speedos

Ummmm? Nothing like some personal attentionto warm things up! I hope its warmer where you are, so you can actually wear some speedos or other swimwear without freezing and getting goosebumps in the process. Here in British Columbia's lower mainland its been a bit cooler than normal and the lack of enough sunshine has been an issue but for those on Canada's prairies you'll have a better chance, and even better yet in southern Ontario where the humidex is to reach near 30 degrees Celsius by weekend if not sooner. What ever the conditions, enjoy the Canada Day celebrations Thursday on Canada's 143rd birthday as a nation and be safe as well!!! - V

contrasts

What is it about certain colours and the contrasts they exhibit that grabs our attention? I love this photo showing the contrast between a fit physique and the colour white in the pants. If you visit We Love Guys you'll find more of Trent and then some! The link is in the right sidebar. Have an awesome day, guys! - V

dreams

As we head off to bed for the night, here's something to help us dream, to drift off to sleep. Or on the other hand, perhaps it'll only excite us. Either way, have a good night, guys!!! - V

camcorder and other stuff

Its Monday and the day here is fast drawing to a close. Yesterday I ordered a Flip Ultra HD camcorder online. The order was confirmed this morning. Once I received it, expect some videos to add a new dimension to this blog and not just short video clips which I've been able to post for a while. Later, once I can afford it and it seems practical, I purchase a more substantial camcorder than the Flip. For the moment, this one opens plenty of possibilities.

Two other items are in my sites at the moment, a good starter set of studio lights and either a macro lens or a wide angle lens. I'm buying items as I can afford them as Brad and I expand our business venture in photography. Photography is one of my great passions and business is one of Brad's but I'm sure photography takes a top spot for him as well. Expect more news on this soon.

On my way home this evening I bought a power drill to drill those holes in the large pots in advance of planting. While at Canadian Tire, I also found a couple of fuchsia plants to add to the collection of flowers, so that should be it for plants this year, at least for the balcony!

Now I'm going to wind things up for the day and head for bed soon. Its already after 9 pm and I hope to be in bed by 10 pm at the latest. Since I get up at 5 am, I'm trying to get as much sleep as I can get. Some nights its a bit of a challenge getting more than 6 hours. Seven hours is better but 8 hours is better yet which seems to work on weekends. Have a good night, guys (or good day if you're into the next day)!!! - V

planting

The plants I bought over the last couple of weeks are ready for planting. I have the pots and most of the potting soil required. I am purchasing a hand drill from Lee Valley over the next day or so and will be able to complete the potting by Canada Day. The Cinco de Mayo floribunda rose has to be one of my favourites (see photo above and below). The flowers are pink with yellow centres and have an apple scent. The plant will grow up to three feet tall and as wide.
There are other plants as well, such as rosemary, spanish lavender, blue salvia, a couple of mini-roses, pink wave petunias and a couple of lobelias. More photos coming when everything is ready! Have an awesome day, guys!!! - V

James

I love checking out other blogs to see what other bloggers like, what interests them and motivates them to blog. Check out more about James, the model above, by going to Hungary Boy's blog where you'll see more awesome photos of this guy. And while you're there, check out other hot dudes. There are plenty of them! Just wanted to show you what interests me!!! - V

Sunday

Its an overcast sky here in New Westminster but some sun is expected in the afternoon but since its like this, its a good day to get the laundry out of the way and do some chores around the apartment before the work week starts on Monday.

While eating a couple of Sumatsu oranges this morning, I found a couple of seeds. They're planted in a small pot of soil and have been watered. Ive grown citrus trees from seed before and often enough since I was a teen in the 1960s. My first attempt that I remember was starting a grapefruit tree from seed. It ended up in a large pot, leaves 6 or more inches long, branches with thorns and a height of around 5 feet tall with the pot included. My father told me that it would never flower and so, believing him, I cut it up and threw it out. Later I learn otherwise that such fruit trees flower after the 7th year, perhaps later in our northern climate. I may try growing another grapefruit tree from seed to give the apartment some life! We'll see!!

Later in the 1970s, I bought a calamondin orange tree from a flower shop near where I lived at the time. It grew into a handsome tree and flowered perfusely for 14 years of so until it died. I kept it outside during the hot summers which attracted a great number of honey bees to its blossoms. It flowered year round and often had fruit at the same time it was in flower. The fruit was rather sour, best for drinks, and had a number of seeds inside. It was ants getting into the pot and affecting the roots that probably ended its life but it was a beautiful tree while it was around and pruned often to keep in shape so as not to overgrow the place.

The flowering plants I bought the other week are ready for planting. The pots are there and most of the required soil. I still require a drill to add some drainage holes to the bottom of the large pots but that should be accomplished soon enough. I have some photos that I took last week and will post them soon, as soon as they've been uploaded from my camera.

Now its off to get the laundry started. Have a great Sunday, guys! - V

Reiki and other stuff

Saturday afternoon I met up with my Reiki friend in Vancouver's West End. We talked for hours about many things and all this over tea! It was most refreshing to meet an open minded, laid back individual. They're a rare find these days. We talked about not only Reiki but energy healing in general, about Raja Yoga, which means Kingly Union and focuses on the mind as opposed to Hatha Yoga, which is geared to the body, and then we talked about languages, our families and so on. So, I guess we'll meet up again soon closer to his home next time round.

The weather was mainly sunny with some cloud, quite an improvement from other days where a dull, overcast sky was the norm. We just haven't seen enough sun through the spring. I thrive best when its bright and sunny!

Sunday is a day to get the two weeks of laundry out of the way in the morning and then go out for some shopping in the afternoon. Monday, its back to work for a four day work week. Thursday is July 1, Canada Day and a statutory holiday, so I'll get the stat pay but won't be working that day. I may head up to Sasamat Lake unless there are other plans, and Brad's arrival here from eastern Canada would alter those plans certainly. Have a great Sunday, guys!!! - V

Bernardo

Bernardo Velasco from Venuzuela gives us something to aspire to as we're now into summer! - V

holiday coming

Canada Day is coming up on Thursday of next week, July 1st, when we celebrate Canada's birthday as a nation. Canada became a nation in 1867 which would make this year the 143rd anniversary if my math is correct.

So, today on my way home from work I picked up some groceries at a Safeway across the street from my place and then went to the liquor store to by some beer which turned out to be a six-pack of Samuel Adams Boston Lager and one bottle of a special Canada Day brew from Innis and Gunn, an oak aged beer, Canadian Cask, bottled in celebration of Canada Day 2010. I'm drinking it as I write this entry. Then there is a little Scotch in a glass to wash it all down. I plan to purchase a couple of bottle of that special holiday brew tomorrow for my bf to sample when he arrives here from the east.

Anyway, the sun is back and hopefully for a while, so that being the case, I may go on a hike over the weekend, and certainly on Canada Day! I'm meeting with a Reiki practitioner over tea on Saturday afternoon, so hiking that day is out of the question but perhaps Sunday if it doesn't cloud over again. Take care, guys!!! - V

weather

Midland, Ontario suffered the effects of a tornado the other day and is still recovering. At the same time, there was an earthquake at 5 on the Richter scale in the Ottawa area to the east of Midland. A tornado was also sighted in southern Saskatschewan as the prairies have been receiving severe thunderstorm over the last little while with flooding and washed out highways being a result from all the rain. Its certainly been interesting and not our usual summer any where in Canada!

So locally? Well, I woke up this morning to mostly clear blue skies with some cloud in the distance. Its about 15 degrees Celsius now and expected to rise to 20 this afternoon. And the humidity? Its at 77 percent. People complain about the humidity in places like southwestern Ontario but if we had the heat like they have there on top of the kind of humidity that is encountered here, it would be unbearable to say the least! Enjoy your summer weather where you are, regardless of the conditions! - V

summer

Monday, June 21st, was officially the first day of summer though you wouldn't have known that with the dull, grey, overcast skies that day with temperatures a bit cooler than normal. This morning as I write, its 15 degrees Celsius with an overcast sky and a humidity of 72 percent. There is sun in the forecast, so we'll see what happens.

We rarely see any thunderstorms of any kind but there is the odd occasion where lightning is seen followed by a clap of thunder. Its very rare though. On the prairies and eastward all that is a different story. There you're seeing plenty of the light show and tornadoes as well.

I have a fan running in the apartment to move the air. There's no wind to speak of, so the fan is a necessary thing but July tends to be worse as far as heat and lack of air movement, so we shall see what comes our way. Have a great day where ever you are and what ever you plan to do!!! - V

Stefano

My friend, Jakub Stefano, allowed me to post this awesome photo of him. He, as well as others, prove that its possible to develop your physique to serve you well in what ever you plan to do in life. Stefano's link to his blog is also in my blogroll of favourites in the right-hand margin. Have a look at what he says and ogle those photos of his. They're awesome!!! - V

Saturday

It was sunny today with a high of about 21 degrees Celsius and humidity of 68 per cent. Since my right foot still had a bit of gout in it, I opted against a hike today and went shopping at Metrotown in Burnaby instead. That was late afternoon. It was a matter of a quick visit to Shoppers, then Zellers and finally the Superstore, all in the mall. Its busy and loud, so I get what I'm after and then leave. I much prefer quieter venues to this hectic atmosphere!

Once home, I sorted everything away and had a light supper of warmed up garlic bread with slices of Piri Piri, Portuguese style chicken breast, along with some Ceylon tea to wash it all down with. Then later it was something Irish, Harp Premium Irish Lager Beer, which I'm still working on before bed time.

The cloud has moved in though the forecast calls for sunny weather tomorrow (Sunday) but who knows whether that'll be the case, partly or entirely. We'll see. I hope you've all had an awesome day. Have a good night, guys! - V

smartphones and other stuff

For the last couple of weeks I've been researching smartphones and both netbooks and laptops before making a decision on adding another new element to what I have currently. As far as the smartphones are concerned, I love the Motorola Backflip but am not particularly thrilled about the only provider that goes with that phone. The Motorola Dext is one of my other choices and there's a different provider associated with it. I'll have to check it out in greater detail.

Another choice is a BlackBerry 8530 Smartphone, also with a QWERTY key board like the others, and the same provider that offers the second Motorola phone also offer this one. This BlackBerry is offered at $24.95 with a 3 year contract at $40 per month with a voice and data plan. There is the possibility of purchasing an older BlackBerry model for $25 but I would go for the newer model I mentioned since the price is the same if I plan to go for a BlackBerry.

I've also been looking at various model of netbooks and laptops, such as HP, Dell, Acer and other makes. There's a lot more research to be done there as well before deciding between a netbook (or other) and a smartphone. What I'm looking for is something easy and light to work with for easy communications, from voice to email and so on. Feel free to Google any of the above devices to find out more about them. If you've got some suggestions based on personal experience, I'm all ears!

I'll have more on all this later. Meantime, there are a number of things that need doing, so I'll be off to get those done before returning to the computer this evening. Have a great day, guys!!! - V

update

Brad was celebrating his birthday on Thursday, June 17th, Atlantic time. The day couldn't pass with out my sending him my greetings and something special added to that. I hope it was an awesome b-day for you!!!

In other news, I had planned to head up to Sasamat Lake, northwest of Port Moody, last Saturday afternoon but I delayed for some reason and its a good thing I did. By late afternoon I was passing blood in my urine and there were the beginning stages of spasms affecting my left kidney. And that's likely why blood was an issue. After that, I started getting gout symptoms in the large knuckle of the large toe in my right foot.

Gout has been with me for the last ten years or so but I've been largely free of it in the last few years but the kidney issue dates back to 2006 when I got very sick after arriving out here in the Vancouver area from Ontario. It was all traced back to a microscopic parasite. This also caused extremely high blood pressure but once treated, my bp was lower than it had been in years. In the late winter and early spring of 2006 there was an awful lot of rain which washed sediment into the water reservoirs. Was the parasite water born? Who knows for sure but the kidney problems date from that earlier incident. Value your health, you just never know when circumstance can change for the worse. However, do not delay your life's dreams! The time for those may pass and it would be sad to have missed out.

Anyway, the kidney has stopped spasming as of yesterday and the gout in the toe is subsiding. My appetite is also back, which is a good thing because there was a lot out of whack for a time.

I bought some plants for the balcony last week as well as the pots to put them in. I'll be picking up potting soil after work Friday and then will likely start planting late Friday and completing that on Saturday morning. So, the rosemary, spanish lavender, blue salvia, mini-roses and wave petunias are designed to add some needed colour to the balcony. Its been far to grey and dull for months with only the odd day here and there with enough sun to tease us. Things in the weather department can only improve since summer is coming very soon as far as the calendar is concerned. Back to the balcony, well, I plan to add a bistro table and chairs to finalize the new look. It would be a great place to hang out as the sun is setting in the evening!

I'll have some photos soon. Now I'm heading off to bed since 5 am comes early. Its nearing 10 pm now. Have a good night, or great day, where ever you may be!!! - V

red

I found these photos of a hot model over the weekend. I don't know the name of the model, nor the name of the photographer but the underwear line is as hot as the model..well, the muscles certainly help too! Over the next little while, I plan to post some links on the margin that will take you to sites that offer various brands of underwear. Its a great place to start to build a wardrobe, especially if the old one is getting worn and in need of replacement! That's a great way to end a day, or start a new one!!! - V

Beat Me Down Episode 2 - Caveman Style

My friend, Scott Herman, has produced another video to add to his list of many. Check out Beat Me Down, Episode 2 - Caveman Style - Teaser 2, Caveman AFTERMATH at the following link. Now I'm off for another hike northwest of Port Moody. Meantime, have a great weekend! - V

Buntzen Lake II

Here are some more photos taken during last Saturday's hike to Buntzen Lake from Port Moody. I was surprised to find some rhododendrons still in bloom though I'm sure they're past the best by this point because they were starting to fade then. We hadn't seen much blue sky for some time, so it was great seeing it again.
Buntzen Lake was the destination as the sign shows above and the photo below looks back at Port Moody where I had started the trek.
The route went up Heritage Mountain Road plus a few other streets and then west northwest through Heritage Woods along East Road to the village of Anmore. Then it was north along Sunnyside Road to the entrance of the park and on to the lake.
I'll let the remainder of the images speak for themselves. Feel free to comment, guys!!! - V

windsurfers

This photo, and others, were taken last July on Canada Day, a day of lots of wind and waves just perfect for the many windsurfers that were out that day on English Bay. I'll have more when the opportunity strikes. - V

Buntzen Lake

Saturday, the weather finally improved enough to make it possible for me to head up to Buntzen Lake that day after a delay of several weeks. The weather was sunny with some cloud but certainly warm and pleasant. The photo above is just one of many I took on the hike to the lake north from Port Moody. There'll more pics soon once they've all been edited. Meantime, enjoy this one, and have a great week!!! - V

triathlon II

Here's another photo I took at the 2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon. I'm looking forward to this year's event. Are you? - V