Baratza Vario grinder - home barista's dream.

Sure, $450 Canadian is a chunk for a home grinder, but oh, what a grinder! 230 'steps' completing the range from the finest espresso (or, say, Turkish) all the way to french press and everything in between. Coffee devotees or curious folks with time on their hands, read the details here.

Sean's jazz starting 5

With Team Canada announcing their invitations to camp and the summer jazz festival season winding down, I thought I'd combine threads to list my "starting 5" of jazz, alive or otherwise. Thoughts and dissenting opinions savagely encouraged.

Drums - Art Blakey
Sax - John Coltrane
Guitar - Wes Montgomery
Trumpet - Miles Davis (Wynton Marsalis off the bench)
Piano - Thelonious Monk (Herbie Hancock as alternate)

New weather symbol - smoke!

What a strange symbol. Never saw that before.

What's behind the HST?

Since 2005 Ottawa has increased program spending at twice the rate of inflation. Even before the wheels came off the economy last fall, federal spending had hit the highest point ever, under Stephen Harper. Despite pledging in the last election he would not allow an annual deficit, it’s now going to be at least $50 billion (a record), and will take years to reduce.

The Parliamentary budget officer estimates at least $200 billion will be added to the national debt. That debt is financed mostly by bonds. When the government is forced to flood the marketplace with new bond issues, it competes for capital, and forces mortgage rates up. That interest on $600 billion debt is tax money, transferred from your income to the pocket of investors. It doesn’t buy a single new MRI machine, fund a school or fill a senior’s prescription.

Thanks Garth Turner.

War / No More Trouble

Thanks Nancy S. for the link.

Teaser of Team Canada's entry into the 2009 Celebration of Light

Thanks M. Kalus (follow link to full 27 minute video).

Shuffle Demons - August 8th in Maple Ridge

Demons' resume: 3 saxes, bass, drums, one goatee, 6 albums, 5 Casby Awards, 2 Toronto Musician Awards, 1 Juno nomination, 7 videos, 700,000 km, 3800 concerts, 6500 conga lines, 1 cockroach, 12 Beer my dears, 100,000 rubles, 1 Spadina Bus, 21 countries, 15 European tours, 20 Canadian tours. Oh yeah!

Power of Social Networking

10 Killer Resume Phrases to Get You Hired:

* Guaranteed not to fall asleep, much.
* Will give 110%, 10% of the time
* I always show up to work on time, if you come and get me.
* There's no I in Team, but there is an M and an E
* I'm all about making money
* Likely to Perform well
* Will do almost anything, once we define "anything"
* Plays well with others
* Great personality, when medicated properly

Thanks Liz Ryan.

Afghan reality

Diplomacy, your hour has come. There is no way soldiers will find an exit from Afghanistan. They can deliver defeat or they can deliver bloody stalemate. They cannot deliver victory and every observer knows it. This conflict will end only when the courage being daily demanded of soldiers is also shown by politicians.

Simon Jenkins, the Guardian (UK).

Steve McQueen vs. Lewis Hamilton