Straight from the hearth

Lately I have been casually looking for a chateau, a new place with a good perch to view the stars. And it strikes me how similar house-hunting is to dating. You keep your eyes open, show a little interest and the interaction begins.

In each case, let's face it, looks are usually the first thing that catches the attention. And soon after, traits like personality (warm and inviting), interests (recreation and shopping nearby), job and social status (location, location, location, preferably in a good neighbourhood), and salary (a solid investment) become the focus.

And as with the buzz of excitement over a new flame, often hopes are dashed with the first real get-to-know-you session. (Hmmm, this is nothing like the photo ... the roof is missing some shingles, the street is really noisy and the backyard is kind of funny-shaped.) In these little dramas the real estate agent plays the role of matchmaker, like the best friend of the prospective paramour who trumpets all the virtues and plays down any shortcomings. (Well, yes, the master bathroom may be a little small, but don't you love the walk-in closets?) Maybe we're intrigued enough to arrange a second viewing or, if truly curious, a third one. After a while, the inevitable question arises: is this where I belong? Or should I keep looking?

To stretch the analogy a little, renting is sort of like living together, while buying a place is akin to getting hitched. And we all know about the seven-year itch. Like that attractive new co-worker who appears out of nowhere, sometimes an enticing development with granite countertops and a spacious deck springs up just down the street.

If, like me, you're thinking of moving on to a new abode, you must decide whether the grass is truly greener in the verdant garden of that beckoning property. Or is it worth the trouble and expense of starting over?

My place is kind of small, has too many stairs and no backyard. But I now realize I would miss my house. I enjoy seeing the big maple tree blossom, like the way the sun hits my bay window mid-morning, and have become fond of the quirky, lighthouse-like layout. Maybe, as with any relationship of nine years, mine just needs some renewed love and attention.

Maggie Wasn't Just On the Raggie

Margaret Trudeau has finally come forward in public to discuss her problems dealing with mental illness. Good for her in addressing her issues and getting the help she needed.

Maggie was always a celebrity around the household I grew up in. After she split up with PET, she moved to one of the tonier little streets in New Edinburgh. When friends and family were visiting from out of town, my mother would always want me to take them to see Maggie's little house as part of any tour of the sites around Bytown.

"She keeps a nice kitchen," I remember my Great-Aunt Hazel once saying as she peered through lace-covered windows.

So if you're reading this Ms. Trudeau, maybe it wasn't all in your head. It might have been one of my relatives you thought you saw that time.

Missing Our Muse

I am missing the 5M. I'm not saying she should come back. I support her in her new private life with R, and send her my best wishes. And, I am pleased that perhaps the ESIs -in some small way - played a part in getting her married off (ie. some ESIs suggesting she go on lavalife).

We must, however, move on to new blogs. We are, after all, metabloggers. There is much much work to be done. The problem is that in my cursory search for an interesting Ottawa blog, I have come up dry. I have identified several blog categories: hockey blogs (yawn!), hoser blogs, hoser/hockey blogs, smug married blogs, photo blogs, wanker blogs (but all bloggers are wankers...), knitter blogs (they are sweet, but how many pairs of socks can one look at...), self-absorbed/ignorant youth blogs (wankers in training). I'm sure there are plenty more, but this is what I've come up with so far.

In my quick search, I did see an interesting comment in the smug married category that suggests that bloggers are afraid to write what is REALLY going on in their lives: "...coming here and blogging all PollyAnna about how wonderful the children are and how great it is that the tulips are starting to poke up is just not me." (www.xerxia.blogspot.com). She says this, but - like most of us - is afraid to really put it all out there. Which is why we miss the Muse. She was brave enough to put it all out there.

Alphababble

So, I was trying to hold my tongue in just the right way to tweak the ol' rabbit ears around to the optimal orientation to snare CSI-NY outta the snowy ether last night, when the picture suddenly faded in, and I was hit with this glorious sampling of perverse obtusity: "Coming, tomorrow, in primetime on CTV, The O.C., followed by CSI and ER".

It was a revelation. I mean, this is Ottawa, and dog only knows the number of crackberry whores circling the parliamentary precincts, whose status, nay, very existence, hinges on their ability to quickly discriminate between largely meaningless-sounding acronyms like DFAIT, DIAND, JTF2 and, for all I know, EMU (but some of us coyotes fantasize a lot about eating large, flightless, free-range drumsticks, so that may just be me). They also need to be able sort out which ones are now current and which have been discarded in the neverending series of (also largely meaningless) governmental department shuffles.

Nevertheless -- and I say this as a canine fan of such dogs as NCIS, V.I.P., ET, 24, and even the NHL during playoffs -- we may have gone a little too far with the alphabet souping of civilization, when an entire on-air promo is devoted to an announcer spitting out a string of letters and trying to make them sound like must-see TV. Don'cha think it lacks elegance? LOL. Oops. That last thing just slipped in there... But then, as a member of a group of erstwhile metabloggers who style themselves in private conversation as ESIs, I probably shouldn't be too critical.

Back from the Beard-Off

Hi, everyone, I'm back from Germany. I didn't do well at the International Championship, but I picked up some tips for New York in two weeks.

Tip #1: You might think it's trite and derivative but the judges and the crowds love an architectural design.

Tip #2: Wear a tie that complements your design

The main thing for me now is to get ready for the World Championship in 2007.

[p.s. Let's not get into the politics and bad blood between the World Championship and the International Championship. I want to go back to the good old days when it was only about the beards.]

[p.p.s Even though I didn't make it to the podium, a big thanks to the Research Department for the help with the great nebula in Orion design. It's not your fault the judges had no appreciation for astronomy.]