Happy New Year!
My resolution for this year, and for life for that matter, is to be a “better person” – in all ways possible. I know it’s very vague and not so measurable on the outside, but on the inside, I know what things need to be worked on! 
May this year bring you everything 2009 didn’t… and then some!!
~ Rabee
Naturally, people talk. Sometimes, people talk too much. Where is the balance between being a nice person and listening, and being an as$hole and telling them to shut the hell up? How can people be so completely oblivious to the fact that we can’t wait for the moment where they’ve finally sucked all the breathable air out of the room and the “conversation” can finally come to an end – even if it means that we may die of suffocation waiting for that moment?
Calgary Transit at its best…
Hello,
So it’s been a really long time since I last posted something on my blog. You would think that with all the things that have been going on in my life recently, that I would have a lot to write about. The problem is, I have TOO MUCH to write about, and therefore, I am unable to put it on here!
I know it’s a lame excuse.
What’s been keeping me busy since the wedding, mini-moon, family visit, and honeymoon in Italy you might ask? Well, most nights I’m either going through photos from our trip to Italy, or thinking about going through photos from our trip to Italy. The next thing on my (our list) will be to go through our wedding photos and decide which ones we’ll use for our album and fun stuff like that. And finally, because Christmas is just a month and 4 days away, I’ll have to spend a bunch of time shopping for gifts……..
Oh, and while we’re on the topic of Christmas, and therefore flights, what the HELL is up with the RIDICULOUS PRICES of flights!?? When will this stop!? I feel like I’m bailing out Air Canada every year when my wife and I fly to Toronto! Effff….
Anyway, my next goal for this blog will be to post the honeymoon pictures from Italy. And then later on, at some point, I would like to do a little facelift (to the site) in hopes that it will get me thinking about it again!
Ciao for now!
~ Rabee
So over the past few weeks, I have been thinking – what is time really worth?
I’m not talking about monetary compensation to validate or direct how one spends their time, but rather, how much or how little time someone needs to feel that the time they have is worth spending on something.
Before coming to Saint John, I thought I had no time to do anything – the fact of the matter was, I had more time than I knew what to do with. I had so much time that I never had the opportunity to put a value on this time and use it towards something useful or productive – socially or self propelling (even though I tricked myself into believing I had).
I came home from work today, on a Saturday, and was thrilled that I had a few hours to spend without having to rush and prepare for the next day. All week long I was able to go to work, come home, have dinner, prepare my lunch for the next day, study some Italian, watch some TV, and even spend some time making some invaluable calls to friends and those whom I am affianced to (plural just sounded better!).
I guess what I’m really trying to say is, when you actually don’t have enough time to do what you want, you manage to do what you really need. I can’t wait to see what I may accomplish when I’m finally back and functioning amongst the civilized.
Thoughts?
R
So some of you may have noticed through my facebook/twitter status updates that my car wasn’t with us this week. Sexy golf, so I call her, had a mild concussion on Monday and was transported via tow-truck to the shop.
Here’s what happened: Kristen was on her way to pick me up from the train station on Monday, when out of nowhere, the car broke down on Crowchild Trail. I got the call a couple of minutes before getting off the train: “The car just broke down and I’m stuck on the side of the road”. I really had no idea what to do.
Thankfully, though, I had my handy iPhone with me. I was able to get the number for my insurance, call a tow truck, figure out how to get to Kristen via City Buses, and contact a friend to help us out. All without the battery dying too!
Once we (Chad and I) got to the car, we tried starting it again – surprisingly, it actually started! I was a little relieved but worried at the same time – why did this happen and when/will it happen again? So we drove it to Chad’s parents’ house and left it running for a little bit. Sure enough, a few minutes later, it stalled again – and this time, it wouldn’t start.
So I called the tow truck that I had just cancelled and asked them to tow the car to the VW dealership. After being laughed at and told “do you know how many times people cancel the towing then call us right back?”, the ball was rolling and my car was on its way to recovery.
VW called me the next day once they assessed the problem and told me that it was going to be $600 to get it fixed – and that I need to do this and that to the car as well (typical dealer guilt-trip).
Here’s what they told me:
Grand total: $2,290
At this point I said Eff that! The only thing I NEEDED to fix was #2. So I reluctantly gave them the “ok” to go ahead with the work.
Shortly after talking to VW and getting shit from Vic about taking my car there, I remembered George telling me a while ago about a shop called TuneDub that he took his VW to. So I asked him for the phone number and gave them a call.
Here is what they had to say:
Grand total: $1,040
Once I was told these prices, I promptly called VW and told them to stop working on my car. I then called the towing company that TuneDub recommended (Magnum Towing) and had them tow my car to TuneDub and have them work on it instead.
Despite the extra towing charge, it was still less than half the price to have the same work done at TuneDub than it was at VW. And I am now happy to say that my “Check Engine” light is no longer lit, and that my car is running just fine!
From now on, I will never, ever, EVER, take my car to VW for anything unless it was completely and absolutly necessary.
Moral of the story: Do your research.
Special thanks goes out to: Vic, George, and Chizzzzad.
She’s back.
So for the last post in this series, I’m not going to waste your time and tell you what I did and didn’t do today, because no one really cares. And if you really wanted to know, you could just look at any other post from this series and have your answer.
Instead, I’m going to tell you about the overall differences between yesterday and tomorrow:
Strangely though, I don’t think I could survive another day without her here, even with all the above! I’m also sure that if she wrote her own “Bachelorette” series, she would have a lot more things to complain about than I could ever think up!
Thanks for tuning in.
~R
Summary: Alright, so I had a bit of a late start today. I think the massive amounts of caffeine kept me up most of the night. However, a shitty night was welcomed with good news in the morning. The wedding invitation map size and orientation was alright – or at least so says the big boss. Speaking of which, she is finally coming back tomorrow. I made sure to bring myself back the dysfunctional person she knows me to be. I worked a bit of overtime today, but apart from that, I did nothing. I also think I feel a cold coming on.
Accomplishments: Left home late this morning, still made it to work on time.
Breakfast/Lunch: Free bagel in the morning. Subway for lunch.
Dinner: Two bowls of cereal. Reminds me of the old days.
Communication with… what’s her name again?: One email, and one text message. Though it was so early in the morning that it didn’t count. Especially since I initiated it.
ralwan: New Calgary Transit voice is creepy!! 
