The Riptide Dragon Boat Crew

Here's the full Riptide Dragon Boat Crew team photo and our great uniforms!

A Good Showing for Riptide B

TCBA Jr.'s Riptide B team finished 3rd in the Industries Final B race this past Sunday, at the Toronto International Dragon Boat Race Festival (TIDBRF). A lot of new faces to the sport in general were on the B team and hopefully this will make them want to improve and come back even better!

Personal Development Goal Updates

I'm half-way through reading "Jack: Straight From the Gut" and am understanding just how smart Jack Welch is as a business leader and why he might rightfully deserve his outrageous pension plan and retirement benefits from GE... I cracked open C.S. Lewis' "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" while on Centre Island this past weekend. I don't remember when I last read this novel but I'm going to re-read it and the rest of the Chronicles of Narnia. This book will also be made into a film to be released before Christmas 2005.

As for joining a gym, I will be doing so via a corporate plan from work. Unfortunately this membership doesn't start until August 1, so I need to find a free trial or guest membership in the meantime...

Because of my participation in the TIDBRF on Saturday and Sunday, I woke up before 07:00 on both days - small victories considering I probably only had four hours of sleep on both nights.

Personal Development Goal #1 Update

I'm currently reading "Jack: Straight From the Gut" by Jack Welch. It may seem like a strange selection but reading the autobiography of the former GE CEO and about his management style and insights could prove beneficial in my own career development and future business aspirations.

Note: Regarding PDG #1, these will be actual paperback/hardcover books and not e-books.

Writing It Down Helps

After reading this blog entry a few weeks ago on waking up early, it occurred to me how unproductive each day is for me. There's room for personal development in everyone and I'm far from being an exception. So here's a short list of attainable personal development goals (PDG) I'm setting and I'll post updates on their progress as the year goes on.

1. To improve my degrading and embarassingly limited vocobulary, read 5 books (fiction, non-fiction, tech-related) in 2005
2. To increase fitness and energy levels, join a gym and work out at least 4 times a week
3. If the next day is a work day, wake up no later than 07:00 (or earlier if working out in the morning)

My expected results from reaching these PDG goals are that they become good habits and not just temporary achievements. The deadline to begin achieving these goals is the end of this month: June 30!

City Skyscrapers

Toronto's new skyline: high-rise condominiums, new high-rise condominiums, the "Rogers Centre," some tower overlooking the new high-rise condominiums, some high-rise condominiums, and some more new high-rise condominiums.


This was taken from the ferry on my way to volunteer for the Nike RunTO 10KM run on Sunday, May 29, 2005.

Mercedes-McLaren Anyone?

The 2005 Grand Prix of Canada winner, Kimi Raikkonen, taking his victory lap with Michael Schumacher trailing him - just as he was doing for the last remaining dozen laps.

Untitled (How Can This Happen To Me)

At the end of the Formula 1 race (the very last event on Sunday), Montreal's own Simple Plan performed for the thousands of racing fans

Coming to You From Grandstand 33

Here's another angle from my seating area with the 2 Renault cars (Fisichella and Alonso) winding their way out of a few turns. I happily sat on the stairs for more leg room and space instead of the cramped seats we paid for! Next time, just buy General Admission tix...

Real Zoom Zoom

Here's a glimpse of one of the 2 leading (at the time) Renault cars as it accelerates out of the first intermediate. This was taken from grandstand #33 with Montreal in the background.

Montreal / Grand Prix Weekend

Why is blogging so hard? I say because it's so easy not to post to your own blog. And that I never post often enough to make it a habit. So here's my first post in a looooooong time.

Attending my first Grand Prix of Canada (or any GP for that matter) was amazing - the sights, the incredible sounds, and the hot weather made it another memorable experience. Sunday had fantastic weather for race day and we were all glad that Raikkonen was able to hold of Schumacher to win the race. In the cool but strange category, RC and I were sitting at the very end of our grandstand next to the track and we discovered souvenirs on our arms - tiny specks of tire rubber that were strewn off the track. Saturday's qualifying was grueling to watch because of the intense heat and humidity (track temp was a cool 50 celsius) - the sun burns didn't help afterwards either. Pictures to be posted later. And if MS can get the video onto his PC, maybe vidcaps, too.

As for Montreal, we were all staying at some guy's apartment that he rents out to visitors and on Saturday night the guys & girls went to this club/bar called the Loft just off Rue Ste. Catherine. This was a 'cool' place with an industrial/underground theme inside and a huge rooftop patio. Typical dance and top40 music was playing on the dance floor but I couldn't muster the energy to move with everyone else. Feeling feverish at work on Friday then driving for over 5 hours to Montreal, and then getting to sleep past 4am and waking up at 8am - that all made me just a bit too tired. At least I dominated at foosball on the overpriced and non-professional "fabi" table... can't wait to play on the Tornado table at work again!

How to make yourself feel like a parent way too soon: Drive a minivan with a rear DVD entertainment system with the back full of adults acting like babies. Thankfully Harold & Kumar was hilarious to listen to...