Below are the 9 most recent journal entries recorded in Calvin Gillet's LiveJournal:

Monday, June 11th, 2007
7:51 pm	Summertime - gotta love it! First off, whenever anyone complains about the heat I remind them of the past February when it was -35 degrees. Anyway, summer is here and I couldn't be happier! One reason is I am actually getting active again. I went biking yesterday for about 2 hours and loved every minute of it. I forgot how much I enjoy biking. My wife and I also bought new rollerblades on the weekend and am looking forward to getting on those. We've also been taking ice skating lessons and I have to say I'm impressed with how well I'm doing considering I haven't been on skates in about 28 years. I also bought a set of golf clubs and am looking at taking lessons. A co-worker has a membership at a local course so he said he'd take me out. Hope we play best ball. ;o) Anyway, that's my bi-yearly update. Will probably post more often now that I have more time. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 31st, 2006
8:23 am	Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes Well, it's been nearly 8 months since I last posted and I think I'm about due. ;o) The main reason I hadn't posted is that nothing was really happening in my life that warranted it. My job was its usual pain: lots of overtime (nights and weekends) and frustration. This was definitely affecting how I was with my wife and friends. I was fast becoming an angry, bitter indiviual. That all changed on September 27th. My employer decided that "I didn't meet with their long-term goals" and I was laid off. After the initial shock of realising I didn't have a job anymore (I also went through this in the spring of 2002), I realized I was actually happy. Prior to the layoff I had already started looking elsewhere as I had reached the point that I had to respect myself and not stay, in what amounted to, an abusive relationship. Well, with severance package in hand I told my wife. She took it the same way I did: a mixture of good and bad. No job but at least I wasn't working there anymore. The severence amounted to me being paid until the end of November which gave me a little time to relax and de-stress from the previous work environment. Kudos to my wife (GG) for being so understanding and supportive during this time. Love ya sweetie. My credo for the last decade of my life has been "You will be surprised by what you can get by simply asking." This was never more true on October 4th. I called a contact I had and, long story short, I start a new job tomorrow (November 1st). This looks to be the dream job that I have always worked towards. It amounts to almost twice my previous salary and a 40-hour work week with no overtime. I will be entering the unknown of being an independent contractor, but after being a 'corporate robot' for so long I'm looking forward to this. I'm fortunate to have a friend who already pursued this avenue and can help me with the details (thnx OR). So it turns out the layoff has been more of a 5-week vacation. :o) So, it looks like my wife and I will be able to buy a house within our lifetime! Kinda scary when the prospect of owning property becomes real. I also reached an epiphany about me personally. I've neglected myself and interests for too long. There was a point when I was younger (much younger) that I considered a career as a graphic artist (comic books in particular). I now realize that I want to pursue that interest again. I think capitalcor really made me long for this when I see his artwork and what one can accomplish when they set their mind to it. I also realized that next year I turn 40 and I want to be in the best physical shape of my life. It will take time but by next September I hope to be in the shape that I've always wanted to be in. That means being physically active during the winter which will be difficult but not impossible. GG and I have been adding to our home gym so I should be able to maintain a workout routine in the house but I also want to do outside activities. Can you believe I've lived in Ottawa for 9 years and have never skated the Rideau Canal?!? That will change this winter. Well, that's about all for now. I'm really looking forward to this new chapter in my life. I have a great wife, a family that loves me and who I love, and great friends (the extended family) in Ottawa. What more could a guy want (or need)? :o) Current Mood: happy (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, March 6th, 2006
10:04 am	Ramblings on the Oscars Well, I watched the Oscars last night with my wife and realized that the only 'Oscar' film that we had seen was 'Crash'. An amazing movie that deserved to win. That being said, I hadn't seen any of the other contenders. I only wanted to watch John Stewart's opening monologue but he made the show so entertaining that I watched it to the end. I have to say that George Clooney is the new Cary Grant. The man looks good in a tux and knows all about self-deprecating humour. His Batman comment went over a few heads but I had a good laugh from it. Is it just me or has Jack Nicholson become a parody of himself? Poor Keira Knightly, having to sit next to Jack all evening. Any bets on how many times he hit on her? "Hi, I'm Jack. What are you doing after the Oscars. BTW, I have a demon." ;o) Was I the only person who felt really uncomfortable when Lauren Bacall gave her intro to film noir? I thought at any moment she would collapse, especially when she was stumbling over her words and at one point gripped the podium with, what appeared to be, all her might. Like I said, uncomfortable. Acceptance speeches: what can I say? Some people went on too long and should have been cut off. Others were cut off before they had a chance. Meh, whatever happened to "Thanks alot!" and leave it at that? When you start thanking your laywers, it's time for the blow dart from the clarinet. One last thing that surprised my wife and I: Mickey Rooney is still alive! Holy moley! (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, January 12th, 2006
8:24 am	January Blahs Well, my New Year smile has finally worn off. Work sucks. What else can I say? My current position requires me to carry a pager and be available 24/7. Even though I get compensated for carrying the damn thing, it isn't worth it. I've finally made my mind up to look for something else. I came to realize just how much this job is affecting my personality. My wife and friends have all noticed it over the past few months, and I think it's time to do something about it. I've often joked that I plan to imitate Jimi Hendrix at the Monterey Pop festival in 1967 when I resign. Instead of lighting a guitar on fire I'll use my laptop. That will be talked about for years: "Remember when that guy lit his laptop on fire and quit? Craziness!" Went swimming with Lady Chadwick on Monday. Made me realize just how out of shape I'm in, and I'm planning on doing a mini-triathalon in May. I am looking forward to exercising again and getting my butt back into shape, and the good thing is I tend to see results quite quickly. The only hindrance at the moment is myself and motivation. Oh well, we'll see. I tend to be a Canadian political junkie. I don't know why but I find our parliamentary system pretty cool, and I love elections. Call me crazy. Maybe part of my funk at the moment is the distinct possibility of a Conservative majority government come January 23rd. I may not be happy with ther Liberals at the moment but I feel they are the party that is closest to my values. Oh well. Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Great, just bloody great. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, January 3rd, 2006
2:59 pm	Happy New Year! Well, the New Year is upon me and already I feel positive and upbeat about the coming year. Not sure why, but I'm not going to fight it. Christmas vacation was only 11 days but it felt like an entire month, but in a good way. My wife and I spent the time doing what we wanted to do, which contributed to the feeling of relaxation. I got some good presents this year and was able to give some great presents to my wife due to the obscene amount of overtime I worked in December. Even with an unexpected $1000 bill for the car I still was able to spend mucho-donaro on my sweetie. New Year's eve was a blast. Nothing was planned until the last minute but we had a few friends over for drinks (many many drinks). Before we knew it the clock struck 4:30 am!!! Wow, I guess I'm not old if I can party until the wee hours of the morning! Everyone seems to be talking about resolutions. I still like Lucky Toll's. However, I am going to get myself back into shape this year. I was in halfways decent shape in 2004 until an old injury sidelined me. No excuses now, I will be fit before summer. My promise to myself. I hope everyone had a great holidays and I look forward to more parties with all my friends in the new year. (Comment on this)
Friday, December 30th, 2005
2:22 pm	General Musings Well, I finally got to see 'Walk The Line' Thursday night with Skeptigal and Lucky Troll. Great movie. I meant to go last week with Lady Chadwyck but Mother Nature had other plans, like dumping 30 cm of snow on Ottawa. I was so into the movie that this morning I went to HMV and picked up the CD Johnny Cash Live at Folsom Prison. This is a GREAT live album. A must have for anyone who loves live music (country or otherwise). Also picked up the new Evanescence CD/DVD for $5.99!!! Gotta love Boxing Week sales. Am I wrong for saying Amy Lee is incredibly hot? Gotta love the goth chicks. ;o) Well it's back to work next Tuesday. Although I've been off for only a week it feels so much longer. This holiday has been so restful probably because my wife and I decided to relax this Christmas. No travelling, just spending time doing what we want to do. Like I said, so relaxing. Happy New Year everyone and all the best for 2006. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, December 18th, 2005
4:21 pm	Sunday Morning After... Well my wife and I survived our annual Holiday party last night. :o) Seriously, we had alot of fun last night hosting about 25 of our friends to a night of drunken debauchery. We had planned on this party to help get rid of most of our alcohol in the house. After I cleaned up this morning we have more now than at the beginning of the night! Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and that means alot to us. It's nice the have people feel comfortable in your place to relax, let their hair down (those that have hair) and have a great time. I have to mention that ladychadwick and friend brought along a couple of items that were a hit. Light sabres from Future Shop. They were great!!! Everyone got a kick out of the staged battles. I especially loved the fact that they made the authentic noise (hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm). Anyway, hope everyone was feeling okay the next morning and look forward to seeing more of everyone over the holidays. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, December 12th, 2005
2:26 pm	First Day Musings Well, where do I start? Work is finally calming down. I'm now working a standard 40 hour week again, although I do carry a pager and cell phone for after hours support. I know that my wife and friends are extremely happy for this change as I was becoming a very grumpy and angry individual. A far cry from the normal light-hearted and fun person that people know me as. I guess all it takes is working 80+ hours in a week to bring out my "Mr. Hyde" Work will be shutting down over the holidays so I'm looking forward to the break. Just sitting around the house doing nothing seems like a bit of a dream at the moment but 2 weeks will fly by I'm sure. My wife and I are throwing a party for friends this weekend which we are both looking forward to. We're both very friendly people (we're Maritimers) and love to have guests over. Just some decorating and we're all set! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
2:10 pm	Finally on LJ Just a quick note to say I'm finally on LJ after much pestering by my friends. More postings to follow. (Comment on this)