Yes, it’s true. Recent research says kids as young as eight years old can now safely go on cholesterol lowering medication!
Man, I can’t believe they are seriously pushing that. Yes, overweight kids probably have high cholesterol, but let’s focus on a solution, not a patch. Most people would probably be surprised to know that the whole science of cholesterol is pretty weak. Lots of people live their whole lives with high cholesterol and never experience any problems, and some people with low cholesterol can be in danger for a heart attack. In fact, the whole science of cholesterol (LDL, ...
Today (Tuesday) is my niece’s 10th birthday. It seems like just yesterday I was out working at UBC when I got the call telling me that my sister had gone into labour. I left work and made the trek back to Chilliwack, and made it to the hospital just in time to see the first few minute’s of Jessica’s new life.
That photo is one of my favourites of my niece. It was probably taken when she was only 5 years old or so, but it was one of the first times I got to spend alone with her (I had been living out in Ottawa for a few years prior to that). I had told my sister that I was going to go to ...
Tonight I was pointed at a link, courtesy of John, that basically detailed a rumour that Apple is diverting iPhone shipments away from Canada next week. The reason for this, according to the rumour, is that Apple is not pleased with the grassroots backlash that Roger’s and the iPhone have received in Canada.
The thing is, it really doesn’t matter if the rumour is true (and in my mind, I doubt it is — it’s more likely in my mind that they have general manufacturing problems and can’t meet the demand) – either way, it’s a huge PR nightmare for Rogers. There was one site earlier that ...
Here’s a shot I took the other day while camping with my friend Rob. It was a great trip, and I had a really good time catching up with and old friend.
...
Well, thus marks the end of my first two-week vacation stint. This vacation saw me bounce from San Francisco, to Los Angeles, back up to Vancouver, to a Matthew Good show, then to the North Cascades, up to Whistler, and then back home. Not bad for just over two weeks.
Golden Gate Bridge, taken during my trip
It was great getting to hang out with my sister, brother-in-law, and their two kids down in Disneyland. Despite only being an hour and a bit away, I don’t get a chance to head home that often. Plus, I haven’t really spent much time with my niece and nephew (although I was there in Chilliwack ...
As everyone knows, Rogers announced their lackluster iPhone plans not that long ago, and were immediately criticized by most Canadian wireless customers as being far too expensive. In addition, the lack of an unlimited data plan, a feature that Bell and Telus have for some of their phones, is also fairly disappointing give the web-based nature of the device.
In response to the data rates, RuinediPhone set up an online petition asking Rogers to change their data rates. Since going live nearly a week ago, they’ve amassed nearly 36,000 signatures, and have been featured on several mainstream news ...
I’ve always been a big fan of four day work weeks, or better yet, working at the rate which you are most productive. That’s why I have always gravitated towards jobs that don’t have fixed hours. Where I currently work, I really don’t have a fixed schedule. If I wake up early, I’ll stroll in at 8:30am. If I have a rough night sleeping, nobody cares when I stroll in at 10:30am. Given that flexibility, I’ll often do a bit of work at home during the evenings when I’m listening to music or whatever.
Utah recently announced that they are switching their government employees to four day ...
Birkenhead Lake, last summer
At the Matthew Good show the other night I ran into a good friend of mine from high school. We ended up chatting and drinking beers over at Doolin’s after, and it was great to catch up. Rob and I became friends back when I was working at Bonanza when I was 16, and I haven’t talked to him in a few years.
Birkenhead Lake, photo by wenno on flickr
It turns out that both Rob and I are on vacation this week with not a whole lot to do, so we decided to head up to Birkenhead Lake tomorrow and just chill out over a few beers. Birkenhead was the biggest surprise of last ...
Whenever I think of Canada Day, I am always reminded of the few years I spent in Ottawa. Out there, Canada day is a day-long party, where they basically shut the downtown core down and let everyone mingle, get their face painted, and for those of you of legal drinking age, have a few street-side beer. At the end of the night there was always a big concert on Parliament Hill.
So by comparison, Canada Day in Vancouver is pretty tame. Last year I got together with some friends and had a few pints in various locations around the downtown core. This year, I don’t really have any plans, but will ...
I got home from Canada Day tonight and spent a bit of time on IM chatting to people. My friend Jeff, who is one of my best friends from high school, was online so we ended up chatting for a bit. Despite living only a few blocks apart, the sad thing is Jeff and I rarely get to see each other due to both our crazy schedules.
I found out tonight that Jeff is moving to Victoria with his wife Michele and his daughter Maya. To be honest, while I want the best for them, it made me feel bad that I’ve been out of the loop so long with them that I had no idea they were moving away in a few weeks. I’m ...
I do the odd post from time to time on health issues and current research I think is interesting. About a year ago I posted an article discussing how caffeine seems to have a negative influence on the body’s insulin signaling, which ultimately affects blood sugar levels in the blood. What this ultimately means is that caffeine might be a major contributing factor in the obesity epidemic, since high insulin levels in the blood promote the storage of fat and make it difficult to burn it.
Here’s a recent 2008 study that investigated the effects of caffeinated coffee and decaffeinated coffee on ...
I found this useful deep-cycle battery FAQ that included a rough voltage level chart which helps you determine how full your deep-cycle battery is:
State of Charge12 Volt batteryVolts per Cell100%12.72.1290%12.52.0880%12.422.0770%12.322.0560%12.202.0350%12.062.0140%11.91.9830%11.751.9620%11.581.9310%**11.31**1.89010.5**1.75**
While I haven’t blogged about it, I have a small solar panel setup on my patio which provides enough power to run a few lights in my living room each night for a few hours. This information lets me know how charged the battery system is. Right now my battery is at 12.75 ...
I left Vancouver yesterday to set out on a mini adventure. First, I swung by Langley to have lunch with my dad, and laid out a few options about where I was going to go. During the course of the meal I eventually finalized on doing the North Cascades Highway in the United States, and headed out shortly afterwards.
I spent about an hour waiting in the line-up to cross the border. Considering I didn’t really have a final destination, the border guard was actually pretty nice to me and even chatted with me for a bit about life in Vancouver. I made it to Rockport on the first night, and set up camp ...
Most of us have been waiting patiently for Rogers to finally release their data rates for the iPhone 3G that is coming to Canada on July 11th. The good news is that the wait is finally over — Rogers just released full information about their plans.
Unfortunately, Rogers completely missed the boat on this one. They had the chance to bring Canada to the forefront of the wireless world, but instead felt compelled to keep us locked up in our draconian past. There are no unlimited data rates for the new plans, and anything approaching 1GB will cost you $100 or more per month (plus, I’m sure, the ...
Wow, it feels like I’ve been disconnected from the Internet for a very long time. I spent today somewhere between Los Angeles and San Diego, hanging out at Legoland with my family. I actually wasn’t really sure what to expect, given that I haven’t really been into lego in a long time. But the good news is that Legoland was a lot of fun, and it was a nice change from the line-ups and the pace of Disneyland. Also, Legoland was near the water, and was a nice change from the hot weather down in Anaheim.
Jessica, taking a break at Legoland.
My nephew Derek spent about $150 on Lego in Legoland, ...
I’ve basically been on-the-go non-stop since San Francisco, so I haven’t had much time to do anything on the computer. I originally had a 11am flight out of San Francisco, but for whatever reason it was delayed nearly four hours, and I didn’t arrive until close to 4pm. It probably would have been faster to drive.
Tony took me out for a great night down in Los Angeles. We went on a full tour of Hollywood, then picked up a few tall-boys and just chilled for a while. I also had some really great mexican food at a local hole-in-the-wall that Tony frequents from time to time.
I only had one night ...
Last night we left Google at around 9pm and headed up to Palo Alto for a nice dinner. Derek and I both had flights this morning, so we thought we might as well move our hotel close to the airport. We grabbed a really cheap travelodge, which was one of the scariest hotels I’ve been in for a long time.
I somehow managed to misplace my laptop charger down at Google (more than likely, someone else accidentally grabbed it). That basically means I’m currently without a laptop and a cell phone. I’m hoping to get a SIM for my cell and hit an Apple store really quick to pick up a new charger. Hopefulluy ...
So, it’s 30 minutes past midnight, and we just got back from another long day at Google. I’m sitting in Scott’s 82 degree fahrenheit hotel room with Derek and twelve beers. Last night we realized that a 14 hour day would be a lot better if we had a few beers to finish it off, so we basically started the midnight-gas-station-beer-run tradition.
For those of you who don’t really know what Silicon Valley is like, I’ll give you a little heads up. Most of Silicon Valley is centered around a city south of San Francisco called San Jose (affectionately called “Man Jose” by the locals, since ...
Well, I’m sort of packed. Given that I no longer have a dryer at home, I was forced to dry most of my clothes out on the patio over night. Good news is that most of my clothes are completely dry. Bad news is some of them aren’t dry yet.
It’s a nice sunny day in the Bay Area today, so I’m wearing shorts and a t-shirt. In fact, today seems like a pretty warm day in Vancouver as well, so for all of you people hanging out at home, enjoy. I’m heading down to the airport right now.
**Update – First, big thanks to Dan for helping me get through the custom’s line in short order. That easily ...