A Quick Update

I have been doing some relaxing trying to relieve some of the stress that kept building between January of this year and about a week ago. I have been busy working on content for my creative writing blog as well as working on my third blog. Writing has become soothing for me, although the tranquilizers my doctor has me on have also been a huge help.

I don't enjoy being on medication so I hope that I will be able to get some sleep with out having to take the tranquilizers. I haven't forgot about this blog. After I get some house work done tomorrow I am planning on taking my aging camera out to the beach near by and hopefully find a few shots that will be good for another Wordless Wednesday here. There have been a lot of interesting stories in the news lately that I would like to try and write something on, but I have to finish work on what will be my first guest post.

If anybody would like me to write a guest post for them please contact me through a comment here on my blog. But in other news I'm getting a kick out of the stories surrounding Barrack Obama and Hillary Clinton. American politics always tends to amuse me. Another announcement for you is that I will be working on an updating schedule for all three of my blogs. I have already decided that every Wednesday and Saturday there will be a new part of my web-novel for any of you that are interested; added to my creative writing blog.

The time away from work has given me an opportunity to focus more on my writing and getting better. I would much rather prefer to write full time as it is far less stressful then working for someone else. I will be adding a donate button for anyone who is generous enough to purchase a coffee for me. That is all I have for now, thank you all for you comments and please take the time to check out all of my blogs.

Majik signing off ... for now.

Thursday Thought

For some of you who have been visiting my blog frequently it would seem as if I have been absent without leave, well the simple truth of the matter is that I have been off work on stress leave. Things have been far too hectic at work and the lack of team work from those who I work with have driven my stress levels through the roof. Thankfully I have seen my doctor and he has put me on some tranquilizers to help me cope with the stress and relax my nerves. The time off has given me the opportunity to give my brother a hand moving to another city that is at least a 3 hour drive from my front door. Since the drive was so long I couldn't leave my little dog in the house all day long so I brought him with me. The first picture is of him actually behaving around other people. Believe me, getting him to that point was a challenge but he is becoming more and more behaved as the days go by.

The second picture was taken on the drive out there. I had another picture from the drive but the reflection of the dashboard on the windshield made it less appealing. My Sister-in-law was doing the driving on the way out there. All in all we took three vehicles, my Mom's car, my Dad's van and of course the moving company brought their own truck. The drive out there was not too bad, the drive back was a different story. I had to drive my Mom back to town because she's not used to driving long distances and I am.

This last picture is a long distance shot of the Canadian Snowbirds. There was an air show in the area where my brother was moving to and we got to catch a glimpse of the Snowbirds in action. If I had a better camera the picture would have turned out a little clearer, I guess I just have to save up to get a new camera. I'll worry about that after I take care of my nasty sunburn. I'm never going out with no sun screen on again! I hope you all enjoy these few pictures, I will be going out to get some more pictures for another Wordless Wednesday later on this week.

An Awesome View!

I'm not sure what the blurry thing in the foreground is...maybe its a ghost? My buddy has this view from his living room, what a spectacular view?

Afganistan is Getting Brave

Has the effort to rebuild Afghanistan given Prime Minister Hamid Karzai too much confidence in his troops? I read a report today stating that Karzai is threatening to send Afghan troops into Pakistan to search and destroy Taliban insurgents. There still are over ten thousand international troops in Afghanistan making an effort to stabilize the nation, Canada has 2500 troops doing their part in the region. Granted every nation has the right to defend itself, is this the right course to pursue?

Is threatening a nation with nuclear capabilities a good idea? Not even if you have nuclear capabilities. Especially if your nation is not yet stable. Afghanistan does not have nuclear capabilities as well there still are International contingents of troops within the country dedicated to stabilizing the nation. This really is a bold move by the Afghan Prime Minister.

Granted this seems like an act of desperation. Karzai has pleaded with International forces to deal with the cross-border attacks but this was the first threat he's made. One could argue that if a plea for help defending oneself they have to defend themselves in which ever way they see fit. But what does Pakistan say about all of this?

Pakistan can understand why Karzai would want to stop cross-border attacks but says that the border is too long to post troops on it. It is in Pakistan's interest to have stable neighbors but will not tolerate those who interfere with their territorial limits. What does all of this have to do with Canadians? Other than affecting our troops serving in Afghanistan, it gives us more of a reason to want them home. If this threat goes any further I really think we should withdraw our support. If Karzai wants to begin a war with a more powerful nation before his country is stable than Canada should pull out of Afghanistan.

Pakistan has not always been cooperative when dealing with terrorists. If they want to prevent a war with Afghanistan they should work with Karzai to get the Taliban out of Pakistan. But are they harboring the Taliban? We won't really know for sure until the history books have been recorded on this scuffle in the middle east.

News source: Karzai threatens to send Afghan forces into Pakistan

Looking Up!

This is a tree in my back yard that I just looked up and realized what a cool picture it would make. I may not be a photographer but now that I have a flash card reader it is much easier to get pictures on my computer so I got a little snap happy!

And the Winner is...

The day has finally come for me to give away 500ec to my top dropper for the past 30 days. There were quite a few that were tied but there can only be one winner so the first person to drop from my top droppers was chosen. And the winner is Drum roll please... Chilly from On The Bricks. Congratulations I hope you will enjoy the 500ec which will be on its way in a matter of minutes. For the runners up, since you took the time to comeback and drop your card 30 times in the past 30 days, I have decided that you will each receive 50ec. The runners up in no particular order are:

Stir the Cauldron
Personal Finance Management
CK Marketing
Devils View~~Study
The Success Blog

So now that I am 750ec lighter I hope you all will keep coming back and keep dropping your cards. Thanks for making this contest a little interesting and keep those comments coming, I haven't given up on my Random Comment Contest yet!

Random Comment Contest

I've enjoyed reading your comments since I have started this contest. I will be continuing this contest for as long as I am signed up with Entrecard. Some of your comments have been really useful and entertaining so why stop now?

Anyway I would also like to announce the winner of last weeks Randomly selected Comment: Shinade from The Painted Veil has won this weeks 100ec. Keep those comments coming and I will announce another winner next weekend.

And for those that have commented on last weeks "Wordless Wednesday" ... of course I will be posting after pictures of my summer project. I just have to finish it first!

My Summer Project

As you can see, the back of my house needs some work done to it. Since I usually work very long hours Monday to Friday it will be one of those weekend projects that I will be working on.

Emergency Toilet Repair!

Since Entrecard is still down I got to spend some time going through different News Networks' pages today. It seems that the toilet on the ISS (International Space Station) is partially broken down. The Space shuttle Discovery was launched yesterday carrying emergency plumbing supplies and the Japanese Kibo laboratory. I wonder what a leaky toilet would look like in space? Another important note for Canadians is that an ex-pat will be joining the crew of the Space Station for the next six months.

Going forward with the construction of the Space Station is a very important step for all of mankind. We have had a need to search out the unknown since before Columbus swore that the earth was round and not flat. We have come a long way since we have discovered that the earth is indeed round and we still have a lot more ground to cover. Creating an outpost for humanity in the darkness of space will help us get to Mars and beyond. Where am I going with this? Anyway, it is important that a Canadian ex-pat will be joining the crew of the ISS for the next six months.

I'm not sure if many of you have heard but the Canadian Space Agency is looking for more astronauts. I doubt I have much chance of becoming one, but I am sure there are quite a few Canadians who are willing to try. This has not been the first time the CSA has been looking to increase their number of employee's and I am sure that it will not be the last time either. I hope to hear more on their recruitment in the coming months. I also hope that they get that toilet they have on the station fixed as well, that could get really messy. All that urine floating around can't be good for the crew. Anyway be of luck to the Astronauts throughout their current mission!

Image Source: NASA
News Story: Shuttle lifts off with Montreal-born astronaut aboard