I am currently considering either Wasteland or Pixeled - and would love some thoughts on these or other themes. The only hard parameters I hold to are that it has to have a customizable header and three columns.

Help please?

Anyhow, once my middle-aged addled brain gets wrapped around this strange new world, I plan on migrating my links, setting a new theme and make the new site semi-functional in the next week or so. Until then, I’ll be cutting back on my posts on this site while working on the new one.

You can wander on over to trashysworld.ca if you really want to – but there’s really not much to see.

I bleed blue and white and I long for the day that the Cup is returned to the place where it belongs. Well, that day is still I few years off, I reckon. But for now, we of Leaf Nation can be happy with the class that we display from time to time.  We are often accused of being arrogant lot – and maybe we are.

But last night, the Leaf fans at the ACC showed a level of respect that transcended any perceived arrogance.

Mats Sundin was one of the greatest Leafs ever. He left last year and many thought that he was bound fr retirement. Before the 2008 trading deadline, he was asked to waive the no trade clause in his contract so the team could trade him as a “rental” player to a contending team and receive a young gun or a draft pick as compensation.  His refusal to do so and his subsequent signing with the Canuck in late 2008 raised the ire of some and his signing brought forth accusations of opportunism and hypocrisy.

But he didn’t owe us anything. Nada. He gave 13 seasons trying to get to the Promised land and only got close on a couple of occasions. He was class personified. And I truly believe that he will always think of himself as a Toronto Maple Leaf and when he inducted into the Hall of Fame, he will wear the blue and white.

Thanks mats and thanks to the fans at the ACC last night. You made me proud.

Yup. He’s bright. He’s charismatic. He’s young (as in my age!). Wow. The Yanks got it right this time.

Better than the last guy, eh?

And he is coming to Bytown as his first foreign visit as the Commander-in-Chief. He will arrive tomorrow morning, travel to the Hill in his motorcade taking an undisclosed route (likely Colonel By). Then he will meet Stevo, shake hands with Iggy and then hop back into his end-of-the-world proof limo for a trip back to the airport using yet another undisclosed route. Then back to Air Force One and home in time to tuck in the kids.

Ottawa is positively a-twitter over Mr. President’s whistle stop here. Folks are planning their days around heading to the Hill in order to maybe, just maybe, get a glance of the Chosen One. CBC Radio Ottawa is positively gushing. Birds are singing. And all are certain that the skies will clear and spring will arrive early as B.O. steps onto mayorlarry’s realm!

Even my Resident Love Goddess – normally a measured and fairly sane individual – is acting like one of those big-haired teenagers from a Loverboy video!

Amen! Hallelujah! He has come!!!!!

OK folks. Let’s all take a deep breath. This is REALLY NOT SUCH A BIG DEAL.

There, I said it. Let the flaming comments start.

But really, he is the President of a foreign country. And he is visiting our PM for a short meeting and a working lunch. No speech to Parliament. No public address. No walking through the throngs of screaming fans. Nada.

The cops are saying that the BEST anyone of the Hill tomorrow can hope for is a glimpse of the back of the guy’s head. That’s it. That’s all.

All I’m saying is that we Canucks are so desperate for dynamic and charismatic leadership – being that there exists no such beast in our current inventory of political rascals – that we grasp onto a foreign leader as a proxy. Kinda shameful, really, all of this fawning and drooling.

All that being said, I do welcome Mr. Obama to the Great White North and I hope that his leadership and his vision lives up to the advance billing.

I tried to find the time to read this closely, but my 5 year old wants yet another snack. Owen (the 22 month-old) is hitting my leg with his Thomas train. And I have to run off to an interview at my teen’s school.

Those without kids just don’t get it – and never will unless they become a part of the procreation herd.

Seems a kid named David was having a hard time coming out of his anaesthetic after a visit to the dentist. So, dad, being the responsible parent his is, does the expected thing – and films it! Complete with little 8 year old David babbling, bobbing and generally looking like a poor kid who is going through a pretty disconcerting- if not terrifying – time.

I’m not going to embed the vid here – it was way to upsetting so if you do want to see it, you can click on the link to the G&M story above.

I find it amazing that parents find it funny when little *** is in distress, pain or some other state that isn’t at all pleasant. There have been vids circulating of kids falling asleep in their food, falling off bikes or other things (along the Funniest Home Video type of thinking) and now some idiot thinks it’s funny to see his kid all drugged-up.

Amazing. I should show this to my teen to demonstrate how things could be oh-so-much-worse for her!

No word on dates… but I’m guessing we’ll see the O-Train and the 80 & 90 series routes back as early as late next week. Here’s hopin’!

OC Transpo has a tentative plan for restoring transit service as quickly as possible, but a return to full service will take some time. Mechanics are working to bring all the buses back, but vehicles that haven’t had significant maintenance in more than 50 days can’t all be put on the roads immediately.

This is OC Transpo’s tentative plan for which routes will be back first.

Weekdays

Will operate during their regularly scheduled day, including rush hours:

• O-Train

• All school routes, numbered in the 600s

• Rapid transit routes 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 101, 102 and 106

• Major routes 2, 7, 12, 14, 85, 86 and 118

• Peak employment route 105

• Van route 123

• Early morning routes 824, 825, 830, 835, 837, and 873

Will operate evenings and mid-day only, outside of rush hours:

• Routes 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 16, 18, 87, 111, 112, 114, 115, 116 and 117

• Local black routes numbered 121 through 178

Will not operate immediately:

• Green express and rural express routes

• Red rush hour routes other than 102 and 105

Saturday & Sunday

All routes that normally run on weekends will operate at full service.

This is GREAT news – however, I will blog a bit later about how pissed I am that it took this long!