woolcovered

This entry should be of interest to university alumni.

Want lifetime acces to a cool-ass library? Check out your alumni benefits at your alma mater. Chances are, you probably have postgraduate access to your school's collection (Laurier and Seneca both have something in place). To speak to WLU, I know you have to get a strip put on your alumni card - only takes a few minutes at the library, provided you're serviced by a clerk who has done it before. Personally, it's my favourite benefit - and that's actually how I scored the copy of Fast Food Nation I spoke of in last entry.

In other news, I checked my marks last night. I was surprised to learn I'll apparently be graduating with High Honours in my program. Cool!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 02:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Recent experiences with group have started to make me wonder if I'm cut out for PR. I'm told that all of the group-oriented tasks I've done this year is done so in preparation of what I should expect in this sort of career. More and more, I'm starting to dread this prospect.

Last week, I discussed the guilt I was feeling about my contribution to collaborative efforts. I was rather distracted with personal professional priorities and was unable to focus on the micro-task aspect of my groups. In the past few days I've been compensating in a sense, putting great effort into contributing to all of my projects in a more timely fashion. While that's been good on a personal level, it hasn't always translated into group productivity.

I've also been learning that writing by consensus is a tricky way to go about doing things. Its can be great for making sure your grammar and spelling are in check, and it challenges me to be flexible (which is a good thing). Ultimately, I'm finding that the prose which is produced seems to be devoid of passion or impact. I'm starting to think part of the problem is that I'm surrounded by many peers who are getting into an industry of persuasion: a bunch of people in a room who all have leadership potential butting heads is not a pretty thing to see. Strong personalities clashing together can lead to even the most minuscule of tasks taking on epic proportions.

The use of the term 'peers' in the above paragraph is indeed intentional. I fully acknowledge I fall among the more opinionated people out there. I also realize that I approach things from a passionately critical angle. In the beginning of the year, I was one to shrug off conflict, swallow my pride and just get the project done. In this term, I'm wondering if I'm getting too comfortable with these classmates, as I've become a little more aggressive in pursuing my opinion. I need to find a critical balance, that space where I can let go but at the same time get my perspective represented in projects.

Ironically, I think my class on negotiation/conflict resolution could be a good way to learn about how to strive for that elusive middle ground of mutual gain.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 05:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Lately I've joked that job hunting has become my number-one hobby. I even went as far as saying my interest in obtaining a job out of school has bordered on obsessive. I think this may have actually concerned a classmate of mine, though the more I think about it, the more truth there may be to this statement.

I've never been good at dealing with life's bigger questions. At any given point in the day, I'm normally thinking about at least two things - on a good day, its the matter at hand, and one of these 'bigger questions'. On a bad day, its normally two or three of these 'big questions' and I'm completely lost in thought.

In the last couple of weeks, I've been having a lot of bad days. This wouldn't be a big deal, but it has detrimentally affected my academic performance. I'm troubled by the fact that I'm struggling to remember to get things done, when I've booked/moved meetings, and stuff like that. This has made me a pretty shitty group member to work with.

I think there's a few things to blame for this:

1) In September, I pledged I was going to make finding a job a priority once I returned to school for the Winter term.

I've been a bit obsessive about my goal-setting (and more importantly, goal-obtaining) ever since I started to try and make some changes in my life last fall. This means I tend to get irritable when things aren't going as I've planned, so other aspects of my life fail. Because I really want to attain this long-term goal, short term goals like group projects have been a bit harder to focus on. Things have kind of flipped since last year: coming down to my last term at Laurier, I was completely focused on my classes and ignoring most of the 'bigger' long-term issues like finding a job. This year, I'm so busy thinking about what I'm going to do once I'm done my classes, that I'm having trouble focusing on the work in said classes.

2) I'm paranoid of being a bum.

After talking to my sis a little while ago, I starting to think we have our upbringing to thank for this - my parents both, until very recently, would unload on us about their financial burdens as a way to guilt trip us out of asking for anything. Don't get me wrong, my folks have had some hard times. But growing up I've noticed that I'm far more in touch with my family's financial situation than my peers. This has made me a bit envious of my friends - I think I would've rather been in the dark on that one. So what does this have to do with anything? Well, it tends to amplify the importance of finding that first job and establishing financial stability.

3) I feel insecure about my degree and my experience.

This might sound silly, but I know very few folks who are actually working in fields/jobs related to their studies. Seeing so few classmates really apply what we've learned makes me seriously question the value of my education. When being surrounded by undergrad-age college students on campus, I've often wondered if I would recommend university to anyone around that age. I'm honestly not sure if I would. I actually thought B.A.'s were worthless on their own, which is I tried to take a major that involved some hands-on studio work. Unfortunately, that aspect of Comm Studies @ Laurier wasn't very fulfilling, but that's another matter altogether. Anyway, I'm doing postgrad to professionalize what is by all accounts a Humanities degree. My summer jobs have also been a bit near-sighted. While they have funded my education, they've contributed no relevant experience to my career of choice. I've volunteered a bit to compensate for this, doing some philanthropy as well as extra-curricular activities in undergrad. I'm hoping employers will put some value into that stuff, because I actually enjoyed and believed in all of the volunteer work I've done, and got genuine satisfaction out of my extra-curricular activities. I also learned a great deal from them, largely from making many mistakes along the way. If they do, my resume should suck a bit less.

Those three factors are just a few of the reasons why finding a job has become so important to me. Lately, another reason has emerged that is a bit comforting to me: I have a genuine excitement about working in public relations, so I've become a bit anxious to get 'out there'. Its definitely intimidating to consider how I may have an impact on someone's public perception, but I'm excited to try my best to do it right.

Anyway, in the meantime, I've gotta get my act together and keep my mind on school!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 03:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

So I'm back to school, which means I'm back to living out here on my own in North York.

I returned to start this semester in a strange headspace. I no longer feel as anxious as before to please everybody and everyone (a weakness of mine, but who doesn't want to be liked?). I'm also a bit more confident that I've got a pretty decent skillset to not only continue to succeed in this program, but to snag that ever-elusive first job.

I'm also back at the gym, and back to cooking my own meals. Working out has been a bit of a stumbled start, with my slacking over the holidays causing my energy levels to drop. I'm thinking it'll take me a week to get back up to where I was before I left. Until then, I think I'm probably in the most frustrating part of fitness - not getting the results I expect out of myself makes it too tempting to take days off, or to just quit. The only thing I could think of that would be worse is time lost due to injury of some sort. But anyway, I'm trying to use this bit of adversity to inspire me, rather than hold me back.

While talking to Noah over the break, I came to a realization: I have a really hard time being motivated when I don't 'go to a gym' to get the workout in. I'm not sure if working out at home (or Colleen's house) just doesn't put me in the right headspace, but I have a hard time really getting the body moving if I'm not going out to do it. I've read that habits take about two-to-three weeks to set in, so what I was experiencing over the holidays likely came as a result of being out of my better habits for two-to-three weeks on end. I say this, because I did notice I would still yearn for the treadmill when I was at Co's place over weekends during the term. This is going to sound like a total meathead line, but after being at the gym from Mon-Thu, by Friday I was all antsy, itching to burn off some excess energy. This was the best proof I could ever ask for that living well does actually positively change the way you feel on a day-to-day basis.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you lack the inspiration or energy to get out and be active, slug it out for a few weeks and you'll wonder how you ever got by before!

If only I could apply the same ethic to my guitar-playing. Sigh, hopefully I'll get that one off the backburner soon enough.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 01:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I don't think I've used this blog in quite some time to vent about my personal life, but I've had something on my mind for the last few days.

Today I had a conversation with a group member regarding a meeting we've got lined up for this coming morning. I shrugged in my casual way when saying I didn't mind coming in early on Friday, which is usually our day off. The reply was "well, that's easy for you".

For those who don't know, I'm among the few in my class who is not a native of the GTA, which means that I also seem to be among the few who is living off on their own - at least from who I've talked to thus far. Most of my classmates seem to have done the conservative thing, living at home with the parents to save some cash. Aside from the fact that it would drive me crazy to do so, this wasn't geographically feasible for me. So, I bite the bullet and signed a $4800 lease.

Now, those doing the math at home probably know it'd be nearly impossible to pay my tuition and the lease on my fair, but still meager wage from the summer. So that's right, it came on ma & pa to help me out with that end of things.

Do I feel guilty about that? Yeah, I really do. I wish I had've worked in something more lucrative this summer, maybe actually putting my degree to use to scrape together enough cash to pay all of my own way. But as it stands, I have a $400-a-month burden hanging over my head, something I'm reminded of, either directly or not, every time I get into a 'finances' talk at home (for those keeping track, I'm flat broke).

Although I don't have to spend an hour in public transit, or drop $2.75 for the ride, I'm still making a sacrifice each and every day I walk into school, swallowing a bit more of my stubborn pride. We all pay in different ways.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 01:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

So today marked the end of my major presentations for the term. I'm sure some other little ones will pop up here and there, but its looking like this could be it for the term.

This week was espescially heavy for me, as I had two pretty big ones to bookend my schoolweek. Thankfully, I was able to focus on the written portion in my first one - my speaking consisted of answering a question when I figured my group was a little stumped. It was pretty funny, because of all the writing I'd done, I knew the answers to all the questions. But, I had some great presenters in my group, so the control freak in me was able to take a breather for the morning.

This morning was a bit of a change in pace. Part of the reason I managed to get out of presenting on Monday morning was because I'm not very strong when it comes to creative work. So one can only imagine my anxiety when I was tasked with writing and performing a skit! This was only amplified when I couldn't give the group what they wanted, but after a quick re-write we were on our way. I kept it short and sweet, so after a quick rehearsal I was good to go.

It went off without a hitch, and really got me rolling in terms of confidence. This was important, as the Prof for this presentation actually has a marking scheme devoted to 'presentation ability' or something of that nature (eye-contact, volume, etc.). As the other half of my group had scored fairly well on the first presentation for this class (I got to sit that one out too), the bar was set pretty high. So, there was a knot in my stomach as the presentation came to an end and we took our seats. Much to my surprise, we scored an 84% on the presentation itself (a little lower than ideal), but the real kicker is that we (a group member and I) had 100% on the 'presentation skills' portion! I had initially dreaded being graded so throughly, but I think it gave me the real motivation to make sure I had my shit down.

Just figured I'd get that down while I'm still riding high off of its success. Now, its on to all the written projects due next week!

I'll probably be posting fairly frequently on the weekend, I wrote a few entries in/between classes on the trusty palm.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So, I've got spare time and an internet connection. Guess that means its time to blog?

I figure I'll grab any opportunity I can find to jot some words down. On Monday's I get a two-hour lunch, guess its the tradeoff for the early (8:55 - I'll never adjust to the 9-5 world!) start. I forgot to bring along my assignments due tomorrow, so here I sit.

This program has rendered me rather restless. I'm so used to having to be at a meeting, or working on an assignment that when I finally do get free time I tend to space out a little bit and wonder what I'm supposed to be doing. This is espescially relevant when I'm preparing for my 'big' presentation which I'll be working on all week, following today's introductory meeting. I should explain: this is basically an exercise in Problem-Based Learning (PBL), where a group of students is given a rather complex task with vague instructions. The idea is that the students are forced to adopt an independent approach to problem solving. Our prof also makes it his mission to make us rather uncomfortable, so its anybody's guess where we'll end up having to present this. The demands have progressively gotten stranger, so as we're the sixth (and I'm fairly certain, last) group my money's on us having to do it in the busy cafeteria, or on the roof of the building. Today's class for example, was stuck in the middle of the library.

As I am planning on going to Brantford this Saturday, I'm basically going to be devoting the rest of the week to getting all of my work done. The very nature of group work will likely render this to be close to impossible, but we'll see how it goes.

There very likely won't be many entries for the rest of the week, though I am going to spend the rest of this break working on one for tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So, today I learned a pretty valuable lesson in Public Relations...

For my Periodical Writing class, every group waas required to coordinate a presentation based on a newspaper article. This requireed looking at rhetorical devices, style, audience, etc. In preparation for the class, our group decided to be business casual in dress code. Personally, I'd rather be the only group dressed up than the only group not dressed up. As i went to my first class, i noticed that the former had occured. Jeans galore! Fashionable ripped even (the fact that that style's back makes me laugh, that people would buy damaged clothing). No matter, I figured we'd just look good by comparison.

Now, my Thursday is structured as follows: class from 9:50-12:35 p.m., a meeting at 12:40 pm with my group from that class, then another class at 1:35pm which is when my presentation was scheduled. At about 12:45pm, I was starting to wonder when my prof was going to end our Research Methods lecture. I think we got out of the class at around 1 p.m., killing my meeting and leaving me with about ten minutes to each my lunch before I had to prepare for this next presentation.

As Mark and I finished wolfing down our food, the rest of our group sat down at our table. Amanda then said she'd heard through the grapevine from one of the other sections that most of the groups didn't have to actually present, that our prof mixed things up a little bit by getting groups to present on things that they weren't necessarily prepared for.

As we scurried into class (everyone was scheduledto present, so I wasn't the only one in this boat), a group brought us through a summary from last week. I sat patiently, anxious to have my first formal presentaion in this program.

It turns out, the gossip was indeed true. Only one group actually did an article summary, and two others were forced to think on the spot.

Now, at first, I was pretty steamed at this (especially when class went over time, as that violates our student-prof contract in my eyes), but in a program that preaches flexibility on the part of its practitioner, I suppose I'm being prepared for the corporate world. I guess it will be easier to take fickle and inconsiderate customers when there's a paycheque at the end,though!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 08:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So, my first week of college was pretty busy but still enjoyable. Because all of my seven classes are basically in once-week blocks, it means that we're pretty much getting down to business starting this coming week. I've already got two 'group meetings' scheduled for Monday, where we're going to break up our main projects in each of the two clases. The funny part is, 'cause of Labour Day, I still haven't actually had my two Monday classes yet - so there's more work to come!

All in all, the projects look like they will be a lot of work, and the biggest challenge will be getting everyone in the groups moving in the same direction along with following the various professional style guides I was required to purchase. As far as the other classes went, Thursday seems to be my 'funny prof day', so the two three-hour blocks actually went by pretty quick. In both Introduction to Research and Periodical Writing the profs were again (like on Tuesday) quick to dispell many of the preconceptions surrounding my (hopefully) future industry of employment.

The first, Nick, made a point of differentiating between advertising, marketing, and public relations and how we're all distinctive from one another (yet how we'll ultimately have to work together). He had a pretty dry sense of humour, and caught just about everyone off-guard first thing in the morning. He also drove home the point that try as we might, we're not training to be Svengalis (his words). So this falls in line with most of the ideology that I took in on Tuesday.

The afternoon saw us with David, the man who actually was on the front lines at the orientation for this program back in the spring. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who sees him as synonymous with the program, as that orientation was when I started to think that Seneca and PR were right for me. As he's teaching us Periodical Writing, it also helps that he's a pretty solid storyteller, giving us some entertaining anecdotes he's likely told for the majority of the sixteen years he ran this very program. What I truly found surprising is his insistence that we "get past press release mentality", as in his entire career he could recall writing only two, prefering the higher-paying, more strategical fare.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 03:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This entry is coming at y'all from the computer labs in the Seneca@York campus. This will likely be the first of many to be written in this fashion, espescially while I go through the woes of reinstalling all of my drivers I quickly realized I didn't have late last night. So, after my reformat, I've been left in a bit of a sketchy predictament, which means the remainder of this evening will very likely be spent going back and forth from campus, using the the internet connection here to shunt files back to my currently offline home PC. I probably could bug one of my housemates into helping me out and saving me the ten or so minute walk, but everyone seems to keep to themselves around the house so it would be a little awkward. I'm hoping it doesn't stay this way, but we'll see how it goes I suppose.

My two classes (Writing for Public Relations Practitioners and Public Relations Management Techniques - External Communications ) went fairly well. Icebreaking was had, profs were introduced, and a bit of work (but not much) occured. I did notice that there is a fairly consistent message being pushed to all of the students. Both profs stressed the importance that what we are learning is not spin (one blaming journalists of being the bad ones for it and the other political leaders). Secondly, they both said that the training we are receiving here at Seneca will suit us best for public relations management positions, the "third job" we'll probably get. I'm wondering if that will lead me to be overqualified upon my graduation (and if I choose the short-term master's option abroad this coming summer)? Ah well, better over than under I guess.

Of course, today I also received the first exposure to the 30 folks in my stream. Of them, there are 5 Laurier grads (I'm one of three Comm. Studies kids, and Naureen whom I worked with in the Bookstore is one of them, so that was pretty lucky) and I'm also one of four guys of the program's total dozen (there's two other 30-student streams).

Although I've still clearly got the aformentioned issues left to sort out tonight, I'd say today was a fairly productive day. $500 later I've picked up most of my books (with a few style guides I haven't decided on comprising the rest), and I even got around to getting my student card photo taken.

For those who are interested in such matters, I will also be in Guelph tomorrow afternoon-evening. I have an orthodontist appointment at 2:50, and I'm not sure how long it'll go for, but if anyone would like to hang out just call the cell. I haven't decided how early I'm heading back here (I do have morning classes on Thursday's), but I figured I'd toss it out there.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 04:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I really should call this the 'entry that never was', as I was going to write a few things (part two to Family Values, my Rancid story), but then never ended up getting around to them (or was unable to get them off my Palm and onto my comp, a problem which should be remedied after I finally reformat my PC tonight).

Well, first things first, I'm moved in and up in running in time for classes to begin tomorrow. I've got to say, this is pretty well an ideal student living accomodation. For a mere $400/month I'm looking at a completely inclusive deal: internet/cable TV is taken care of (though I'm not sure how speedy this shared connection'll be, the price is right), and the laundry facilities (free washer and coin-op dryer) are right here in the basement of the unit. Did I mention that this place is partially furnished? That desk and futon the parents shelled out the cash for in the last two years are all but useless to me for the next year. Basically, this would be the perfect for any studnet coming right out of residence that needed a place to stay for the next two-three years while they wrap up their B.A.

The way this half of the semi-detached house is set up appears to house about a dozen people (if the shoeboxes at the front door are any indication, as our rooms are written on them) - four in the basement, one or two on the ground floor, and the remaining folk on the top two stories (including the master bedroom on the very top). I figure I'll probably end up staying in the basement all the time, as with a common kitchen and two common bathrooms among the four of us, I have no real reason to leave it. That being said, since packing my TV, computer, (new!) fridge, and whatnot into my room, I've got about 4x6 feet to speak of in terms of 'personal space'. Needless to say, I have a feeling I'll be hanging out on campus alot. Which brings me to my next point: as I mentioned when I got the place, I'm literally a stone's throw (about a 10 minute walk) away from the Seneca Building (only 'cause its on the far end of York U's campus) and pretty much everything I could need is close by (including a small grocery store a few blocks away).

I hope that every university town gets its act together to create some sort of community like this one, as because its well-maintained there's no student ghetto to speak of either (it is fairly new, which helps). From what I've seen around the streets, it looks like there's a lot of families around these parts too, so we'll see how that pans out I guess.

The downside to all of this is that I really don't know anybody. Lisa (a friend from highschool, for those who don't know) tells me that she lives around here, but we're not too tight so I'm not sure how often I'll go 'round to bug her. There's a few folk that are a fairly short commute away (Kev, Kelsie, Alex M., and Noah in Toronto, Lexx in Etobicoke), but I know I'm generally not the type to go extremely far out of my way to hang out during the school year - perhaps I'll turn over a new leaf?

Alright, so I guess the next entry will be the proper follow-up to Family Values, as I seemed to have moved all of the files I need off of this drive, and can spend the next few hours reformatting windows (yay!). For anyone that wants to get ahold of me, my cell number is still the same.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 07:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

So, I've just finished watching the Untouchables, and similar to my last classic-crime-film-watching experience, I was awakened to a number of cultural refences. I never realized just how much the Simpsons' 'Beer Baron' episode actually spoofed the whole idea. I mean, I knew Rex Banner was a take on Elliot Ness, but I didn't realize that the background music playing during the prominent scenes in the episode was actually the theme from the original film. I wonder if the parodies seem more obvious to me now because they're not as original, or because Matt Groening & co. have simply run out of classic stories to spoof that I'm unfamliar with.

The other reference I've got to point out is that Sean Connery's character (an Irish policeman) is pretty racist, dropping many slurs directed at the Italian antagonists in the flim. As a fan of SNL Celebrity Jeoparty, I couldn't help but laugh when this happened...one of those things that finally clicked after many years.

And wow...it looks like there could be a prequel of sorts to this made in '08, with Untouchables director Brian De Palma attached. Go figure.

In other news, I got my schedule today, and holy morning classes! My days certainly get off to an early start (8:55 Monday, 9:50 Tuesday & Thursday). The trade-off seems to be that I only have three afternoon hours of class on Wednesday and Fridays are completely off. I haven't decided how I'm going to approach the sleep issue. I'm thinking if I simply download the episodes of Conan every night, I can watch them a day late matinee-style. Or I could buy a PVR and accomplish the same task. If only there was confirmation that the PS3 is going to have that functionality (which I'm honestly doubting), then the price tag will be a little more justifiable.

Anyway, I'll post my full schedule eventually, most likely in the group calendar I already have set up.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 07:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm not really sure how to describe convocation. It was my second time through, as my beloved received her Honours last year. This year's was a historic event of sorts, as it was Laurier: Brantford's first joint ceremony with Nipissing university to hand out the degrees to those who completed their B.Ed alongside Laurier's Contemporary Studies B.A. It felt funny, going from a ceremony that was all about me and my classmates to one that I felt a little cut out of. I couldn't help but skeptically look on as a cynical outsider, espescially at some of their more eccentric (a Christian prayer?) formalities.

To move back to the brigther side, seeing the profs all dressed up in their respective garb was probably my favourite part of this ritual. For a moment, I couldn't help but feel like we were being accepted into a cult of sorts (which I poked fun at in a reply to a comrade of mine who sent me an amusing congratulatory email).

Now, I am normally apprehensive of formality (given that I knew I had completed this program sucessfully quite some time ago). I chuckled when friends of mine 'wished me luck' the day before the ceremony, wondering what I would need luck for exactly, if I'd already completed the program? I also had those congradulating me before the ceremony, then again after it ended, as if walking across the stage was another noteworthy achievement worthy of a seperate reward.

It was a proud day for many, and it even seeped into my cynical mind. As the person before me walked out just before his name was getting called, I too nrevously took a step a little prematurely onto the brightly lit stage. After what seemed like an eternity (but was really about one second), Associate Dean Bruce Arai read my name out and I shook President Rosehart's hand. Next up was Chancellor Bob Rae (yes, that Bob Rae), who I believe sensed my anxiety even more than I did at the time. He introduced himself to me, congratulating me on my success and wishing me the best of luck in the future. I was confused at why he was taking longer with me, and even more puzzled when me placed his hand on my left arm. I felt pretty special, as this dude with a bit of celebrity that I didn't even know took more time with me than almost everybody else. It was only as the ceremony ended that I realized this was probably a very smooth way of controlling the flow of traffic across the stage. In any case, it worked.

Finally, I'm going to admit, I couldn't help but indulge in one feeling - as I stood with my peers at the front of the suprisingly packed Sanderson Centre, degrees-in-hand, clapping for those who supported us (another of the formalities), I felt an incomparable sense of accomplishment, one which only increased when my graduating class was presented to the rest of the applauding auditorium.

Most of all, I felt a great sense of pride when I learned my that me entire name would be read as I walked up to accept my degree. This is because I had instructed WLU to print it fully on that snazzy piece of paper, so it was read as such. Anyway, for those who don't know, my middle names follow a patiarchal lineage (Hugh - my father's name; Clement - my grandfather on my father's side's name) and given their uncommon frequency these days, they were the source of much ridicule and subsequent shame on this boy's part. However, on this day, I felt the need for everybody to know exactly who I am and where I came from. My father and I had a truly remarkable moment at the reception; as when I approached I asked him how he felt about my full name being displayed (and announced) at the ceremony I could tell he was rather proud (even taking a picture of the document in question). This is symbolic in a way, as not only am I entirely comfortable with my background, but this is another of the signs that has been displayed recently that represents me growing closer and closer to a man I was estranged from for most of my adolescence.

Ironically enough, with all of that to distract me, I can't even remember if my last name was pronounced correctly.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 06:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Ok, this is a fairly pointless entry, but at the very least I can explain the lack of actvity found here.

For the last week and half, I've had the pleasure of having my family down here from Alberta. So, both computer rooms in the house (my bedroom and my mother's sewing room) have been occupied when I get home from work. As I generally wake up with very little time to spare before I've got to go in for my afternoon shift, my computer usage time has dwindled to almost nil. I'm only up and on right now 'cause I couldn't sleep and I've got some errands to run.

Tomorrow is graduation, and I'm excited though I have no clue if I'll be able to do the afterparty-type stuff and still be able to hitch a ride back to Guelph to get to my Thursday 4:20 P.M. shift. Its not impossible, but who knows?

As this lack of entries has not been for a lack of content, there should be more to follow soon!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Well, it turns I didn't forget how to study after all.

When preparing for my first exam, I was pretty sure that was indeed the case. But, that one went well and I think the one I just got out of writing went o.k. too. Overall, I'd say I'm happy with the results of my efforts (but I guess the marks will tell the true story). Honestly though, after having no finals last term (much to my frustration at paper time), and scoring horrible marks in both of the midterms for the classes I had finals in this term, the prospect of standardized testing did not sit well with me. Perhaps it was this anxiety that fueled my efforts.

But alas, I am spent..le tired if you will. A nap sounds pretty good right now, followed by some intensive drinking.

If you've been on the site long enough to read this far down the entry (you .rss feeders aside), you're probably noticing the sexy new design. How could I have been so productive in redsigning my site the day before my final, you ask? No, I'm not the worst student ever. The answer is - I didn't do it! Thanks for this one goes out to Dan, whom you may notice is back on the blogroll. He's decided he wants to do entries again, so I've decided his blog is again relevant. Anyway, go read it - 'cause if you don't, you'll never know what a garbageface is.

In other news, it seems as though Ryan finally got his sexy domain name - and if you don't know what infornography means, well, won't pay his home a visit? Anyway, easiest damn birthday present I ever bought, though it didn't go quite as planned. I was hoping to do it myself, and then have it point to his and 'for free blowjobs call [his cell phone]', but Mr. Bianchi's b-day unfortunately falls during term-paper season, so coordinating such shenanigans is rather troublesome. In a related note, I hope he comes home today so we can get drunk! I may be off, but I think I've yet to buy him a birthday pint (or three).

Anyway, a little while ago I had an msn detailed my disgust for my slacker peers in this here blogosphere. With Dan back to the posting, I'm convinced there's hope for anyone. Lexx (Last update: 4/3) - your MSN names imply things are better in life - I'd love to read about 'em. Denny (last update: 4/11) - where are you, man? Radigan (last update: 3/21) - had I not spoken to you in meatspace (and on a funny long distance phone conversation), I would've never known how your cliffhanger of a situation (ie, your last post) ended up. S-to-the-Bdot (last update: 1/2) - just take the blog down! Stop fooling yourself! Though I always chuckle when reading the first line of your last four-month old post: "It's a new year, and I've decided to make good on my promise to update."
And last but not least, my man Coach-B (last update: 4/4) - you drop some ill rymes on us, then bounce? Who do you think you are, Dr. Dre? (The joke, for the non-thugs among us, is that his last album was six years ago. I'm so witty and funny, I know...)

Anyway, I'm sure there's others...but the greasy spoon awaits.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Well, Tuesday, much like this week, didn't seem to work out as planned.

I didn't end up taking the hour to sleep for fear that I would snooze through my shift. The open went ok, as did the luncheon that followed. I'm sure I've said it before, and will likely say it again, but I will miss this job - hands down its the best one I've ever had.

As I was wrapping up my shift, I logged onto the Ontario College website and clicked the most important button I've clicked all year...then had to click it again (oh confirmations). Its official: I will be attending Seneca College for Corporate Communications in September. Thanks to those who congratulated me, though I'll admit it feels sort of anticlimatic when I got in about a month ago. No matter, I made a decision! Given my nature, that's pretty big for me in itself.

Anyway, after getting home I passed out until 9 p.m. I woke up figuring I might be able to throw the old sleep cycle back into something socially-acceptable in time for my exam this coming morning. There is a slight problem in the sense that I can't seem to focus on studying. I've spent too much time on this, five days of study time is unprecedented for this slacker. This anxiety, compounded with the fact that I'm way too excited about everything right now, makes it really hard to concentrate.

It feels good to be going away to school again. The combination of going to do a program I'm excited about (not just one I applied to for the sake of applying) and graduating from a year/school I've really enjoyed has me pretty happy. In a sense, I seem to be finally getting the feeling that most of my group had in high school. I was so jaded and upset in the second half of OAC, living in a life that was intertwined by an overall sense of rejection: I was unemployed for the first time since the tenth grade, single after a pretty taxing, dragged-out relationship, striking out with any females I was interested in, and not a single offer from any universities before the summer started. I can't help but think of how things couldn't be more inverted right now: my life is far from perfect, but I defintely feel blessed. In an employment, romantic and academic sense, I'm feeling the love in the here and now. As with the 'rides' entry, I don't know if this makes for the best reading, but let no one say I take things for granted.

Anyway, my fingers are crossed for this interview on Friday as well, as summer employment is the final major puzzle piece I need to come together to make this all work.

I'm trying to work on making these entries more concise, so I think I'll talk more about the program (which you can read all about at that link) tomorrow. Also, there's been some awesome music released lately, and without my radio show or Cord contributions I haven't really talked about music that much lately. So, there will probably be an entire entry devoted to that soon. Or does the reader prefer the tangential ones? I'm curious to see if anyone will comment.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 12:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Alright, so a quick update of sorts.

Today was another day spent in travel, doing the Toronto-Guelph-Waterloo thing. Dinner at Co's grandma's was nice, and my easter haul has been three chocolate bunnies and a bit of leftovers. I didn't really get 'gifts' in a sense this year, but my mother did order me a discounted Beatles biography - as a Doubleday member, she's privy to some deals and had some 'half-price' slots left on this month's order. I would like to build up my music book collection, so I figure the fab four is a good place to start (and it was the only book in the promo catalogue). Oh, how I long for the days of recreational reading again.

That being said, I have been lucky enough to sneak a few pages of fun into my exam reading schedule. This has come in the form of the brilliant Transmetropolitan. When I was in Toronto last week, Mr. Radigan bestowed the first two graphic novels upon me, and while I was waiting for my ride I burned through the first one. I was initially apprehensive of Spider Jerusalem's character (to say he's over-the-top would be a bit of an understatement), but by the time I was wrapping up the first volume I was sold on it. Basically, the plot follows Jerusalem, a gonzo journalist in a post-cyberpunk society. Although Spider's character is good for a laugh, like any cyberpunk-related fiction (or comic book, for that matter) the real story is in the world that writer Warren Ellis builds. This is one of the rare works that blends my geekdom for good science fiction and politically-charged journalism. There was something like sixteen books, so I look forward to seeing how many different facets of this universe Ellis explores - it already is moving at a whirlwind rate as far as I'm concerned, as if he had too many ideas to cram into each issue.

Anyway, I'm beat, but I figured I should take the opportunity to talk about comics, bringing my blog into a whole new realm of geekdom. Studying is going ok, I'm actually caught up in Nonverbal! So hopefully I can now memorize all of the content over the next three days while prepping for my other (Saturday) exam! I see these late exams as a blessing, as I can't remember the last time I've put this much work into studying.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 04:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Alright, so as I hate using my mother's computer...this entry will likely be quite short (edit: that turned out to be a great big lie). In terms of net-related things, I've been in a bit of a hole anyway. That's sort of the beauty of coming home to Guelph for weekends and the like. Because I dislike using this computer, I can literally feel as if I'm on a retreat of sorts when I'm home. I'm not sure if this will change when my mother's new RAM (she's running XP on 128mb...not pleasant) comes in, but I know that for the time being its actually been beneficial to me.

Why has it helped? Well, its made studying a breeze. My nonverbal communication stuff is coming along quite nicely, I've completed three of the four chapters of reading by simply splitting them up into a chapter a day (I started in the wee hours Thursday night). Four chapters seems a little light for a final, so I'm going to be asking around about that to make sure I've got it all - I'm uncertain if 'material not covered on the midterm' will comprise of stuff from the first half that he left out. That being said, he didn't leave much out (but I bombed it, so what do I know?). So anyway, I haven't really started on the D.E. one yet, but that's not for a week so I've still got time if I get on it tomorrow night.

So as I haven't been online, my spare time has been spent a little differently than usual as well. I've had a lot of family dinners out, which has been nice but now that I'm not sick all of this greasy food is starting to catch up with me a bit. It's tough, 'cause when my health is bad I drop weight really rapidly, so it tends to come back about as fast when I get better. At the same time, I've been relishing in the fact that I can eat whatever I want again without worrying about upsetting my stomach. I've already felt my appetite increase, so moderation may be difficult. I've decided to give myself one more day, starting on Monday after the holidays are over. Tomorrow/today (as it's now 6:18 a.m.) I will be heading to Toronto to have Easter family dinner at Co's grandmother's place. It should be nice, as if memory serves I don't think I've seen her since she went away to the U.S. many months ago. Needless to say, some food will be eaten. Hence, my revised meal plan starts Monday.

While on the topic of excess, I was also lucky enough to hit the bars last night with Mike and Andrea. This is the second time in as many weeks that we've been able to go out, and as this is also probably the second time in two years we've been in the same place, I'm quite thankful to see them both again so soon. Religious folks be damned: I highly reccomend the Guelph bar scene on the Goodest of Friday's. It was dead, which meant you could drink pretty much wherever you wanted. Given my company, I didn't get to head to the Underground like I normally would for some Solstice (read: Goth-themed-electronic/rock music) action, but I did have the pleasure of an empty main floor at Van Gough's. They had some funk goin' and I must say it was a good way to end the night all hammed up.

As I knew I was going to be in a hiberatory state, I rented some movies to take home with me this weekend. Neither of these are new, but ones I've been meaning to see for some time. The first one, About Schmidt, was a bit of a letdown. The major theme (and really only idea) was delivered so heavy-handedly I sighed as the credits came up. I suppose the fact that it was so predictable was kind of appropriate, as most of the 'curveballs' in the plot were fairly telgraphed. Jack Nicholson (who won Best Actor at the Globes, and was nominated for an Oscar for this film) is one of my favourite actors, and he made it watchable. Its rare you get to see one of the greats in a role that sees a character (Warren Schmidt) just let himself go, and there was a sick pleasure (appropriate for a pitch-black comedy) in watching Schmidt's deterioration. All in all, ok...but not great. After this and Something's Gotta Give (which admittedly, I didn't make it through all of), I think it may be time to approach Jack's work a little more apprehensively.

I actually just finished watching the second film I rented,Rat Race. For those who don't remember, this was a multi-star-caper-affair that came out almost five years ago. Basically, six folks are in a race for two million dollars. Though its loosely based on the 1963 comedy It's a Mad Mad World, its interesting to view this one through our current lens of our reality-television pandamonia. See, the kicker is that the six people are really part of a much larger scheme, as the casino owner (played by the incredible John Cleese, who steals the picture) who shells out the cash has a group of high-rollers betting on the outcome of whole thing. All in all, the film is actually quite ridiculous, some great actors turn in suitably over-the-top performances, and I defintely found myself laughing out loud on several occasions. The ending, however, made me wish I'd stopped it early. If you've seen it, you'd understand.

But anyway, tonight also saw my last game of hockey. Probably related to the few pounds I've put on, I seem to have lost of a bit of my touch on the ice these last few weeks. It's not even that I'm slower so much as everything just feels a little 'off'. Its doubly bad 'cause in the last few months I've probably been the best hockey of my life. So to slip a bit is a little hard on the ego. I did have a funny goal story that will amuse probably only Netters. It was near the end of the night - my last shift actually - and in typical pick-up hockey fashion I found myself receiving a pass at the blueline (it would be fair to argue I was cherry-picking, but really I was just a little too tired to make it all the way back to the other end in time). I got the puck, turned around and started to go - but uh, oh - a defenseman was streaking across the blue line. I knew I was a little faster than him, but he had the jump on me and had my number all night (at this point, I'd only had one pretty weak goal on about four shots - a quiet night to say the least). So, I started to skate towards the net, holding the puck out to the right in anticipation of the swinging stick that was bound to come from my left-hand side. Sure enough, it came across and I took this opportunity to stride in a little faster (knowing that the D was stretching a bit). I knew I didn't have enough space to cut across the net from the right (something I'd been trying unsuccessfully to do all night), so I deked to that direction but pulled the puck back in as fast as I could - quick enough to throw the goalie out of position, but I was running out of room. In the last foot I managed to get the shot off, and as my stick brushed against the post it flew out of my hands, I lost balance (or just gave up on standing, I was pretty tired) and slid into the boards. As I laid there thinking about watching the puck flutter into the net, I wanted nothing more than the buzzer to go so I wouldn't have to get up right away. I have a bit of a reputation for my self-destructive individual efforts; so I can think of no more fitting of a goal to cap the season off with.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 06:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Hmm, although I'm lost of what song lyric to quote, this is an entry about endings.

As I sit here procrastinating on my last undergraduate term paper (fittingly also my longest individual and most highly weighed one ever, 16-20 pages @ 50%), I can help but wax all retrospectively. I never did get around to doing a year in review this winter, as 2005 was documented pretty well in this, my first full calendar year of blogging. So, I'm thinking of a better solution - I figure I've got more interesting things to say of this more distinctive period in my life, that is my self-contained eight months here in Waterloo.

However, the ending may not be here just yet - with my very flexible bookstore schedule (I'm off 'till the 12th), I'm going to see if I can find the summer job/sublet thing here in town. I don't want to leave this city, and I defintely don't think I want to burden my parents for another summer. Things have been great with them, and the space has been healthy for all involved. So I think we've established a passable balance. Hopefully, I can swing something that will work after this paper is removed from my list of distractions. I just hope that it isn't too late for a decent job opening.

That being said, I'll ultimately go where the money's at, so if I got a good offer in Guelph I would certainly consider it. So if anyone has any sweet ideas (or connections), then feel free to drop me a line. As much as I'd love some actually applicable experience, I'm figuring it'll be another year of factory work for this sucka to scrape together some cash. I'm considering applying to some stuff at Laurier Brantford as it looks like some jobs are there. Summer in Bdot would be interesting...so many possibilities, its hard to really think of how I'm going to approach this application process.

In other news, as most of my readers may have heard of, tonight was the last edition of the Monday Night Mixup. It was a pretty decent show, I had Wayne come in to play some tracks, and it really made me wonder how cool it would've been to have a co-host. Had I done this for more than eight months, its defintely something I would've considered. In other news, Colleen came out of her shell a little bit to speak on the mic, which was a nice change as I was certainly not in a hurry to get through my programme (I ran a two-hour show this week). I'm going to work on getting all of my favorite arrchived streams onto one CD worth of materials, a top-10 shows of the year if you will. If anyone's interested (I realize 90-minute tracks aren't everybody's cup of tea), I'll try to make them available soon. Oh, Colleen also snapped some pictures, so now everybody who didn't make it down to the booth will get a sense of what it was like in there during a show. Thanks for the help and support, dearest!

Finally, it looks like the offers are continuing to pour in: I guess since they got my transcripts, I don't look too bad to Mohawk after all - they reversed their rejection and sent me an offer of admission Friday for Public Relations. Something else to consider as May 15th continues to approach. So far, that makes me 2.5 / 4 on these (though at the risk of sounding arrogant, I didn't really expect to not get in to any of these), and the one dud is my own fault (as the previous entry explains). On Thursday, I'm heading to Humber to continue to flirt with the idea of a future career in journalism. I don't think the testing will be too hard, but I just hope I'm not too tired from this paper and Mr. Radigan's snazzy art show.

Anyone interested in seeing what is sure to be some kickass art? Or simply showing your support for a kickass artist? Well, you'll have to contact him for the details, but Kevin is sharing a gallery in Toronto this Wednesday night. Hopefully, he or someone else attending will have to respond to this entry with the vitals, as I'm sure he'd love to see anyone who could make it. Unless I'm sorely misunderstanding the nature of the event...

I really should post more often, to cut back on the tangential nature of these sorts of catch-up posts. Things have been crazy to say the least!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 09:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

This weekend has been a little weird.

After some printer trouble and some soul searching, I decided to not go to Seneca on Saturday. See, what happened was that for some reason my mother and I were unable to get her printer to print off the first page of my resume (it would only print the first line). I had already been having my reservations, and after fighting with her piece of hardware for a half an hour it was looking like we weren't going to make it to Toronto by 9 a.m. But anyway, while writing the (required) cover letter last night explaining why I would be a good candidate for the program, it just wasn't feeling right. The more I read about what they had to offer, the less likely I figured I wanted to be in the Technical Communications field. So, that, combined with technical difficulties (ironic, eh?), combined with sleep deprivation (we were up early than I would've liked to have been on a Saturday morning), led to me just blowing it off.

So, as it stands, I have two acceptances, one anticipated rejection (this was a mandatory session), one official rejection (Mohawk needed my transcripts quicker, apparently) and one session left to attend.

Yesterday morning's event was a reminder in how heavily unforseen consequences have been weighing in on my life. I've always been a last-minute, down-to-the-wire, deadline pushing kind of guy, but lately I haven't been able to pull it together. As a result of my shoddy work habits, I had been anticipating a few solid weeks of little-to-no sleep as I toil away nights scrambling to put together assignments. But, just when my semester was starting to build to a climax, the sickness I had in the summer started to rear its ugly head. Now, I'm lucky if I can stare at a computer screen long enough to write a page (without running to the bathroom or trancing out completely), let alone have any of it make sense.

Thankfully, the pills I have been taking since the fall help me keep my digestive system under control (I wish I had've had these in the summer), but they can only do so much (even at double dosage). So, my specialist decided to up my medication, and hopefully this will have me in o.k. shape to write my last two exams (the 19th and the 22nd, respectfully).

Also thankfully, my distance ed. paper was knocked back to tomorrow (there was little chance I would've had it done by Friday), but writing it has been an agonizing process. I'm having trouble even knowing where to start, and am espescially critical of everything I try and put on the page because of my crappy midterm mark in this class. It's a vicious cycle. But anyway, I probably shouldn't procrasinate any longer. Back to work...

Posted by Jason Guitard at 05:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Well, it looks like things are starting to gear up on the school front. Not only is pretty much everything due next week, but after some sketchy midterms (in, ironically, both of my second year classes) I'm left with the need to give a little bit more in the coming weeks. This is the standard cycle for me, as I generally get better grades on essays than on tests - maybe having 0 finals last term really was a blessing? But anyway, I'll probably be cutting down on the socializing, espescially with all the trips I've been taking out of town in the last few weekends. So, hope I don't hurt anybody's feelings but I want to graduate!

Aside from the rather hectic nature of things, life has been swell of late. I recently received another offer of admission from Humber for Public Administration, although the fact that it was dated 'Feb 1st' was a bit of a head-scratcher. It's nice now to have choice - I really enjoyed my tour of Seneca, so I was already leaning towards them anyway. Now, I feel like I should take a trip down to the Humber Business School (Lakeshore Campus) to see what they've got to offer. In all honestly, its a program I know very little about.

Anyway, I guess we'll see what other offers pour in by May 15th.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 02:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

But sometimes, having one is nice:

Anyway, I was tempted to do the happy dance when I was at work. But, I figure I'll take this positive energy and head to the library to work on my D.E. proposal!

This also marks the first image (ever) posted on woolcovered.com. What a tedious experience, it's no wonder it took me 129 entries to do so!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 08:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

A bookstore entry. Haven't done one of these in a few weeks.

I've gotta say, I'm going to miss this place when the year ends. As lame as it sounds, in a lot of ways this is more than just a job to me. When I came to this strange new city this past fall, the first people I met were my coworkers. Though I'll admit I initially kept a respectful distance from most (I didn't want to be that weird clingy guy), as this term is starting to wind down I'm finding myself fraternizing more and more. The only thing I'm curious about is whether or not I'll keep in touch with many of these folks when I'm gone - I guess what it really comes down to is whether or not I've made a lasting impression on my peers here in these eight short months.

Anyway, I've settled into a nice routine with my shifts, closing Wed-Fri has given me a chance to work with different people than last term (and is a welcome change to working exclusively in the mornings surrounded by fulltime folk). During my shift tonight I've been reading the current copy of Alternative Press - they've made a smart move during the slow winter season by naming the top 100 bands to watch this year. They also tell the reader who would like the band, basically by saying they're 'for fans of Franz Fredinand' for example. A neat idea, which should give me some more names to fill up my hard drive with! So yeah, check it out...

Jill (my soup) needs the comp, and I think I've digested most of my break food, back to the 'grind' I go.

Oh, in other news...my transcripts were mailed today!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 06:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, I've used this track a couple of times for titles and it seems to be a good theme for where I'm at in my life. For those who don't know, 'Nowhere Fast' is on Incubus' existentialist-themed and appropriately titled hit album, 1999's Make Yourself. Being that the album is their true mainstream-crossover-breakthrough, you've probably heard at least some of it in fragmented form through the pretty successful single outings ("Pardon Me", "Stellar", and "Drive") - I'd reccomend digging to the rest of the album tracks before deciding one way or the other on the band. They are pretty rewarding in regardsto understand the conceptual element of it.

Anyway, the lyrics which are rather significant:

Will I ever get to where it is that I am going?
Will I ever follow through with what I, what I had planned?
I guess it's possible that I have been a bit distracted
and the directions for me are a lot less in demand.

Will I ever get to where I'm going?
If I do, will I know when I'm there?
If the wind blew me in the right direction would I even care?

This is the way I sort of feel right now about my life. I'm come to realize I'm fairly passive/lazy by nature, so this feeling of drifting is something I can relate to. I would've quoted the whole song, but I figured that would be too blog-cliché.

Anyway, for those thinking I've gone nuts, I've slipped up a bit at midterms and its driven home my need for focus. Both my poor outings came as a result of understudying, and I have to say I haven't felt that bad coming out of tests since my high school slacker days. It wasn't nice...so hopefully that'll serve as a chilling reminder and motivator when I endure my last round of university finals (as I actually have exams this term...bummer, but probably for the best for my workload right now).

So now that I've probably bummed everyone out, here's the picker-upper I've distracted myself with over the last hour: Flight of the Conchords. Although they have an official site, I'd reccomend the one linked to in the name. I could go on about background info, but all you really need to know is that they refer to themselves as "New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy folk duo". On Sunday, I saw a rerun of their 2004 set at Just For Laughs, and had the chorus from 'Business Time' in my head for the next two days. Turns out, I dropped the ball back in the fall, 'cause they were on Conan and I missed it. Anyway, you can see it! If you browse around the media section of the page there's some mp3's for your consumption. Personal reccomendations: "Business Time", "Bowie", "Frodo" and "Think About It, Think Think About It".

Hmm, some whining about school/life and a media reccomendation, sounds like a completed j blog to me! 'Till next time...

Posted by Jason Guitard at 03:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It appears as though my bid for post-post-secondary (far more fun to say than 'post-graduate') education has gotten off to a bit of a false start.

When checking my e-mail at work today, I found out that Humber not only didn't receive the attachment I know I sent out with my e-mail (I have some beefs with WLU's student e-mail service), but they had also had not received my academic transcripts yet....ditto for the Journalism program, which would explain why they hadn't mailed me yet regarding an info session. Anyway, figuring this could also explain my Mohawk rejection, I decided to check OCAS. The status of my application said 'will be sent out at the end of term' which is cearly too late for these colleges. I was furious - who would organize such a thing? Clearly, these schools need them now! I wasn't sure who I should be mad at - OCAS or WLU. Who's to blame?

Well, taking the advice of the kind woman from Humber, I decided to phone OCAS while e-mailing the person responsible for transcripts here at WLU. After navigating what seemed like about a dozen menus, I got to talk to a live human! Anyway, this woman informed me that I had in fact filled out the application incorrectly, and actually chose to have them sent out at the end of the term. My heart stopped when I heard that; and then it all came back to me. At the time, I had figured if I, as a current student, requested it any sooner the transcript would be incomplete (thus assuming it would be worthless to them), so I figured I should probably 'play it safe' and just pick the other option. So, $24 later I have transcripts going to my three colleges of choice - the lady was even kind enough to suggest I pay by phone to ensure that they're sent out as soon as possible.

Hopefully, I haven't shot myself in the foot just yet. But really, I couldn't help but wonder why they wouldn't just automatically send the transcripts when the colleges would need them? I don't want to shift the blame, but I mean...I had never really done this before, so how was I supposed to know? Anyway, I'll admit this partially stems from doing my application at the last minute, as there's probably literature on the site explaining to my dumb ass which option I should've picked and why.

Needless to say, I sent another e-mail to the administrative assitant here on campus responsible for transcripts (she hadn't even responded to the first one yet), explaining the situation. I figured it would be a good chance to also politely ask if there was anything I could do to speed up the process of the current request.

But man, that has to be the greatest feeling of embarassed humility - when you're so mad at someone, so convinced it got fucked up somewhere along the line, only to look around and find that you are yourself indeed at fault.

It's funny, I ended up telling the story of my stupidity a few times at work, I have an odd (masochistic?) tendency of being brutally honest with my fuckups. I figure I do it to give me a chance to laugh at them while also deflating any potential ridiculers.

So yeah..."I'm Dante, and I'm the biggest idiot ever". Looks like it's time for The Daily Show...I mean studying...yeah.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So call me tangential, 'cause this may seem all over the place - but I've been meaning to post so let's just give it a shot, shall we?

I've loosely considered looking through my archives and checking all the times I've stated my best intentions to update more frequently. I'm sure its in the dozens. Thus, I will make no such promises here, in hopes that I'll be able to casually stay on top of things. Generally, if I've detected a pattern, its that when I have work to avoid I tend to post more.

First, an update. Reading week was swell; worked the first half and went back to Guelph for the remainder of it. Got to see a lot of old faces back in the hometown, and I was thankful to be invited to spend time with peeps outside of the drunken-barfly-yelling-at-each-other-over-the-music context. Maybe I'm just getting old, but I probably had more fun just relaxing at King's Buffet with a friendly crowd than getting bombed at the Underground the previous night. Go figure.

In other news - Stars concert tonight! And on Thursday, I'll be going to see the Neverending White Lights. With any luck, reviews to follow (perhaps even in the Cord).

School

Anyway, although I had planned on returning home for these social intentions, my incoming letters from college necessitated my return for more formal reasons. In short, I needed my mom's car - though I ended up receiving full chauffeur treatment - to report to Seneca for a mandatory information/testing session at their York Campus. Before attending this last Friday, I had to write a statement of interest for a career in PR. It's funny, for those who don't recall one of my past entries, the program I registered for was Corporate Communications. I'd be lying if I said I had read the description fully and realized that it basically translates into 'Public Relations'. To be honest, I thought this would be more internally-based than what I understand PR to be, espescially since my media teachings in Comm. Studies have basically told me PR is evil. Not only did I see at least three peers from my program and school (and later found out a coworker has also already been accepted into it), but I myself have started to wonder if this might be the path for me.

It's scary to start to think about careers and such, but really this supplementary material I've had to do for my application process (completing my Public Administration written component Sunday night as well) has been a fairly healthy (though time-consuming) exercise. Both of these involved discussing career plans, which at this state seem to be more of a proposal than anything (as getting into these programs are integral parts of the outlined career paths). And really, I had to do my reasearch to put together a plausable answer for both. Its not that I was faking the answers persay, it was more that the questions forced me to do the research a serious applicant should...and it's paid off. I tried to be ambitious but realistic, giving short-term entry-level career goals before stating a much more grand, long-term vision of where I'd like to be in the career field. Hopefully, they like me.

In related news, Mohawk seems to have rejected me, though I'm not entirely certain why. Gotta look into that, there doesn't seem to be anything in the way of contact info on their 'student homepage resource' thing, so I'll have to get in touch with admissions. Needless to say, it's on my to-do list along with writing Seneca a thank-you letter (which was reccomended by a person on the admissions committee).

Fun

First off, thanks to everybody who tuned into my show yesterday - I set a new personal record for listeners, which is really cool since I had been thinking lately about how the Monday night thing seems to contradict with everyone's schedule. Anyway, I hope that my enthusiasm about this was evident on the air, as I felt really well about how the show went. I guess what it comes down to is that it's hard to know if the fun in the studio was as infectious to the listeners as I'd hoped it would be. Days like yesterday almost make me wish that I don't get into any post-secondary slots, so that I can apply for Humber's radio course (which startes in Winter 2007, so I couldn't apply yet)

Anyway, this post was inspired by a few things: namely, the Sopranos. For those who don't know, it would be an understatement to call me a fan of the show. It's unfortunate that I can't afford to actually subscribe to Canada's HBO equivalent (as I love the show so much I'm inspired to check out all their other content) but that hasn't stopped me from seeing every episode. Oh, the wonderful, wonderful internet - 0 day torrent sites are a godsend. The point of this is that season six starts March 12th! I'm of course very excited, and those who want to share in the hype should refer to the link above, as you can click through to HBO's set of clips for the show. Aside from the teasers and trailers, there's some fun stuff there too - my personal favourite being 'A Def Poem' which is a big string of Michael Imperioli's more dramatic lines from the show, paced so that they sound like a really horrible poem. Pretty funny.

Comment Responding

And finally, I wanted to address some comments that were placed recently, since I've dropped off the map for a little while:

First, sorry that it took me so damn long to reply.

A guy that goes by the name of Matt Morse was happy that I posted about the Philosopher Kings. If you're still reading, I just want to say thanks for taking the two minutes to click and write a response. It's encouraging. When you stop and think about it, its sort of funny that the two most indulgently music-geek entries I've had recently (my Nickel Creek one being the other, though it was back in November) have been the two to garner attention from new people I've never met in meatspace. As much as I apprecaite friends and loved ones reading this to stay posted on my life, I like the seemingly random connections that form with the public, open nature of this blog. These are instances I'll keep in mind when I assume that my 'regular' crowd doesn't want to hear about my music ramblings. Who knows, maybe it could inspire me to post more.

I intially was going to do these responses in the reverse order, but that served as a nice connecting point to this next response. Lexx recently commented (and expanded upon the matter on his own blog) regarding the concepts of blogs as (very ineffective) diaries. In short, I agree with you: what's posted on here is meant to be read by others, I look at it as a form of broadcasting really. My lack of entries of late stems largely from the fact that I've been bummed out a bit lately (insert sound of the world's tiniest violin). I was discussing with Radigan about how I don't really want to use this for venting anymore (as I've been acused of by a former blogger). Though we were discussing another reason altogether, the way I view it now is much simpler: when it comes down for it, unless you're being funny in a cynical, ironic, or self-deprecating way (which is normally the vein I'd try to tap), bitching on your blog just doesn't make for good reading. It's really not entertaining beyond the voyeuristic element for an audience member. Perhaps I'm too much of a 'media guy', but I at least try and keep some sort of audience in mind when I write (even if I'm not exactly sure who it is).

But, as the blog (never had a problem with the name, to be honest Lexx...though the term 'blogosphere' makes me chuckle) is an independent forum, who am I to say what they're for?

I do know that there is another option available for those who want to vent anonymously. Open Diary is a forum I was introduced to about a year ago from a friend (who will remain nameless for obvious reasons). You can maintain an anonymous profile, and other registered users can comment on your entries. I find this quite clever: you have the anonymity that would allow one to maintain personal privacy (or perhaps, to simply dodge public accountability), but are able to enjoy the benefit of anonymous help, the reassurance that at least someone else is reading about your problems. It would seem as though commenters seem to take on a counselling role in these pages, though as I stated previously my exposure was limited.

Anyway, I think that about wraps this up - needless to say, I'm counting on a particularly patient audience this time around!

Posted by Jason Guitard at 02:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

In the interest of keeping my options open, I've decided to apply for college.

Initially, I wasn't going to do it, I had decided that I wanted to take a year to really think things through...but in the end, a relevation came around 4 a.m.: I don't think I'm ready to start working just yet.

For the last week or so, I had started to tell people that I was going to take a pass at college, as with the applicaiton deadline looming (Feb. 1st) it didn't seem worthwhile. But even though I kept saying it more and more, it never really started to feel right. The more I casually researched into post-grad options the more attractive some programs started to look. It really all came down to one dichotomy: would my fear of thinking about being out of school next year outweigh my laziness of going through the application process? After using the site, I've got to say it wasn't really all that bad. About an hour and $109 later, I've put together a short list, presented in order of application preference:

Journalism (Accelerated) (4 Semesters) @ Humber (North)
Corporate Communication (2 Semesters)s @ Seneca (York Campus)
Public Administration (3 Semesters) @ Humber (Lakeshore)
Public Relations (2 Semesters) @ Mohawk (Brantford)
Technical Communications (2 Semesters) @ Seneca (York Campus)

All of these programs are fairly logical extensions of my Communication Studies background, and are a decent representation of my scope of interests. They range from more hands-on media-related to the more administration/business angles. I think I have a decent shot at them, though it may take a pretty persuasive explanation in the paper I have to submit for the Public Administration program. All of them are of course post-graduate, and three involve internships (#1) or co-op options (#'s 2, 5).

In terms of locale, It looks like I will likely be leaving the K-W region if I'm accepted into any of these programs. This is unfortunate, as I do like this area and included Conestoga in my schools to look for options within. However, with no programs offered in my area of interest, I took a pass on it.

The good news is that I will either be in some part of Toronto or back in Brantford should I get into any of these, both towns I wouldn't mind spending some more time in. Should I go to Humber: North Campus, Lexx will be close by, and I know Kevin's toyed with the idea of staying in Toronto, which would make Seneca: York or Humber: South attractive campus options. And last but certainly not least, it would be cool to return to beloved Brantford as a postgraduate student (and 'slo-Hawk'). As I've still got some peeps in the previous year of study, the social aspects could be rewarding (and living with Mike could be possible).

I've been a bit shy from the blogging world of late, this was sort of stressing me out and I try my darndest to refrain from using this forum as a venting mechanism. I've been coming down with some sort of cold, which has lead to class, work, and radio absences. With this monkey off my back, hopefully things will start to swing in the other direction for me. On that note, back to reading and perhaps a nap as I come into the morning end of this all-nighter.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 05:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Ok anyone who reads this...I have an apology.

A little while ago, I may have lead my readership to believe I was approaching a sort of academic peril. It wasn't until I finally received all of my grades today that I've been able to say if my suspicions are right one way or the other. But as it turns out, I appear to have been a little off-base. The verdict:

CS209 Radio/Audio:Technical Aids: A-
CS213 Technology & Society: B
CS400P New Media, Art & Surveillance: A-
CS325 Digital Media & Culture: B+
CS312 Image, Sound, Text: B+

It sounds stupid, bu I'll still feel uneasy until these are moved over into my 'final grades' section of the mark. Let's just say I had some assignments I wasn't terribly comfortable with. For once, I can't help but be a little haunted by the text at the bottom of the page reading ** This is NOT an official transcript **. Damn you for instilling the doubt, Telaris. Damn you.

But anyway, assuming all of this is cool, then it looks like I'm flirtling with a cumulative B+ average now (I'd calculate it, but I'm pretty damn lazy). This is good; but it's too bad my need for only four classes this term puts me out of the eligibility for the Dean's list on the year. I'd need to add another class (which I don't want to do) and maintain an A average...I'm thinking if I do well this term my transcript will look nice to postgraduate recruiters? It's all about options.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Being on the radio when there are actually people in the school is a strange experience. I initially said that it was a bit of a distraction having so much stimuli going on in my prepheral vision while I was on the mic, but I think it actually helped me keep a flow together.

Immediately following a country show (which today was an hour and a half literally devoted to exclusively playing Garth Brooks material) was quite the suprise. Had I not had the heads-up at the bookstore (I can hear Radiolaurier when I'm working), I don't know how I would've handled walking into a packed booth and seeing a guy with a cowboy hat on the mic. Entertaining to say the least.

I structured today's show as a makeshift best-of, playing relatively current stuff from the past term but not introducing any new content. Regular 'new' fresh content will follow in coming weeks along with concept-oriented shows.

Anyway, this is just a quick note to thank all those who tuned in, and to give everybody the heads up on the change who wasn't in the know. The vitals:

Monday Night Mixup
5:30-7PM
www.radiolaurier.com/listen.m3u
booth phone: 884-0710 e. 2192

Oh, and for those who have class or whatever, I'll finally post the link of where you can download my show from as soon as I get it from Wayne (if you're reading man, feel free to leave it in a comment).

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Oh, my oft-neglected blog. Can't say we've gotten '06 off to a great start, can we?

It's not that I don't want to write in you, and its not even that I've been lacking the content to do so. The irony of blogging is that when you have the most to blog about, it's usually because you haven't been at your computer very much. That's not to say my life's been filled with noteworthy highlight-reel material, the fact of the matter is that I've largely just been trying to get into the swing of some sort of routine.

On the work front, textbook rush has kept me pretty busy. I didn't even realize I'd put in over thirty-three hours last week until I added all of my shifts up on Friday. It was quite the suprise, they seem to stack up on me when I'm not even really paying attention. This week should be a litlte more mellow though, and then I'll be on some sort of a regular schedule by week three.

School has been a bit of a mess, I haven't really started on any actual work yet - I'm going to make it my goal to start some reading tonight, check into my D.E. class, and research the book I want to read for my fourth-year class. I've got about seven to choose from (as I know there will be no slots left in the No Logo seminar), so I'm leaning towards Klein's new book. That being said, I've still got to actually look into the other choices. Hmm..perhaps I should ask my readership to help me pick? Hopefully, someone across these by now:

Ehrenreich, Barbara (2002) Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America
Ehrenreich, Barbara (2005) Bait and Switched: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream
McQuaig, Linda (2001) All You Can Eat: Greed, Lust and the New Capitalism
McQuaig, Linda (2004) It’s the Crude, Dude: War, Big Oil and the Fight for the Planet
Frank, Thomas (2000) One Market Under God: Extreme Capitalism, Market Populism, and the End of Economic Democracy
Frank, Thomas (2005) What’s the Matter with Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America

Extra-curriculars are just getting under way now. I did up a little review for Guitar Hero that should be running in Wednesday's Cord. I'm also going to try and blab about my favorite discs of the year for the Sputnik while hammering out my radio playlist - the Saturday Evening Shakedown is now the Monday Night Mixup, starting tomorrow at 5:30 P.M. I'm pretty stoked to be on when people are actually in the school, we'll see how it goes.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 11:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So, happy new year everyone.

I've been a little slow on the updates of late, largely due to simply trying to fall back into the swing of things here in Waterloo. It's strange, should I decide not to stay in Waterloo come the summer, my short journey here is halfway complete. A scary thought, given the long-term implications of thinking about what to do after I graduate.

I'm also less than a month away from the application deadline for college programs (Feb. 1st), so now I've got to figure out what five directions look the most appealing to me. Like my much more attractive half, I'm considering a more career-oriented college-level option. But as they say, time will tell what I decide to do after all. I kind of want to just work for a little while and figure things out, but whatever will my HBA get me? Ah well...

Has anyone checked out google today? Do it, cool search bar to commemorate Louis Braille's birthday.

Anyway, with my dinner break coming quickly to an end, back to the bookstore to read magazines while waiting for people to pick up web orders (easily my favorite of the random tasks I'm normally assigned). Hopefully an entry of more substance to follow later.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 05:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, where was I?

So I've been meaning to post. No dice. I've been meaning to finally fix my blogroll plugin so that y'all can actually see it. No dice there either; I just don' t know HTML that well. Sorry if you've been waiting on it, but until I seek some tech support I probably won't be able to do it, and I'm too preoccupied of late to think about it...

Lately I've been stressed, which is strange given the fact that one would assume I'd be out of stressors by now - the problem, I think, is that I've had too much downtime. Everybody envied/hated me when they found out that I had no actual exams during the exam period, I got a lot of flak for it but said that while it allowed me to work quite a bit last week (39 hours), I really didn't think it was that sweet. The exam period isn't for working (as much as I love money), it's for exams! I basically had to squeeze a semester's worth of work into a few days as papers were compounded into finals and suddenly I was committing myself to big chunks of my grades with little preparation. That being said, would I have studied very hard had my exams been after classes ended (CS312 was on Nov. 16th and CS213 was on Dec. 1st)? Probably not, but I strongly doubt I would've completely forgotten to write a final, as I did one of my papers (a presentation summary that I'm not even positive of the exact value of).

Anyway, sorry for the rant y'all, I've been in a bad mood most of the day and I don't know if getting my marks back is going to make me feel very good. I've prided myself on my ability to achieve significantly higher-than-average marks with lower-than-average effort since getting into uni, but I'm worried that I may have underestimated the challenges of this bigger academic pond that I'm now in the middle of.

The real kicker is, I know that the real reason I didn't have until this week to finish my assignments (or say, write a final) is because my profs thought it was more convenient to do it this way so they didn't have to stick around. One prof went as far to say he didn't want to be stuck here until the 22nd and knew we didn't want to be either. See, I knew the first part was true, but once my other four classes seemed to be geared towards a similar philosophy the second part of his statement no longer holds true. Regardless of my marks, I feel shortchanged by what the faculty had to offer here this term. In the end, it just feels like some of them are trying to cut out early and saying it's for my convenience when I'm the one footing the bill.

I hope my marks are good; I gave a pretty solid effort on most fronts given what I had to work with. I do know I wrote one of my worst papers ever, but the other major ones were pretty concentrated efforts. And I'm sorry to vent for this long, its just that academics were the #1 reason I came to this campus, but now I'm left feeling like a disgruntled customer from this institution.

The main problem with this extended break I've had is that there's been way too much time to dwell on shit like this. I just hope that I'm just being foolishly paranoid, that my Honours standing won't be t thrown into quesiton, or that I won't have jeopardized my relaxed winter term schedule by having to pick up another class I can't afford.

Anyway, with this being said...this is the last I'll speak about this (outside of responding to any comments of course) so thanks for bearing with me.

Posted by Jason Guitard at 12:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So, as you should be able to tell, I have a new display thingy to the right of the entry space. I like the template I decided on. As I'm sure this will be asked at some point by someone too lazy to click on the image, this top 10 list represents my listening habits - the number beside the artist is how many times I've listened to them over the past week.

Oh, and the results are always a week behind, which I mention in case I write something in an entry like: "Man, I've been all over that new [Al Pacino] album these last few days" and a quick glance to the right shows no evidence of the sort...wait a week, and all will be revealed. Or look at my Gerpok profile (another tracking site