Chemically Poisoned Foods

I was in the mode of a snack a few days ago and decided to go to Wal-Nasty-Mart, as it was close by at the time to see what they got. I went to their Biscuit, Chocolate and Candy Isle and started looking at the ingredients section of the boxes and wraps, something nobody does, particularly in Wal-Nasty-Mart! People go to this place to find some fucking shit that they can fill their nasty stomachs with! They don't care what's it made of. Their biggest seller, as far as I've seen is: Soda, Chips, frozen food and shit like that but here's the funny thing: Is there any relationship between the way you eat and your health and longevity?! This question might sound stupid and some might say yes. There is but if that's so why the hell life expectancy is longer in North America, fro example to Middle East that people seem to be eating healthier? This should be the subject of another post.

Anyways I kept looking and there was barely any or maybe not at all packaged food that I found without shit such as artificial flavour, Sodium Nitrite, Hydrogenated Oil and all that crap. I had fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator. So I decided simply to leave and buy nothing!  

This, of course, has nothing to do with Wal-Nasty-Mart but other stores at least stock other foods which you might find them less harmful but it seems that the further you stay from packaged, frozen and prepared food, the healthier you will be although other types of food, raw food, are not free from poison. 

(Photo: A tasty and popular biscuit in Canada that I've tried myself several times. You read the the ingredients and you will never want to try that again in your life, if you really are concerned about your well being. I never will)

Vulnerable Sector Check

I was rejected by a provincial government, late last month after a motherfucker who had been introduced as my reference provided bad feedback although I passed the interview which always seems to be the hardest part. This in fact was a lesson for me as not to give out every piece of shit's name as my reference, particularly when a permanent job by a government is applied, 

Government jobs are hard to get but once you're in, if you use your head and focus on your job, you'll be set for your life. That's what my buddy A. F. and his wife did. Both work for governments in different levels. Anyways I received a letter in regards to my Vulnerable Sector Check request a few days ago asking me to go to a CPS office after making an appointment. 

I went there this morning. The building seems to be one of the main buildings of CPS or maybe their headquarters now (Used to be in 5th Ave. or still perhaps is), used to be Nortel Networks Co. when I first came to Canada, I remember. The company tanked a few years ago, I heard that on TV and I guess CPS took over when the population of the City grew and they aimed to recruit more officers. In fact I saw a number of cadets when I was entering the building in the morning. I could be a police officer myself now but when I handed my application back in 2010, they failed me in the interview. 

Anyways there is no public parking in this place, I thought because when I approached from 50th Ave. I saw a sign indicating that but when I was leaving, I saw people are parking from a parking lot to the building. So I might have missed that somehow. 

I didn't have to spend much time in there. Their service is very organized and prompt. Basically for the jobs that you work with vulnerable people, you need a Vulnerable Sector Check. Apparently and I was sure of that, CPS has no problem with me but I was fingerprinted and that would be sent to Ottawa to check my status. According to an old lady who was doing this job, there's a registered sex offender whose his birthday is same as mine! They need to make sure that it is me! 

Today's technology has even provided this opportunity for the people to be fingerprinted without having ink on their fingers! There's a machine which basically works similar to a scanner, maybe with a little more sensitivity to moisture and temperature. They charged me $25 for that while I have already paid $30! I don't know why I was doing that because the job is gone but when I checked my e-mail half and hour after that I realized that I was invited for a similar job but in a different location! Although the fate of this new opportunity is not known but I think now that I can have this result available hopefully just a few days or maybe even before they request that, if I pass other stages. 

(Photos: Water fountains and pool in front of CPS building in NE Calgary where Nortel Network Co. headquarters used to be a few years ago)

(The Stupid) Hike of Stanley Glacier

This past weekend's hike had been planned to go Stanley Glacier in Kootenay National Park. I had been to this most western part of British Columbia earlier, in fact last year when I hike to Floe Lake and I still have the bad memory of that: My camera broke down! I first didn't want to go but then thought would be better than staying home, especially because they had considered that a great hike and a moderate one as well. Nonsense! It is neither of them! I haven't the book Don't Waste Your Time in Canadian Rockies but I certainly believe that this trip should be added to this book! One other reason that I wanted to go with these guys was that I noticed their gathering time was 07:00, unlike most of the time that they gather at around 09:00 or 10:00 which is really stupid.

Anyways I was there at 07:00 and I realized that fortunately there was only 5 of us. So I hopped in one of the guys car and the others took a lift from the other fella. It took almost 01:45 hours to reach the trail-head which is located shortly after the Continental Divide, at the same side of Highway # 93. So we were gearing up and people, I noticed there that were putting gaiters, gloves, extra layers, holding poles, you name it! If someone had taken photographs of people when they were getting ready and would have shown it to the others later, they would have believed that this group was getting ready to summit a mountain in the Himalayas! It became clear later that you wouldn't need any of them, not even an Ice Axe that they had considered mandatory! I paid almost $82 for that shit which I don't think would ever useful!

This picture shows the trail when it comes up from the valley. In this position Highway # 93 is in front of you and the glacier in the back to the left. Back and to the left! Back and to the left. Reminds me of JFK!

As I stated earlier the only good thing about that trip was that we started early. So when we reached the parking lot, geared up and started our trip, it was almost 10:05, I assume. The first part of the trail is very easy and then after about maybe half an hour or 45 min., it becomes steep a little bit. The scenery is not bad although the only thing special after leaving the forest is the tall rock walls on your right which was not new to me. I had seen similar ones earlier. The trail is cut by a stream and that's where you see a sign indicating that the trail is not maintained after this point. Then you take a right and follow a visible and fairly easy trail. That part becomes a little steep and then you find snow patches. Here you're waking on a little ridge with a fall to your left. That's where you have to be a bit careful not to fall or you will broke your bones and perhaps die! We stopped there and a little explanation was provided to us as how to use our Ice Axe to go up the snow covered section. It was not bad but it was not a real challenge or we would not have been able to do it! A few minutes after that you reach the Stanley Glacier toe which is visible with cairns. These people wasted so much time there yapping nonsense(!) and when I was going to head down, they asked me wait and I waited! The hike to go back down is easy except for a few very steep spots. I guess we were back to the parking lot, which was full at the time, at about 14:10 or so. In a nutshell the hike to Stanley Glacier is not worth the trip for someone who's going from Calgary unless they mixed it with a nearby similar hike or stay in Banff or Lake Louise for a night or two. You need to drive for at least 04:00 freaking hours to do a hike of almost 04:00 hours! I have done stuff like this before but not for an average hike similar to this. I'm a big fan of mountains but I'm going to stay away from these ridiculous, childish hikes and focus on summits.

(Photo, top: Stanley Glacier from the ridge that you have to take to reach its toe. You basically go to that platform-like rock in the middle. It becomes dangerous and very technical to go further up)

A Beautiful Accident

I went to The Chef's this past weekend to see him and also cook something together and eat. That was when I realized he's in worse shape than I had thought. Not that's I'm happy about it or I'm in a better shape but he said that he owed some $5000 on one of his credit cards and pays some $100 every months! I always thought he was doing well. He never buys extravagant cloths. Never goes to movies or trips. Has a steady job which doesn't pay him badly. Has two tenants who almost pay his mortgage but I know he drinks a lot and waste too fucking much on food! 

Our plan for the day was to get some lamb which I will have it in another post later but when we came back we cooked some Eggplant Stew which came out excellent by the way and enjoyed it. We had a little rest after eating that with some Whisky he had bought and he wanted to by something from a nearby shop. So we headed out. On 52 St. heading south I realized a congestion and thought something must have happened. When we approached I learnt that I was not wrong. There was an accident and luckily for us a beautiful one! There were police cars and fire engine and pieces of the cars and traffic light were scattered all over 52 St.! A big crowed had been gathered and it was obvious that it had not been long since the occurrence of the accident because police just started to tape the area around the scene after I parked and we got out to see what had happened. 

There were at least 5 firefighters trying to get one of the drivers out. I saw him a young man in a white shirt wearing a chain, one of these fake one that many wear these days and looks like a leash! It was very easy to figure out what had happened and I hope what I'm writing help the police although I believe our police here in Calgary, CPS, have awesome officers who possess every skill to investigate and find out the cause of accidents similar to this and put some preventive actions in to process!

The answer is very easy: The neighbourhood is the home to many refugees who come to this country from lives with no electricity, no education, no fun, no car, no nothing. The kids as soon as they grow up enough and get their driver's license, they buy a used car for $500 and since many of them or their so-called cousins have hands on car, they fix it and start driving up and down the road. What most of them do is they go to Pick N Pull and get pieces for the car and pimp it up! That's the term they use. They then buy a shirt from Value Village or Dollarama  and get a chain from I don't know where and That's all they need to ride their 1996 Honda Civic around the neighbourhood and show off! My guess is one of these millionaire refugee guys with his chain around the neck was speeding when an old car, as seen in the photo, probably an old Chevrolet or Cadillac was trying to turn and they hit it! Boom! 

It was written in a local newspaper that two of them have not improved since the accident day. We'll see whether they survive or not. Of course it was a weekend day and the road was not very busy and they decided to try their refugee Lamborghini-like 1996 Honda Civic (!!) but they forgot that the chain around their neck would not save them and had that accident. CPS please do something. I'm worried about the time that these guys might want to try that out of the Ghetto. That would not be so pleasant, I assume.

(Photo: Firefighters are trying to get one of the guys out of the crippled car. People were standing their with their cellphones in their hands, taking clips of the scene. I decided just to have a picture)

Malclom X

I and The Chef went to Red Deer Lake Meats one past weekend. That is the subject of another post but on our way, we noticed a Yard Sale and The Chef ordered me to pull over and have a look! There was an Eastern European fella who had some good items and some garbage on his lawn. The Chef's attention was immediately went to a pair of dumbbells and asked the guy how much he wanted for them. The guy stated that the pair would be his for $20. The Chef said that he only needed one! The guy laughed and said he would not sell only one! This has nothing with Malcolm X but when I checked a box full of movies I found Malcolm X on DVD. I asked the guy how much he would let this go. $1 he said! Great! I always wanted to see what has been said about Malcolm X in this movie especially because this is directed by Spike Lee.

The first question which comes to your mind, after a few minutes that the movie starts is: Why would people such as Spike Lee and Denzel Washington who have nothing to do with Islam, take part in a movie which advertises Islam and has many things against Christianity? It's obvious that Lee has always been against White people in his movies. At least that's what he showed particularly in Do The Right Thing and the other film of his Miracle at St. Anna, which was a big failure by the way. But these people are not Muslim! So this is the answer that I haven't gotten yet. In addition to that Nation of Islam which Malcolm X was a prominent member of it and then got booted out and assassinated by them is a sect of Islam like no others. I do not believe they consider themselves either Shia or Sunni. They are Black Muslims with their own believes and interpretations of Islam who contain only a small population of Muslims not only in the US but in the entire world. So this movie could not have been supported by many Muslims around the world.

The movie shows some shocking truth about Malcolm X and is apparently based on an autobiography written by late Alex Haley, the author of Roots. He, at the beginning of his life became a criminal who did everything from B&E to adultery, drug abuse, you name it and then was imprisoned for those crimes. He was then introduced to the leader of Nation of Islam at the time, Elijah Muhammad and became a Muslim. I have listened to some of his speeches and although I am no fan of Nation of Islam or Islam in general I have to say that I was surprised by his skills of him in delivering a speech. I wonder how a criminal who did drug delivery and other street crimes, became a great speech deliverer. 

But of course like many other sects of Islam when he is ejected form Nation of Islam, they didn't tolerate him and sent a few guys to kill him in front of audience and before the eyes of his wife and kids. A few people were arrested, tried and convicted of the crime but of course Elijah Muhammad got away. 

This is not a great movie. Washington delivers a good act though. It's simply just a biography for the people who want to know who Malcolm X was. I was one. Spike Lee has made a sub-par movie, I would say. There are scenes which make no sense. They are cuts which the audience would find hard to understand why they occur! Other acts rather than Washington's are OK. As the film is mostly focused on the lead role, the other's act doesn't matter much. Lee has given himself a role just as well but unlike Do The Right Thing it is not as major role as it was in that movie and his act has nothing significance and extraordinary. I would give 2.5 out of 5 to this movie and one reason would be that despite it's length, 3 h. 20 min.(!) it passes smoothly.

(Photo: I selected one of Malcolm X's quotes as the picture for this post. Just what percentage of people in the entire world do you think would stick to such advice?!)  

Dangerous Drive Back to Alberta

I drove to Coquitlam to go to Highway # 1 and return to Alberta but due to closure of Patullo Bridge and me not knowing how to cross Fraser River and the GPS not being updated I guess I wasted some time because I went to Golden Ears Bridge first and then to Highway # 1! Despite this waste of time everything was going OK until I again reached a point when I had to make this decision as whether to continue on Highway # 1 or take Coquihalla Highway. The GPS directed me to the latter like the time I was going to Lower Mainland and this time I followed it and I don't regret that because it is a nice road that I had not been to earlier. 

The travel went well but soon it became dark and by the time I reached Golden it was dark out and I realized I might need some gasoline and all of the station were shut down but Husky. I purchased some gasoline from them and headed east. 

Yak Peak can be easily seen form Coquihalla Highway after a few minutes of drive from Hope. A perfect hiking trip could be planned for this mountain obviously approaching from the ridges and back

I was so tired that I fell sleep behind the wheel a few times and I was lucky that I woke up somehow, otherwise I would not have been here to write these lines! Even McDonald's in Golden was closed and I wasn't able to get a coffee to help me not to sleep. Earlier I checked McDonald's in Revelstoke and even they were closed! My mistake was not only that I had started late and stopped for photographs and breaks very often but also not getting any coffee from any other establishment in one of these towns! I was cursing at myself as why I started so late! I could have stayed in one of the towns on the way but one reason that I wanted to be home the next morning was the interview which had been set up for me. I wanted to be home and have my resume opened in front of me on the screen in case the ask something that I don't remember. I reached home at 03:30 and woke up at 08:00 and attended the phone interview without having an issue and needing the resume but that was the risk I didn't want to take at the time. This was not the first time I was driving back to Calgary from Lower Mainland but this time, specifically, I started very late and that, I repeat, became the problem. Next time I'm going on Highway # 1 to get to British Columbia or to go back to Alberta, I make sure either I start early or sleep on day on the way. 

(Photo: An avalanche tunnel or snow shed in Coquihalla Highway. This road is also called Highway # 5 and connects Hope to Merritt. Coquihalla in the local native language means Stingy Container!! There must be quite a story behind this naming)