Some of the images after the jump might be a bit graphic for some, but it just goes to show how loyal dogs are.

Check out these stories of dogs that walked miles to return to their owners. There’s the two famous ones: Hachiko and Grefriars Bobby.

More after the jump.

This one is more humorous than anything. One dog helping another out.

Here’s where it can get a bit graphic. The loyalty shown is just not found in cats.  If there is you certainly don’t hear about it.

One dog saving another.

Granted there are those people who are either busy texting or chatting on their phones that tend to drift.  I can’t understand how hard it is to maintain a straight line.  If you have that much trouble walking straight and talking, I’d really hate to see them try to multitask with anything else.

What really blows me away are the people who can’t seem to master walking straight when completely  sober and not preoccupied with anything else.

Please inform me, what causes this?

In a crowded city you can imagine how annoying this can be. Especially with everyone milling around like ants. By walking in zig zag patterns you’ll often see numerous people get thwarted in their attempts to get around people.

Do us all a favor and pay more attention to the lines you’re walking. Maybe we need to paint lanes on the sidewalks to keep people in line. Operate like you’re driving a car.

So here’s my question.  For the same reason why it’s suggested you don’t bring your bike on the train during rush hour, shouldn’t fat people be advised to stay off the train?

From the MTA regarding bikes:

Bicycles are permitted on Subway trains at all times. However, we strongly recommend that cyclists avoid boarding crowded rush hour trains. Be courteous to your fellow passengers by standing with your bike, moving it so others can pass, and not blocking doors

This could easily be applied to fat people simply by substituting the words “bicycle”, “cyclists” or “bike” with “fatties” or something to that affect.

Fatties are permitted on Subway trains at all times.  However, we strongly recommend that fatties avoid boarding crowded rush hour trains.  Be courteous  to your fellow passengers by standing with your fat, moving the folds so others can pass, and not blocking doors.

See simple right?

I’d also like to know why you must swing your arms in a circular and horizontal flapping motion, as if you’re like an overweight penguin trying to take flight. (This is especially prominent with verys short and obese people)

Please don’t tell me it is to help stabilize you as you walk. That’s a bunch of crock since you’ve got such a giant center mass anchoring you, your proportionately tiny flailing arms aren’t going to do anything.

By walking like this you are a total douche. You block the stairs with your slow pace and your wild arm movements prevent anyone from circumnavigating you.  If Columbus tried to sail around your waistline he’d get stuck in your ass crack and proclaim it India.

You already move at a snails pace, there’s no need to hold up everyone else. Either stay off the train during rush hour, or do us all a favor and get the hell out of the way. You’re almost worse than a tourist on the sidewalk snapping photos.  Don’t even get me started on tourist fatties.

Don’t act surprised when you get the dirty stare by the guy sitting next to you in the morning when your fat spills over the 1.5 seats you’re already occupying to repeatedly suffocate him with each jolt of the train.

Stop eating all those burgers, maybe start walking over a few stations more before hopping on the train and eventually you’ll have brought your weight back in line with the average subway rider.   It’s pathetic when a subway car’s bench seating that normally fits 4 comfortably can now only hold you and a small child.

Seriously MTA, you should be like the Airlines that make fatties buy an extra fare for the extra seat.  You raised the price for everyone, how about you charge the fat people extra for the extra room they take up.  That has to be at least 2 less riders on the train/in the system.  The money you’ll make will help plug your budget deficit.

What is their deal anyways? Their staff really have ill tempers and the worst attitudes ever. Service both in terms of the people and the flights themselves suck.

The last straw for many people is this holiday season when they cancelled many flights and delayed many others with a “sorry you’re screwed” attitude towards the customers.

I’m surprised at the fact that one flight was kept on the tarmac grounded for 12 hours with them rationing the “food” and water. Many starving and hungry and worried about their health.

It’s funny reading articles like this from News 1130.  Amazing how 3/4′s of the calls to the Consumer’s Association of Canada has been complaints about Air Canada and the other 1/4 has been praise to their competition Westjet.

Westjet has done an exceptional job with their staff and customer service training. I’ve always had great service from them even when things were bad or not even Westjet’s fault in the first place. This really shined through this holiday season apparently.  Westjet was helping out all their own customers and even going above and beyond and taking care of stranded Air Canada passengers where they could.

I don’t understand how Air Canada can make such a bumbling customer service / PR move time and time again. Do the people in charge there never fly their own airline? I’m not sure how one can fathom treating others the way they do.  I hope all these complaints and situation this Christmas gets them to make some solid changes in their policy and improve their service. They definitely need some brand repair.

This was the first time I’ve heard anyone use “It sounded like gunshots!” to describe a big flapping piece of roof. How about “It sounded like a giant piece of fabric flapping in the wind!”?

Honestly, most people probably have never even heard a real gun shot.  The closest would be a sound effect from a movie or TV show.  In either case everything sounds like a gun shot.  Just look for such headlines as: “Tire blows out on truck.”, “Wind tears (insert any object) from (insert any building).”, “Kids break windows at local school.”, “Mailbox falls over on postal worker”, or “Beluga whale farts at the aquarium”.

I hope I’m never caught saying that if I’m ever found in front of a news camera.

I just hope that people heeded the warning early and kept enough to brush their teeth with.  You would think Vancouver would be slightly more prepared for something like this.  Especially with previous year’s mudslides that evacuated some people from their West/North Vancouver homes. This year again there’s numerous floodings and people evacuated until their homes can be deemed safe.

I sure hope we learn from this one and have better water contingency plans.

When Harper become elected as our current Prime Minister I was thinking that there could be some real chances for him to make some vital changes and in general be a Prime Minister that isn’t overly made fun of…like Paul Martin. There is one thing in common that Harper and Martin share, and that is their stance on Canada’s involvement on the war.

“If I were prime minister, we would not be involved in Iraq. I would encourage the Americans and hope they’re successful, but our government would not be there.” Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, Dec. 13, 2005 at a press conference in Trenton, Ont.

Ok somewhere along the way that totally changed. In May of this year the mandate for Canada’s limited mission involvement in Afghanistan was expiring. However, the Harper government pushed a motion through the House of Commons with very minimal debate which extends Canada’s involvement in Afghanistan until February 2009!

When Harper came to office it was the first time in 12 years our government was not run by the Liberals. I thought it would be nice to have a Conservative leader, if for anything just to see what they could do for the country. Now that it’s been pushing 2 years now I’m not so sure I’m liking any of it.

The Vancouver Art Gallery steps is constantly a host to numerous marches and protests. Saturday Oct.28 will be no different. There’s a meetup at the Waterfront Skytrain Station at 12 Noon with the march commencing at 1pm and a rally at 2pm at the VAG organized by the StopWar effort.

Yesterday the judge of the case Weber McCraw set the written order for bail at $750,000. The defense lawyer stated that the bond essentially equates to “no bond at all”, since Mary is very unlikely able to be able to pay that amount. In various news sources the lawyer Steve Farese Jr makes similar statements.

“I certainly don’t think she’ll be able to make that. I’m just surprised in the amount, but he’s the judge and he makes those decisions. To us, right now, that’s paramount to no bond at all.”

I know the judge must pass unbiased judgement, but I can’t help but think that perhaps that is the point. For the bail to be set so that the court can go through the proper legal actions without necessarily permitting bail.

Well if she or her family is able to post the bail, then she’ll end up staying with Rudie and Kathy Thomsen in McMinville, Tennessee. Apparently Matthew Winkler had spent a stint of time in that town for work. Mary still has many close friend there and should have no problem finding work.

The prosecutors of the case haven’t said whether or not they will pursue the death penalty yet, however the case is eligible for that punishment according to Judge McCraw.

“The court finds that although the state may elect to treat this charge as a death eligible case, it has not made that full declaration. Therefore, the court finds that the law requires the setting of a reasonable bond for the defendant.”

I guess now everyone will be obsessing over the media coverage of whether or not she will be able to post bail as opposed to what her motives for the murder were.

Auto manufacturer’s have probably noticed it the most. With vehicles like the Honda Element targeting the youth segment / west coast yuppie being a big hit with the Baby Boomers loving the utility of the vehicle. Then with the Chrysler 300 luxury sedan being an example of the opposite. With it’s Bentley-esqe facade being popular with the younger crowd who want in on that “blinging” look.

Lately I’ve seen this strike over to other areas and even more recently it’s gotten a little close to home. My mom has found a new love for her Hip Hop dance class which she attends for exercise. It’s a class for seniors apparently so it’s not just her. The most disturbing part of this is the fact that I got sent a “Nike Rockstar Workout Hip Hop” dvd that breaks down the moves from Rihanna’s music video for SOS and my mom decides to take it. Nothing is more disturbing than seeing your own mother performing hip thrusting maneuvers.

Then there’s both my parents, their friends, and some seniors that I know who just love the show 24. That generation as I’ve always perceived it, didn’t grow up with TV’s certainly never get fully involved with shows. Well it’s crazy when upon returning from their vacation the first thing my parents ask is “How is Jack? Is everything ok?”. Of course I’m wondering who the heck Jack is. “You know Jack Bauer!” they tell me.
Crazy I tell you! They don’t ask about the house or how I am, it’s “How is Jack?”

Well yesterday took the cake when my 84 year old grandma asks for a video iPod for her birthday. She’s sold on the idea of being able to carry and listen to her various talk shows / music, photographs of her grandkids and videos of her TV shows.

I guess I’ll just have to accept it and continue to observe this interesting shift in generational behavior.