One ring to rule them all...

Yeah, I know that quoting Lord Of The Rings is nerdy but it seems fitting in this case since engineers are usually thought of as nerds and as of tomorrow I will be a nerdy engineer wearing a ring. And like the ring in the movie, this ring will cause me and all the other enginerds I graduate with in a month to think that we rule the world too. Why is it that engineers get it in their heads that they are all powerful? I'm not sure why that is but I will make a promise...after a grace period of a week or two I, Mike Tenove, promise to be a humble engineer. Some of you may laugh now but it's because I've had the realization that people in other fields are competent in what they do too. (Even biologists...Lorin).

I hang out with mostly engineers but every once in a while I get to mix it up a bit with other faculties. Last night I was out with my coed volleyball teammates after losing our quarter final game (not by much) for some beer, pizza, and karaoke. One is in science now with the goal of getting into physiotherapy, the other is in her third year of nursing (the rest are geers). Sure it's nice to talk about myself but it was interesting to listen to what they said about their own faculties for a while. Maybe I do need another degree. I'm not going to go all artsy but another science based degree might be nice. It really sucks that we only have one lifetime to get it all figured out.

Anyway, tomorrow afternoon I get my Iron Ring. Yes I will party hard after. I will clink my pinkie ring on my beer bottle. I will high five Luke repeatedly. And if the last two nights are any indication (we finished mens vball on Wednesday and went up to RATT for beer, food, and karaoke) lose my voice. I am a sick person right now but it's not from the beer! I think it's from lack of sleep, lots of exertion, and a few cold walks outside. I'll heal soon (I always do) and be right back in the mix tomorrow!

What I "saw" today...

I had a very interesting experience this morning on the walk to school. Walking on the sidewalk near the Earl's on 112 St I was about to pass a lady who was blind and carrying a cane. What can I say? I walk faster than most people...ask Nevin. Anyway, the spot where I passed her was particularly icy and she slipped and fell right beside me. I quickly took off my headphones and helped her up asking if she was okay. She wasn't hurt but was more concerned with the knees of her pants. "Are they ripped? I sure hope not." They were fine and then she also asked me if I would mind walking her up the rest of the block and across the street. Of course I said "yes". This was a very good idea because with the melting and freezing lately, any shady areas (like this particular stretch of sidewalk) are very icy. It was a bit slower pace but I managed to lead her by the arm (had great practice during Queen's Ball in high school).

We had a great conversation for the next half of a block. Mostly about how many times she had already fallen this morning and how embarrasing it is to have to pick yourself up. She also told me how it's particularly tough when she falls crossing a street because she is a bit disoriented after falling and there are no edges for her to feel to get her bearings (damn those painted lines). I was also wondering to myself, "if she's fallen so many times on this walk, why am I the first to pick her up?" By coincidence I got a partial answer to that question in my management class this morning taught by Dr. Flynn. (My parents saw him Saturday night at my MecE grad and I'm sure many others know who I'm talking about). We are discussing psychology now and he talked about a human social behavior that's been tested many times on how we are more likely to act when no one else is around and less likely when there are others. For example, if someone appeared to be having trouble swimming in the ocean, they are more likely to be rescued if there is one person walking along the beach than if there are 30 people standing on the beach. The one won't care about others, they will rush in. With 30 a person will start to look around and wonder "why isn't anyone else doing anything? They must know something I don't. That person is probably okay". People don't want to stand out so much. What if swimmer doesn't need help? Would they be mad if someone swam out to "save" them? So if the girl I met this morning had fallen in a large group would it take longer for one of them to step forward to help her up? I think the answer is yes. That's what we do. I don't think I had a chance to think about others watching me. She fell right beside me and it was a reaction just trying to catch her before she hit the ground. All the same, I don't think I would have been any more hesitant to lend a hand if I knew of others watching. Probably something I picked up from my lifeguard training but I like to think I'm just a good person.

The next thing I started to wonder about after we parted ways was how did she first orient herself to this university? What would it be like to start navigating a new area? Who helped her and how did they go about doing this? What would I do if I was introducing a blind person to the university? I love maps so I think that's where I would start. I'd take a nice big map of the campus and make it tactile. I would put strips along all the major roads. Maybe fabric cut out to the shapes of the buildings. I would ask them how they get to school each day and start my tour at the first place they step on campus. (ex. the bus stop, the LRT station, 87th Ave) I would really concentrate on giving them an idea of the whole university before even stepping into a building. I guess mostly it would take practice and experience on their part. Just having long walks where we talk about anything, throwing in the odd "where are we now?" question would help a lot. Eventually I'd get them to lead and describe what building they're beside or what direction we were heading. I'm actually interested enought that I think I'm going to look into the realy program that the U of A has in place for aiding the visually challenged. I don't think I'm going to volunteer as an ambassador for the last 3 weeks that I'm here but maybe in Calgary in the future it's something I could get involved in.

Anyway, class time. By the way, I took 198 pictures and 4 videos at my grad ceremony on Saturday night. Can't post all of them but look to see a few up here soon. Need a copy of the pictures? Talk to me in a week when I've got more from some other grads and have put together a complete record of the night. (I know some people are missing certain periods of time later in the evening...maybe this will help)

Painful pecs...

I'm sure all of you knew that "the checklist" I made a few weeks ago was just too ambitous. I'm actually doing okay with most of it but it's the workouts that I can't alwasy check off. I think I am doing that amount of work each week but it's always in other forms. Just got back from the gym now actually. Today and Tuesday were my trial runs of my new workout routine adapted from one in a Men's Health magazine (seriously good mag). The best thing about this workout is that I have all of the equipment here at my apartment minus the cardio machine. Doing it at the university gives me a good 30 minute weight lifting workout followed by 20-30 mins on the bike (I'm working my way up on the cardio time). The best part about this is that I do the same thing every time. No more thinking about what day it is (chest? back? legs?) and really I'm just buffing up a few muscles before I go jump on the bikes up stairs and sweat my ass off. I just needed to take the thining out of it...do enough of that the rest of the day.

A piece of advice to all of you. If you're on the fence about going to see the new movie "V for Vendetta", don't go. We went last night and the flick was just plain boring. There are some neat scenes, interesting ideas, hot views of Natalie Portman, but mostly you're looking at a guy wearing a mask....talking. Of course you can't see his mouth moving but his head just tilts side to side as he talks and talks. He's in love with his own voice. There's a few other things I had a problem with but that's the main one. Use your money for something else. Mike out.

Midterm madness...

I have so many mixed emotions right now...it's hard to sort through. Firs, the GREAT news. I just wrote my LAST MIDTERM EVER!! That's right, it's just finals from here on out...maybe it's not all great news. Anyway, it was our second midterm in our advanced strength of materials class; a class that I've been freaking out over ever since I enrolled. I aced the first one in February and to prepare for this one my friends and I were doing the assignment questions over and over until we pretty much had them memorized. Get to the test today: 2 questions...both exactly from the assignments. WHAT THE HELL? Is it really that easy? Is he tricking us somehow? Where's the little twist? This was the hardest easy exam I ever wrote. I finished it in 10 minutes and spend another 30 checking it over. Was it supposed to be that easy? And if so, how dumb am I going to look if I get something wrong.

Anyway, talk about midterms, especially in that class, is very boring. On to more interesting things. I'm starting to work on a new blog for recording my trip to Thailand. My goal right now is to find some sort of mapping system so that you can follow our trip. I'd like to have our waypoints marked out on a map of Thailand and hopefully in a way that you can click on that point and go to the blog entry for that day. Lots of cool things to design and I finally have some free time to do it. I just know I'm going to turn into some kind of athletic super-nerd down in Calgary. My hobbies are going to be sports (of course), web-page design, and photography. Guitar seems to be getting lost at the moment.

One more adult in the world...

I just want to start off saying Happy Birthday Carly. My cuz down in Calgary is 18 today. That is truely a milestone. I don't remember doing much for my 18th though. I'm sure mom whipped up a great cake (she always does) and I probably got a couple presents but never did what most 18 year olds do...pass out at some bar for (maybe) the first time. I did go out for a beer after my hockey practice that night with a couple friends (who were 17) but it was months later when I finally put my valuable ID to use. Rumor has it though that Carly is coming up to E-town this weekend for a celebration. Sweet.



Wakeboarding lessons

I think for me that my 16th was a much bigger day. I remember the first time I drove into town on my own, no parents. I was pretty excited knowing this freedom would change my life. Right now I don't even keep my car with me and only drive it once every two months. Hmm...maybe the beer drinking was more life changing. Ooh, and the voting, can't forget the voting.

Healing tape...

Injuries suck. Not only do the hurt then but they take you out of commission for a period of time after too. I would rather have an injury be 10 times more painful when it happens (don't worry, if it would be incredibly painfull you'll just pass out) than have it affect me for 10 days after. It looks like I may have one of those injuries now. Last night I rolled my ankle playing volleyball at the U. It's the third time in the last month and I think that there's a reason it's becoming more frequent. The ligaments get stretched and take a while to tighten up again (confirmed by my dad) so basically my ankle is loose. It'll take about 6 weeks to heal properly but I don't have 6 weeks. In fact my next volleyball game is tonight. I just can't bring myself to sit out when it seems so minor...I've never had a bad injury that has put me out of anything. So tonight I think I'm going to learn how to use the "healing tape". You know, that white stuff you see all the varsity athletes wearing daily. I hope hockey stick tape is a suitable substitute.

I don't really know the technique but I did a bit in high school and I'm sure with that and my great engineering skills I can come up with something. I know which way I DON'T want it to roll. We'll see, tomorrow I may be posting asking people to come sign my cast.

Question of the Day: Have you ever had an injury put you out of action? I know Nevin has had several...but he doesn't read my blog so I'm not sure if we'll hear about them.

Another snow day...

Well it sure dumped on us yesterday. Good thing I didn't plan to go out...or at least that's what I thought in the morning. Just after noon Kyla, Nevin's girlfriend, gave us a distress call from her house down in Southeast Edmonton. She was stuck. What gets me the most is she didn't even TRY to do anything about it. :) Just kidding, Kyla. She was out in the snow working with her car and helping her neighbours for a couple house before we got there. Anyway her car was safely parked when we showed up but we were still able to help push a couple other cars.



This is my street in Edmonton.

The roads are just terrible for driving on. I feel bad for anyone who has to be out today...like those pizza delivery guys. Tip them well. If it's still like this on Monday Kyla says she's not going to work...I wish I could do that with school. Unfortunately it would take much more snow for me to use that as an excuse.

Anyway, boring day of studying ahead for me. Finished most of my assignments, things are looking good for this week. Peace.

Hockey on the border...

The hockey tournament this past weekend in Paradise Valley was a great success. We managed to win the B Pool on Sunday with a final record of 2-1. It makes me miss the home town rink back in Nanton. PV's rink is in a small quansit with a few tiny dressing rooms, a concession, and only three rows of seats. We almost missed the first game on Saturday. Slippery roads on the way out had me driving a bit slower, only got stuck in Nevin's driveway for a couple seconds. We lost the first game but won the shoot out after which I think is more important. Regardless of who wins the game, there's a shootout after and the winner gets a case of beer. We only had an hour and a half to finish the beer before the next game against a PV home team. We beat them AND took them down in the shoot out. I had a pretty nice goal, easy when there's no defence in the way. So we had another case of beer, plus the beer we brought and a very short time before we were heading out to Lloydminster to party...have to drink fast.



Cheers to free beer!

I don't remember much else from this night. Luke's brother, Adam, called to say he'd just got engaged out in Jasper. Cheers to that too. So many reasons to celebrate.

Anyway, Sunday was not as bad as I thought it would be. Nevin's parents whipped up a great breakfast which was much needed before playing our final game. We were down 6-1 after the first half of the game but managed to come back and win 8-7. Unfortunately we lost the shootout but really, I don't think any of us wanted anymore beer. Before heading back to Edmonton we had another great meal at Nevin's to celebrate his sister's birthday. Hockey, hangover, and a big meal sure make a guys sleepy. So 3 cups of coffee and I was good to make it back to the city.

That's my weekend adventure. St. Patty's Day on Friday...who knows what will happen next.

So how's life treating you...

Tuesday was an incredible day. After I talked to you last it just got better. We played 2 full hours of squash, I got a few jobs done around the house, then Rocky took Nevin and I out to the Oilers' game that night against the Dallas Stars. It was a very entertaining game, we definitely owned the third period and overtime. Unfortunately, they got the best of us in the shootout. Really though, how do you defend against Zubov and Jokinen? Big controversy about how McTavish pulled Conklin for the shootout and put Morrison in. Oh well, they won't have to worry about doing that anymore. Morrison is in Ottawa as of today.

So, in other news, graduation is getting that much closer. March 25 is our grad banquet. I bought my parents tickets so they can come party with my friends and me. Last Friday a couple of us went out for a Mec E skating party down at Harelak Park.



Dan, what are you smiling at?
(Dan, Mel, Me, Brendan)

It was a great time out on the ice. Brendan, Dan, and I chase each other around for a while pushing each other into snowbanks. I tried some figure-skating jumps and spins...really bruised my knee. Somehow ripped the pocket on my hoody (see above picture). Tried to throw 20 lb snowbricks at Dan. Drank hot chocolate with other Mec E's. Yeah, good day. We were even treated to a nice sun set as we left.



Orange is a nice evening colour.

It's also confirmed that we're going to Paradise Valley, home of the famous Nevin Purser, for a hockey tournament this weekend. I think we're going to party it up in Lloydminster on Saturday night too. Party on the BORDER!

Last thing, watched the movie "Nightwatch" tonight. If you haven't heard of it, don't be surprised. It's a Russian flick from 2004 that was playing a couple blocks away at Garneau. Good movie, very dark, good special effects.

Happy Birthday to me...

Yes, today I am 23. Well maybe not officially yet. My birth-time was 12:28 pm, March 7, 1983 so I guess I can say I'm 22 for another hour and a half. But this has a been a great birthday so far. The last couple b-days I've had haven't caused me to feel much different. It was just another day of work or school. This time though, there's definitely something new. I think it's because I reminded myself about it everyday leading up to this so I actually got myself excited. I new it was going to be special and it hasn't dissappointed so far.

This morning I woke up after a full night's sleep at the perfect time so that I was "awake" and felt great even before getting in the shower. I had a few emails from friends to read, I found out that I did great in my hockey pool overnight (still in number two position), and I even had a good breakfast.

Things kept getting better at school. I only had one class today (which rules EVERY week) but we got our midterms back that we wrote last Tuesday. I got the highest mark out of the MecE's in our class, the only one in the 91-100% range. Not only that but it turns out that I'd been docked 3 marks on the second question but they didn't include that in the total. Even without those marks I still had the highest but I felt that it was just another birthday surprise.

Now that I'm done classes for the day I have a great afternoon/evening lineup. We have squash times for noon, I'm swimming at 3:00, might go to Grandma's again for supper tonight, and possibly go see a new movie at Garneau later. Main thing: NO HOMEWORK!

So, now that I'm 23 and all wise and stuff, I think it's time for some other changes. I've been working on my weekly checklist idea to help me stay motivated in staying healthy and on top of my studies. Each week the checks get erased and I have to start again. I haven't nailed down a reward system yet but that can wait. Right now I'm so pumped that just completing it each week is motivation enough.

Mike's Weekly Checklist:
- 2 swim practices
- 30 mins on treadmill
- 30 mins on exercise bike
- chest workout
- back/shoulders workout
- arms/legs/abs workout
- 3x40 pushups
- 2 meals will be a salad of some kind
- 1 new meal: something I've never made before
- 1 hour of studying on campus after classes
may also add...
- 1 hour of guitar practice
- 2 hours reading a non-school book
- 1 hour reading about Thailand (Lonely Planet)

All of this is in addition to the other stuff I've gotten myself involved in. I play a hockey game every other week and I have three volleyball nights a week: drop-in, men's league, and mixed league.

So, by the time I go to Thailand I should be in excellent shape and will have finished easily my best semester of school. It's nice to end on a high note. So to the rest of you having a regular Tuesday, I'll try to send out some of my "awesome" vibes out your way. If anyone is looking for birthday present ideas, two words: Picture Frames. I've got some great pictures that I've had printed in 8x10 and 5x7 but I only have one picture frame and have to cycle them through. Laters.

Pics from Whitefish...

Okay, it's only been a couple weeks but I finally have some pictures to post from Whitefish.



Got lost a few times. Thankfully they had signs.

This is definitely my favorite picture from the trip. Really, you would not believe how much snow was falling unless you were there.




View of the lift.



View of the parking lot (really, it's there).

Well maybe you'd better meet the co-adventurers now. I'm so surprised that we all made it back alive...or at least not injured.



Jacob waits...ready.



Matt tests the quality of the powder.



Mike has a helmet...good call.

My parents were just down there this past weekend for my dad's hockey tournament. It's a good thing they were downt here for hockey and not skiing, sounds like it rained on the hill. Too bad. We were considering making another USA run after exams but maybe we'll have to look closer to home.



Greetings from the Big Mountain.

The burden of free time...

Usually free time is a good thing but every once in a while it causes me additional stress (to my already super-stressfull life). This is one of those instances. Brendan and I stopped by the computer lab to do an engineering assignment while we wait an hour for Matt and Dan so we can study for another class. We thought this assignment would take some time but we finished in about 1 minute...it was just a survey. So now I have 59 minutes of "free time". So now comes the additional stress. Do I give myself 59 minutes to do what I want, a reward for finishing a tough assignment so fast, or do I start on one of the other dozen things that I really need to get done:

- two midterms Monday
- start on strenght of materials without Matt and Dan...and Brendan.
- apply for more jobs
- exercise
- essay on Guns, Germs, and Steel
- probably some other things that I should be doing but just can't think of now.

Even if I decide to do none of these and just surf the net instead I can't enjoy my "free time" because all of these other things are weighing on my conscience. Thankfully I have a special weapon, a conscience blocker.

This doesn't mean that I can go on a killing rampage and feel no guilt, it means that I have the ability to not feel bad about my situation. I can let myself, just for a short time, forget about all my responsibilities, duties, and MIDTERMS. I've tried to teach my technique to Jeff a few times, he could really benefit from this. The poor guy can barely pick himself up off the floor some days with that amount of stuff that he's chosen to carry on his shoulders....although, Jeff has been very cheerful this last semester.

I don't use my conscience block during school most of the time but there are other times where it is almost crutial for my mental health. That is going to sleep at night and driving. I've decided that a full night of rest is WAY more valuable than any good that can come from fretting about the looming deadline of a test or project. Having my mind clear while driving is even more important, especially lately. I drive so little now that when I do get behind the wheel it feels slightly foreign. I'm not going to ram you from behind but I have to pay much attention to lights, pedestrians, and planning routes than I do when driving often.

So will this always work for me? I don't know. Even those these problems are big in my life now, I'm not naive enough to think they're the biggest problems I'll ever have (teenage girls...and some guys...get way to bent out of shape over stupid stuff that doesn't seem stupid at the time). Just wait until I have a mortgage, kids, gold-digging wife, and a nice pink piece of paper in my work mailbox. Will jump off a building? No. Will I be able to go to my happy place? No. That will be the day I buy a porche and/or take up boxing.

Well, my free time is coming to an end. Time to get back to my academic reality and start trying to figure out why my Mec 480 proof thinks twisting plates of metal is so cool.