30 Jan 09 Watching Strangers in Paradise on The Fifth Estate or … Helen Fisher on ABC 20/20
So, cooking is done (South African beef chili curry) and I’m relaxing trying to decide which romance oriented news / documentary / show I should be watching.
I’m flickin’ back and forth between Dr. Helen Fisher on ABC 20/20 ; she’s Chief Scientific Advisor for Chemistry.com a big dating site with an awesome domain name and has spoken at the TED Conference too. When I turned the system on, it was tuned to CBC Newsworld with The Fifth Estate show Strangers in Paradise about how people get totally owned and into Second Life…. living in a total fantasy world.
Times sure have changed from when I met my first real girlfriend at the bus stop outside the apartment.
Tags: ABC 20/20, Chemistry.com, Dr. Helen Fisher, Love, online dating, Saint Valentine's Day, Television, The Fifth Estate
15 Dec 08 WOW: BBC Planet Earth Complete Series Blu-Ray set for $34.99 with free shipping (in US) at Discovery store – today only
Got a notice for an excellent deal on the impressive BBC Planet Earth Complete Series Blu-Ray set for only $34.99 at the Discovery Store … today only (until 23H59 December 15th!) at the Discovery Store.
The Planet Earth series (David Attenborough) has to be one of the most visually impressive series covering all the natural wonders of the planet. I think this is probably one of the first (and most essential) HD Blu-Ray discs worth buying. Of course, to play this you’ll need both a Blu-Ray player *and* ideally a full 1080i/p TV set. Otherwise they have the regular (non-HD) DVD set for $42.46.
What’s better? This includes FREE standard shipping inside the US. In addition, they do ship to Canada ($10) as well as the UK ($34.95 sort of kills it for my UK blokes)…
I saw a preview in the theatre yesterday for this and it’s pretty mesmerizing. Since it’s done by the BBC I’m pretty sure the content matches the visuals. Have a look at the Amazon reviews (Over 1800 reviews with average of 4.5+ stars)…
For reference, prices at other stores:
Amazon.com: $59.99
Amazon.ca (Canada)
Indigo / Chapters Canada: $87.46
Best Buy (USA): $64.99
BBC Canada Shop: 84.98
Even on eBay, the majority of starting auction prices are higher than $34.99 – and that doesn’t include shipping, and variable delays depending on which eBay seller you happen to wind up buying from. Mouse over the items in the widget below to see the current prices:
Tags: Bargains, BBC Planet Earth, Blu-Ray, Deals, Movies, Television, Weather
16 Nov 08 Barack Obama first post-election interview on CBS 60 Minutes with Steve Kroft – Webcast !
Well, as my regular readers know, I’m a pretty big fan of CBS 60 Minutes – and tonight’s episode is no less interesting and enticing.
Once the football game is over (it’s 19:00 and the game is still on) CBS 60 Minutes will have Barack Obama (yes, that one) on the show in his first interview since winning the election. Steve Kroft is the one who is going to interview Obama and the subjects covered include:
- How Obama plans to help homeowners facing foreclosure
- What Obama thinks obout Secretary Paulson and the $700B aid package to the banking industry
- Obama and his opinion on a bailout package for the auto industry
- What Obama learned from reading Abraham Lincoln
- The challenges ahead
Since 60 minutes is a no-fluff kind of show, I expect it to be a pretty interesting episode to say the least!
CBS is a relatively tuned-in kind of news organisation, so they already have the webcast of the interview available and here it is:
Tags: Barack Obama, Politics, Television
14 Oct 08 Canadian 2008 Elections : CTV News declares Conservative Minority at 21h49
Hmmm…. kinda early IMHO, but I think CTV News wouldn’t do it without some serious data mining and projection software 
So Lloyd said it… conservative minority government: 21h49 EDT.
11 Oct 08 CTV W5 Capital Shame : The great decline of Canada’s national Capital – Ottawa caught in huge crack and meth crisis
I just watched a truly disheartening and frightening CTV W-Five episode covering a subject that is often not discussed – far less so by the Federal ministers on Parliament Hill just blocks from one of the worst drug, prostitution and homelessness problems anywhere in the nation. None of them, including Public Security Minister Stockwell Day, accepted to meet with CTV W-5 saying they were “too busy”…
They hounded the Premier of Ontario, but he also brushed off a reporter and hustled into a building…
Personally, I am not surprised by this report. I’ve been to Ottawa many times over the last 20-25 years; my ex-wife and much of her family were from there, as was my late stepfather.
In January 2008 I began a series of about a ½ dozen business trips, one every month or so, to the National Capital Region and usually stayed in hotels in the Downtown, or Byward Market area. The Byward Market is a charming 3-4 square block neighbourhood which, by day is a nice selection of multicultural restaurants and farmer market type stands. It’s next to one of the largest shopping centre’s in the Ottawa metropolitan area; the Rideau Centre Shopping Centre.
Now being a Montrealer, I like to explore a city’s nightlife and evening culture – we have a massive choice of cafés, lounges, showbars and nightclubs in Montreal – around the market.
A few of the times I stayed in hotels (including the Econolodge and Marriott Courtyard Inn) near the Byward Market. Those are both nice hotels; granted the Econo Lodge Downtown at 475 Rideau street is pretty much no-frills motor inn more than hotel with rooms straight onto an inside parking lot that is directly onto Rideau street across from a 7-11 and in the vicinity of churches, residential homes and … well a little pic of the Econolodge :
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Tags: Capital Shame, Crime, CTV W-5, CTV W-Five, drugs, Health, Ottawa, Politics, Television, Travel
