choice for a Christmas gift, especially when shopping for a girl. :S
You get something that is the wrong size, and it doesn’t fit. The gift was a bust. You get something that is too large, they take offense to it. Believe it. It happened when my mother bought my cousin a shirt. Clothing is a dangerous path to tread for something like a Christmas gift, because it can go over well or incredibly poorly. And then you will be killed.

Sentimental

Gifts that may seem to fall into a previous category, but have some sort of emotional attachment to them. I would lump in gifts that little kids make their parents out of macaroni, but also something that someone mentionned they wanted months ago, and you just happened to discover it and have it nicely wrapped under the tree. If someone you hold dear collects something, and you find something perfect for their collection, this is the kind of gift that I think is sentimental.

Romantic

Anything with a precious metal or stone in it. A spa package. A weekend getaway to a romantic destination. Basically, anything that will get your partner all fired up is a romantic gift…although I don’t think flowers cut it on Christmas. It has to be something more substantial. I don’t know that guys ever receive romantic gifts…unless you are a fan of watches…and your woman is aware of this. :S

—

In conclusion, I am extremely bored covering a CS class that doesn’t need teaching, and this has helped me pass the time.

To the powers that be:

- R4 for my DS (never have to buy a game again)
- Wii Points Card
- Wario Land: Shake It! (for Wii)
- Rent for next term :S

That is all.