A few years ago I was living in residence at St. Paul University. The internet access there was managed by an access controller which redirected all new connections to wireless.colubris.com. After some investigation, I realized there was a way to work around the bandwidth limitations and session timeouts with the use of a DNS forwarder, a Web server, MAC address spoofing, a SOCKS proxy server software and a pseudo-keepalive tool, the ever-useful Firefox addon Reloadevery. This allowed for much more effective use of the available network connectivity.

Fast forward to the present, and I now find myself on the other side. We now have installed our own HP ProCurve access controller, technology which HP acquired through the purchase of Colubris Inc.

so, wireless.colubris.com, we meet again. Things look different from this side.

Give it a listen, maybe one of them is you.

data-2010-8-28-23-33-12

Today being my last day in Newfoundland, I figured it might be a good time to write a little about the time I’ve spent here. Got an hour and a bit to kill before heading to the airport, but only have a smartphone to type on, so we’ll see how much I manage to write.
Let’s start from the beginning, I guess.

We landed in St. John’s (or more accurately, St. John’s airport in Torbay I believe) on a beautiful sunny morning. The first thing I noticed was the fresh, slightly humid sea air. The weather was pleasant, blue sky, fluffy clouds, bright sunshine, warm with a cool wind. After an incredibly quick baggage claim process (even faster than when landing with Porter at YTZ), we picked up our van from Hertz. While my dad, brother and I were checking out the van, we were approached by an airport worker. He was quite friendly and, among other things, explained to us that here it was possible to say hello to people in the street without attracting disapproving looks, and that small sardine-like fish called “caplin” were abundant this time of year.

Noticed that every station had brightly coloured triangles and circles at exactly the same place in every station. We figured it was either some kind of guide or signal for the train drivers, or aliens trying to teach us geometry.

Turns out they’re nothing special. These were added to help the drivers and guards on the subway find the correct alignment with the platform before stopping, Torontoist explains.

While I’m on the topic of subways…. what is the deal with random trains going randomly out of service or changing directions? Last night our train decided to go out of service at Lawrence station, and the doors on our car managed to get jammed shut while the driver kept telling us to get off the train. I don’t get it, it’s not like our subway system is particularly complex….

Toronto's super-confusing complicated subway system

Also, ever wondered why some station have those cool-looking 60′s style flip sign boxes that say “Next train FINCH”?

Well here’s the answer. Originally the Bloor-Danforth and Yonge/University-Spadina lines were integrated. Every second train departing from Eglinton (then the Northern terminus of the Yonge line) crossed over onto the Bloor-Danforth line. The TTC installed these automatic destination signs, which were controlled by magnetic coils installed inside the subway cars, in order to inform passengers of the final destination of the approaching train.

Further reading and a lot more about the history of transit in Toronto at: http://transit.toronto.on.ca/

Lesson learned: Halogen desk lamps and plastic monitor bezels don’t mix.

Been thinking, I really need to get out more. But, without a car, it’s difficult. Kind of alone and yet friends are not far.

Random snippets of thoughts. Can’t write right now. Perhaps my life simply isn’t interesting enough to blog about at the moment.

I also saw huge crowds on the street around 10AM. Turns out the Scotiabank centre was having an evacuation drill. Not something you see every day.

And I don’t know why the first picture appears rotated.

Feb 26, 2010

This morning, I’m heading to the OASBO conference in Missisauga. We had a fantastic snow storm last night, pretty much the first real storm of 2010. Took over 30 minutes to get to Delta Meadowvale… should take under 20. Man that was a “fun” drive… not. This Day 2 of the conference was pretty routine; educational, moderately interesting, and with good food. All the while I was thinking about how in less than 24 hours I’d be in London, and in less than 48 I’d be in the sun in Mauritius. At 2pm, I said goodbye to my coworkers and headed home to do the last bit of packing. Last minute, yes yes I know.

Departure was scheduled for 8:15pm. Headed over to Pearson and had a last coffee with the family before heading off.

Went through security and sat down in the departure lounge with my dad. And at that point the excitement really started to hit. We were called to the gate, and naturally everyone rushed up to form a line to get on the plane. (I really don’t get this, I mean people, you have ASSIGNED SEATS.) Boarded the plane, and I must say I was impressed with Air Canada’s 767. The whole thing seemed newly renovated, with fairly comfortable seats, a cool, modern-looking colour scheme, and the latest movies on the (Linux-based!) entertainment system. Upon my dad’s recommendation, I decided to browse the French movies, finally settling on Paris (2008), since I would be visiting there in a few weeks.

Feb 27, 2010

Arrived at LHR around 8:30am. We had 10 hours in London, so took the Tube to Picadilly we grabbed a ticket on an open-top bus tour so we could get a nice overview of the city, its landmarks and history. In those 10 hours, I got to see Big Ben, the Eye, the Tower of London…. All the big stuff. Still have to go back and get a real taste of the city. Oh also, must go see Abbey Road.

And here ends Part 1. I changed my mind and decided to split this into parts, otherwise either it would never get published, or I’d end up with one incredibly long post that no one will read.

Can someone explain to me what the deal is with hair straighteners and makeup? I mean, honestly. My sister just got a hair straightener and it is completely beyond me WHY she could possibly need one. Her hair is already straight! And even for those girls whose hair isn’t straight… Is it not possible that you’re beautiful with curly or wavy hair? Personally, when I know a girl has wavy hair, I find the natural wavy look a LOT more attractive. That’s not to say that straightened hair isn’t pretty, I just don’t see the point since you’re pretty in the first place…

And makeup… seriously. A lot of it, I find completely unnecessary. I will agree that some makeup, when used properly, does complement a girl’s natural beauty. But, again, I don’t really see the point, because I think that when makeup is actually noticeable, it’s less beautiful than au naturel. Girls, you’re human too, you’re allowed to have not-so-perfect skin, or thin lips, or whatever. You’re beautiful already, so why bother colouring your eyelids or lips?

That’s my rant today. Man it feels good to get this off my chest.