Simple Life Of A Rock Star

i know i know

2010-10-15T23:57:00.000-07:00

i know I said I was back to blogging... but then a long (but great) tour with Paramore, New Found Glory, and Kadawatha got in the way! Anyway, here's a shot from that tour. Any guesses on which venue this is from?

Circus Circus

2010-07-14T14:12:00.000-07:00

Ok no it's not Vegas, and it was taken minutes after another shot I've already posted but I think this may be my favorite shot I've ever taken? Maybe? I even caught a bird in flight so that's good right? Anyway, I love the clouds, they were incredible.

Gothem City

2010-06-07T19:28:00.000-07:00

No it's not Chicago but it is another fun town. I hadn't been back since I lived here four years ago. So great to visit old friends and old home towns.

I also like the gold pin striping on the bus matching the glow of the buildings.

Goodbye for now.

new direction?!

2010-05-24T22:26:00.000-07:00

I don't think I am done with my odd rants and all, but I do seem to spend less time writing them down and talking them out like I used to... therefore I think I am going to start just using my blog as a place to throw out a few photos from the road. Why not, what else am I going to do with them, leave them in iphoto to rot? Oh and I get bored of my photos so I tend to tweak them... sometimes a lot, sometimes not.

Well here's the first of many I suppose. Actually maybe I'll leave out the locations so you can try and guess where each shot is taken from. Crap, this first one couldn't be more obvious.

FALSE ADVERTISING!!! sort of

2009-11-08T17:00:00.000-08:00

Have you seen that ridiculously cute commercial for Dawn soap, where they are washing penguins and otters and a few other cute critters? The they say that one dollar of your purchase will go towards "helping to save wildlife". Amazing I thought. Really cute ad, help save the little animals, and get dishwashing soap for home. Simple. UNTIL i was about to purchase it and read the very elusive and evil word, CAN. Your purchase CAN help, but won't unless you go to our website and punch in the code of this container and fill out this and that and then maybe then, if you fill it out right, we will send one dollar to the wildlife. Who is actually going to go to their website and take the time to do all of that?! A SMALL FRACTION OF THE PEOPLE BUYING, that's for sure. I felt cheated, and therefore boycotted their product altogether. I still like the ad, but it kind of enrages me at the same time now. So cute! Stupid False Advertising! Awww, little ducky! Evil company!
If anyone wants to send me money like 10 bucks or so, I CAN give two dollars to someone who needs it, if you pass a skill testing question that may not actually have an answer. And I choose who "needs it". Am I too generous?

still worth watching

Been a while, but back in the saddle?

2009-09-29T23:43:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry it has been so long. Much has happened and I've neglected my blog. Sorry. Oh and I moved to Vancouver so that has been occupying my time of late. House Reno's are fun when you have the time. I no longer have the time, nor the money. No longer are house reno's fun.

The other update is that we (Tegan and Sara) have started rehearsals for upcoming shows! All I can say is that the new songs from Sainthood sound great and are a lot of fun to play live. Talk soon, hopefully

Comic Con

2009-08-05T12:48:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me this link to a collection of great comics! I also want to go to Comic Con, but I say that every years so...

This comic is how I view the world. Maybe this should be the cover of my packing book?

Just beCause?

2009-07-30T10:07:00.000-07:00

"Suppose a cause that HASN'T affected your family"

I used to hear this and think what a great idea. Don't be so self centered by only thinking of your needs, but help out those around you who you aren't affiliated with. It's important to see the bigger picture as there are so many people out there who need our help. This I still agree with, BUT...

Tell me what's wrong with supporting a cause that has affected you or your family when you are that much more passionate about supporting it. Supporting a cause at random means you are randomly passionate about it. How much support and awareness will you raise with that kind of thinking?

If you have an ailing family member and you are motivated to raise a ton of support for them and others like them, why isn't it as good as supporting something else? How often do people raise money for a cause and actually see it cured? Have we completely eradicated cancer? AIDS? How can it be considered selfish if we know that our hard work won't cure each other (although we may like to), but hopefully others after we are gone?

just a thought

What's Better?

2009-07-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

Has anyone ever seen a study done or any research for that matter on what is the best option for drying your hands after washing them in a public restroom... including what is better for the environment?! Paper or Hot Air?

-Paper obviously uses more trees
-Hot Air takes electricity which means...

I normally try and research this before I pose the question but I haven't today so I'm interested to see what you think. Ok well I just found a study while I was searching for a picture, sorry, couldn't help it... but form your opinion first before you read this... STUDY and then let me know what you think.

2009-07-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

I found this cartoon through Raine Wilson's twitter page and thought I'd share it. The artist is Tony Luchbreath. That's all for now!

Twilight in VANada

2009-06-29T11:32:00.000-07:00

I was once again reminded of what it is like to drive across Canada in a van.

Although I did cheat a little, I skipped the first 100 hours of driving and flew out to Thunder Bay last week to meet up with my friends from Laura Smith. I was joining the tail end of the tour since their bass player had to join another tour with some guy who wrote that song in which the dude from Twilight sang for the Twilight soundtrack. Confusing? Anyways, I got to drive from Thunder Bay to Vancouver... oh ya and play three shows in between... in a minivan. Saskatoon to Vancouver in one day was a highlight, 18hrs or so?

I miss the ol' van across Canada days, they were a fun time in my life... BUT I don't want to go to back to it on a regular basis!

Finally, Music Time

2009-06-16T14:40:00.000-07:00

Well it's been a while but we are finally going to be playing music again! Well even if it is just two shows, I'm excited. The Showbox in Seattle, then the Hollywood Bowl in LA with Death Cab and The New Pornographers. Anyways, if you are around either of those cities you should come by and say hi.

new iphone, new price

2009-06-09T10:33:00.000-07:00

I've always kinda wanted the iphone. And when I say kinda, I mean, I've always really wanted the iphone. But I can't justify spending that kind of money. Well apparently I wasn't alone and so the new iphone was just unveiled and it's going to be a lot cheaper!

$99 for the (older) 3G
$199 for the 16 gig (new) 3G S and
$299 for the 32 gig (new) 3G s.

Now I'm tempted.

One a Day

2009-06-05T13:29:00.000-07:00

Spent too much time yesterday checking out all sorts of these 'Deals of the Day' sites. After a couple hours searching, and a bunch of, "Oh, I could use that." I realized, I didn't need anything. I suppose these sites prey on impulse buyers? I kind of wanted to be an impulse buyer, however by the time I got to the checkout I realized I couldn't be bothered to spend that extra time (filling out my info) and $3.99 to get a pair of orange ipod buds... that I didn't need!

Does anyone have a favorite site like this that they check out daily? What's the most random thing you've purchased online?

FREE RICE!

2009-05-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

Better than the 'word power' section in Readers Digest, I've officially just wasted two hours on a great little website called Free Rice.

"Give free rice to hungry people by playing a simple game that increases your knowledge."

Every time you get an answer right, the site sponsor donates 10 grains of rice through the UN World Food Program to help end hunger. It's addicting and fun, AND it helps end world hunger, what more could you possibly want? So far I have donated over 5000 grains of rice... and I can't stop playing. Don't like English vocab? Try French, German, Italian or Spanish? Or study your chemistry symbols? Multiplication tables? I liked identifying the country on a map or naming their capitals!

My only question is where was this site when I was studying so hard to be on the Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego show!

True Story...

2009-05-25T09:30:00.000-07:00

Some find it sad, I find it awesome. I have more Wierd Al Yankovic cd's than any other artist. I sing along to so many 80's and 90's songs with Al's lyrics, and not knowing the real lyrics. Anyone who can make a living for well over twenty years as a musician, who's main instrument is an accordion and is still considered a rock star is my hero.

Prey on Me?

2009-05-20T13:14:00.000-07:00

Dear all the people who make television series available on dvd,

I like collecting tv series on Dvd. I'm in a band and we like to catch up on all the shows we've missed while on our bus. Episode after episode we can watch without commercial break and definitely without having to wait a week between them, but still, you do have to wait until that season comes out on DVD. This is where I have a problem with a few of your shows...

I have patience. And this has nothing to do with waiting for these seasons to come out, but all to do with your changing of packaging and design. Why do you change your design scheme half way through a series?! If you start something, finish it, please!

Smallville for instance has really annoyed me. Seasons 1-4, same. Season 4, smaller box AND Smaller logo?! Then it changes again! Smaller packaging is fine, less material means less waste and probably cheaper for you and us(?)... but why move the logo and make it smaller, it would still be fine in the same place with the same size? Entourage, you do this too, but to a lesser extent. Or do you remember how lame the first Matrix dvd looks compared to the next two?!

Are you picking on those with OCD? Do you figure you can make more money from us when we have to re-buy the series in a fancy new 'official box set' because we can't stand to look at the mismatched set we have? I was on a movie set again last night I was reminded of a common word in your industry; Continuity. Although it may not exactly translate, I think it's still relevant here.

Please keep your designs consistent, cause I don't want to have to buy the box set too! Oh and if Star Trek can do it, so can you, right?!

thanks for your time,

SHaun

Prove it!

2009-05-12T20:46:00.000-07:00

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

-Edmund Burke

I was looking up this quote and reading a little about it yesterday and apparently there is no proof that this is Mr Burke's quote. No historical evidense that proves it was he who said it... but does that matter? We should be more concerned about what it says than who can take claim to it?

Then, out of curiousity, I googled it in google images to see what would come up. Here's what I found. Without doing any more research, I am going to assume that Captain America once said it... and that maybe he even said it first?!

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

-Captain America

If the big one comes, I better not be in trouble...

2009-05-06T11:21:00.000-07:00

So with all this down time I have from not being on tour, I went out and got a real job. I am now the "Safety Coordinator (slash) First Aid Attendant" on a construction site. By no means does that make me a carpenter. Sure I've hammered my fair share of nails and I've overseen a lot of carpenters work, but once again, I am no where close to being a carpenter. All that aside, it doesn't take a carpenter to put up a painting, right?

Well yesterday I was sent over to the owner of the company's beautiful home overlooking the ocean. I was instructed to "go and put up a picture in one of the rooms... oh and it's a large picture so make sure you find a stud!" I get there, he lets me in, and as I'm taking off my shoes, my measuring tape falls and makes a loud banging noise as it collides with the marble floor. Now I'm kinda nervous as he informs me to be careful because it's a "soft marble" flooring.

Why did they send the only non-carpenter in the company to go to the owner of a construction company's house? He'll obviously know I'm not a carpenter?!

I get to the room, see the large painting, measure a few things, find the studs and make a few more markings. Not too bad yet right? I pull out the 3" screws and the larger heavy duty bolts I was given to do the job. "You don't need those, they are WAY too big" I am told. So off I went to look for something smaller in the truck. I find some 2" screws while the owner shows me a 1" screw and says, "Maybe just a little bigger than this...?"

I don't want this painting to fall, and I need to go through more than just the drywall, that much I do know.

After putting the screws into the walls and having to redo one of them (due to picture sloping and something honestly not my fault but I won't bother explaining), it's finally up and the owner is happy. Then I find out a little more about the painting;

It can't be in direct sunlight because it is a pastel, OH and it's an original from the 18th century that his son bought for him at the Sotheby Auction in London.

I now wish I had used the heavy duty wall bolts. And I pray that no earthquake hits us anytime soon.

superhumans

2009-05-01T15:37:00.000-07:00

Discovery channel has once again got me thinking.

Have you seen the show about the 'Superhumans' where there are people that can raise their own body temperature to above normal when they are in below freezing water? Or the solve insane mathematical equations in their heads, instantly? How about the blind man who was born without eyes and yet is a painter and paints with true perspective?
I liked the woman who 'tastes' sounds. She tastes 'bitter' when she hears a minor chord and others see colors with music.

All of these are incredible, but what freaked me out was hearing that one of my favorite movies, Gattaca, may not be that far off. This one doctor says that within the next ten years or so, humans will start being able to 'enhance' their pre-born children to have better genes, be more advanced in certain areas, or develop certain superhuman abilities...

Crazy. And fascinating.

College Movies and Me

2009-04-22T09:18:00.000-07:00

Two or three years ago I was an extra in a movie filmed here in Victoria called The Party Never Stops, (a Lifetime Network TV movie about College binge drinking). I had a beard at the time... well, I had a patchy beard, but I thought that was the epitome of a college student? For one of the big party scenes the director wanted ten of us guys to surround the main actor in this one shot, so he thought he would hand pick them out of the 12 of us there.

"You, you, you, you, (pause), you, you..."

The 'pause' was me, and no my beard was apparently not cool and nor did I look like a stereotypical college student.

Fast forward to last week when I was at yet another audition for a college movie, sans beard, and no creepy mustache like my profile pic shows. Same scenario, director picking the guys to be in either the fraternity Beta, or the 'other' frat party. I guess I'm still not looking like a college student? At least this time there were two other guys with me that also didn't get in the main group.

To be fair (to myself!) I wasn't planning on going to this audition. I was honestly just dropping my wife off at it when the casting director gave Leana AND me an audition sheet, so I was unprepared, and not dressed appropriately. That's my excuse.

Oh wait, and maybe it's also the fact that I am 28 now and I don't look like a college student... and that's probably a good thing for me.

Re: Electric Books

2009-04-20T12:31:00.000-07:00

Found this picture today of an amazing artist's work, Su Blackwell, while I was looking for a longboard deck template, and it made me realize something. You can't do THIS with Kindle, or any other electronic book. It's official, I like real books.

Stupid Cheater 'Regifting Robin'

2009-04-16T08:12:00.000-07:00

My mom forwarded me this ridiculous little game today called 'Regifting Robin'. Maybe you have seen it or something like it, but you are supposed to pick a 2 digit number and then subtract the two single digit numbers from that number. When you get your answer, you simply match the number up with the numbered 'prize boxes' and then she tells you what prize you would choose, or something along those lines. If you haven't done it before, please check it out here BEFORE you read on! The game will be on the left side of the page... just look for her picture or under the tab 'Guess the Regift'.

Regiftable Robin Game

So have you checked it out now? My mom was a little freaked out with it so she had to send it to my brother and to find out our thoughts. I'll admit, I was a little creeped out at first, but then really creeped out after the 5th time... so then I had to figure it out and make sure it wasn't just black magic haha.

I've got you now you little cheater.

After a few calculations I noticed that every single possible answer is a multiple of 9, so if you picked 11 as your initial number you would get to 9... and that's what you would find with all the numbers from 11-19. From 20-29 you will always get to 18... 30-39 is always 27... all the way to 81. Now if you look at the chart each time you notice that the prizes are always changing. Look at it closer and you will notice all the multiples of 9 are the same! They know what the answer is before you choose your first number! Stupid Robin, all you've got left is a clever advertising campaign for regiftables.com... oh?!

I'm reminded of the time I went to a local fair and paid $2 for someone to guess my age and weight. Their guess was off by over two years and 20 pounds so I won an inflatable snake! I spent $2 and got a .30 cent price. Who really won now?

Stupid Robin.

Energy Drink Extravaganza

2009-04-14T09:01:00.000-07:00

I remember when Jolt first arrived in the carbonated beverage scene, it was big deal. Same amount of sugar, twice the caffeine. Then it seemed to disappeared for a while, at least in Canada. I also remember when you couldn't get Red Bull here because the Canadian Health and Safety Board wouldn't approve it. Almost five years later, Red Bull finally arrives in Canada... and opens the flood gates to all and every other energy drink out there.

With such a rapidly growing market for energy drinks, is the government allowing them to exist solely for financial gain. Does profit always out way the health and safety of our society? Should you be at least a certain age before you are allowed to buy them? Kids have enough energy as is, don't they?

A friend once described to me a joke energy drink called Power Thirst, a youtube short worth watching if you haven't seen this before. It doesn't say it at the end, but this is how he remembered it...

Power Thirst is like Crystal Meth in a can!
Power Thirst is Crystal Meth in a can!
Power Thirst is Crystal Meth!

I almost feel this way about all energy drinks, haha, but I should also note that I have only really had Red Bull, and since I don't like the taste of liquid cotton candy, I've been turned off energy drinks. But seriously, should these drinks be regulated. Do they pose serious harm for us down the road?

Electronic: Books? Magazines? and Newspapers?

2009-04-08T13:33:00.000-07:00

Will books ever become more popular in electronic form than paperback? What about magazines or newspapers?

While reading a magazine I was bombarded by numerous ads for their new E-Magazine about to start up. In the "Note from the Editor" he spoke about the not-so-distant paperless future of all magazines (his opinion). This spurred me on to Google my options for the future... and it lead me to Kindle.

Could I read a newspaper on a giant ipod? Or a book? How about a magazine? I actually like the idea for books and newspapers, but magazines are all about colour and eye catching design, where the Kindle is (16 shades of) black and white. On the plus side there is free wireless included, under 60 second complete book downloading, and just under $10 for a best seller or roughly $14 a month for say, the New York Times.

Will it simply take the new generation of computer savoy kids to accept reading from a screen in all mediums, or is there something else to it? I know Sara Quin will never use one and loves books the way they are. But talking with Chris Walla about it, he says he could totally get into it. I found this article while searching for a picture and maybe it explains the above...

With the capacity to carry more than a thousand electronic books, the new e-book reader from Amazon is perhaps the computer geek’s or environmentalist’s dream gadget. But is it the bookworm’s?

This is what I know for sure. I would much rather pack a "flattened ipod" in my suitcase than I would four or five large books. Not that it is all about packing a suitcase for me, but I am writing a book about it so...

Under New Management

2009-04-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

Driving past a Subway restaurant this morning I saw a large banner over their sign announcing to the world that they were under new management. It made me think. Does that or should that mean anything to me? This is a Subway after all, the second largest fast food chain in the world. People go there because they know what to expect, and for the most part it is consistent throughout. Why do I care if it is under new management, and anyways, I deal with the restaurant's employees and they don't change do they? I'll go to one over another if I like the staff better, but if they are changing staff then I wouldn't go there anymore so...

Ok I do care, cause I've figured it out.

It's all about efficiency. That's what new management means right? Employees stay the same, but work with a more, or newer sense of direction... employees are better managed. Makes sense now. I'm reminded of a Subway I went to in Melbourne on this past T&S tour. Even with a small line, I was at the till and paid in under one minute flat, I swear. The moment I left I turned to my friend Johnny 5 and said,

"That was..."
"Incredible right?!" he interjected immediately.

New Management: a good thing even in fast food joints.

2009-04-06T11:49:00.000-07:00

I hate mustard. I'm not a fan of the colour either. I am however a big fan of Jamie Oliver and my favorite recipe of his does contain mustard, at least in seed form. Actually come to think of it, this recipe also has mushrooms, which I'm not a fan of either. How can I love this meal so much when two of the main ingredients are things I don't like? It's just that good.

My Old Man's Superb Chicken

Art of Change

2009-04-04T09:38:00.000-07:00

So I spend a while yesterday re-working my colour scheme for the blog and ended up settling on the classic black and white style theme... at least for the background colour and text. Sure there are blue and red accents with the B&W, but a day after the change and I am already bored of the new look. I feel this way with my bass playing at times, I switch something up and initially like it... come the second day, hate it. Maybe that's the problem with art, it can change with your mood. Or maybe it changes your mood, and that's what is so great about art, it evokes so many feelings and emotions?

What should I do with my blog to spice it up or give it new life?

Celebrating U2 tickets the Chinese way

2009-04-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

For the first time in my life, I'm going to a U2 concert. I had to join their fan club first, ($50 for the year) but then it gave me a presale password, almost guaranteeing me tickets. Luckily (and without knowing), I joined an hour before presale started, and ended up getting great seats... however during that hour before I was bewildered, and panicking that my presale code wasn't working.

I got tickets to U2, time to celebrate? Is a 12 course meal from 6pm to 9pm a little excessive? Absolutely. Here's what I had:

We started off with a cold plate of jelly fish and surrounded by slices of octopus, pork, and other meat-type things?

Second was a deep fried crab ball with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. The little crab claws are protruding out of the ends so you can use them as a grip.

Thirdly we had these huge oysters in their shells with ginger sauce and chives.

Then there was this mushroomy traditional dish with scallops and a really thin dark vegetable that looked like the hair you pull out of your sink, but taste much better.

Then a shrimp type dish, with something else?!

Then a shark fin soup, although I strongly disagree with this! If you haven't seen the movie Shark Water, then rent it today, it's amazing. I hope our soup was imitation shark fin, actually I'm banking on it for my conscience's sake.

Then there was a giant lobster plate, kinda like the picture shows but ours had a gooey sauce. I made a mess.

Then a chicken dish with the head still on the plate and a small tomato in its mouth. Nothing new here, but still amazing how they just cut it up right through all the bones. Funny how I get so annoyed when I have to eat around the bones all the time, especially with chop sticks. I must be a spoiled North American kid.

Another plate with bones, but more expected when it's a whole fish. Googly eyes and all here. Apparently Leana used to fight with her brother for the fish gills... I didn't try them.

If you weren't full at this point then you could eat the black bean noodle dish, and then have some of the sticky rice. I wish I had room to enjoy the rice, as it's one of my faves.

Desert was also served. Almond cookies? Sesame cookie balls?

An extremely expensive and excessive meal, but maybe I forgot to tell you that this was for my wife's brother-in-law who recently got married? Perhaps I forgot to mention to you this was a celebratory dinner for them, with all their relatives? Did I at least let you know that I was there with my wife's family and relatives as the only 'guilo', and Leana couldn't even make it?! I haven't seen the majority of these people since my wedding, but there I was, waiting for the odd conversation in English and still having a good time; I can only pick out the odd Mandarin word if it has to do with food, but there was lots of food talk so...

See you at the concert? Oh ya, and I don't even know if I can go yet; we are touring around that time, haha.

Tetris and the Art of the Pack

2009-03-29T01:54:00.000-07:00

So a little while ago I decided to write a book about packing your suitcase. No, I'm serious. It's like a mix of a ''how-to-book'' with a coffee table book feel, littered with thoughts, comments, and picures from various musicians. Today I just finished the 3rd (of many) photo shoots for the book with the band An Horse.

I'm pretty excited about the book, actually, I'm really excited, especially since I am starting to pick up some momentum with it. Anyways, all this to say I'll keep you posted as to how it's coming. Oh and the reason for the surveys in the past (and the new survey up now) is all directly related to the book, so thanks for doing them.

Speaking of the new survey... Tetris... you know the old school video game, how do you feel about it?

Doritos; Brilliant.

2009-03-18T21:44:00.000-07:00

Have you seen the new marketing campaign for Doritos? The white bag with a huge money sign on it? They are offering anyone a chance to name this new flavor of chips... oh and if they choose your name, you'll win 25 thousand dollars and 1% future (Canadian) sales! That's amazing, but more importantly, what a brilliant way to market a new product! I don't even like Doritos, but I couldn't help but buy a pack. I just had to taste them and see if I could come up with a clever name?!

I also forgot that Doritos came up with the best superbowl ad this year too, and once again, it was also a contest. Smart. Competition brings out the best in people I suppose, and when you have the whole world of talent to draw from... I could be wrong, but it may also be easier to pay for good work here and there when you don't have to pay salary to a mediocre in-house ad man?

Side note: Sara and I have really gotten into the tv show Mad Men; So do you think that maybe my 'marketing senses' are becoming hightened because of this?

TAP OUT!

2009-03-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

Do you remember when No Fear clothing was a big deal? Do you remember when cool No Fear stickers were all over cool cars and cool trucks? I getting a sense that we have a modern day No Fear creeping up on us, and maybe not so creeping up either. TAP OUT is the new No Fear, just look around you. Picture anyone you can think of that may have worn a no fear shirt in high school, chances are they are now wearing Tap Out and have a decal on the back window of their vehicle. Cool high school kids? Tap Out.

No Fear was a trendy little slogan that spawned a whole bunch of things, much of which coincided with sports. Timing was key for them as I feel this was in the early stages of the world's acceptance to 'extreme sports' (Dirt biking, BMX, Surfing, Skating...).

Now fast forward 10 or so years to the newest, not to mention the most trendy of sports, mixed marshal arts and you'll see Tap Out right in there... along with No Fear energy drinks, of course. Other companies associated with MMA are definitely around and doing well also but I feel Tap Out is hitting up the general market. Scrawners like myself are the ones wearing these shirts to look tougher or at least 'knowledgeable' in the 'arts'. Actual MMA athletes tend to stick to companies like Affliction or Warrior. OK, this isn't totally true, but it does seems this way.

I could go on for quite a while, but I'll just leave it at that, as this should be enough to get you thinking. Oh and don't get me wrong, I have nothing against extreme sports, or fast growing companies even, I'm just pointing out my what I see. Agree? Disagree? Any other companies unafraid to take the torch?

... and don't worry, I'll tackle energy drinks (including No Fear's) next blog.

Why?

2009-02-24T15:53:00.000-08:00

Why is it that the television series I tend to watch, all get canceled? A cliff hanger, season ending episode, is not how I want to end a series! Why wouldn't the network at least sign on for one more episode to finish it (pseudo) properly? Maybe if they did 'finish' the series with an episode or two, it would do better in DVD sales, since no one wants to start a series knowing that it gets canceled half way through?

I just finished watching the the fourth and final season of The 4400. I thought they knew they weren't doing another season before they were finished the filming the fourth. Apparently not.

I was really in to The Black Donnelly's when it came out. My wife and I would actually make plans to stay home and watch it on those nights. Then one night, it just wasn't on... "this weeks episode, online only!"... (if you were in the US). Canceled. Saw the "complete series" on DVD with 5 unaired episodes. Canceled half way through the first season, you'd think that they knew at least to finish it off?! Nope.

Carnivale. This one really hurt. I have never been more into a show than Carnivale, and it ruined me, with only two seasons, and the biggest turn of events, on the final episode. I ran into the niece of the head writer of the show while on a wine tour... seriously, haha, and she told me that they were scheduled to shoot 5 seasons, but HBO pulled the plug after being unable to negotiate a proper budget to continue filming for season three. "He could have written an ending for the second season, but they were all under the assumption they were doing a third."

HBO's Rome at least had an ending to it's second season. I didn't like how it ended, but nonetheless, it had one. Why can't they do that for all canceled shows; like it or not, at least it's something?

What other television series have ended abruptly and driven you mad?

Hampster Burial Kits and 998 other business ideas

2009-02-17T15:40:00.000-08:00

Seth Godin is brilliant, and a marketing guru. I was reading up on one of his blogs and I came across an old post of his that I hadn't seen before. He was commenting on a challenge posted by billionaire Mark Cuban to send him "a business plan that meets certain criteria and he'll consider funding it, right here, right now." Seth went on to say, "you realize that in fact there are tons of ways to create a viable business in just a few months. There's no shortage of ideas worth stealing."

The end of the blog there is a link to where Mr Godin has gathered a bunch of his 'superpowered' friends to compile a list of 999 ideas for possible businesses, free for the taking! "Ideas are a dime a dozen. The money is in the execution."

Fascinating, entertaining, brilliant and stupid... they are all there.

I enjoyed just browsing through the list, but ultimately it got me thinking, and that's the key for me. So if you are into business and want a challenge, or maybe you are looking for a business to start up, I highly recommend you check out these idea's, and/or Seth's blog. Want to kill some time? Let me know what ideas you guys like of the 999? Oh and some do exist already but...

Hampster Burial Kits and 998 other business ideas

Do You Know This Man?

2009-02-13T13:25:00.000-08:00

If you don't know David Suzuki, then you should.

Even though I feel he was part of my childhood, I know that there are many out there who have heard very little, or nothing, about him. In short, David Suzuki is a Canadian science broadcaster and environmental activist. I don't really know what else to say, but I do suggest you look into him and see what he has to say!

check out his site, gain some knowledge.

www.davidsuzuki.org

2009-02-10T16:18:00.001-08:00

Friday was the last official Tegan and Sara show for this album cycle. It was good, but kind of odd. First of all it was a random one-off, a month after the last official tour of The Con. Second of all it was put on by VanOC, the Vancouver Olympic Committee… for the Olympics a year away from now?! Anyways, the show went well and it was held in a great venue in Vancouver called the Orpheum… where multiple episodes of Battlestar Galactica where filmed. Do I have any other random facts from the show? Yes. It was dual billed with Broken Social Scene, and they were great. That was more of a statement followed by an opinion.

Ok but more important than the show, were the two days before that, where the whole band plus Chris Walla sat in a room for 7 hours and worked on the new material for the next album.

In closing,

Goodbye concerts, Hello studios.

Cellphones and Cigarettes

2009-01-30T09:28:00.000-08:00

Are cell phones the new cigarettes?

Do you remember when everyone smoked, everywhere, and all the time? Well I’m too young to really remember but after watching a few episodes of Mad Men, I am reminded of that generation and their smoking habits. In the 50’s, no one believed that smoking was bad for you.

Fast forward fifty years to a society that encourages people to buy cell phones for every member of the family. It’s no longer uncommon for children in elementary school to have a cellphone. Now I know there have been a lot of studies done on the radiation that emits from cell phones and to whether or not they can cause cancer, but from what I am reading lately, all of these studies are statistically useless…

“For one thing, they surveyed too few people. Additionally, the majority of studies focused on the effects of cellphone use after several years, but in most cases brain cancer takes a decade to develop.” - Popular Science (Jan’09)

So now the real results of ten to twelve year studies are starting to trickle out. Some countries have already banned children under the age of 14 from having cellphones, and many more are joining in. What scares me most is that in these studies, they define ‘regular cellphone use’ as once a week. Under this definition, and in our society, every kid over the age of two is more than a 'regular' user of a cellphone.

Nicotine or not, I’m not even going to begin to discuss the addictiveness of the cell. Crackberry anyone?

AC/DC, Fight Night, and the Promoter

2009-01-25T01:54:00.000-08:00

So I joined my brother tonight and went to an International Kickboxing Fight Night thingy...not really my scene, but interesting none the less. Interesting because the first few songs that I heard at the event were all AC/DC. This got me thinking. At what point will AC/DC not be played at fight nights, or other sporting events? You could tell the promoter for the event was in his forties or fifties, and loving the music, so my question is this;

Twenty or thirty years from now, when our generation is putting on events, are they going to still be playing AC/DC and Black Sabbath, or are we going to be playing 30 year old music from then, like Lincoln Park?!

Not that I consider Lincoln Park to be the 'new' AC/DC, but at what point are they no longer equated with the fight song? Twenty years from now, will listening to Sabbath at an MMA fight seem like putting on the Beach Boys before Boxing? Anyways, just a thought. Oh and they actually did end up playing Lincoln Park half way through the night, and yes, one of the dudes in the picture was also there, seriously, haha.

Hope

2009-01-20T18:20:00.000-08:00

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."

-Barack Obama

Not Quite A Passport But...

2009-01-17T13:29:00.000-08:00

So yesterday I realized that my driver license expired on my birthday, three days ago. I jumped in the car and drove VERY CAREFULLY to the DMV. Driving without a license means you are also driving without car insurance. That is not a smart thing to do, in fact it is illegal, as I was told by the DMV employee. All I had to do was pay $75, get a new photo taken, and voila, painless... unless you are an idiot like me and tell them about another drivers license (you think) you have in the state of Tennessee.

First of all you have to understand the process for me to even get the TN license. I waited in two separate Nashville area DMV's, got denied from the first two, then drove an hour north of the city to eventually sit in another two hour line up. Ignorance played a HUGE part in why I didn't get the driving permit in the first two places. To keep it short, here in BC, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia is the government, (and controls everything). When I need to show a drivers abstract, my driving record, it comes from them, ICBC, (the government.). This isn't the case in Ontario, or many other Canadian provinces, but all I can say is this: If you unaware of how things work in other places (country's, provinces, states, whatever it may be), that's fine, but take the time to learn about them, and DO NOT DENY the application due to your own ignorance. ICBC is not my insurance company, it is the government from whom all driving records flow. This month long process, and without a TN license = no TN insurance = no driving a car in an extremely non-bus-friendly city = easily one of the most frustrating processes of my existence.

Ok, now knowing that... imagine accidentally divulging the info that you have a TN license, and the lady at the DMV telling you that you need to give it to them in order for you to get a new Canadian one. I'm not giving it up, not a chance, I worked hard for it. I say that "there is no way for me to get it to her", or "I don't know where it is", or "it could be in boxes from the move back to Canada three years ago"... meanwhile slipping it out of my wallet and into my pocket. Eventually she says "I need that number or I can't drive." Now I've gone too far in this web of lies that I can't pull it out of my pocket and give her the number, so I had to think, and besides, sitting there and looking distraught may help me? Maybe she'll give in and just forget I said anything at all? I can't drive back home 'to look for it', so I say I'll go back to the car and call my wife, in hopes that maybe she can find it? In the car I write down my TN license number, think of a great way to tell the clerk how 'organized my wife is' and that she amazingly found the number in a matter of minutes. I even fake a phone call to Leana just in case the lady is watching me out her window... and then I notice something on the card... expiry date Jan 23, 2007. I do not hold another drivers license.

I go back in, wait in another line, and get to another employee.

"Do you hold another drivers license somewhere else?"

"No" I reply.

"Great, you'll get your card in the mail in a week or so."

I'm an idiot.

Shower Routines

2009-01-08T01:53:00.000-08:00

So about three months ago I realized I had a post-shower routine. Why did it take me so long to realize that I always towel off the exact same way... head first, then body, left arm, right arm, left leg...?! So I posed the question to Tegan and Sara and the rest of the band and found that almost everyone had a routine, even if they just realized it.

So I'm going to start a new poll and I'd love to hear from you, "Do you have a post shower routine?"

Paparazzi

2008-12-29T04:14:00.000-08:00

Paparazzi are an interesting breed of people. Hours on hours they will spend outside of a restaurant or hotel just waiting for that somebody to leave. Hours on hours for that shot of a celebrity walking out of a store, and with a hope that they'll stop and pose? It's odd really.

I just witnessed a crowd of paparazzi waiting outside our hotel for Paris Hilton to leave, and then swarming Tegan and Sara in the meanwhile. One of the dudes ran ahead of us so he could get a few more shots of the girls walking. Tegan put her arm around me and announced that he wanted shots of me too, so he took a few, haha. Really is odd though. Interesting first day in Australia. Oh and Paris, with her sister and new 'tv show' best friend, showed up later at the resaurant we were at also. That's a little crazy in itself, of all the hotels and all the resaurants in Melbourne, she chose the two we were (already) at?!!

Slumdog for Christmas

2008-12-24T10:02:00.000-08:00

A lot of great movies come out at this time of year, and few even open on Christmas Day. It's kind of sad that the only time a family is together for the year (obviously this isn't always the case but...), they go out to a movie instead of spending quality time together. Movies are this generations 'family time', and that 's too bad. But maybe after seeing a movie, you and your family go home and discuss it and get into great conversation from there?

I love movies and there are a lot of great looking films out this Christmas season that I want to see, and I probably will. I will also be spending a good chunk of time with my own family, extended family, and good friends, doing nothing else but sipping hot chocolate and talking about life. Balance; it's what life is all about.

If you are heading out to a film with your family, can I suggest you go see Slumdog Millionaire? It's an amazing film and it should also raise great conversation. Seriously, excellent.

Product Placement

2008-12-23T02:18:00.000-08:00

Toothbrushes and dating services. These are the two types of commercials that played during the commercial breaks of an 'Electronic Gaming' show. Actually they both played in each one of the commercial breaks. Granted it is 2:24am, but I love the strategy in advertising. I also love that they are saying people who play video games are often not only single, but have bad hygiene. I'm not saying I disagree with this product placement, but I just thought I'd point it out?!

Well I've gotta go buy my brother a new toothbrush for Christmas.

SNL vs. T&S

2008-12-22T12:53:00.000-08:00

Although it aired a couple of months ago, I finally saw the episode of Saturday Night Live where Sarah Palin guest stared, and more importantly, there was a half spoof of Tegan and Sara. It came in a segment where they were talking about a great live music venue in NYC, and then showed posters of bands which had already played there... one of which was a Tegan and Sara poster, from their last album. It was funny to see it in context since we had origionally just heard that they re-did a T&S photo and threw it up going into commercial break. Maybe this could be one step closer to getting the girls on the show next year?

Moving West

2008-12-18T23:40:00.000-08:00

Are you serious, Mats Sundin is going to play for the Vancouver Canucks? If you don't like or follow hockey, then no big deal, but in the world of sports, this is big. First of all, something like 5 million dollars for a one year contract... oh hold on, it's almost january... 5 million for HALF a year. I suppose that's not quite as good as a baseball contract but honestly, who'd want to play baseball if it weren't for big salarys?
Sorry, I was talking hockey. Anyways, Mats in a Vancouver jersey huh? Will he make a difference or will be a distraction to the Canucks? I'm excited to see what happens, and I'm happy he chose Vancouver over New York. I don't understand why he chose Vancouver over New York, but I am excited, and as long as he doesn't turn into Mark Messier, I'll be happy. Thoughts?

Reflexes

2008-12-18T12:34:00.000-08:00

I have to admit, for his age, the 'W' still has some moves. That shoe was thrown point blank and still 'Ol Georgie got out of the way. It's easy to dodge an object if you know it's coming, but to really test your agility you must be unaware of the test in itself! I'm confusing myself. Anywhoo, good for him, at 62 I hope I can dodge shoes too.

Snow in the Promise Land

2008-12-14T00:05:00.000-08:00

I love snow. I love it when it covers this beautiful city.

I dislike Victoria drivers in general. They don't know how to drive.
I hate Victoria drivers when it snows.

4 inches have fallen. City is in utter chaos.

Two key factors to point out:
1. Victoria doesn't get a lot of snow (inexperience of drivers)
2. Victoria is the retirement capital of Canada (not going to say it)

My gold Ford Focus needs new tires.

Beards keep your face warm.

Proof

2008-12-11T11:29:00.000-08:00

I wanted to prove to myself that blogs don't have to be long. I need to explain. Not going to. Comic anyone?

Passports

2008-12-11T10:20:00.000-08:00

If you travel, chances are you have a passport. If you have renewed your passport in the past year or two, you've stood in line, and it was probably a long line. I remember reading stories of people paying the homeless to camp out in line for them in front of the office the night before, promising them $50 if they were still there in the morning. Ever since the United States started even talking about requiring Canadians to have a passport to enter, the lines have been long... but waiting for your passport to arrive has been even longer still.
I however had a good experience the other day. Not long of a wait and an estimated arrival time of the passport in under two weeks. You do have to pay more to get it that quick though. If you have the time, get your passport early so you don't have to pay extra and more importantly, you don't have to stress about it arriving in time.
My one problem was this:
Since we are going on tour in Australia in a couple of weeks, we need working visa's to play. In order to get those, they need your passport number and expiry date. And if your passport is being processed, or in the mail being sent to you, they will not give you the number over the phone or even in person. "You must wait into you get it in your hands to find out the number." is what passport Canada told me. I guess it's for my own safety.

Things I have learned from this experience:

1. If your passport runs out within 6 months of your arrival in a new country, you should probably renew your passport, (even if you are returning before it expires).

2. To play music in a foreign Country, you need a work visa. You get this prior to entering the country.

3. Passport Canada will not give you the number over the phone, even if you need it to apply for a work visa.

Seems obvious? It is. I forgot.

24hrs... and a lot more

2008-12-07T13:23:00.000-08:00

Get up at 5:50am Thursday. Down waiting in my lobby by 6:15am. Ted (guitar player genius, Tegan and Sara) picks me up and we drive to catch the first ferry to Vancouver. Ferry food, actually good... if you order your eggs over-easy, otherwise they give you the not-so-fresh, came-out-of-a-carton powdered, scrambled eggs!

11am-2pm rehearsal in a Vancouver storage unit in Yaletown. Ben Sigston is the artist we are playing with.
Walk around downtown for 5 hours. Get to venue, the Railway Club, and set up our gear. Wait another couple of hours. play 30 seconds of the first song and "whammo!" Breaker blown, as in kaput, end of show. Lame-o.

1pm Friday, walk onto ferry back to Vicoria. 1:40pm, ferry starts to spin rapidly and sirens blare. "Crew to boats!" comes across the intercom. Man overboard. Smoke flare in the water, rescue boat ripping towards it. 2pm, rescue boat comes back with someone. 2:40pm, we dock back in Van. Man sent in ambulance to hospital. 4:30pm, finally docked in Victoria. Ferry traffic back into Vic.

5:30pm, load in time for my next gig...

Salsa Time!

2008-12-01T13:29:00.000-08:00

On Saturday night I went out with my wife, Leana, and learned how to salsa dance. This dance class was part of a "mandatory fun night" at her school. Oh and this was just after we made fresh salsa from scratch. Mmmm, raw onions. Dancing went well, but not so great was my breath... so this is my official apology to all the girls in the Canadian College of Performing Arts who I danced with. Oh wait! Hold on a sec here, maybe my breath actually distracted them from my dancing?! No, who are we kidding, I'm a great dancer, here's proof...

Click here to see Shaun Huberts, Dancer Extraordinaire

Musicians should stick to Music

2008-11-28T08:42:00.000-08:00

This is all I am trying to say: In general, we play music because we are better at it than we are at, say, carpentry. I'm not saying that musicians should never try anything else, but I am saying that some of us may want to stick closer to the arts scene than the others. Ok, I'll be honest, the only reason I am saying any of this is because a week before my last tour I almost broke my hand (This picture was taken two months after the v-shaped flap of skin was hanging off my hand). Table saws have a lot of power. Table saws can shoot a projectile a long ways. Or wait, maybe I'm saying this because yesterday I shot a finishing nail into the wall and it ricocheted into my eye brow... less than an inch away from my eye. I'm going to change the title of this blog to, "I Should Stick To Music"

A First Time For Everything

2008-11-25T23:04:00.000-08:00

Let me start by saying, I do not consider myself to be a rock star.

I am a first time blogger, it's true. I am a musician; a bass player (it's not an oxymoron), and through playing music, I have been able to travel all around the world, and get paid to do it. I have been fortunate, and I have learned from all sorts of people along the way. This is another plus to being a musician: getting the opportunity to meet and spend time with rock stars.

OK, so this brings me to why I am here, and my plan for this blog. When and if I ever think of something I've learned over the past few years from various quote unquote rock stars, I'll try and throw it up here. It could simply be how they perform the mundane chores in life, or it could be how they spend their time on tour; Some may be insightful, others may be useful, yet plenty will be neither! Anywho, that's the plan at least. I'll may also be throwing around my thoughts and comments on the touring musician life, because after all, it is my blog right? Talk soon

Shaun